‘Hard Knocks’ details Giants’ trade talks for Brian Burns, Saquon Barkley decision

It turns out that trade negotiations can happen in the public eye. At least that’s how trade talks between the New York Giants and Carolina Panthers regarding Pro Bowl edge rusher Brian Burns began this offseason.

In the season debut of “Hard Knocks: Offseason with the New York Giants,” Giants general manager Joe Schoen jokingly asked Panthers general manager Dan Morgan if he wanted the sixth overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. Morgan countered with his own trade proposal while the two were scouting players at the Senior Bowl.

“You wanna give us two ones for [Brian] Burns?” Morgan asked.

Schoen’s tone went from joking around to excitement. He uttered an “Ooh!” as he pressed Morgan on the possibility of trading for Burns.

“No. I mean, yes, but …,” Schoen replied.

Morgan interrupted with a counteroffer.

“Or a one and something,” Morgan said

“OK,” Schoen responded. “You’re headed in the right direction.”

A trade for Burns wasn’t agreed to on the spot as it was only late January. Burns was still a pending free agent at the time, though many expected him to receive the franchise tag, which allowed the Panthers to trade him.

Earlier in the episode, Giants pro scouting director Chris Rossetti said that acquiring Burns would likely cost the team at least a first-round pick during a meeting with staffers discussing the upcoming free agency. The first episode didn’t detail the final negotiations, but the Giants wound up acquiring Burns for a second-round pick and a fourth-round pick. Burns also received a five-year, $141 million deal as part of the trade.

The first episode also detailed the Giants’ early thought process on how they would approach Saquon Barkley‘s free agency. Schoen told Giants owner John Mara that he wasn’t going to franchise tag Barkley unless they knew they had a trade offer for him two days after Super Bowl LVIII.

“In a perfect world, I’d still like to have him back,” Mara said when Schoen shared Barkley wouldn’t be franchise tagged. “Until we can prove we can have a decent offense without him.”

Schoen pointed to a handful of other running backs the team could acquire for a cheaper cost than Barkley, saying he’d rather use the money to “upgrade the offensive line.

“Daniel [Jones is] making a lot of money,” Schoen told Mara. “We’ve got to figure out if he’s the guy. So, we’ve got to protect him. We’ve got to put resources there.

“You’re paying the guy $40 million,” Schoen added, referring to Jones’ salary. “It’s not to hand the ball off to a $12 million back.”

In a meeting later on with his staffers, Schoen and the rest of the Giants’ front office seemed to come to the conclusion that they wouldn’t be franchise-tagging Barkley nor would they be giving him a big contract. Schoen also made an admission about how contract negotiations went with Barkley after they gave him the franchise tag in 2023.

“That was 10 years off my life, dealing with that,” Schoen said of the failed extension negotiations with Barkley in 2023. “Emotionally, it was draining. We spent a lot of time on it. But again, I don’t want that to be the reason we don’t do what’s best for the franchise.”

Additionally, the episode touched on how Schoen assessed Jones entering this offseason. After the quarterback received a four-year, $160 million deal last offseason, Jones threw for only 909 yards, two touchdowns and six interceptions as the Giants went 1-5 in the six games he started. He suffered a neck injury in Week 5 that caused him to miss the ensuing two games. When he returned in Week 8, Jones tore his ACL, ending his season.

As many wondered if the Giants would replace Jones as their starting quarterback this offseason, Schoen defended him. He also hinted, however, about the team making an investment at backup quarterback, saying the “best predictor of the future is the past.”

The Giants wound up signing Seattle Seahawks quarterback Drew Lock to a one-year deal.

“Last year, we were better at every f—ing position on defense,” Schoen told a pair of Giants staffers. “We were better at some positions on offense and we f—ing won six games. We’re going to draft, we’re going to sign good guys. We got to win. The reality is: three serious injuries in two years. We need to protect ourselves.

“[Jones] didn’t have much of a chance this year. That’s legit. All season, the four core guys we’re going to play together played less than 60 snaps together. In Miami, we had three practice squad guys playing for us. You could have Pat Mahomes and you can’t f—ing win behind that. I’m not giving up on him. He’s under contract for three more years.”

Even though Schoen backed Jones, he also asserted that the time is ticking on him to prove he’s a reliable, long-term starting quarterback in the NFL.

“This is the year for Daniel,” Schoen said. “The plan all along was to give him a couple years. Is he our guy for the next 10 years? Or do we need to pivot and go find someone else?”

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