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With the second pick of the 2018 NFL Draft, the New York Giants select: Saquon Barkley.
With the seventh pick of the 2018 NFL Draft, the Buffalo Bills select: Josh Allen.
Four years later, did the Giants make another massive draft mistake?
Yes!
But that is a short answer to a complicated topic. To understand why the selection was a blunder, it is necessary to take a deep dive into the players' three complete seasons.
Rookie seasons with the Giants and Bills
Barkley, who started all 16 games, broke the record for the most receptions by a rookie running back in a single season (91), had 2,028 scrimmage yards (1,307 yards running and 721 yards receiving), scored 15 touchdowns (11 rushing and five receiving), and was elected NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year.
Meanwhile, Allen threw for 2,074 yards, 10 touchdowns, 12 interceptions and a passer rating of 67.9, all while missing four games with a shoulder injury.
Allen also began to show he could be a dual-threat, finishing the year with 631 rushing yards and eight touchdowns in 89 carries.
Sophomore seasons
Despite Barkley missing three games with an ankle injury, he rushed for 1,003 yards and six TDs in 217 attempts. He also received 52 passes for 438 yds and 2 TDs. It was the first time in Giants history that a running back ran for 1,000+ yds in his first two seasons.
Allen improved his rookie numbers, throwing for 3,089 yds, 20 touchdowns and nine interceptions. The QB also ran 109 times, gaining 510 yards and scoring nine touchdowns.
2020 Seasons
Barkley tore his ACL in the Giants' second game, against the Chicago Bears, and missed the entire year.
Conversely, Allen led the Bills to the AFC Championship Game but lost to Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs.
Allen finished the season throwing for 4,544 yds, 37 touchdowns and ten interceptions, with 421 rushing yards and scoring 9 touchdowns. He fumbled nine times, but more importantly, he was in the season MVP talks.
Why did the Giants make a blunder picking Saquon Barkley over Josh Allen?
The Giants took an ancient approach in the 2018 NFL Draft. There is no doubt about Barkley's talent, but given the short life-span of a running back in today's NFL, and taking into consideration that passing is more important than running, selecting a quarterback should always be the priority.
Similar to Aaron Rodgers learning by watching Brett Favre, Allen could have perhaps benefitted from a couple of years of learning from the now-retired Eli Manning had he been drafted by the Giants.
Year after year, the Giants seem to miss in the draft. With the first pick in the last five years, the team selected Evan Engram (2017), Saquon Barkley (2018), Daniel Jones (2019), Andrew Thomas (2020), Kadarius Toney (2021).
These players have yet to make their marks in the league and improvements are expected from each of them from the Giants' brass (the jury is still out on these players as they are indeed young).
And yes, a case can be made that the Giants made a blunder selecting Saquon Barkley over Josh Allen. But with some of the more obvious draft misses by the Giants, that shouldn't be a surprise.
