Giants ignored call that could have altered Saquon Barkley draft, insider reports

The 2018 NFL Draft could have looked entirely different had Dave Gettleman, then the general manager of the Giants, answered one phone call.

On Friday, NFL insider Connor Hughes of SNY told WFAN’s Brandon Tierney and Sal Licata that then-Broncos executive John Elway was trying desperately to trade Denver’s fifth pick for New York’s second pick in 2018. But Gettleman, who was dead set on drafting Penn State running back Saquon Barkley second-overall, ghosted him.

The reason Elway wanted to make the trade was that he desperately wanted USC quarterback Sam Darnold. So much so that former Jets general manager Mike Maccagnan was “petrified that John (Elway) was going to call the Giants and offer the house for No. 2 in order to get Sam Darnold,” Hughes said, via Audacy.

After Gettleman ignored the Hall of Fame quarterback’s call, selecting Barkley with the second pick, Maccagnan’s Jets selected Darnold third overall. Two picks later, the Broncos selected NC State defensive end Bradley Chubb.

“(Maccagnan) told me he saw John (Elway) and said to him, ‘I was surprised you didn’t do that, I really thought you were trying to jump us,’ and they did – but Dave (Gettelman) wouldn’t answer the phone,” Hughes said. “Dave was so locked in on No. 2 that he wouldn’t answer the phone. So, when Dave said in his press conference they didn’t need to even take calls, they ran it up to get Barkley – he was not lying.”

Six seasons later and the Giants are still feeling the ramifications of that draft — the Jets are too for that matter. In selecting Barkley, they left a meager offensive line that allowed Eli Manning to get sacked 31 times in 2017 unaddressed. In 2018, Manning was sacked a career-high 47 times.

While Barkley has been the team’s best player since they drafted him, his presence hasn’t yielded much for the organization’s success overall. Since 2018, the Giants have had three coaches — Pat Shurmur, Joe Judge and Brian Daboll — and…