Saquon Barkley calls Giants QB Daniel Jones a 'player'

Second-year running back Saquon Barkley is calling first-round Giants pick quarterback Daniel Jones a great teammate one week into training camp.

New York Giants rookie quarterback Daniel Jones is a “player,” according to second-year running back Saquon Barkley.

Jones, 22, was selected with the Giants' sixth overall pick in the 2019 draft. New York shocked the league by taking the under-rated Duke QB that high in the draft. The Giants used their two other first-round picks on defensive players—Clemson tackle Dexter Lawrence and Georgia cornerback Deandre Baker.

Jones meanwhile has been the target of scrutiny surrounding the Giants and their seemingly lack of awareness to rebuild amidst longtime QB and two-time Super Bowl champion Eli Manning's noticeable and public decline in performance.

Nevertheless, Barkley, a 2019 Pro-Bowler and offensive rookie of the year, believes in his new teammate, who he may be sharing the backfield with in years to come.

Via Giants.com:

DJ, he’s a player. I know you guys saw that dime over there to Perk (Paul Perkins), who made an unbelievable catch, but you can see he’s getting a lot more comfortable, he’s understanding the offense a lot more. Him and Eli are vibing really well. Eli’s being a great, I don’t want to say mentor, I know that’s what people try to make it seem, but just a teammate. Being a great teammate, helping him out, and all those quarterbacks, with Kyle (Lauletta), with (Alex) Tanney, and all of them, are doing a really good job. Like I said, I’m excited to see—I know we play soon with our preseason game, and I’m excited to see him in live action.

The Giants kick off their preseason with a local matchup against the New York Jets on August 8th. They'll later play the Chicago Bears, Cincinnati Bengals, and New England Patriots to round out their preseason schedule in August.