Saquon Barkley already working out at practice after missing one game with high ankle sprain
New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley looks like he was built in a lab somewhere, so maybe it shouldn’t be a surprise if he returns much more quickly than expected from a high ankle sprain.
The first reports said Barkley could miss as many as eight weeks. He missed last week’s game against the Washington Redskins, but said he hoped to beat the timetable for his return.
[Watch live NFL games on the Yahoo Sports app, here's how]
Surprisingly enough Barkley was doing some work at practice on Wednesday, a week-and-a-half after suffering the injury. Giants coach Pat Shurmur wouldn’t rule him out playing this week, though Jordan Raanan of ESPN said he will not play on Sunday. However, Barkley said he could return next week, Raanan said.
Saquon Barkley does some drills
Art Stapleton of the Bergen Record posted a video on Twitter that should be a welcomed sight to all Giants fans, fantasy players and basically anyone who likes watching NFL superstars on Sundays:
Significant development: #NYGiants RB Saquon Barkley stretched + working with training staff during media access. Light running, change of direction. Looks very good, like himself. Not practicing, but promising sign in quest to obliterate 4-8 week timetable for high ankle sprain. pic.twitter.com/xim3YQxqhU
— Art Stapleton (@art_stapleton) October 2, 2019
As Stapleton said, Barkley isn’t practicing. There’s a big difference between running some drills and being able to play by Sunday. It’s incremental progress.
But even assuming Barkley doesn’t play this week, it seems like he’ll be back sooner than expected. Next week might be tough because the Giants play Thursday night against the Patriots, but the fact that it’s even possible is a good sign.
Giants have won two in a row
The Giants have done well without Barkley. They came back to beat the Buccaneers in the game Barkley suffered the injury. They beat the Redskins next week.
With new starting quarterback Daniel Jones, the Giants have renewed hope. They’re 2-2, a game back in the NFC East. Their prospects of staying in the playoff hunt will look even better when Barkley is back in the lineup.
Based on his work on the field Wednesday, that could be happening reasonably soon.
– – – – – – –
Frank Schwab is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at shutdown.corner@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @YahooSchwab
More from Yahoo Sports:
