Giants won’t rule Saquon Barkley out for Sunday

[Giant]

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Video taken Wednesday shows Giants running back Saquon Barkley running and changing direction at the team’s practice, which is a welcome development given the long range of a recovery timeline from his ankle injury was two months.

The shorter range was a month, but the Giants aren’t willing to concede that Barkley will even miss this weekend’s game against the Vikings. Head coach Pat Shurmur refused to rule Barkley out for Sunday’s game against the Vikings and scoffed at the idea that Barkley would miss too much more time as a result of the injury.

“Some doctors had him at 8 weeks. Not my doctors,” Shurmur said, via Ralph Vacchiano of SNY.

The Giants play the Patriots on Thursday night in Week Six, so the schedule doesn’t break well for Barkley to push to get back on the field this Sunday and remain at a high level for a second game in a matter of days. That may make the team’s refusal to commit to Wayne Gallman as their lead back this weekend more of a bluff than a realistic outcome, but the fact that it’s even a possibility is a good sign for the Giants offense.