Fans don’t see Josh Jacobs or Saquon Barkley signing contract extensions soon

Many fans in this community don’t see a fast resolution for the Las Vegas Raiders and Josh Jacobs’ contract situation as well as Saquon Barkley’s contract issues with the New York Giants.

We recently conducted a poll, asking which player, Jacobs or Barkley, would sign a contract extension with their respective teams. We also had a category that neither Jacobs nor Barkley will sign a contract extension by the July 17 deadline for players who were given the franchise tag this offseason.

In the poll, in which 377 votes were cast, 57 percent of the voters believe neither Jacobs nor Barkley will sign an extension before the deadline. Thirty-three percent think Barkley will sign an extension first while just 10 percent think Jacobs will sign an extension first.

Jacobs, the 2022 NFL rushing yardage king, has stayed away from the Las Vegas Raiders’ during the offseason and during the mandatory minicamp earlier this month. He, of course, was given the franchise tag and will either sign a long-term deal, sign and play for the franchise tag price (just north of $10 million for 2023) or hold out.

One could surmise from multiple cryptic tweets from Jacobs recently that the current contract talk mood isn’t great in Jacobs’ mind and there was a recent report that stated Jacobs may hold out into the season. Like Jacobs, Barkley was given the franchise tag and he wants a long-term deal as well and he hasn’t signed his tag. Dallas’ Tony Pollard, coming off an injury, has signed his tag, but still wants a new deal. Yet, if not, he will for sure play in Dallas in 2023.

NFL Media has reported this week that Barkley and the Giants have resumed contract talks. So, perhaps a long-term deal can be struck before next month’s deadline. If Barkley signs a new deal, it would give Jacobs and the Raiders a relevant guideline to try to finish a deal.

Yet, many fans understandably aren’t overly optimistic about it.