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Giants Now (7/15): Saquon joins exclusive list

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Saquon joins Hall of Fame RB Barry Sanders in exclusive group

Saquon Barkley's first two seasons in the NFL have been nothing short of special.

Barkley took the league by storm as a rookie. After being selected with the second overall pick in the 2018 draft, the Bronx native went on to play all 16 games and accumulated 2,028 yards from scrimmage and 15 touchdowns. Barkley set the NFL record for receptions by a rookie running back with his 91 catches and the record for most 100+ yards from scrimmage games by a rookie with 12.

Barkley also set Giants franchise records for most rushing touchdowns in a season by a rookie, most rushing yards in a season by a rookie, and most total touchdowns in a season by a rookie.

The talented back took home several honors that year, including the Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Year award, the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year award and the FedEx Ground NFL Player of the Year award. He was named to the Pro Football Writers Association's All-Rookie Team and the AP All-Rookie Team, and was also selected to the 2019 Pro Bowl.

Pro Football Focus recently recognized Barkley for his phenomenal rookie campaign. The analytics site listed the Giants' star back as one of the highest-graded rookie running backs of the decade with an overall grade of 85.2.

Despite missing three and a half games in 2019, Barkley still rushed for over 1,000 yards, becoming the first running back in team history to reach the 1,000-yard rushing mark in each of his first two seasons. The 23-year-old has proven to be one of the most explosive runners in the NFL, in addition to being one of the most difficult players to take down. He has already registered nearly 3,500 yards from scrimmage and 23 total touchdowns in his first two seasons.

Barkley joined Eric Dickerson and Edgerrin James as the only players to reach 2,000 yards from scrimmage in their rookie season. His performance in his second season helped him join an even more exclusive group.

The Giants star back is one of only two players in NFL history to have accumulated at least 20 total touchdowns and 3,400 yards from scrimmage in under 625 touches throughout their first two seasons. The other member of this exclusive group is Hall of Fame running back Barry Sanders.

Tiki Barber named Giants' best player not in Hall of Fame

Tiki Barber enjoyed a strong career with the Giants. After starting 11 games over his first three seasons, Barber took over as the team's primary running back in 2000. Over the next seven seasons, he ran for over 1,000 yards six times, including three seasons with over 2,000 total yards from scrimmage.

Barber finished his career with 2,217 rushing attempts for 10,449 yards and 55 touchdowns, averaging 4.7 yards per carry, while catching 586 passes for 5,183 yards and 12 touchdowns. He was named to the Pro Bowl three times and was named First-Team All-Pro in 2005.

The Virginia native holds the franchise record in rushing yards, almost 4,000 yards more than the next running back (Rodney Hampton, 6,897 yards) and ranks second in rushing touchdowns. He was inducted into the Giants Ring of Honor in 2010.

CBS Sports’ Bryan DeAdro recently named Barber the Giants' best player to not be enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

As DeAdro writes, "After receiving just 11 starts during his first three seasons, Barber broke through in 2000, amassing over 1,700 all-purpose yards while helping the Giants reach the Super Bowl. He went on to enjoy six more highly productive seasons with the Giants that included three consecutive Pro Bowl seasons. Barber earned All-Pro honors in 2005, when he rushed for a career-high 1,860 yards (the 13th-highest single-season total in NFL history). During his final three seasons, Barber averaged 1,680 rushing yards (while averaging 5 yards per carry) and 2,204 all-purpose yards. In 2006, his final NFL season, Barber rushed for 1,662 yards while reaching 2,000 all-purpose yards for a third straight season."

View photos of the Giants' active roster as it currently stands.

Test your knowledge of Giants' tight ends in this week's trivia

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What about where Mark Bavaro played in college?

Where Howard Cross' 207 games played rank in Giants history?

Photos of Giants tight end Evan Engram.

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