More news concerning the process by which Saquon Barkley arrived at his current position has come out. Conflicting reports have emerged, but one key takeaway is the interest shown by a team long thought to be in the market for a different veteran running back. 
Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio reports that, upon the Giants’ decision to use the franchise tag on Barkley, his agents requested the team shop him in an effort to find a suitable trade partner. The Giants themselves (along with several outlets, as well as Barkley himself) have denied that New York ever intended to move on from the two-time Pro Bowler, who has repeatedly stated his intention of spending his full career in the Big Apple.
Providing clarity on the matter, the New York Post’s Ryan Dunleavy notes that teams called the Giants to explore the possibility of a trade. Specifically, two clubs inquired about Barkley’s availability, and New York turned down the offers which were made. One of those, per Dunleavy, was the Dolphins.
Miami has long been connected to Dalvin Cook, by far the most high-profile name left on the open market amongst running backs. A deal sending the four-time Pro Bowler to his hometown team is something for which mutual interest is believed to exist, though the current offer on the table is not sufficient in Cook’s view. Miami has a number of backs on the roster already, but winning the Cook sweepstakes would provide a considerable boost to their ground game.
Intra-divisional competition in the form of the Patriots and Jets has emerged, so the Dolphins’ attention will likely remain on Cook for the time being. In any event, it is certainly notable they went as far as to make an offer for Barkley when his long-term Giants future was in doubt. The latter team’s approach kept Barkley’s market quiet, though, paving the way for today’s resolution to his short-term situation.
The 26-year-old agreed to an adjusted franchise tag which includes $900K in incentives above the $10.1MM he was set to earn by playing on the tender. That move has not addressed Barkley’s long-term future in New York (seeing as the team could simply tag him again next season), but it marked an end to an offseason in which the Giants fielded calls on what would have been a franchise-altering trade.
Mike McDaniel is determined to get his elite RB. Coming from the 49ers and seeing how that offense operates is understandable. CMac took that offense to the next level when he joined SF, guess McDaniel is dead set on getting an elite RB to compliment his WR duo. If the Dolphins do not get Dalvin Cook I would be shocked at this point.