Saquon Barkley continues to be evasive about whether he will be ready for training camp, the preseason, and regular-season action.
Speaking at his youth football camp on Monday, Barkley said he "feels pretty good" but doesn't know if he'll be ready to practice when training camp kicks off. Similarly, he responded, "I don't know," when asked about Week 1, per Ralph Vacchiano of SNY.
Barkley suffered a torn ACL in Week 2 of the 2020 season. Given that the injury occurred last September, usually right about now is when the athlete will spout optimism about his recovery process and that he'll return new and improved.
Those tropes aren't what we've heard from Barkley this offseason. The star running back has consistently been elusive when asked about rehab. He's tread cautiously at every phase.
Barkley was asked Monday if his muted responses regarding the injury stem from a desire to retain the shroud of mystery, or if he honestly doesn't know when he'll be cleared to participate.
"I don't know," he responded, per Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post. "Nah. Yeah, I've been asked a lot. I guess that's the theme of the summer, going to be when I'll be back. But no, I don't have that answer, to be honest. I'm not trying to lead it up to it or something like that or put something up. I don't have the answer. It's a fun process, but it's a tough process at the same time. Just have to continue to listen to my body, listen to my trainers, listen to the coaches and take it day by day."
The cautious nature in which Barkley discusses his rehab suggests we might not see the running back during training camp, which kicks off next week. It's possible that his recovery also delays the start of his 2021 campaign, which would be a big blow to Big Blue's offense.