Saquon Barkley’s father will be cheering on his son at MetLife Stadium on Sunday, but he won’t be sporting any New York Giants blue.
Instead, Alibay Barkley, a lifelong die-hard Jets fan who has a Gang Green tattoo on his forearm, told his son that he will wear a throwback Joe Namath jersey when the two teams play this weekend.
With the Jets 1-7, Alibay Barkley won’t choose his son over his team. Instead, he will compromise and root for both teams, a complicated dynamic, while wearing the throwback jersey that was gifted to him by his son.
“Nah, not to win. The win is for us [the Giants],” Saquon Barkley told reporters on Thursday. “But he’s also, I think what he said is he’s probably going to wear a Jets jersey. That is going to be an interesting one. I give it to him because it’s a Joe Namath jersey. I think I got him that jersey actually, the Joe Namath one.
“At the end of the day, I knew this situation was going to come up. But I’m happy for him. I was a Jets fan growing up, too, so it’s fun. It’s going to be a little fun competition in the Barkley house.”
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Saquon Barkley grew up a Jets fan and welcomed the thought of the Jets drafting him leading up to the 2018 NFL draft. The Jets, however, had their eyes set on a quarterback and the Giants picked a spot ahead of their neighbors.
“If the Jets drafted me, I loved the Jets and was a Jets fan growing up,” Barkley said during the 2018 NFL Combine. “Right now, I’m kind of neutral. If the Jets drafted me, the Giants, it’s going to be a blessing. No matter what team drafts you, you are never going to forget that moment.”
