Josh Jacobs Almost Signed With This NFL Team

Josh Jacobs opted for a change of scenery during the 2024 offseason. He is no longer a Las Vegas Raider and chose to sign with the Green Bay Packers. His contract is a 4-year deal for 48 million dollars. That is a lucrative contract, but he deserves it. Jacobs recently debuted with the Packers on Friday against the Philadelphia Eagles in Brazil. This debut almost didn't happen. There was one NFL team that he nearly signed with.

The team that Jacobs almost signed with is the New York Giants. It makes sense as their backfield had to be retooled when they let Saquon Barkley go in the offseason. The Giants made an offer to try and lure Jacobs to play with them. It was rumored to be a big-time offer with more money, but Jacobs had two issues with the idea of playing with the Giants.

The first is obvious, and it's how horrible MetLife Stadium turf is. Look at how it killed the Jets season last year 4 plays in when Aaron Rodgers got hurt. There is a tremendous list of athletes that got severe injuries thanks to how bad the turf is. The continued usage of the turf at MetLife has a tremendous impact on bringing in free agents.

The second issue is that Jacobs was not a fan of the New York lifestyle. The media is a big issue, but a more tremendous issue is the high taxes. New York is one of the highest taxed states in the United States today and Jacobs would pay more in taxes to play there.

The funny part is the Giants would have paid less if they gave Saquon Barkley the contract he wanted. Barkley went on to sign a three-year, $37.75 million contract with the Philadelphia Eagles which is cheaper in total than Jacobs's contract. The guaranteed money for Barkley was more expensive, but the Giants could have easily paid for it.

The Giants had to go to Plan B and get Devin Singletary instead. They also selected Tyrone Tracey in the 5th round of the 2024 NFL Draft. It will be interesting to see how the Giants handle the backfield this year, but it would have been easier if they got Jacobs to play there.