Safety Xavier McKinney and running back Saquon Barkley were teammates for four seasons with the New York Giants. Barkley came to New York as the No. 2 pick in the 2018 draft and McKinney came two years later as the Giants’ second-round pick (No. 36 overall) in the 2020 draft.

Together, they endured the ups and downs of the struggling Giants franchise. Their only shining season was 2022, when the team reached the playoffs for the first time since 2016 and won its first postseason game since 2011, a 31-24 wild-card victory over the Minnesota Vikings.

This week, however, former Giants teammates, who signed as free agents last offseason after spending the previous four seasons competing against each other on the practice field, face off in a live game: Barkley for the Philadelphia Eagles and McKinney for the Green Bay Packers.

“I’m looking forward to playing against Xavier,” Barkley told CBS Sports:. “He’s not only a great player, but he’s a great leader. When we were in New York, he led like that, worked like that – he strives to be great. I know he does that over there.”

McKinney still has a lot of respect for his former teammate. tell The athlete“He’s just dynamic with the ball. He does pretty much everything you’d expect from a running back. … He’s a special running back.”

Barkley revealed how he gave McKinney his first “Welcome to the NFL” moment during a Giants practice during his rookie season.

“In practice, we played a gap scheme game and I ran up the middle and he took me down. I kind of had the upper hand on him there,” Barkley said, adding, “He’ll probably try to retaliate against me.”

Barkley will soon find out when the Eagles and Packers take the field for the first NFL game of the regular season in Brazil on Friday, September 6. Kickoff is set for 8:15 p.m. Eastern Time.