During the visit, President Trump claims he advised the Giants not to let Barkley walk. Whether or not these conversations happened is one thing, but Barkley did leave New York for Philadelphia in the 2024 offseason.

“I was with the Giants and the head coach [Brian Daboll] and some people and I said, ‘Do anything you have to, but don’t lose Saquon,’” Trump recalled before boasting, “They lost Saquon. That was not good. I called that one. That was an easy one to call because he played d**n well for the Giants, I can tell you that.”

However, Giants spokesperson Pat Hanlon refuted these comments to Front Office Sports. Hanlon says “there were no conversations” between Trump and the Giants regarding Barkley. When asked if they could confirm any conversations with him or for a comment, Hanlon said, “No.”

On April 28, 2025, Hanlon also took to X, formerly Twitter, to address Trump, tagging his account. “With all due respect, stop yapping,” Hanlon’s post began. “Be the leader we all want you to be. And my 401K wants you to be. I’m trying to retire!!”

Before the Eagles even made it to the White House, former Giants running back Saquon Barkley was seen hanging out with Donald Trump throughout the week leading up to the event. They were seen golfing among other activities, which Barkley addressed.

“Lol some people are really upset ’cause I played golfed and flew to the White House with the PRESIDENT,” Barkley’s post began. “Maybe I just respect the office, not a hard concept to understand.

“Just golfed with Obama not too long ago…and look forward to finishing my round with Trump ! Now ya get out my mentions with all this politics and have [an] amazing day [crying laughing emoji],” he continued.

Overall, it appears the Eagles’ first trip to the White House was a success, even without quarterback and Super Bowl 59 MVP Jalen Hurts. Previously, the Eagles were supposed to go in 2018 during Trump’s first term. However, after several players refused to go, Trump canceled the event.

This year, the Eagles “enthusiastically accepted” Trump’s offer. Still, not every player made it. At least Barkley, who Trump seems to be a fan of, was there.

Barkley left the Giants after spending the first six seasons of his career with them. In his first season with the Eagles, he rushed for over 2,000 yards and 13 touchdowns. He contributed over 4,200 all-purpose yards and 15 total touchdowns during the regular season.