Social media roundup ahead of Week 13 matchup in Seattle

Current and former Giants players took to social media this week to show off their Big Blue pride.

Here are some of the best tweets from this week's social media roundup.

Saquon Barkley gets advice from Adrian Peterson on comeback from knee injury

Saquon Barkley and Adrian Peterson first met on Oct. 28, 2018, when Peterson scored two touchdowns and Barkley totaled 111 yards from scrimmage in Washington's 20-13 victory against the Giants in MetLife Stadium. The two stellar running backs came together at midfield following the game and expressed their mutual admiration and Peterson told the then-rookie, "the sky's the limit for you."

Before retreating to their respective locker rooms, the future Hall of Famer had four words of advice for Barkley: "stay focused and keep grinding."

More than two years later, that counsel has become particularly poignant to Barkley.

On Sept. 20, he suffered a serious knee injury in the Giants' second game of the season. Barkley underwent surgery on Oct. 30 to repair a torn right anterior cruciate ligament. He spoke publicly today for the first time since that operation on a Zoom call with reporters when he was asked if he has any uncertainty about becoming the same player he was before the injury.

"No doubt in my mind," Barkley said.

That confidence comes from his dedication to an arduous rehabilitation and his determination to return to the level of play that made him the 2018 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year and the first player in Giants history to exceed 1,000 rushing yards in each of his first two seasons. It also emanates from the example Peterson set nine years ago.

On Dec. 24, 2011, Peterson, then a fifth-year pro with the Minnesota Vikings, tore his ACL and MCL in a game in Washington. He ended his season with 970 rushing yards, his first season with less than 1,000.

Peterson more than made up for it in 2012, when he led the NFL with a career-high 2,097 yards and was named the league's Most Valuable Player, still the last non-quarterback to win the award. Now with the Detroit Lions in his 14th season, Peterson has 14,660 career rushing yards and 115 touchdowns – including 7,908 yards and 51 scores since his surgery.

It's no surprise Barkley would like to emulate Peterson's on-field exploits.

"Someone who's really important to me would be A.P.," Barkley said. "Obviously, when you hear this injury, the first person that comes to your mind is the season that A.P. had. I reached out to him or he reached out to me. He put me in contact with his trainer, I was able to ask him a lot of questions. Also, I think the day before surgery, I got to chat with A.P. for a very long time. I could see myself continuing to chat with him throughout."

DK Metcalf no small task for James Bradberry, Giants

As a five-year veteran who played his first four seasons in the wide receiver-rich NFC South, James Bradberry has covered his share of tall, fast and athletic wideouts.

But it's likely the Giants' cornerback has never lined up against anyone quite like DK Metcalf. But that's what Bradberry will do Sunday, when the Giants face the Seattle Seahawks in Lumen Field.

"You don't have a lot of guys walking the earth like him," Giants coach Joe Judge said of Metcalf.

Certainly not in the NFL. Metcalf is a 6-4, 229-pounder who is enjoying a breakout second season. He leads the league with 1,039 receiving yards, is second among those with at least 50 catches with a 17.9-yard average (he has 58) and his 12 receptions of 30-plus yards are four more than anyone else has. Metcalf is fifth in the league with nine touchdown receptions. On Oct. 25, he made of the season's most memorable plays, sprinting from the end zone to catch Arizona safety Budda Baker and prevent him from scoring after a 90-yard interception return.

"A big monster out there catching a lot of passes from Russell Wilson," Giants defensive backs coach Jerome Henderson said. "The young man is having a great year. Very productive, very explosive, and he and the quarterback have that rapport that the quarterback trusts him. He looks for him and he's finding him at a high level right now."

On Monday night in Philadelphia, the Eagles assigned cornerback Darius Slay to cover Metcalf. Slay was selected to the last three Pro Bowls but he had a long night as Metcalf caught 10 passes for 177 yards with a long reception of 52 yards. It was his fifth 100-yard game of the season, tying him with Arizona's DeAndre Hopkins and Houston's Will Fuller for the NFL lead. Metcalf is the rare receiver who often initiates contact instead of absorbing it.

"He's such a unique talent, in my opinion," defensive coordinator Patrick Graham said. "The size, the ability to block in the run game. That's one that stands out for me. He's actually a point of attack blocker. Like you would say the left side of the line is the point of attack or right side of the line is a point of attack. He's a point of attack blocker in the run game. That stands out to me. I think what we have to do, we have to make it tough for him. We have to make it tough on him. Whether it's playing off coverage, press coverage. When he goes to block, get our hands on him. He's a unique talent. He's going to find a way to get open. That's the nature of it."

"We all understand this guy is a tremendous player," Judge said. "He's an elite player in the league. We can't do anything to just flat out replicate it, so we have to do the best we can in practice, and then prepare our guys mentally so when they see him on the field, they understand it's going to be different than what they've necessarily seen in practice."

Practice Photos: Giants gear up for tough challenge in Seattle

Check out the gallery below to view photos of the Giants on the practice field as they prepare to travel out west to take on the Seahawks in Seattle.