Saquon Barkley isn’t exactly sure why, but during the final 30 yards of a 78-yard touchdown run in the snow against the Philadelphia Eagles, which got their fans cheering loudly, he cradled the football in his left hand and kept hitting his helmet with his right hand.
“I was crashing out, as the kids would say,” Barkley explained.
To put it simply, Barkley lost control for a moment, giving an interesting explanation for a touchdown run he called the best of his career.
“Since I was a little kid,” Barkley said. “Just the moment, the timing of it, the conversation I had with myself. The stuff I’ve been working on. It just all came together in that moment.”
This season has been the best of Barkley’s seven-year career and his first with the Eagles.
The Eagles, who have usually been hesitant to spend a lot on running backs, are benefiting from their $26 million investment in Barkley. He’s made plays that fans describe as looking like something out of a video game, including a crazy backward hurdle that was so unusual, Madden had to update the game to make it possible.
He’s close to beating Eric Dickerson’s record and has Terrell Davis in his sights. He’s also a finalist for the AP NFL MVP award.
And beyond personal records, Barkley’s performance has helped the Eagles make a strong push for the Super Bowl.
After playing just two playoff games in his six years with the New York Giants, Barkley has already rushed for 324 yards in his first two playoff games with the Eagles. His next chance to make history comes this Sunday when the Eagles face the Washington Commanders in the NFC Championship game, aiming for their second Super Bowl appearance in three years.
“It’s 11-man football to stop this man,” said Commanders defensive coordinator Joe Whitt Jr. Looking at his statistics, many teams have struggled to stop Barkley.
Stats also tells a story
His 2,005 rushing yards set an Eagles record and is the eighth-most in NFL history, leaving him just 101 yards shy of breaking Dickerson’s season record of 2,105. Including the playoffs, Barkley set an NFL record with six rushing touchdowns of 60 or more yards in a season. So far, Barkley has 2,329 total rushing yards, only 148 yards away from breaking Terrell Davis’ 2,476-yard record from the 1998 season, when the Denver Broncos won the Super Bowl.
At 28 years old, Barkley has a strong interest in football history. Throughout the season, he’s followed the records he’s about to break, always checking the history books to see which teams or Hall of Famers are ahead of him. He smiled when asked about potentially surpassing Davis, knowing how close he is to the record.
“It’s something that helps with the legacy play,” Barkley said. “With my name being mentioned, what I want to do, what I wanted to accomplish in this game.”
Unlike when Barkley missed his chance to break Dickerson’s record in the regular-season finale, he won’t be sitting out any more games.
Barkley often repeats his favorite quote from coach Nick Sirianni: “You can’t be great without the greatness of others.” And it’s clear that his career year has been supported by an offensive line that sent three players to the Pro Bowl. Offensive guard Landon Dickerson, tackle Lane Johnson, and center Cam Jurgens were recognized for their work in helping Barkley turn a few yards into some of his biggest plays.
“Going against the best is going to bring out the best in you,” said Commanders linebacker Frankie Luvu. “And he’s one of the best by far to ever play the position.”
Although the Commanders are underdogs for Sunday’s game, they feel confident after defeating the Eagles in late December by shutting down Barkley in the last three quarters.
Barkley had 15 carries for 56 yards in the first half of their first meeting this season on Nov. 14, before finishing with 146 yards and two touchdowns. He had 109 yards and two touchdowns in the first quarter against Washington on Dec. 22, but only gained 41 yards on 22 carries for the rest of the game, where quarterback Jalen Hurts was out with a concussion.
Barkley laughed at the idea that the Commanders might have his number. He pointed out that they focused on him more because Hurts, the Eagles’ second-biggest playmaker, was out of the game.
“Every single time that I’ve coached against him,” said Washington coach Dan Quinn, “he’s been the emphasis.”
Hurts hasn’t been performing at his best in the postseason, with just 259 total yards and two touchdowns in two games, while star receivers A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith have combined for only 11 catches for 100 yards against the Green Bay Packers and Los Angeles Rams.
In other words, the Eagles’ chances depend a lot on Barkley’s performance.
While the personal records matter to Barkley, winning a Super Bowl is even more important to him. “Win and move on,” he said. “That’s the only thing that’s important.”
