What was Saquon Barkley going to do for an encore?
That was one of the overarching storylines entering this season after Barkley, in his first year with the Eagles, became the ninth player in NFL history to rush for 2,000 yards in a season.
No one has ever done it twice, so repeating always was going to be a stretch. But who could have seen this coming? It’s Week 15, and Barkley still is 60 yards shy of reaching 1,000 on the season. The Eagles have three games remaining, and, assuming Barkley stays healthy, he will reach the 1,000-yard mark Saturday against the Washington Commanders or next week in Buffalo. It would be the first time he’s recorded consecutive 1,000-yard seasons since his first two seasons in the NFL.
Barkley certainly didn’t see this coming. The way he trains and the way he works, he said, and how much time and money he has put into his body, a mostly healthy season in which he plays in every game should yield better results than this. He’s at 3.9 yards per carry, tied for the second-lowest output of his career for a season in which he’s played more than two games.
“Sometimes that’s how the game goes,” Barkley said Thursday after the Eagles wrapped their final practice of the week before playing at Washington on Saturday. “My mindset is, I still can have the impact on the season I want to. That’s finishing up the season strong and then going to the playoffs. That’s when it really matters the most. All of that is still in front of me, and I’m excited for the opportunity.”
The running game not being anywhere close to what it was in 2024 has been one of the big issues plaguing an offense that has failed to consistently sustain drives and score points. There are a variety of factors at play. Teams have zeroed in on stopping the Eagles run game. The Eagles offensive line has been banged up and also hasn’t performed to its usual level. The passing game hasn’t been consistent enough to force opponents to adjust.
But Barkley also shoulders some of the struggles. In a clip on this week’s episode of Hard Knocks, Barkley is seen talking with Nick Sirianni about his role in helping the offense stay ahead of the sticks.
Barkley has been tackled for a loss on 15.83% of his rushes, according to SumerSports. That’s the third-highest rate in the NFL for running backs with at least 100 carries. Last year, Barkley ranked 24th at 9.57%. That’s on the blocking, of course, but Barkley said he shares some of it, too. It was a knock on him coming out of college, he said, that he tried to score a touchdown every time he touched the ball.
“Which I am, because I have the ability any time I touch the ball, I could take it 90 [yards],” Barkley said. “I could take it however long it needs to go. But there’s a flow to the game, and it’s helpful when you’re able to get positive runs — get those 3s, get those 4s. That sets up stuff later down the road.”
Barkley, in the Hard Knocks clip, told Sirianni that he needs to do his part to turn negative runs into smaller positive gains.
“I have to do my job,” he said Thursday. “The ones that might be a negative-1 or negative-2, if I could make that into [positive] 2 or 3, that’s helpful. It keeps us above the sticks and it makes play calling a lot easier. It makes it a lot easier to be consistent with the play calling and the run game when it’s second-and-6 rather than second-and-9. That’s kind of the mindset, building off that and trusting it and getting the dirty runs. Then, when the opportunity does come, make them pay for it.”
The running game has shown signs of life in recent weeks. Barkley carried 22 times for 78 yards during Sunday’s blowout win over the Raiders. He had 122 yards on 20 carries a game earlier, including a 52-yard touchdown run the Eagles scored off a toss play out of the Tush Push formation.
The passing game got going Sunday, albeit against a lesser opponent. Jalen Hurts even flashed in the run game, which Barkley said helps open up the offense. The Eagles went under center more than they have all season. There were things to build off of as they head into the final stretch of the season. They’re on the brink of clinching another NFC East title and are gearing up for another playoff run. The protection has improved, and Lane Johnson should be back when the games matter most.
“I think we’re super close and that’s important,” Barkley said. “Everyone gets caught up in how well teams are playing in the first five games or first half of the season. None of that matters. It does matter, because you got to give yourself a chance to compete for the playoffs, but if you look at some of the guys or the teams … they’re falling off. It’s a long season. It’s hard. Everything we want is still right in front of us.”
