PHILADELPHIA — Entering the regular season’s next-to-last game Sunday against Dallas, Eagles running back Saquon Barkley had 1,838 rushing yards and needed 268 to break the NFL’s single-season record.
At halftime against the Cowboys, he had only 40 yards on 13 carries. At that pace, his hopes of surpassing Eric Dickerson’s mark of 2,105 yards, which has stood for 40 years, seemed to be setting with the winter sun.
Even reaching the rare 2,000-yard milestone, at least on this day, appeared in jeopardy.
But on the first play from scrimmage in the third quarter, the Eagles handed the ball to Barkley. And they kept handing it to him, 18 times in the second half, until he ended up with 167 yards for the game amid a 41-7 rout of the Cowboys.
“We definitely knew what the number was, to at least get to 2,000, and we weren’t leaving this field without at least accomplishing that — those aren’t the words from me, those are the words from the guys up front,” Barkley said. “So that means a lot to me. When you see that, and those guys are like, ‘This mother-effer needs this to get it, let’s go get it,’ it puts a little pressure on you, too, but at the same time, it’s pressure that you want.”
In the fourth quarter on a fifth consecutive carry – a simple counter-pull to the left side – Barkley hopped through the line and strode 23 yards to become only the ninth player in NFL history to crack the 2,000-yard plateau.
“I’m not going to lie, but just being a fan of the game and the running back position, to reach a milestone and put myself up there with eight other backs that I respect, and some of them I grew up watching, definitely means a lot,” said Barkley, who ran for 100-plus yards for the 11th time this year. “But at the same time, I wouldn’t be able to do that without this team. Like I said, you can’t be great without the greatness of others, and I’m just happy I was able to be a part of the team and be able to reach a milestone like that.”
In addition to Dickerson and, now, Barkley (2,005), the 2,000-yard club consists of Adrian Peterson (2,097), Jamal Lewis (2,066), Barry Sanders (2,053), Derrick Henry (2,027), Terrell Davis (2,008), Chris Johnson (2,006) and O.J. Simpson (2,003).
All reached the mark in 16 games except for Simpson, who did it in a 14-game season. No player has done it twice.
“It’s special,” Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said. “Saquon is pretty special. This offensive line is pretty special. This offense is pretty special. I know the guys were excited when that happened. Yeah, it’s just a cool thing to be a part of. Any time you can be a part of something special, that’s what’s cool about being part of a team.”
Barkley sits exactly 100 yards behind Dickerson. The final game on the schedule is here, Sunday against the New York Giants, the franchise that let Barkley leave. On whether he plays in that game or not, or how much, the running back said he’ll leave the decision up to his head coach.
“The way I look at it, if it’s in God’s plan, then it is,” Barkley said. “I’m not overly trying to go get it. I’m not scared of it. I would love to, but at the end of the day, also, we’ve got bigger things that we’re focusing on, and we’re able to clinch the division right here, whether we play next week or not. Rest, I’m fine with that too, because I didn’t come here and sign here just to rush for 2,000 or break a record. I want to do something special, meaning special with the team.”
With Sunday’s trouncing of Dallas, the Eagles secured at least a No. 2 seed in the playoffs. Sirianni was non-committal on what he’ll do with Barkley against New York.
“We’ll see,” Sirianni said. “A lot of things need to play out. We’ll see where we are in a couple of days. There’s a lot that goes into it.”
Sirianni kept Barkley in the game in the fourth quarter against Dallas, despite leading by 27 points. After Barkley eclipsed 2,000 yards, he was greeted on the sideline by right guard Mekhi Becton and offensive coordinator Kellen Moore. Sirianni called a timeout so the rest of the team could congratulate his running back, and the stadium broke into chants of, “MVP!”
“That’s a testament to him, coming to another team, first year, a lot of expectations,” said right tackle Lane Johnson, a 12-year veteran. “He’s just a truly, super-talented football player, a great teammate, and I was happy for him. … It’s awesome.”
Along with Johnson and Becton, left tackle Jordan Mailata, left guard Landon Dickerson and center Cam Jurgens have been mainstays of this O-line, which also has shown depth when starters missed time with injuries. But when asked if Barkley and the O-line should play against the Giants to break Dickerson’s record if the game is meaningless toward getting a No. 1 playoff seed, Johnson said no.
“I mean, Eric Dickerson’s record was 16 games, so if it was 17 games, it’s not going to make sense anyway,” Johnson said. “Eric Dickerson is who he is, and Saquon is who he is, and we just wanted to get to 2,000, and we were fine with that. Better to be safe than sorry.”
Source: Berkshire mont