Another week, another stellar performance from Saquon Barkley. The star running back was the catalyst in the Philadelphia Eagles’ Week 11 victory over the Washington Commanders to put the organization in the driver’s seat in the NFC East race. In Thursday night’s 26-18 win, Barkley exploded for 146 rushing yards and two touchdowns while adding 52 receiving yards on two catches.
Again, this is just the latest superstar performance from Barkley, who is playing in his first season with the Eagles since signing in free agency following his stint with the New York Giants. In his final years with the Giants, Barkley’s production declined, leading some to wonder if the tread on his tires had run out. However, this season with Philadelphia has proven just the opposite and has shed light on how New York was darkening the backfield.
As Barkley ambled nearly 200 yards from scrimmage, that talking point was brought to the forefront again by Dallas Cowboys star pass rusher Micah Parsons. Initially, Parsons posted “I blame the giants…” on X as a clear swipe at the organization for Barkley’s resurgence. After that post, however, he put New York in the spotlight by criticizing the franchise for making people believe Barkley had been cashed in and choosing to sign quarterback Daniel Jones instead.
“All jokes aside, the giants almost made us believe that Saquon wasn’t HIM anymore!! [sic]”, he posted. “That really says a lot!! Daniel jones got paid more than saquon! He was worth more to his franchise! This really says a lot!!”
Of course, Barkley and Parsons have a kinship thanks to their roots at Penn Stateso he goes to talk to his teammate Nittany Lion. That said, in this case it is totally justified.
This season, Barkley has four games with 140 rushing yards or more, making him the first player to have as many of those games through the first 10 weeks since Shaun Alexander in 2005. He has also been particularly decisive in the second half, rushing for 738 yards with an average of 7.2 yards per rush after halftime this season.
Looks like the kind of offensive weapon you’d want to have on hand, right? Well, the Giants seem to have thought otherwise, much to the delight of the Eagles, who are getting an Offensive Player of the Year-caliber game from behind.
