There’s no better feeling for a fanbase than adding an elite offensive weapon to your team’s offence. Unless of course, that player also happened to be the focal point of a divisional rival’s offensive scheme.
That rare 2-for-1 special appears to be playing out in the NFC East as reports indicate that former New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley and the Philadelphia Eagles have reached an agreement on a new 3 year deal. Barkley will reportedly join the Eagles on a 3 year, $37.75M contract which includes $26M in guaranteed money, and could reach as high as $46.75M in total if all performance targets are reached.
If all incentives are hit, Saquon’s new deal would pay out $15.8M which would be the 2nd highest AAV for a running back in NFL history.
The 27 year old player under the franchise tag last season in New York following a prolonged negotiation period with the club. After reluctantly returning to the field, Barkley’s camp made it clear that they had no intentions of playing another season under the tag, leading to a parting of ways this offseason.
When healthy, the former offensive rookie of the year is one of the most explosive talents in the league. Unfortunately, he’s battled a myriad of injuries the last several seasons, ultimately missing at least 3 games in 4 of the past 5 campaigns.
In 2023, Barkley would miss 3 contests due to a high ankle sprain suffered in Week 2 against the Arizona Cardinals. Still, the former Penn State RB managed to flirt with a 1,000 yard season posting 962 yards on the ground and adding another 280 through the air. His 10 total TDs would tie his 2022 total for the 2nd highest mark of his career.
Although born in the Bronx, Barkley and his family moved to Bethlehem, PA when he was 4 years old. The former 2nd overall pick from the 2018 draft would attend Whitehall HS before joining the Nittany Lions in 2015, effectively making his signing with the Eagles a homecoming of sorts for the 6′ 232lbs back.
While the New York Giants offensive line took some steps forward in 2023 following a disastrous 2022 campaign, they still ranked 30th in the league according to PFF. Meanwhile the Eagles turned in the number 1 ranked offensive line last year, with Jordan Mailata, Jason Kelce, and Lane Johnson each coming in amongst the top 5 graded players at their respective positions in 2023.
Although that unit will be losing future hall of famer Jason Kelce to retirement, Barkley will nevertheless be joining a significantly upgraded OL this season. Additionally, Philadelphia’s reliance on the “tush push” in short yardage situations could see a drop in usage rate as the club hopes to keep QB Jalen Hurts healthy for the entirety of the campaign.
With the Cowboys losing Tony Pollard, Washington having an unsettled backfield situation, and Saquon flipping from New York to Philadelphia, there’s no little question which NFC East team boasts the best ground game heading into 2024. And that’s before you factor in Jalen Hurts’ ability to extend plays with his legs as well.
After rattling off 7 straight campaigns without a 1,000 yard rusher on their roster, Philadelphia has seen Miles Sanders (2022) and D’Andre Swift (2023) eclipse that mark in back to back years. However, if Saquon is able to come close to replicating his numbers from his rookie season behind this offensive line, then LeSean McCoy’s 2013 yards from scrimmage record (2,146) could finally see some competition.
-Kyle Skinner
Twitter: @JKyleSkinner
Photo: Keith Allison. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.