Saquon Barkley wants to go down as one of the greatest running backs in NFL history.
He knows Philadelphia is the best spot to make that happen.
“One hundred percent,” Barkley said on Monday, less than a week after signing an extension that will keep him with the Eagles through the 2028 season. “That’s the reason why I wanted to come here. It’s cool to sign an extension and having the yards and the record year, whatever happened last year. But you can’t do it without everybody else, you can’t do it without your teammates.
“This organization knows how to continue to bring great people in and have great guys on this team and I’m just happy to be a part of it. The things that I envision in the future, I feel like being here is the best place for it.”
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Barkley, 28, still had two more years left on the three-year deal he signed in free agency a year ago, but the Eagles handed him a two-year extension worth $41.2 million last week. It makes him the highest-paid running back in NFL history.
But, more importantly, it keeps him in Philadelphia, where he has the best chance of becoming an all-time great.
That seems hard to argue after the 2024 season Barkley had. Last season, Barkley became just the ninth player in NFL history to rush for over 2,000 yards in a season and he broke the NFL record for rushing yards in a regular season and postseason combined (2,504), taking down a record set by Terrell Davis in the 1998 season.
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Just one season into his Eagles career, Barkley is hoping to have a second act like the one Marshall Faulk had in his great career. Barkley has even been able to speak with the Hall of Fame running back.
“When you talk about [Faulk’s] legacy, a lot of the stuff that’s brought up is things that he did as a Ram, not as a Colt,” Barkley said. “I think this extension gives me the opportunity to do that. I want to be, if not the greatest running back of all time, one of the greatest running backs of all time. I hope I’m able to do that in an Eagles uniform.”
The parallels between Barkley and Faulk are striking.
Faulk spent the first five years of his career in Indianapolis with the Colts. He made three Pro Bowls in those seasons. But he then spent his last seven years with the Rams, making four Pro Bowls and three All-Pros. He won a Super Bowl and was named Offensive Player of the Year in his first season in St. Louis.
After six years and two Pro Bowls with the Giants, Barkey in his first season with the Eagles was an All-Pro, Offensive Player of the Year and won a Super Bowl. Sound familiar?
Barkley on Monday reflected on his journey. He said the biggest lesson he learned was to bet on himself. He did it when deciding to go to Penn State, when he made the jump to the NFL and again when he went through a messy breakup with the Giants.
“It’s just a lesson that I’ve learned that no matter what, for the rest of my life, that’s going to be the mindset I’ll always have” Barkley said. “Continue to bet on myself, trust in God and trust in the people around me.”
A little less than a year ago, Barkley held a similar press conference at the NovaCare Complex. A year ago it was to celebrate his three-year deal and a new start. This time, it was about his two-year extension.
While he was with the Giants, Barkley was a superstar on a team that made the playoffs just once and didn’t have much other offensive talent. The thing that stood out to him at his first spring practice a year ago was all the talent in the huddle with him: Jalen Hurts, A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith, Dallas Goedert and an incredible offensive line. Brown was in attendance at Monday’s press conference as Barkley talked about furthering his legacy.
A big reason Barkley came to Philly was to cement his legacy as one of the greats. Just one year into that, and he’s off to a fantastic start.
On Monday, he admitted that a year ago, he didn’t really know what would happen in free agency.
“But to be able to sign a deal here and wanted to come here and expand on my legacy and my career and play with a lot of ballers and get a chance to compete for a championship and then all that happening,” Barkley said. “And then having an extension and signing the best running back contract of all time. It’s just funny how things all work.”
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