Saquon Barkley Rumors: Eagles’ ‘Internal Reasoning for’ Star RB’s Contract Revealed

Timothy Rapp@@TRappaRTFeatured Columnist IVNovember 25, 2024

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The Philadelphia Eagles signed superstar running back Saquon Barkley to a three-year, $37.7 million deal in the offseason, and the result has been staggering—an NFL-leading 1,392 rushing yards to go along with 27 catches for 257 yards and 12 total touchdowns in 11 games.

That would be a career year for most players, but Barkley still has six more games to add to his totals. His signing is proving to be one of the best decisions of the 2024 offseason, and on Monday, Albert Breer of SI.com broke down Philly’s thought process before signing him:

“Their internal reasoning for signing him was getting a guy who’d touch the ball 300 times, and affect every area of the offense, for what it cost the Atlanta Falcons to land Darnell Mooney. Anyone wondering whether Barkley is worth what a second or third receiver gets on the open market anymore?”Now, there were the aforementioned injury concerns, and Philly wasn’t ignoring those. But based on their research, and their character assessment, and what they knew about his training regimen, they felt like Barkley would do anything and everything he could to stay on the field. At the same time, they took into account how they made him feel as an opponent—the fear he struck into him—and the effect he very clearly had on his New York Giants teammates.”There remains a debate around football for just how much running backs are worth. The position has been devalued around the sport, as teams move to committee situations and worry about wear-and-tear limiting the window for a player’s prime years at the position.

The thinking goes that paying major money for quarterbacks, offensive tackles, defensive ends, wide receivers and cornerbacks is a better use of resources. Running backs are easier to replace, and teams like the Kansas City Chiefs and Buffalo Bills are two examples of franchises that are thriving this season without elite options at the position.

But the market has shifted so severely that a contending team like the Eagles, with those other positions addressed, was able to add Barkley for what is turning out to be a major bargain. Put another way—the Giants would undoubtedly be better with Barkley, but without a franchise quarterback or stable offensive line, they would still stink overall.

In Philadelphia, however, Barkley has turned an already talented offense into an absolute force and is proving to be a fantastic allocation of resources. Chalk it up as another win for Howie Roseman.