If you want a study on how to handle success and failure, just look at a pair of Philadelphia Eagles superstars in running back Saquon Barkley and wide receiver A.J. Brown.
When the Eagles are winning and Brown isn’t getting his way, he complains. He blames his quarterback. When they lose and he has a big game, he doesn’t really say anything. Doesn’t ever try to shoulder the blame. Doesn’t defend his teammates. You begin to think as long as Brown gets his, he could care less about anyone else. It’s hard to stomach after awhile.
When the Eagles are winning and Barkley is doing good or bad, he puts the focus back on winning. When he was running for over 2,000 yards and winning NFL Offensive Player of the Year in 2024, he spreads the love. His quarterback. His offensive line. His coaches. Everybody got a piece of the glory. In the end, the Eagles won the Super Bowl.
When the Eagles are losing — like they did in a disastrous, 24-21 loss to the Dallas Cowboys in Week 12 — Barkley is almost despondent. In terms of statistics, Barkley is having a miserable season and he’s coming off his worst game of the year against the Cowboys with 10 carries for 22 yards.
Barkley’s concern isn’t for stats, though. It’s for playing better so his team wins.
“I’m a big believer that the run game starts with me and ends with me,” Barkley told The Athletic’s Zach Berman on November 25. “I’m in a little funk right now. I’ve had funks before. Just got to break it. Only way I know how is by flushing this, working my butt off, and get ready for the next opportunity.”
The Eagles are 8-3 and face the Chicago Bears, who are also 8-3, in Amazon Prime Video’s Black Friday Game in Week 13.
Barkley’s Projected Numbers Tough to Swallow
The numbers don’t lie. Barkley is having an objectively bad season.
Much of that blame seem to fall — not that Barkley would ever say this — on the offensive line’s struggles. Which won’t get any better with NFL All-Pro right offensive tackle Lane Johnson out for an extended period of time with a foot injury.
Through 11 games, Barkley has rushed for just 684 yards and 4 touchdowns and is averaging a miserable 3.7 yards per carry.
Those numbers project out to 1,057 yards and approximately 6 touchdowns through 17 games — essentially half of his production from last season. He’s also only rushed for over 100 yards once, when he went off for 150 yards in a Week 8 win over the New York Giants.
In 2024, Barkley had 1,392 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns through 11 games and was averaged 5.8 yards per carry.
Barkley Could Still Turn Things Around
With just 6 games left in the regular season, there’s still time for the Eagles and for Barkley to go on a run that reminds everyone why he’s the highest paid running back in NFL history.
Over his final 6 games in 2024, Barkley rushed for 868 yards and 5 touchdowns and averaged 6.2 yards per carry.
“I’ve been kind of nonexistent this year,” Barkley said after the loss to the Cowboys. “I’ve gotta figure it out for the team.”
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