Saquon Barkley continues to shine in his first season with the Philadelphia Eagles. In the last two games alone, he has gained more yards than the New York Jets and Jacksonville Jaguars.
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Barkley posted 302 scrimmage yards on Sunday night while leading the Eagles to a dominant win over the Rams. He had 198 scrimmage yards last weekend in a win against the Commanders. So in two games, Barkley has 500 scrimmage yards.
The Jets, as ESPN's Field Yates pointed out, had 460 scrimmage yards combined in losses to the Colts and Cardinals. The Jaguars had 313 combined yards in losses to the Vikings and Lions.
Simply outgaining two NFL franchises is staggering, but Barkley also joined an exclusive list. He is only the third player in NFL history to have 500 scrimmage yards in only two games.
According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, Walter Payton in 1977 and Ollie Matson in 1954 were the only other players to accomplish this feat. Both players are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Sunday night's game was all about Barkley. He scored two rushing touchdowns of at least 70 yards and he broke the Eagles' franchise record for rushing yards in a single game. Now at 1,392 yards on the season, Barkley only needs 215 yards to break LeSean McCoy's single-season franchise record (1,607 yards in 2013).
"He's the best in the league. He's the best at what he does," quarterback Jalen Hurts said after the game, per the Eagles' website. "He's a bad man."
The primetime performance came at a brutal time for fans of Barkley's former team, the Giants. This is a franchise that just released former first-round quarterback Daniel Jones after falling to 2-8 on the season.
Why does this matter? Last offseason, the Giants needed to pay Jones and Barkley.
They offered the quarterback a four-year extension worth up to $160 million and the running back a three-year deal worth a reported $13 million yearly. This deal only included $19.5 million guaranteed.
Jones accepted his offer while Barkley declined his. The Giants then told Barkley to go out and test free agency. This is what he did, which led to the Eagles offering a three-year, $37.75 million contract that included $26 million guaranteed.
Several months later, Barkley and the Eagles are 9-2 and leading the NFC East. The veteran running back is in the MVP conversation.
The Giants are 2-9 and in last place. Jones is no longer on the roster.
