PHILADELPHIA — Eagles running back Saquon Barkley likely will sit out Sunday’s regular-season finale against the New York Giants, coach Nick Sirianni said, putting an end to his chase of the single-season rushing record.
With Philadelphia’s postseason seeding secured, Sirianni suggested Barkley will be one of the starters who will rest as the Eagles gear up for the playoffs.
“He will probably be somebody that rests,” Sirianni said.
If so, Barkley will end the regular season 101 yards shy of breaking Eric Dickerson’s NFL record of 2,105 yards, set in 1984.
“Obviously it’s a very special record that’s been standing for a very long time by a great player. It’s a team record that everybody’s involved in. You weigh all those things. But at the end of the day, you just try to do what’s best for the team.”
Nick Sirianni
Whether he should have the opportunity to go for the rushing title was a hot point of debate in Philadelphia and beyond this week. The Eagles (13-3) have clinched the NFC East division title and are locked into the NFC’s No. 2 seed, making the Giants game irrelevant from a playoff positioning perspective.
With a Week 5 bye, Philadelphia has played 12 straight games, which factored into the decision to sit some core players.
“Obviously it’s a very special record that’s been standing for a very long time by a great player. It’s a team record that everybody’s involved in. You weigh all those things,” Sirianni said. “But at the end of the day, you just try to do what’s best for the team. When the bye was, how guys are feeling, the bumps and bruises we can take care of. We’ve put ourselves in a position to be in this situation … It wasn’t the easiest decision to go through, but we have great people in this building and had a lot of input from a lot of people, players included.
Sirianni said he spoke with Barkley. He did not reveal the content of those discussions but noted this team has “selfless guys that want to do what’s best for the football team.”
Sirianni also revealed that quarterback Jalen Hurts remains in concussion protocol. He sustained the injury Week 16 against the Washington Commanders and did not play Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys.
Opinions were split in the Philadelphia locker room following the Week 17 win over the Dallas Cowboys. Right tackle Lane Johnson was leaning toward resting the starters, under the premise of it’s “better to be safe than sorry.”
Left tackle Jordan Mailata, meanwhile, said he planned to “push for” the starters to play against New York.
“It’s an opportunity to make history,” Mailata said. “We never really spoke about the Giants next week, but we just had the feeling that if we don’t go for it today, we might sit out. We don’t know. Coach hasn’t really said anything yet. We’ll see.”
Barkley said he would be fine with whatever Sirianni decides.
“Whatever his decision is, I’m all for it,” Barkley said. “If his mindset is, we’ll go out there and try it, I’ll go out there and try it. If his mindset is, let’s rest and get ready for this run, I’m all for that, too. … I came here to do something special. Breaking a record is special, but I want a banner up there. I think we all do.”
With his 167-yard performance against Dallas, Barkley became just the ninth player in NFL history to rush for 2,000-plus yards.
