NEW ORLEANS— If one wanted visual proof of Saquon Barkley’s value to the 2024 Philadelphia Eagles, one look at the crowd of reporters waiting for him at his Super Bowl LIX Opening Night platform would suffice.
Unlike many of his teammates, Barkley will be making his first Super Bowl appearance on Sunday, a trip that would not have occurred if he had not elected to leave the New York Giants for their division rivals in the 2024 offseason. It was fitting, then, that a crowd, microphones, and video equipment awaited his arrival — and even more fortunate that Barkley was a recurrent subject throughout the night at Caesar’s Superdome.
Just ask one of his most renowned opponents in Super Bowl LIX: Chiefs defensive tackle
“In order to beat this team, we probably gotta stop Saquon first,” Jones informed the crowd. “He’s having an incredible year, and they’ve been depending heavily on running the ball.
“He can jump like crazy. He can outrun and even run you over. There isn’t one thing he does. He’s quite athletic. He can jump above you. He can outrun you. “So many challenges.”
Plenty of less fortunate opponents have already learned this lesson in the 2024 season, during which Barkley rushed for 2,000 yards, led the Eagles to a 14-3 record, and made a solid case for Offensive Player of the Year.
Jarrian Jones, a Jaguars rookie, learned the hard way and ended up on the wrong end of a viral event during the season when Barkley reverse hurdled the defensive back, dazzling the entire football world with his exceptional agility, as Jones mentioned.
The feat spurred EA Sports, the developers of the NFL video game Madden NFL 25, to rapidly incorporate the move into their product. Brandon Graham, Barkley’s teammate, was concerned that it would inspire fans to try to reproduce it at their own risk.
“I just knew he was going to mess up some people’s backs trying to emulate the same thing that he did, (but) they ain’t Saquon,” Graham said on Monday. “It was very great to be able to experience it live and be there. “I still go watch it after the fact.”
Barkley built his reputation by generating these types of moments at Penn State and in the NFL, but until 2024, he was stuck in the Giants’ mediocrity and had never seen a platform like the one that awaiting him and his Eagles colleagues Sunday. When it came time to choose a different future, he had to weigh his options carefully.
“Me and my family literally had a sheet, we did pros and cons,” Barkley said about his free-agent decision in March. “The one disadvantage of Philly was that I would be treated differently because I previously played in New York. So it was a no-brainer for me. The skill we have here, competing against those men, hearing stories about the organizations, and, most importantly, those huge boys at the front.”
With the positives outweighing the drawbacks, Barkley left for Philadelphia, leaving his career in the hands of Eagles general manager Howie Roseman and coach Nick Sirianni.
The existing talent on the Philadelphia roster was overjoyed to hear the news. Now that the Eagles have made it to the Super Bowl, they are even more grateful.
“You saw him when he was with the Giants,” Graham explained. “He made do with whatever he had. But for us, it is everyone. The offensive line is quite good. He makes his small cuts and does what he does, and I believe it fits well with the type of team we have. We have been taking full use of it.”
With a revamped defense stacked with young players on low-cost contracts, the Eagles had money in their salary cap to pursue a star running back like Barkley. The goal was to improve their attack, and while the unit’s voyage in 2024 was not without bumps, the investment proved to be a success. It’s no coincidence Roseman has been spotted hugging Barkley at the end of recent games; the player he persuaded to join his team has powered them back to the Super Bowl.
Barkley, for his part, is grateful for the opportunity to leave the Giants for such a prestigious organization. After six turbulent years in the Big Apple, he is now hunting a Lombardi Trophy in the Big Easy.
“It means everything. That’s life, though. “You’ll face adversity,” Barkley added. “You will have ups and downs, but it is who you are in those moments, and I never lost faith. I just kept my head down and continued working, and I was able to get here and surround myself with incredible people. When you can do that, you’ll be able to achieve great success.
The Eagles agree.
“I never believed I was going to get him as a teammate,” veteran tackle Lane Johnson said Monday, “but his first impression was he’s a fantastic guy. Lots of fun to be around.
“And then you put the ball in his hands – turns out, he’s pretty good.”
