PHILADELPHIA — Saquon Barkley just continues to get stronger as the game goes on. Once Barkley gets going, so does the Philadelphia Eagles offense.
The Washington Commanders shut down Barkley in the first half, as he was held to 15 carries for 56 yards (3.9 yards per carry). The Eagles scored just once (a field goal) on six possessions, totaling 174 yards of offense.
In the second half, Barkley took over the game. He finished with 11 carries for 90 yards and two touchdowns, 76 of those rushing yards and two of those touchdowns came in the fourth quarter. The Eagles scored on all four of their second-half possessions (not counting end of game kneel downs), including three straight touchdowns. They had 230 yards of offense.
There’s no secret the Eagles offense goes through Barkley. Once he gets going …
“That’s why we train the way we train, whether it’s on my own or in OTAs with the other guys,” Barkley said on getting better in the second half. “This offseason, we kind of had a college mindset. We were running with each other. When you have those guys up front, it’s easy to get stronger because they’re (carrying) a lot of the load, and leaning on those guys.
“Just keep trusting them, trusting the scheme and make the right reads because they’re doing a helluva job for me.”
What Barkley has accomplished in the second half this season can not be ignored. In the second half of games (including overtime), Barkley leads the NFL with 738 rushing yards and 7.2 yards per carry — both of which lead the NFL. Barkley has 320 rushing yards in the fourth quarter (and overtime), ranking second in the NFL only to Derrick Henry. His 7.1 yards per carry lead the league.
“He’s an exceptional talent,” said Eagles right tackle Lane Johnson. “And when we go back and look at the first half, the O-line, maybe we didn’t play as well as we needed to. We didn’t have the momentum. Second half, we gained that.”
Perhaps a few adjustments the Eagles offensive line made freed Barkley up, but there may be a coincidence the Barkley and the Eagles get stronger as the game wears on. The Eagles average 6.6 yards per play and 110.7 rushing yards in the second half of games this season, 15.9 offensive points per game (which leads the NFL).
Also the time Barkley gets going as well.
“It was huge that we were able to get that going, even though some of it was muddy early,” said Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni. “But that’s how it goes sometimes in the run game. It’s ugly sometimes. It’s grimy sometimes.
“But you continue to grind that out and that really helped us put that game away.”
