The Eagles Have A Big Saquon Barkley Problem

The Saquon Barkley signing could not have gone better last year. Barkley had one of the greatest seasons by a running back ever, and the greatest season by an Eagles RB. He ran for over 2,000 yards and nearly broke a 50-year-old NFL record. Most importantly, he helped the Eagles win their 2nd Super Bowl.

That success rightfully earned him the benefit of the doubt and a lot of slack from Eagles fans. But 11 games in, it is time we acknowledge an uncomfortable truth. Saquon Barkley has been bad this year, and he is a big reason for the Eagles' problems on that side of the ball.

Barkley averaged 5.8 yards per carry last season. That has dropped over 2 yards per carry this season. Through 11 games, Barkley has 684 yards on 185 carries. Good for just 3.7 yards per carry. 36 players have more yards per carry than him.

Last season, Barkley had the most 10+ yard runs (46), 30+ yard runs (10), 40+ yard runs (7), and 50+ yard runs (6). He was also 2nd with 17 20+ yard runs. This year, Barkley has just 1 carry of over 20 yards.

Many will point out that the O-Line has struggled to run block this season. That is fair. Barkley averages just 2.3 yards before contact. Down from 3.8 last season. But he is also down from 2.0 yards after contact to 1.5. 3 Eagles RBs have a higher Yards After Contact per attempt. Tank Bigsby, in a small sample size, averages over 9 yards per carry. Defenses play him differently than they do Barkley, but that at least shows that there are some yards to be gained. it is not all blocking or all scheme.

Barkley does not have the same burst as last season. Part of that is understandable. We spent all offseason worrying that his workload last season would take its toll on Barkley. Many imagined that there would be health issues. Barkley has managed to stay healthy. But even while healthy, he has been ineffective.

Barkley has just 1 game with over 100 yards. He has more games where he averaged under 3 yards per carry (5) than he has games where he averaged over 4 (4). He has not just underperformed; he has been flat-out bad this year.

The Eagles offense has been bad. That was on full display vs the Cowboys, where they managed to score 21 quick points, but then were held scoreless the rest of the game. They are the worst 3-and-out team in the league, and are outside the top 20 in almost every category outside of Red Zone Offense.

Who is to blame for that? There has been a lot of blame put at the feet of 1st time OC Kevin Patullo, and he deserves it. He is not experienced enough to call plays on the fly and make the needed adjustments in-game. A lot of blame has also been thrown at Jalen Hurts. Some of that is fair. But one could easily argue their biggest problem is how poor the run game has been.

Last year they had many of these same issues. The big difference was that they were elite at running the ball. If the passing game struggled, they could always fall back on old reliable. Run the ball right down the defense's throats and wear them down until they lose the will to fight back.

Eagles fans bemoan how conservative this offense gets. But that conservative nature is nothing new. Go back to 2022, and there were games where they completely took their foot off the gas and were content to protect their lead. In past seasons, it worked. They were able to run out the clock, play it safe, and dominate the clock.

They can't do that this year. The blame for that falls partially on Nick Sirianni and Kevin Patullo, who stubbornly stick to the philosophy that is no longer working. But it also needs to fall on the RB who is playing so poorly.

Barkley was great last year. He deserves all the credit in the world for that. But if Nick Sirianni, Jalen Hurts, and others do not get a pass for their issues this year just because they were great last year, neither can Barkley. Barkley has been bad.

Can you fix the problem when the problem is that he doesn't have fresh legs? This is not just that they are not calling the right plays. That plays into it, but you can't scheme ways to make Saquon have fresher legs. There is no magical play call that will make Saquon Barkley look like the back he was last season.

The O-Line has a similar problem. They don't look the same as they did last year. The crazy workload and the extra games because they won the Super Bowl is taking a toll on them. Jordan Mailata talked about it. His body never recovered. That is not going to improve deep into the season. If anything, it will get worse. There is no time for Barkley or the O-Line to recover in season.

The solution might be mixing in different backs and running it less. Also, take bigger chances in the pass game because you can't just fall back on being able to run it. They can't hold out hope that Saquon Barkley will find a second win. We are 11 games in. This is who he is this year, and who he is this year is a mediocre RB who lacks the burst he had last season.

The Eagles need to change their philosophy. That part falls on Nick Sirianni. But while we bemoan the run game and toss vitriol at Patullo, Sirianni, Hurts, and the O-Line, it is only fair if Barkley gets some heat too. Because he plays a big part in why this offense has been so bad.