Saquon Barkley on historic 255-yard performance: 'I can't do it alone ...
There Saquon Barkley stood on the sideline of SoFi Stadium, smiling from ear to ear as the Eagles' new single-game rushing record holder.
Barkley exploded for a career-high 255 yards, which included touchdown runs of 70 and 72 yards, in the Eagles' 37-20 win over the Rams.
"He's the best in the league. He's the best at what he does," Quarterback Jalen Hurts said in his postgame interview with Barkley standing across from him. "He's a bad man."
Barkley's 255 yards are the ninth-most in an NFL game in league history. He took down LeSean McCoy's record of 217 yards in a game (2013 Snow Bowl vs. Lions) with his 72-yard run to all but end the decisive win.
His 1,392 yards now leads the NFL, with Derrick Henry still to play Monday night sitting at 1,185. Barkley has 5 games with 140+ rush yds and 1+ rush TD in 2024, which is the most in the NFL. He is on pace to take down another record McCoy still holds – the Eagles' all-time single-season rushing record (1,607 in 2013).
For Barkley, it's not about individual awards or success. He is always quick to give credit to the offensive line and his teammates around him. He knows it's about staying consistent no matter what happens.
"My whole mantra this offseason and this season, how consistent I can be day-to-day. Whether I rush for 250 yards or I rush for 50 yards, still come in on Monday and do the same thing," Barkley said after the game. "My story's not finished and it's going to keep going. When the season's all said and done, we'll look back and smile and be happy with the things I did or didn't do."
Barkley totaled 302 yards from scrimmage in the win (255 rushing, 47 receiving), marking the most by any player in Eagles history and the ninth-most in a game in NFL history. Barkley became the 4th running back in the Super Bowl era to have 300+ scrimmage yards in a game.
Barkley also eclipsed 1,500+ scrimmage yards for the season (1,602), making him the fastest player to reach the milestone through the first 11 games with a new team in NFL history. It is also the most by any player in franchise history through the first 11 games of a season.
"I can't do it alone. I'm surrounded by great players. If you look at every single play that I made today, you see so many other players going above and beyond for me," Barkley said.
The sensation's 26 carries for 255 yards and 2 touchdowns also resulted in the 2nd-most rushing yards over expected by a player in a single game since 2018 (+150), according to NFL's Next Gen Stats.
"When you have the type of quickness lateral movement that Saquon has with the ability to accelerate and the speed to finish, and the power to break it through an arm tackle, he's got everything you look for in the back. He's been awesome, and he was awesome tonight," Head Coach Nick Sirianni said.
As he continues his quest for greatness with six regular-season games remaining, Barkley will rely on his teammates.
The players often say inside the locker room – their success is his success and his success is theirs – it goes that way for everyone.
"These guys here are amazing. They make my job easier. I'm probably going to get a lot of credit, and everyone's going to say this and say that, but in reality, the beauty of this game – it's a team game," Barkley said. "My favorite quote that Nick always says, 'You can't be great without the greatness of others.'"
– Written by Liam Wichser
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RB Saquon Barkley, WR A.J. Brown, RB Kenneth Gainwell, T Jordan Mailata, and T Lane Johnson
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