‘I will make you pay for it:' Saquon Barkley looks to return to form vs. Chiefs
When Saquon Barkley watches film of the Chiefs’ defense, it reminds him of something.
Last year’s Chiefs defense.
“Same thing,” he said. “What I knew going into the Super Bowl and definitely what I experienced in the Super Bowl: They’re really good. They’re really good. For me, I look forward to it.”
Barkley had the worst game of a historic 2024 season in the Super Bowl seven months ago, rushing 25 times for just 57 yards and a 2.3 average – lowest ever in a Super Bowl among backs with 20 or more carries – in a game the Eagles won 40-22 in New Orleans.
He’s had 31 games with 20 or more carries in his career and only had a lower yards-per-carry once – the Colts held him to 2.0 yards per carry in 2018 at Lucas Oil Stadium.
And on Sunday at Arrowhead, he’ll get another dose of Steve Spagnola’s defense when the Eagles face the Chiefs at 4:25 p.m.
“It’s going to be a challenge,” Barkley said. “But there’s things running backs can do to set up blocks. And you can tell and watch film of guys who aren’t disciplined, and I can manipulate them. If I’m able to manipulate them and with the offensive line that we have, we put a lot of teams in trouble.
“The (Chiefs) don’t really do that. So it forces me to be disciplined, take what they give me, not only in the run game but just in the offense in general. Being patient, that’s kind of the thing for us this week. And when we get the opportunity, make a play for it.”
The Cowboys limited Barkley to 3.3 yards per carry in the opener, but he was 11-for-61 before the hour-long weather delay – 5.6 yards per carry – and had seven carries for minus-one yards after the delay.
And just like in the Super Bowl, it didn’t matter. The Eagles won.
“It’s not the first time a team’s going to try to stop us,” Barkley said at his locker on Thursday. “Teams tried to stop us last year. No one was really successful besides in the Super Bowl, to be honest. But it opens up a lot of stuff. And we still have a threat at quarterback when he can throw the ball and run the ball, too.
“And that’s the beauty about playing for the Philadelphia Eagles. We have so much talent and you take away one thing, we have the opportunity to hurt you in another. But that’s just a mindset. Whatever it takes to win football games, whether they stack the box or they don’t. But if you don’t stack the box, I will make you pay for it. that’s just how I feel.”
Barkley said he was really impressed with the way A.J. Brown handled himself on Thursday night, when he didn’t get his first and only target until the Eagles’ final drive, and also during the week, when he made sure not to complain about his lack of targets.
He believes Brown set a great example not just for younger players but for himself.
“I think that was a perfect example of what Nick was trying to establish for our team, contribution over credit,” he said. “And then the first game we have, A.J. only has one catch. But the one catch that he had came up big when we needed him most.
“I think it’s a great example for a lot of young players that look up to NFL players. When the game’s not going the way you want, not pouting, not getting upset, staying locked in, because a moment’s going to come and he came up big when we needed it. And just the way he carried himself all week and the way he carries himself in practice is important.
“And that shows. That carries throughout the whole locker room. You have a guy of that caliber, a player, and a leader on his team act like that. And it forces me to act like that when it’s not my day. I didn’t have the game I wanted to have. A lot of us didn’t have the game we wanted to have. But at the end of the day, we won. We came out 1-0. …
“To me, it’s simple. We play a team sport, and you cannot accomplish anything without everyone else. And at the end of the day, whether A.J. has one catch, whether I have 20 rushing yards or Smitty doesn’t have a catch, I’m still Saquon Barkley. That’s still A.J. Brown. That’s still me.
“At some point, we’re going to get ours. And that’s the mindset that we’re going to continue to have.”
‘I will make you pay for it:' Saquon Barkley looks to return to form vs. Chiefs
