Eagles RB Saquon Barkley becomes ninth player to rush for 2,000 yards in a season

Saquon Barkley‘s first season with the Philadelphia Eagles is one for the books — the history books.

Barkley became just the ninth player in NFL history to eclipse 2,000 yards rushing in a single season, flying past the milestone total during Sunday’s 41-7 win over the Dallas Cowboys that also clinched a NFC East division title for Philly.

Barkley finished Sunday with 167 yards on 31 carries to bring his season total to 2,005. With one game remaining in the season, Barkley is now within 100 yards of tying Hall of Famer Eric Dickerson’s single-season record of 2,105 yards that’s stood since 1984.

“I can’t lie, it’s amazing,” Barkley said during an interview with FOX after the game. “It was fun being out there with those guys, and to be able to do that. I wouldn’t be able to do it without the O-line, the wide receivers, the tight end. At the end of the day, the most important thing was to be able to get the win and clinch the division.”

Barkley is the first to join the 2K club since Derrick Henry, now with the Baltimore Ravens, hit the mark in 2020 with the Tennessee Titans. Henry finished with 2,027 yards that season.

The 27-year-old Barkley ran past the 2,000-yard marker in the fourth quarter on a 23-yard run.

In a sterling 2024 campaign, Barkley has now racked up 11 100-yard games and could well be back into the MVP conversation after adding 2,000-yard runner to his résumé. Needing 162 yards in Week 17 to get to 2,000, Barkley ran wild and is also firmly in position to win his first NFL rushing crown.

“At the end of the day, my name would be the one that goes across with 2,000, but like I said, can’t do it without those guys,” Barkley told FOX after the game when asked about the play of his offensive line. “That’s something that we said we wanted to do from the beginning, do something special. They did all the work. I just followed them, and it made me look a lot better.”

Acquired this offseason, Barkley has turned in one of the greatest seasons of all time for a debuting free-agent acquisition. He’s the first 2,000-yard runner to accomplish the feat with his second NFL team. Each of the previous eight ran to the milestone with the team with which they began their careers.

Barkley’s got plenty more yards in front of him, too. Whether he suits up to chase down Dickerson will be among Week 18’s top storylines before he and the Eagles take off into the postseason.

If the Detroit Lions beat the San Francisco 49ers on Monday night, the Eagles will be locked into the No. 2 overall seed in the NFC playoffs with the ability to potentially rest key players against the New York Giants — Barkley’s former team.

Barkley told reporters he would be OK with whatever decision the coaching staff made for Week 18.

“I’m not overtly trying to get it,” Barkley said of the record. “I’m not scared of it. But we’ve got bigger things we’re focused on. Whether we play next week or rest, I’m fine with that. I didn’t sign here just to break a record. I want to do something special with the team.”