Saquon Barkley wins third NFC Offensive Player of the Week award this season, has had Christian McCaffrey-to-49ers impact with Eagles

For the third time this season, Eagles running back Saquon Barkley has been named NFC Offensive Player of the Week.

Barkley rushed for 159 yards and a touchdown while adding 40 yards and another touchdown through the air in the Eagles’ 28-23 win over Jacksonville.

His backward hurdle over a defender alone would’ve been enough to win the award, setting the NFL world ablaze with a move we’ll likely never see again.

THE 180 HURDLE??? DID SAQUON JUST INVENT THIS?!

📺: #JAXvsPHI on CBS/Paramount+
📱: https://t.co/waVpO8ZBqG pic.twitter.com/tYThjnbdgG

— NFL (@NFL) November 3, 2024

Barkley also won NFC POTW following his Week 1 performance against Green Bay (132 scrimmage yards, three touchdowns) and his Week 7 outing against the Giants, where he rushed for 176 yards in his return to MetLife Stadium.

After being named Player of the Week three times during his six-year tenure in New York, Barkley has won as many awards in just eight games with the Eagles.

National talking heads spent much of the offseason questioning GM Howie Roseman’s $37.75 million investment in Saquon Barkley.

Halfway through the year, he’s been well worth the price, perhaps even underpaid.

Barkley has had a Christian McCaffrey-to-49ers impact with the Eagles, accounting for 35% of the team’s total offense in 2024.

When looking at Barkley’s first eight games in Philadelphia and McCaffrey’s first eight games in 2023 (his first full season with the 49ers), the numbers are similar.

Christian McCaffrey

• 652 rushing yards
• 32 receptions
• 292 receiving yards
• 13 total TDs

Saquon Barkley

• 925 rushing yards
• 20 receptions
• 146 receiving yards
• 8 total TDs

Barkley has the second-shortest odds to win Offensive Player of the Year, behind the NFL’s leading rusher Derrick Henry.

The Week 13 matchup between the Eagles and Ravens will have a hand in determining that award. At a time when many thought Barkey and Henry would be ‘washed’ with their new teams, they’ve abolished the ‘running backs decline at age 27’ narrative.

As Barkley said last week, “F-ck analytics.”

FIRST SAQUON BARKLEY TD IN KELLY GREEN IS EVERYTHING!@saquon | #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/ohXJC4CxvD

— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) November 3, 2024

 Mandatory Credit: Getty Images