Saquon Barkley's gallop to 2,000 earned the Philadelphia Eagles running back the 2024 AP 国产外流网Offensive Player of the Year award on Thursday at 国产外流网Honors at Saenger Theatre.
As he became accustomed to in his first year with the Eagles, Barkley finished the voting with plenty of distance between him and others, garnering 35 first-place votes and 406 points. Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson (183 points) placed second, followed by Bengals wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase (171), Ravens running back Derrick Henry (92) and Bengals QB Joe Burrow (78).
Barkley generated 2,005 rushing yards, becoming the ninth player in 国产外流网history with 2,000-plus rushing yards in a season. He sat out in Week 18 despite being just 101 yards shy of breaking the single-season record held by Hall of Famer Eric Dickerson (2,105 in 1984).
Barkley led all running backs in yards, carries (345) and yards per game (125.3). If it weren't for an odd propensity for getting tackled inside the 1-yard-line, he'd have generated more than 13 touchdowns this season (eighth most), as well.
The 27-year-old generated +549 rushing yards over expected this season, per Next Gen Stats, 154 more than any running back in a season from 2018 (when the statistic was first tracked) to 2023, besting his own record from 2018 (+395).
In 16 regular season games, Barkley was held under 100 yards rushing just five times. He also had five games of 150-plus rushing yards to balance the scales. The only time he went under the 50-yard mark on the season was a 47-yard output in Week 6 against Cleveland.
Adding 278 receiving yards, Barkley finished with 2,283 scrimmage yards, the most in the 国产外流网(Derrick Henry was second with 2,114). The running back accounted for 34.8% of the Eagles' scrimmage yards in 2024, the highest rate of any team and the only player above 30 percent.
Like a boxer with a quick jab and devastating finishing move, Barkley would pepper defenses with three-to-five-yard gains before blasting off for massive sprints. He generated 17 runs of 20-plus yards and a league-high seven 40-plus-yarders. His 82 rushing first downs ranked third among all backs, and his 5.8 yards per attempt finished second (Henry; 5.9).
Since he was drafted No. 2 overall by the New York Giants, none questioned Barkley's talent, even as he hammered away behind a beleaguered Big Blue offensive line. Playing behind the best O-line in the NFL, however, has brought Barkley out from the darkness and into the streaming sun.
His combination of speed and elusiveness behind the Eagles offensive line was deadly. Barkley gained 829 yards before contact this season, over 200 more yards than the next closest running back (Jahmyr Gibbs, 615).
A 2,000-yard season brought Barkley one piece of hardware on Thursday night. On Sunday, he hopes to lift a bigger award when his Eagles face the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX.
