Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley couldn’t have made a better start to life with his current team. An offseason acquisition from the New York Giants in 2024, Barkley quickly repaid the Eagles’ faith with a number of stunning plays last seasonwhich culminated in Nick Sirianni’s team winning Super Bowl LIX.
Saquon Barkley’s incredible 2024 season exploits
Going into Week 18 of the regular season, he had registered 2,005 rushing yards on the season, 101 yards short of breaking Eric Dickerson‘s single-season rushing yards record. Barkley ultimately didn’t get the chance to break the record as he, along with other Eagles starters, was rested with the NFC East and the No. 2 seed secured.
Additionally, he also set NFL records for most rushing (2,504) and scrimmage yards (2,857) in a full season.
As a result of his exploits, Barkley was ranked the best player in the NFL by fellow players on NFL Top 100 Players of 2025.
Barkley’s contract information
Barkley quickly repaid a large chunk of the bumper three-year deal signed last year. His initial contract in Philadelphia was worth $37.75 million, with $26 million guaranteed, although he since penned a two-year, $41.2 million extension through the 2028 NFL season that includes $36 million guaranteed and up to $15 million more in incentives.
“When I was able to find a new home and knew I was going there, I got the guaranteed money I wanted and the contract I wanted,” Barkley said of his move to Philadelphia. “The last three or four years I‘ve been on a one-year deal, so now I can go back to playing ball like, ’Yeah, I‘m jumping over people again, because I got money’. I have financial security, and I can play free.”
Why did Saquon Barkley leave the Giants?
Barkley was drafted by the New York Giants as the No. 2 overall pick of the 2018 NFL Draft. His first season in NY was a triumph, setting a number of team and NFL records as a rookie, going on to be named NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year.
He suffered an anterior cruciate ligament tear in 2020 that ended his season in Game 2. He returned to become a key player for the Giants once again, ranking 31st in the NBFL Top 100 Players of 2023.
However, with his contract set to expire at the end of the 2023 season negotiations between Barkley and the Giants foundered. He has said that the Giants asked him to search for an offer at another team and they would try to match ita suggestion that he later described as “disrespectful”.
“It was over after that phone call, in my opinion,” Barkley said of those salary negotiations in New York. “It was over after that because I never in my heart truly believed they were going to match it, or they only wanted me for a lower price.”
As it happened, the Eagles were willing to hand Barkley the second-highest guaranteed salary ($26 million) of any running-back in the league and have since upped the stakes even further. The full guarantee at signing of $36 million is the most ever for a running backwhile the two-year ($33.5 million) and three-year ($49.5 million) cash flow is the most for any running back in NFL history.
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