Saquon Barkley is only a few months removed from a season in which he led the NFL in carries, including through the playoffs, and it wasn't even close.
But oddly, "it doesn't feel like it," the Eagles' star running back said Tuesday after the team's mandatory minicamp practice at the NovaCare Complex.
The 2024 rushing title, the all-time single-season and playoff rushing record, and above all, that Super Bowl championship definitely helped there. But those weren't trade-offs, or the result of a player exhausting all the good football left to finally earn some hardware.
No, Barkley thinks there's a lot more still in the tank.
"I feel like I'm entering my prime," he said from the conference room dais.
But even so, he and the Eagles probably won't get away with keeping him on that same 2024 workload if they hope to repeat as Super Bowl champions, which will require keeping him healthy.
And they know it.
You've been Snoquon Barkley'd ™️ ❄️@saquon | #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/SBV0ltUG5j
— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) January 19, 2025
A record 2,504 yards from 436 combined carries across the regular season and the playoffs is an insanely demanding ask of any running back for one season on its own, let alone the possibility of two straight, and that's not even to mention the shorter offseason left to recover from it as a result.
Barkley is already working within the limitations of that, he said Tuesday. The 28-year-old explained that he's gone back and forth with coaches, trainers, and running back greats like Marshall Faulk and Edgerrin James to figure out how to manage the wear and tear, along with just listening to his own body.
MORE: Notes from a drama-free Eagles minicamp practice
"It wasn't hard, because everyone that I trust told me, basically, 'Sit my ass down for a little bit,'" Barkley said. "Past years, when I was younger, you think 'Oh, someone's getting better than me!' I'm relaxing, and I see Derrick Henry running hills and Christian McCaffrey post something. The old me would be like 'I gotta go! I gotta go!'
"I still have that competitive nature, but they're two completely different seasons. So just listen to everyone. When it's time to go, I've been going, and when it's time to back off, I've been backing off."
Along with recognizing that this coming season, in terms of his usage, is likely to be different, too.
If the Eagles are going to put on an encore, it has to be.
"Everybody had individualized plans like they always do," Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni said of the work put in since the few short months following the Super Bowl. "We kind of monitored everybody as we went. We got a lot of good work in. Saquon got a lot of good work in, and yeah, I'm pleased with how the offseason program has went."
"Just take care of the little things first, and everything else that I want to accomplish, all the things you have to accomplish to become great, to create your legacy, I just try to focus on that, and the rest will take care of itself," Barkley said.
Even if it doesn't look like 2,000-plus yards this time around.
By the way, he's not retiring
Barkley raised eyebrows and sparked some social media virality last week when the topic of retirement and how he sees it happening for him "out of nowhere" came up during his interview on former Eagle Chris Long's "Green Light" podcast.
Barkley knew that soundbite was going to come back around when he sat down for his minicamp press conference on Tuesday and assured the room that, "I don't plan on retiring anytime soon."
Again, he thinks he has a lot more in the tank. Plus, he just signed a contract extension not that long ago to make him the highest-paid running back in the league.
"The question was asked to me," Barkley explained. "I don't have a set date or how many years I want to play. I would love to play this game as long as God lets me, and my body lets me."
Barkley said at another point: "I don't think I'll ever lose a passion for the game."
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