"Let The Other Guys Eat" -- Saquon Barkley Could Have Set A Career High Yesterday But He's Too Much Of A Good Teammate
Icon Sportswire. Getty Images.In case you forgot, Saquon Barkley ran the shit out of the ball yesterday in his return to MetLife Stadium. He ran through the Giants, he ran around the Giants, he ran damn near everywhere in that entire stadium yesterday. John Mara still hasn't gotten a wink of sleep about it.
By the end of his day, he had 176 rushing yards and more total yards than the entire Giants offense by himself.
The Eagles were able to pull away from the Giants and turn the game into a practice squad scrimmage by the end. It was time to work all the backups into the game. But before telling Saquon Barkley to keep his helmet off for the day, Nick Sirianni walked over to the sideline and gave him the option to stay in to pick up 13 more yards to hit his career high. Here was his answer…
13 yards away but he knew the reps meant more to guys like Kenneth Gainwell and Will Shipley. He knows getting those guys involved in the offense is going to be huge for later down the road. He also knows that picking up those extra 13 yards wouldn't be worth if he went out there in a game that was already over and ended up getting injured.
Saquon Barkley knows that the name on the front of the jersey means a helluva lot more than the one on the back. Would a new single game career high for rushing yards feel great for Saquon Barkley? I'm sure. Especially coming against his former team and in front of a crowd who boo'd him simply for their own GM practically kicking him out the door. I'm sure it would have felt great, but Saquon Barkley didn't join the Eagles to set a new career high in a single game. He came to Philadelphia to set a new career high for Super Bowl wins. And he'd trade those final 13 yards for a chance to win a Lombardi any day of the week. Because that's what great teammates do.
But the Giants don't know anything about building a culture so it's no wonder why they let this man walk.