PHILADELPHIA — Saquon Barkley wasted no time reminding the Giants that he still is Saquon Barkley.
“For sure, we definitely saw how they celebrated when they beat us last time,” Barkley said. “But I think one of my favorite things Coach [Nick] Sirianni says is the revenge mindset lasts five minutes, then it goes back to your habits.”
Barkley reached 21 mph on his 65-yard touchdown sprint on the second play from scrimmage in the Eagles’ 38-20 demolition of the Giants.
“I would lie to you if I said I wasn’t like, ‘Finally,’ ” Barkley said as he looked skyward.
He had been averaging 3.3 yards per carry, a steep drop from 5.8 during his Super first season as an Eagle.
He rushed for 150 yards and could have reached 200 if he hadn’t injured his groin on a 28-yard gain on the last play of the third quarter and was replaced by Tank Bigsby.
Barkley said he could have returned if needed. He has the bye week to rest up now anyway.
“I wasn’t worried about it,” Barkley said.
The Giants limited Barkley (12-58 rushing, 2-9 receiving) in their 34-17 win.
This was his first 100-yard rushing game of the season, and it came at the perfect time for the Eagles, with WR A.J. Brown sidelined (hamstring).
Barkley also caught a 9-yard TD in the first half that gave the Eagles a lead they never relinquished.
“We came out and we did some different things that we hadn’t done before, and Saquon hit it with a full head of steam,” quarterback Jalen Hurts said.
The Eagles heaped praise on first-year play-caller Kevin Patullo, who has replaced now-Saints HC Kellen Moore. They have been searching for a balanced offense.
“When it comes together, it’s a thing of beauty. That first run is what it looked like for a very long time. You give us space — and that’s what teams try to do; they don’t want to give us any space — you give us a chance, you give us space, and good luck.”
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
