Saquon Barkley was one of the Giants’ most consistent performers at MetLife Stadium for years. But to truly unlock his full potential, he had to leave New York. In his first season with the Philadelphia Eagles, Barkley not only helped deliver a Lombardi Trophy, but he also etched his name into the history books, becoming just the ninth player ever to rush for over 2,000 yards in a season. Along the way, he earned Pro Bowl and All-Pro honors, and the league named him Offensive Player of the Year.
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Yet, some things didn’t change. Barkley still put on a show at MetLife Stadium—only now, he was met with boos instead of cheers. After joining the Giants’ division rival, it was inevitable he’d return to face his former team. And like nearly every game he played that season, he gave fans something to remember.
Amidst the jeers raining down from the crowd, Barkley took the field with a clear message: he meant business, and his former teammates couldn’t stop him. On one memorable play, he caught a short pitch from Jalen Hurts nearly 15 shy of the first-down marker.
Surrounded quickly by Giants defenders, Barkley didn’t shy away from contact. Instead, he lowered his shoulder, powered through the initial hits, and spun off a would-be tackler as he surged toward the first down. Though the defense eventually forced him out of bounds just short of the marker, the play was a clear display of his mindset and grit.
“This is from me going back to MetLife. It’s the experience I truly would never forget. Kind of wanted to send a message for sure. Stuff like that matters in games. It let the team know like what type of mindset I have and what type of mindset we’re coming with, especially kind of want to send a message to team that I’m not going to allow the fans or the boos to dictate how I play this game…You know the play, kind of speaks for itself. Just kind of set it up, lowered my shoulder,” he recalled.
As he got up to return to the huddle, a few of his former teammates reminded him he hadn’t picked up the first down. Their taunts only fueled him even further.
“When I was going to the sidelines, some of the guys I knew from my former team were like you still didn’t get the first down. And I just kind of said, dont worry, its coming. It’s coming.'”
That drive didn’t result in points, but the Eagles didn’t have to wait long. Early in the second half, they finally broke through with a touchdown, and fittingly, it was Saquon Barkley who punched it in, powered by a dominant performance from his offensive line.
It wasn’t flashy. It was pure grit, teamwork, and determination. But it got the job done.
In the middle of the celebration, Barkley kept the banter alive. He playfully taunted his former teammate, Dexter Lawrence—one of the NFL’s biggest and most imposing defenders—calling him a “little a** boy.”
Of course, Barkley didn’t mean any real disrespect. It was just part of his fiery competitive nature, caught in the heat of the moment. Riled up and fully in the zone, he let his emotions spill out in the way only a high-stakes rivalry can prove. He silenced the booing fans and his former teammates not with his words but with his gameplay.
In that game, he ended up rushing for 176 yards on only 17 carries, along with a TD. He had the chance to break the single-season rushing yards record in the home game against the Giants. It was the week 18 game, and since the Eagles had already qualified for the playoffs, he didn’t play, putting team first over individual record.
