Ravens nose tackle Travis Jones dropped great Saquon Barkley on the cold grass for a one-yard loss on his only run of the third quarter on Sunday, giving the running back just 44 yards in day. Barkley has had four separate runs this season for extra yards. The Ravens had done a good job of containing Barkley up to that point, but football games consist of four quarters, not three, and Barkley only seems to be getting stronger these days. As the Philadelphia Eagles cruised to a 24-19 win over another playoff contender, Barkley finished with 107 rushing yards.

Saquon Barkley Saquon Broccoli Shirt

That fourth quarter featured 11 runs for Barkley, including a 25-yard touchdown sprint, followed by six straight runs in a five-minute drive that ended with a field goal kick. It wasn’t his best game statistically, but Barkley, once again, showed what he can do with a game on the line. Barkley currently leads the NFL with 1,499 rushing yards, on pace to break Eric Dickerson’s 40-year-old record of 2,105 yards, set when the season had only 16 games instead of 17. Much more important to Barkley is that the Eagles have a 10-2 record, winning eight straight games. Baltimore’s plan to stop Barkley was to build a solid wall and take care to seal the gaps. Ravens defensive back Nnamdi Madubuike said afterward, “We basically did that, but at the end of the game, we let it go. We just let it slip away.” Barkley, 27, a former Penn State star who was the second overall pick in the 2018 draft, spent six seasons with the New York Giants, appearing in two playoff games. He played in just about every game during his rookie season. After a 2-2 start, the Eagles have become a bright candidate for the Super Bowl championship this season. M&T Bank Stadium was nearly empty after the field goal made it 24-12, sending excited green-clad Eagles fans scattered across purple seats to chant “MVP! MVP!” at Barkley.