Philadelphia Eagles RB Saquon Barkley named NFL Offensive Player of the Year
Saquon Barkley's historic season continued on Thursday night. The Philadelphia Eagles running back won the AP Offensive Player of the Year Award at the NFL Honors in New Orleans.
In his first season in Philadelphia, Barkley shattered franchise rushing records and produced highlight-reel plays on a weekly basis.
"It's an honor and privilege to be selected the [Offensive] Player of the Year. I would like to give thanks to God first, without him none of this would be possible," Barkley said in a video message on the TV broadcast. "I'd like to give thanks to my family, my fiancé, my children, my mom and dad and brothers and sisters. Thank you guys so much for the love and support throughout this journey. I'd like to thank the fans of Philadelphia for showing so much love to my family, especially being newcomers. And last but not least, I'd like to thank my teammates and coaches. You can't be great without the greatness of others — one of my favorite quotes. And you definitely can't accomplish awards like this without the big boys upfront."
Barkley beat out Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, Bengals wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase, Ravens running back Derrick Henry and Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson to win the award. Barkley got 35 first-place votes and won the award easily. Jackson had 12 first-place votes.
Barkley was also a candidate for the AP MVP Award, but that win to Buffalo quarterback Josh Allen.
Barkley rushed for a league-high 2,005 yards in the regular season and became the ninth player in NFL history to eclipse 2,000 yards. He averaged 5.8 yards per carry and had 15 total touchdowns, including 13 rushing.
In the regular season, Barkley broke two records that were previously held by former Eagles running back LeSean McCoy. Barkley broke McCoy's record of 1,607 yards in 13 games in a win over the Carolina Panthers. In a dominant win over the Los Angeles Rams, Barkley set Philadelphia's single-game rushing record with 255 yards and two 70-yard plus touchdowns. That performance surpassed McCoy's 217 rushing yards during the Snow Bowl against the Detroit Lions at Lincoln Financial Field in 2013.
Barkley leads all rushers in the 2024 NFL playoffs with 442 yards and five scores. He's averaging 147.3 rushing yards per game in the postseason.
Barkley will get get a chance to add to that total when the Eagles face the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX on Sunday at the Caesars Superdome, and he'll likely set another record in the process.
Barkley has recorded 2,447 rushing yards in the regular season and playoffs combined. With 30 more yards, he'll pass former Denver Broncos running back Terrell Davis for the most rushing yards combined in the regular season and playoffs.
When Barkley left the Giants and signed a three-year, $37.75 million contract with the Eagles last March, it prompted "dead to me" comments from former New York running back Tiki Barber.
Nearly a year later, Barkley had one of the best running back seasons in NFL history.
NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year voting
- Rams' Jared Verse: 37 first-place votes
- Eagles' Quinyon Mitchell: 9 first-place votes
- Rams' Braden Fiske: 1 first-place votes
- Eagles' Cooper DeJean
- Dolphins' Chop Robinson
- Packers' Edgerrin Cooper
NFL Defensive Player of the Year voting
- Broncos' Patrick Surtain II: 26 first place votes
- Bengals' Trey Hendrickson: 11 first place votes
- Browns' Myles Garrett: 5 first-place votes
- Steelers' T.J. Watt: 3 first-place votes
- Eagles' Zack Baun: 2 first-place votes
NFL Assistant Coach of the Year voting
- Lions' Ben Johnson: 29 first-place votes
- Vikings' Brian Flores: 3 first-place votes
- Lions' Aaron Glenn: 6 first-place votes
- Eagles' Vic Fangio: 3 first-place votes
Eagles offensive line coach and run game coordinator Jeff Stoutland even got one first-place vote for the award.
