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Saquon Barkley Torches The New York Giants For 176 Yards On The Ground 28-3

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Courtesy Of The Philadelphia Eagles Communications

East Rutherford, N.J.— As Saquon Barkley entered MetLife Stadium to face the New York Giants for the first time as a member of the Philadelphia Eagles, he noticed fans burning his old Giants jersey. He described the scene as “crazy.” However, Barkley quickly turned the attention back to the field, delivering a standout performance reminiscent of his days with the Giants. He rushed for 176 yards and a touchdown, leading the Eagles to a decisive 28-3 victory over a struggling G-Men team on Sunday.

Barkley’s impressive display transformed the boos he received in his opening series into cheers by the game’s conclusion. He noted that nothing fazed him during the match—the jeers, the banter with former teammates, or even a slow start in the first quarter. In fact, he found the booing to be somewhat flattering. He expressed a hope that he wouldn’t have to witness his jersey being burned again.

“There’s a reason why when I go out there and I’m getting booed, I didn’t remove myself from the moment,” Barkley explained. In his five seasons with the Giants, he rushed for 5,211 yards, making him the fourth all-time leading rusher in franchise history, and scored 47 touchdowns. “I stayed locked in the whole time.”

Jalen Hurts contributed significantly as well, scoring twice on quarterback sneaks and throwing a 41-yard touchdown pass to A.J. Brown. With this win, the Eagles improved to 4-2, while the Giants fell to 2-5, marking Philadelphia’s sixth victory in seven matchups against New York and their 14th win in the last 17 meetings. The Eagles’ defense also shone, registering eight sacks and limiting the Giants to just 119 total yards.

Courtesy Of The Philadelphia Eagles Communications

This matchup was particularly notable because Barkley was now in an Eagles uniform. Drafted second overall by the Giants in 2018, he signed a three-year, $37.5 million contract with Philadelphia in March.

Barkley made an immediate impact, igniting the Eagles with a 55-yard run around the left side that set up his 3-yard touchdown to give Philadelphia a 7-0 lead in the second quarter. Hurts later connected with Brown on a crucial fourth-and-3 play to extend the lead to 14-0.

In the second half, Barkley continued to shine, with a 38-yard run setting up Hurts’ first touchdown run. His 41-yard run in the fourth quarter led to another score. Barkley finished the game with 176 rushing yards on 17 carries, averaging an impressive 10.4 yards per carry. This performance marked the second-highest rushing total of his career, just shy of his personal best of 189 yards against Washington in December 2019.

Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni encouraged Barkley to simply “be yourself,” acknowledging his long history of excellence in football. “I was happy for him that he was able to have that experience,” Sirianni said.

After the game, Giants head coach Brian Daboll took a moment to hug Barkley, acknowledging his strong performance. “He played well. If he gets in space, he’s going to make some yards, and he played particularly well in the second half,” Daboll said.

Hurts finished the game 10 of 14 for 114 yards before being pulled after his second rushing touchdown. He was sacked four times, two of which were by Dexter Lawrence, who now has nine sacks this season.

“I played with him for years,” Lawrence said of Barkley. “I know his attitude towards the game, and that’s the way he approached it today.”

The Giants managed to score a 38-yard field goal from Greg Joseph in the final seconds of the first half, but it was a bleak day overall. Daboll faced some sarcastic cheers when he substituted quarterback Daniel Jones for Drew Lock in the fourth quarter. Jones ended the game with 14 completions on 21 attempts for just 99 yards, while rookie receiver Malik Nabers caught four passes for 41 yards.

With this loss, the Giants remain winless in four home games and have scored only one touchdown during that span.

Up Next:

Eagles: At Cincinnati next Sunday.

Giants: At Pittsburgh on Monday, Oct. 28.