Commanders' rookie phenom outshining Saquon Barkley at a $37 million discount

Saquon Barkley and Jacory Croskey-Merritt are at opposite ends of the spectrum. One is the reigning NFL Offensive Player of the Year and widely regarded among the league's most prolific running backs. The other was given no hope of making it as a seventh-round pick by the Washington Commanders.

But you wouldn't know it based on the first five weeks of the 2025 season.

Croskey-Merritt has rapidly become one of the league's most heartwarming rags-to-riches stories. Commanders fans were hopeful after his exceptional transition this summer. He's brought that through to a competitive setting, leading all running backs in yards per carry en route to taking the NFL by storm.

Commanders' rookie Jacory Croskey-Merritt is outshining Saquon Barkley through five games

Barkley, on the other hand, is struggling to reach the meteoric heights attained during his first season with the Philadelphia Eagles.

They might be 4-1, but all is not well in the building. Behind closed doors meetings with key players, criticism of the scheme being deployed by new offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo, and riding their luck in every game have been rife throughout the campaign. Momentum is teetering, while Croskey-Merritt is thriving.

This was magnified in greater detail by Sterling Xie from the Pro Football and Sports Network, who eloquently put just how impactful Croskey-Merritt has been in such a short space of time.

If the first month-plus of his career is any indication, seventh-rounder Jacory “Bill” Croskey-Merritt will go down as one of the top recent NFL Draft steals. Against the Chargers, Croskey-Merritt had a 71.4% rushing success rate, tied with Kareem Hunt for the highest by any player this week. He also ranked third in average yards before contact (2.64) and yards after contact (5.29). Croskey-Merritt has the highest RBi grade for the whole season at 94.2. That’s currently the second-highest season-long grade for a rookie RB since 2013, just behind De’Von Achane (95.9) in 2023.Sterling Xie

Croskey-Merritt is riding on the crest of a wave. The Commanders are trying to rein him in and bring the rookie along gradually, but it's getting harder. A new sponsorship deal with Nike is an off-the-field benefit, which is a deserved reward for his remarkable rise to prominence.

Momentum is everything. Croskey-Merritt is shockingly outshining Barkley, and the proof is in the numbers.

Croskey-Merritt has more rushing yards and touchdowns on 40 fewer attempts. He's got double Barkley's broken tackles, and his yards per carry number is more than twice that of the former generational Penn State prospect. The impact isn't there in the passing game yet, but it's improving. And his grade from Pro Football Focus is more than 30 points higher.

Simply put, Croskey-Merritt is outshining Barkley. And he's doing it at a $37 million discount.

The Eagles gave Barkley a two-year, $41.2 million contract extension this offseason, keeping him tied down until 2029. Croskey-Merritt was the No. 245 pick, giving him a four-year, $4.3 million rookie agreement with just $105,428 guaranteed.

It's early days, of course. There's a chance this success might be fleeting, and Croskey-Merritt's influence may fade over time. However, there is nothing to suggest this cannot be the springboard to a profitable career that could even make him one of the biggest draft steals of the modern era.

Time will tell on that, but it's been nice for Commanders fans to revel in Croskey-Merritt's success at the expense of their bitter division rival.