Why Saquon Barkley is Not Playing in Eagles-Giants Game

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Spencer Ostrow | Last updated Jan 5, 2025 1:13 PM ET

The Philadelphia Eagles host the New York Giants on Sunday in Week 18. This is the final game of the regular season before the Eagles enter the playoffs for the seventh time in the last eight years.

After a 10-game winning streak, the Eagles fell to the Washington Commanders in Week 16. But they bounced back in a big way, dominating the Dallas Cowboys, 41-7, in Week 17.

Now, they’ll aim to carry momentum from back-to-back wins into the playoffs—though they’ll be doing so without star running back Saquon Barkley on the field.

Barkley was made inactive for Sunday's game against his former team. After a conversation with Philadelphia head coach Nick Sirianni early this week, the Eagles decided they didn't want to risk an injury to the 2024 NFL rushing leader in a game with zero meaning for the team.

Philadelphia (13-3) has already locked up the NFC East and is solidified as the No. 2 seed in the conference.

Unfortunately for Barkley, he'll fall just shy of breaking the NFL's single-season rushing record (Excludes playoffs). He has 2,005 rushing yards in on the year and needed just 101 more to do it.

"Coach asked me what I'd like to do," Barkley said on Wednesday. "We had a conversation. He called me back and let me know that we were probably going to be resting. My reaction was kinda like—I told my family, obviously my family probably wanted it (record) a little bit more than me—but at the end of the day the most important thing is winning football games and winning in the playoffs. I've got a bigger goal in mind anyway."

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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