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Saquon Barkley explains mantra for first season with Eagles
Star running back Saquon Barkley spent his first six NFL seasons with the New York Giants but left that organization via free agency to sign with the Philadelphia Eagles this past March.
Barkley read "Victory Favors the Fearless" ahead of attending his first training camp practice as a member of the Eagles and has embraced that mantra for the upcoming campaign.
"My biggest takeaway from the book was being okay with adapting to things and to attack and adapt," Barkley explained, as shared by Chris Franklin of NJ Advance Media for NJ.com. "That’s how I want to focus on this whole camp. With everything I do, if I mess up or make a mistake, I’ll do it at full speed. I want to go out there, try to make plays, do it full speed, attack, and whatever happens, adapt and be ready. You have to trust your faith. There’s no need to have fear when you have faith."
Barkley dealt with numerous physical setbacks during his Giants tenure. He suffered a torn ACL in September 2020, and he more recently missed three games last season with an ankle injury.
While at least one unnamed NFL offensive coach mentioned in July that Barkley is "probably not as fast as he used to be," the Eagles seemingly are hoping the 27-year-old will thrive playing behind an offensive line that should be better than any Barkley had with the Giants. With that said, he's still adjusting to running behind new blockers and learning a system installed by offensive coordinator Kellen Moore after Moore joined the Eagles in February.
"That all comes with reps," Barkley noted. "I think I’m getting a really good feel for those guys up front right now and I think we’re running the ball pretty well. There are always things you can improve, but that comes with reps and practicing with each other and trusting each other."
Barkley was often the most talented offensive player on the Giants but could find himself having somewhat of a diminished role if a specific game plan calls for quarterback Jalen Hurts to routinely target weapons such as wide receivers A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith. The second overall pick of the 2018 draft, who has thus far played in only two career postseason games, seems just fine with losing touches if it results in Philadelphia earning a victory.
"When your goal is to go out there and win and compete for a championship, and that’s actually what you want to do, it doesn’t matter how you get it done," Barkley said. "I think we have those guys in this locker room who share that same mindset. When you all play at a high level, you want the accolades that come along with it, but the main thing is to win football games, and I think we have that mindset here."
As of Monday afternoon, DraftKings Sportsbook listed the Eagles third among the betting favorites at +600 odds to represent the NFC in Super Bowl LIX. Barkley clearly cares more about achieving that goal than about accumulating stellar personal stats during his first season with his new club.
More must-reads:
- Who's hot, who's not at Eagles training camp
- DeVonta Smith 'likes what he's seen' from Eagles rookie CB
- The 'Running backs taken in the first round' quiz
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Steelers Rookie's Injury Timeline Revealed
In a meaningless final preseason contest, the Pittsburgh Steelers watched as prized rookie defensive tackle Derrick Harmon was carted off the field in the first half. The team's first-round draft pick at the 2025 NFL Draft went down after a pass-rush attempt, but was able to exit under his own power before being taken off the field. Despite the scare, the Steelers’ newest starter appears to have avoided a major injury. Head coach Mike Tomlin frustratingly had no update on the player in the second half of their preseason finale against the Carolina Panthers, but before the game ended Harmon walked back onto the sidelines to rejoin his teammates. Following the game, Tomlin shared that Harmon suffered a knee sprain and is being evaluated. Shortly after, team insider Gerry Dulac provided further information on the situation. ”No. 1 pick Derrick Harmon has a knee sprain and will have an MRI tomorrow in Pittsburgh,” he said via his X account. “His injury is not season-ending but he is expected to be out at least a couple weeks, per sources.” With two weeks left until their regular season opener against the New York Jets, the team’s starting defense is at risk of beginning the season short-handed. For a team with championship ambitions, a long-term injury to Harmon was devastating, but a short-term one is still very costly. The immediate takeaway is the defensive line loses a starter, but the bigger hit comes beyond the starting 11. Without Harmon, the pressure and strain on the line depth only increases. Entering the season, the position is one of the team’s deepest, but they had no intentions of testing that immediately. Now, fellow starters Cam Heyward and Keeanu Benton will be on the field more. So will rookie Yahya Black and possibly Isaiahh Loudermilk. The depth is still there, but without Harmon it goes from a potential difference-maker to potentially even larger issue. Further complicating the matter is the uncertainty surrounding top lineman Cam Heyward. The 36-year-old leader of the locker room is seeking a restructured deal, and recently held-in and did not participate in team activities as training camp concluded. Harmon was the solution to any Heyward problem. If he sat out Week 1, they still had two starters. Now, they are at risk of losing two starters before the regular season begins. The Steelers are hoping and praying this injury continues to be less severe than initially thought, and that the top pick can make it back in time for the regular season opener. That won’t be fully known, however, until this MRI reveals any additional injury concerns for the Steelers.
Giants rookie shines again completing promising preseason
Preseason football can produce some misleading results, but the New York Giants have to be ecstatic with what they have seen from first-round pick quarterback Jaxson Dart so far. He impressed again on Thursday night against the New England Patriots, before being removed from the game to be evaluated for a concussion. The Giants said he cleared the concussion protocol. Prior to that, however, Dart was showing all of his skills in leading the Giants offense. While his final stat line only shows a 6-for-12 passing performance for 81 yards, some of those incompletions were passes that could — and, perhaps, should — have been caught. He did not get a lot of help from his wide receivers. Even so, he still completed a 50-yard pass to Gunner Olszewski, and then connected with Greg Dulcich for a touchdown on a laser of a pass. Along with the passing, Dart also showed off his ability to run with a 23-yard gain. The only downside to that run, however, is that it ended his night when his head hit the ground, resulting in him leaving the game to be evaluated for the potential concussion. Dart does not figure to be in serious competition for the starting job as veteran Russell Wilson seems to have that locked down, at least for now. But Dart has done everything he can in the preseason to show that he has the ability to play at the NFL level. Including his performance on Thursday, he leaves the preseason having completed 32-of-47 passes for 372 yards, three touchdowns, zero interceptions and also ran six times for 52 yards and a touchdown. It is hard for a rookie to do better than that in their first look in the NFL. The Giants have been searching for a long-term quarterback solution ever since Eli Manning retired and have gone through a revolving door of bad options. They are hoping Dart can finally put an end to that for the foreseeable future. There is still a long way to go before he gets to that level, but he has certainly made a great first impression.
'Look out for this dude': Former NFL exec has warning about unexpected SEC quarterback
Quarterbacks like Texas' Arch Manning, Clemson's Cade Klubnik and LSU's Garrett Nussmeier are getting all the hype as the 2025 college football season quickly approaches, but don't sleep on South Carolina Gamecocks quarterback LaNorris Sellers. Sellers, a 6-foot-3, 240-pound redshirt sophomore from Florence, South Carolina, had an intriguing redshirt freshman season for the Gamecocks. So much so, that he very well could find himself listed among players like Manning, Klubnik and Nussmeier in the Heisman Trophy race by the end of this season. He's also the exact type of quarterback who will have NFL scouts raving. Louis Riddick is a former NFL player, scout and executive who is extremely high on Sellers heading into this season. He was recently on ESPN's "Get Up" and had many great things to say about South Carolina's young quarterback. “I’m just telling you, look out for this dude," Riddick said (h/t On3). "He can run. He has got a cannon. They have got a good program down there. He is everything that you’re looking for. Just look at some of this. Look how big this kid is. Look how fast and elusive he is.” Sellers is a classic dual-threat quarterback who fits the mold of a modern QB perfectly. Last season for the Gamecocks, he threw for 2,534 yards and 18 touchdowns (with seven interceptions) while rushing for 674 yards and seven touchdowns. Much like its quarterback, South Carolina is a bit under the radar in a stacked SEC, but head coach Shane Beamer went 9-4 last season, and his Gamecocks are ranked No. 13 in the preseason AP Top 25. South Carolina has a stretch in the middle of the season that will see it play consecutive games against No. 9 LSU, No. 18 Oklahoma, No. 8 Alabama, No. 21 Ole Miss and No. 19 Texas A M. Coastal Carolina is a respite on the schedule on Nov. 22, and the Gamecocks end their regular season against No. 4 Clemson. If the Gamecocks can pull off a few wins in that stretch, they very well could be a College Football Playoff team this season. In order to do that, though, they'll need Sellers to become a superstar, but listening to Riddick talk about the quarterback, it seems as if he's already on his way.
Red Sox promote prospect who has incredible nickname
The Boston Red Sox are expected to call up a prospect who will quickly become known to fans because of his amazing nickname. Ian Browne of MLB.com reported on Thursday that the Red Sox have decided to promote outfield prospect Jhostynxon Garcia, who is the No. 3 prospect in Boston's system. Garcia has yet to play in an MLB game, but many baseball fans are already familiar with the 22-year-old because he has one of the best nicknames of all time: "The Password." How did Garcia end up with that nickname? Because his first name, which is pronounced "JOES-tin-son," is incredibly difficult to spell. Garcia's first name features such a rare structure and combination of letters that it would make an incredibly strong computer password. The Red Sox signed Garcia out of Venezuela in 2019. They signed his brother, Johanfran Garcia, three years later. As Browne notes, Johanfran is the No. 28 prospect in Boston's system, and he also has a great nickname that plays off his brother's. Johanfran's nickname is "The Username." Jhostynxon Garcia has split time between Double-A Portland and Triple-A Worcester this season. He has batted .303 with 17 home runs and 56 RBI in 66 Triple-A games.
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