What Eric Dickerson told Eagles' Saquon Barkley about missing chance at rushing record

Hall of Famer Eric Dickerson raised eyebrows and attracted some criticism when he admitted in December he didn't want Saquon Barkley of the Philadelphia Eagles to break the single-season record of 2,105 rushing yards that Dickerson set in 1984. 

Barkley ultimately sat out Philadelphia's Week 18 game against the New York Giants with the Eagles locked into the No. 2 seed for the NFC portion of the playoffs and, thus, finished the campaign 101 yards shy of surpassing Dickerson's mark. 

During the latest edition of the "Let's Go!" SiriusXM show and podcast, Dickerson revealed that he reached out to Barkley to congratulate the 27-year-old on a tremendous season. 

"I told him I would’ve liked to see him play at least a half to see if he had a chance to get it," Dickerson said about Barkley's potential pursuit of history at Lincoln Financial Field this past Sunday, as shared by Chris Franklin of NJ Advance Media for NJ.com. "But I understand the most important thing is winning the Super Bowl — it’s not about records." 

Barkley suggested last week he would've played against the Giants had he received approval from head coach Nick Sirianni even though the Eagles had nothing to gain in risking the health of such a key offensive weapon. However, Barkley also insisted at the time he had "a bigger goal in mind." 

Barkley played in just one playoff victory while with the Giants from 2018-23. Per ESPN's Tim McManus, the ball-carrier recently noted that he didn't sign with the Eagles as a free agent last March "to break Eric Dickerson's record." 

"We came to win a Super Bowl," Barkley added. 

As of Tuesday afternoon, DraftKings Sportsbook listed a 14-3 Eagles team that will have a rested Barkley as a 4.5-point favorite for this coming Sunday's home wild-card playoff game against the 11-6 Green Bay Packers. Dickerson was never part of a Super Bowl-winning squad and hinted such an achievement is better than any individual record. 

"I would trade those 2,000 yards for a Super Bowl in a heartbeat," Dickerson acknowledged on Monday. "That’s a no-brainer because football is the ultimate team sport. It’s not about the individual. If you get some records along the way, great — that’s fine."

Only time will tell if Barkley will have any regrets about not campaigning harder to play in the 2024 regular-season finale. One would think getting his hands on the Vince Lombardi Trophy in February would ease any pain related to Sirianni's Week 18 decision.