Commanders Facing 'Really Special' Giants RB Saquon Barkley Sunday

New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley poses one of the biggest challenges for the Washington Commanders so far this season.

Jeremy Brener | Dec 1, 2022

If the Washington Commanders want to beat the New York Giants this weekend, they are going to have to find a way to contain running back Saquon Barkley.

Barkley, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, is enjoying arguably his best season as a pro, ranking fourth in the league in rushing behind Josh Jacobs (Las Vegas Raiders), Derrick Henry (Tennessee Titans) and Nick Chubb (Cleveland Browns). With 992 rushing yards this season, Barkley will almost certainly eclipse the 1,000-yard total Sunday against the Commanders for the third time in his five seasons in the league.

"Saquon is really a special football player," Commanders head coach Ron Rivera said. "He really is. He is back 100 percent. I know last year he was getting back to form and you could see it this year he's back. We have to account for him as well. So we've just gotta make sure that if we're paying attention to the quarterback on one aspect, the other side of it has to pay attention to their responsibilities. And that's really what it comes down to is we do our responsibilities.”

The Commanders face Barkley's Giants Sunday at 1 p.m. at MetLife Stadium.

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Published Dec 1, 2022

JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.