Eagles Ready To Take Wraps Off Saquon Barkley: "He Can Go For It Here"

The Eagles don't seem to be taking any precautions with the star running back for the season opener after a strong training camp.

Eagles RB Saquon Barkley / John McMullen/Eagles on SI

PHILADELPHIA – Saquon Barkley made a run during Monday’s practice that forced Nick Sirianni to do a double-take. The Eagles coach was wearing sunglasses at the time, but after the run, he didn’t have them on anymore.

He had taken them off to shoot a look at a couple of his assistant coaches standing nearby.

“I’m like, ‘Alright, this is awesome that we got him here,’” said Sirianni. “Not only for the play that he brings to the field and the cut that he made (Monday) at practice, but also his leadership and the person that we have.”

Go-time is nearly here for the Eagles’ prize free agent addition. He’s not trying to make Friday’s opener against the Green Bay Packers more than it is, even though he is pulling on an Eagles jersey for the first time after six seasons with the New York Giants.

Remember the last Giants castoff the Eagles signed? That was cornerback James Bradberry, who signed with the Eagles and was named a second-team Associated Press All-Pro in his first year with them in 2022.

Barkley could certainly be that, too, if not first team.

“I'm super excited,” he said. “I'm conscious enough to also know that it's Week 1. Whether we go out there and put up 50 points or really struggle in the beginning, the most important thing is to come out with a win.

“You can't get too caught up in Week 1. It's a long season, but we want to start the season off hot and start the season off fast. The way we can do that is by executing the game plan.”

Saquon Barkley talks with reporters following his first day of training camp with his new team, the Philadelphia Eagles. / By Ed Kracz/Eagles on SI

When Barkley first signed here, offensive coordinator Kellen Moore said the plan was to go easy on him, to monitor his reps because 17 games is a marathon and the plan was to keep him fresh. It was also a way to keep him healthy.

Barkley has looked so good, so healthy, and so fresh during training camp that the plan may need an alteration. At least for Week 1.

“I have awareness as it goes (regarding his reps and snap counts), but obviously we feel very confident he can go for it here,” said offensive coordinator Kellen Moore. “Seasons are seasons, you make adjustments as you go, but I think Saquon is obviously in a great position to just go for it here.”

The season begins nearly 5,000 miles from where the Eagles play their home games. To call this a home, game in Sau Paulo, Brazil, is a joke. This is supposed to be an Eagles home, but it isn’t. Not even close.

Because of the distance and concerns of traveling so far, Barkley’s close-knit family won’t see him play in person. They will be watching on TV.

“I've been blessed and fortunate that six years of my career I lived in New Jersey, which is an hour away from my family, and now I live 45 minutes away from my family,” he said. “They've seen a lot of games. They'll have to watch this one on TV. It's OK.”

The Eagles and Green Bay Packers will be the first two teams to play on South American soil in the long history of the NFL, and that also has Barkley extra-juiced. It’s not an opportunity he would have if he were still toiling with the Giants.

"I'm just so thankful to do what no one in the NFL has ever done before,” he said. “We get to do something special and grow the game, expand the game, grow the NFL brand. Excited to go out there and see our fans, but excited to bring in some new fans, too.”

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