Eagles Superstar On His Historic Season 'You Got To Envision It. You Gotta Believe It.'

Saquon Barkley is 30 yards away from Terrell Davis' all-time rushing record entering Super Bowl LIX.
Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley (26) celebrates after winning the NFC Championship game against the Washington Commanders at Lincoln Financial Field.
Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley (26) celebrates after winning the NFC Championship game against the Washington Commanders at Lincoln Financial Field. / Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
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PHILADELPHIA - Saquon Barkley will enter Super Bowl LIX needing only 30 rushing yards to break the NFL single-season record (including playoffs) set by Hall of Famer Terrell Davis (2,476) during the 1998 season.

Considering Barkley is averaging 147.3 rushing yards per game this postseason (442 yards and five TDs on 66 rushing attempts), about the only thing you can guarantee in the big game between the 17-3 Eagles and the 17-2 Kansas City Chiefs is that Philadelphia’s star running back is going to be the new standard in the ground game.

After six difficult seasons with the New York Giants, many were excited about the improvement the uber-talented Barkley could make with a better supporting cast. Going from good back with a bad team to historic, though?

“I didn’t think it was possible, I kinda knew [it was possible],” Barkley said Thursday at the NovaCare Complex. “You got to envision it. You gotta believe it.”

Others believed in Barkley first, including his running backs coach Jemal Singleton.

“The biggest thing that sticks out on my mind [with Singleton] was a conversation we had coming into the season where he kinda expressed what he feels about me as a player,” Barkley said. “How he views me as a player and how I need to start viewing myself as that and this year can be a year where we can do something special. 

"[Singleton] basically challenged me to do that and I know he has my back in doing that and so far we've been doing some special stuff this year."

There’s one more hurdle to go and when Barkley surpasses Davis, the record won’t mean nearly as much without the hardware of the Lombardi Trophy accompanying it.

“We had an opportunity to get [the regular season record] but the only thing that makes it special if we would have gotten the rushing record during the season or if we get the all-time rushing record playoffs included, the only thing that makes it special is winning the Super Bowl,” said Barkley.

“Special” is the theme here and it starts between the ears, according to Barkley.

“Every year no matter what you have to come in with the mindset because we all have a chance to go out there and accomplish what we want to accomplish,” the All-Pro running back said. “So I believed in it. I envisioned it. I had those conversations with myself.”

A self-reflective man Barkley’s breakout began with the visualization of being the best in the world. Turns out he might have had the best season by a RB in NFL history.

“Some guys write it down on notes and put it on the mirror and stuff like that. I’m more to myself whether it’s in a sauna or in that cold tub or the drive in the morning,” said Barkley. “But it’s a cool feeling when everything you work for -- it’s all right in front of you and all the stuff and the player I knew I was and the player I believe I was is finally beginning to show.”

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John McMullen
JOHN MCMULLEN

John McMullen is a veteran reporter who has covered the NFL for over two decades. The current NFL insider for JAKIB Media, John is the former NFL Editor for The Sports Network where his syndicated column was featured in over 200 outlets including the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, and Miami Herald. He was also the national NFL columnist for Today's Pigskin as well as FanRag Sports. McMullen has covered the Eagles on a daily basis since 2016, first for ESPN South Jersey and now for Eagles Today on SI.com's FanNation. You can listen to John, alongside legendary sports-talk host Jody McDonald every morning from 8-10 on ‘Birds 365,” streaming live on YouTube.com. John is also the host of his own show "Extending the Play" on AM1490 in South Jersey and part of 6ABC.com's live postgame show after every Eagles game. You can reach him at jmcmullen44@gmail.com or on Twitter @JFMcMullen