History Made: Saquon Barkley Signs Record-Breaking Contract Extension with Eagles, Becoming Highest Paid Running Back in NFL History
PHILADELPHIA EAGLES STAR Saquon Barkley has been rewarded for his record-breaking season, which culminated in a Super Bowl triumph, with the biggest ever NFL contract for a running back.
The Eagles confirmed on Tuesday that Barkley had been given a new two-year extension which will keep him with the team through the 2028 season.
ESPN reported that the deal was worth $41.2 million (38.8 million euros) with $36 million guaranteed at signing and the chance to earn $15 million in incentives.
Barkley ran for 2,504 yards over the full season which was an NFL record and also became the first NFL player with six 60-yard touchdown runs in a season as well as smashing a series of Eagles records.
The former New York Giant, who scored 20 touchdowns in the regular and post-season, was voted the NFL’s Offensive Player of the Year and was a finalist for the league’s Most Valuable Player.
Running back is among the most volatile positions in American football due to its proponents’ exposure to injury. As a consequence, star runners such as Barkley do not typically command the same salaries or job security as their peers in other ‘skill positions’, namely quarterback and wide receiver.
This reality and Barkley’s age — 27 at the time, which is typically considered to be the beginning of a running back’s twilight years — contributed to the Giants’ decision not to retain their former talisman heading into the 2024 season.
Barkley, a New York native who went to college at Penn State in Pennsylvania, then signed with the Giants’ archnemeses, the Eagles, many of whose fans rooted for Barkley during his college years.
While the hapless Giants endured a 3-14 season and will pick third in the NFL draft, the Eagles stormed to their second ever Super Bowl title during Barkley’s groundbreaking first season in Philadelphia.
The almost universally popular Barkley, whose role in the Giants’ locker room was underestimated by the New York franchise, has now been rewarded by the Eagles with the most lucrative contract ever for a player in his position.
