Barkley: ‘No hate’ ahead of first game vs

Tim McManus, ESPN Staff WriterOct 16, 2024, 05:52 PM ET

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PHILADELPHIA — Eagles running back Saquon Barkley said he has nothing to prove to the New York Giants as he prepares to return to MetLife Stadium on Sunday.

“I’m thankful for the opportunity from this organization, from [CEO Jeffery Lurie] to [general manager Howie Roseman] to everybody getting me here. So that’s the people I have to prove it to, and my teammates,” Barkley said Wednesday. “And at the end of the day, the most important thing is winning, whether I have 300 yards or I have 10 yards, as long as we win. I don’t have that big of a pride or ego that if I go out there and ball that I’m looking at those guys over there like, ‘Look what you guys let go.’ There’s no hate over there, but at the same time I do know it’s a big game, an important game.”

Barkley signed a three-year, $37.75 million free agent contract with the Eagles this offseason, joining a division rival after six seasons as a marquee player for the Giants. He said he’s “still processing” what Sunday’s game means to him, acknowledging the unique nature of facing off against a team with which he is deeply familiar.

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He still speaks with quarterback Daniel Jones weekly and follows the team closely, and he said there are guys on the Giants that eventually will be in his wedding.

But he’s also wary of building the game up too much.

He referenced the game he tore an ACL during the 2020 season. Coming off a down performance the week prior, Barkley said he made the following game “so much more.”

“I was really out there trying to prove everyone wrong, like you guys, the media, everyone was talking crap about me, so I kind of wanted that ‘F you’ moment,” Barkley said. “God works in mysterious ways. Definitely humbled me then and I won’t let it happen again.”

Barkley has been a bright spot on a 3-2 Eagles team that has yet to put it all together, ranking third in average rushing yards per game (96.4) with five total touchdowns. He became the first player in franchise history to have 100-plus scrimmage yards in each of the first four games to start the year.

Knowing the history he has with the Giants, he acknowledged “it will be interesting.” For him, it’s about finding that balance of playing within himself while riding the energy that comes from a once-in-a-career moment.

“I don’t know what the environment is going to be like but I’m excited,” he said. “As a player, as a competitor, you kind of welcome those environments and those moments.

“Whatever it is, hopefully it gives me a little extra juice and I can go out there and perform and help my team win.”

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