CBS Sports: Saquon Barkley of the Philadelphia Eagles established a new NFL record

Will it be Barkley’s eighth season in which he rushes for 2,000 yards?

Saquon Barkley of the Philadelphia Eagles is just 312 yards away from being the ninth running back in NFL history to dash for 2,000 yards or more in a single season. Barkley leads the NFL in running by more than 200 yards after carrying the football 285 times for 1,688 yards in the first 14 games of the season.

For Barkley to reach 2,000 yards for the season, he must average 104 running yards in the last three games. Barkley would be the first player to reach the 2,000-yard mark in a 17-game season, though, assuming he completes all three games. Before the NFL season was extended to 17 games in 2021, all eight of the previous 2,000-yard rushers accomplished the record in 14 or 16 games.

Barkley needs 418 yards to surpass the 2,105-yard single-season running record established by Eric Dickerson in 1984. To surpass Dickerson’s all-time record, Barkley must average 139.4 yards per game throughout the season’s last three games. Barkley would need to average 209 yards over the next two games for the Eagles to surpass Dickerson’s record in 16 games.

Barkley will become a member of an exclusive group that has won four NFL MVP titles, ten offensive player of the year honors, 26 first team All-Pro selections, and four inductions into the Pro Football Hall of Fame if he does surpass 2,000 yards.

The eight players that carry for 2,000 yards in a season are as follows:

Rushing Yards Club, 2,000

Single-Season Rushing Leaders of All Time

Yards

The year

Dickerson, Eric

2,105 yards

1984

Peterson, Adrian

2,097 yards

2012

Lewis, Jamal

2,066 yards

2003

Sanders, Barry

2,053 yards

1997

Henry Derrick

2,027 yards

2020

Davis, Terrell

2,008 yards

1998

Chris Johnson

2,006 yards

2009

Simpson, O.J.

2,003 yards

1973

Barkley has a good chance of hitting the 2,000-yard mark over this period. However, after receiving criticism from wide receiver A.J. Brown, the Eagles last week shifted to a throwing strategy. Barkley only managed 65 yards of running while Jalen Hurts passed 290 yards in their most recent victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers. Barkley might not get the touches and game plan he needs to reach the milestone if the Eagles do keep putting the passing game first.