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Eagles RB Saquon Barkley receives standing ovation for eclipsing 2,000 rushing yards

IMG_6598by:Nick Kosko•12/29/24•

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Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley received a standing ovation Sunday for eclipsing 2,000 rushing yards this season.

Amid the team’s blowout of the Dallas Cowboys, Barkley hit the gas for his final run of the day to push his total to 2,005 yards on the season. He’s now just 101 yards shy of breaking Eric Dickerson’s all-time record.

You can see the run and ovation for Barkley below.

Barkley came out after the run. Eagles third string quarterback Tanner McKee threw a touchdown pass to DeVonta Smith to conclude the drive, going up 41-7.

Dickerson rushed for 2,105 yards in 1984, breaking O.J. Simpson‘s record (2,003 yards) which had stood for 11 years. Six tailbacks have rushed for 2,000 yards since Dickerson, but none have been able to surpass his total. Barkley is closing in on Dickerson’s mark, but the Pro Football Hall of Famer doesn’t believe Barkley will break it, nor does he want him to.

“I don’t think he’ll break it,” Dickerson told Sam Farmer of the Los Angeles Times. “But if he breaks it, he breaks it. Do I want him to break it? Absolutely not. I don’t pull no punches on that. But I’m not whining about it. He had 17 games to do it? Hey, football is football. That’s the way I look at it. If he’s fortunate to get over 2,000 yards and get the record, it’s a great record to have.”

Dickerson set the record in 16 games. Simpson did it in 14 games before him. Barkley has 17 games to work with, though Dickerson isn’t bothered by that.

“O.J. Simpson was my favorite player,” Dickerson said. “He went over 2,000 yards in 14 games. It took me 15 games to get to 2,000. I had one extra game to play. Getting to 2,000 is an accomplishment in itself. I got close to that three other times.”

Now, depending upon if the Eagles can fight for the No. 1 seed next week, Barkley could play or simply rest with other starters before the playoffs.

Nick Geddes contributed to this report