Former Penn State running back [autotag]Saquon Barkley[/autotag] is having a career year in his first season with the Philadelphia Eagles, becoming just the ninth player in NFL history to amass 2,000 rushing yards in a season. Barkley was not given the opportunity to chase Eric Dickerson’s record of 2,105 yards so that he could rest for the postseason, but he has another record in his sights after a dominant playoff run.
Barkley needs just 30 yards against the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl to break Terrell Davis’s record of 2,476 rushing yards in a single season, postseason included. While Dickerson holds the regular season record, Dickerson’s Rams did not advance past the first round in the playoffs that season. Davis meanwhile carried his Broncos to the Super Bowl, averaging 156 yards per game during that run.
Barkley has had a similarly impressive postseason, racking up 442 yards and five touchdowns in his three games. Playing the Chiefs’ vaunted defense will be his toughest challenge of the playoffs so far, but getting 30 yards feels like a given considering how incredible he has been this season. A big reason for it has been explosive runs. He has seven runs of 60 or more yards this season, the most in one season in NFL history.
If Barkley has a sensational day in the Super Bowl, he could also find himself near the top of the rushing record for a single postseason. His 442 yards are eighth all-time, but he is just 26 yards behind Terrell Davis for third place. Davis is also second on the list with a whopping 581 yards in 1997, just behind John Riggins’ 610 yards from 1982.
169 yards is a tough ask against this Chiefs’ defense, but that would put him above Riggins and firmly in first place for yards in a season. If that were to happen, Barkley would have a strong argument for having the greatest season for a running back ever, especially if it also ends with a Lombardi Trophy.