Saquon Barkley Closing On Eagles Record Against Good Friend

PHILADELPHIA – Saquon Barkley has two lockers, one where he dresses, the other where signed uniforms from running backs the Eagles have played this season hang neatly in a row. Soon, Christian McCaffrey’s will no doubt be added.

The Eagles star running back and the San Francisco 49ers’ star running back are friends who will be on opposite sidelines on Sunday when the two clash in the opening-round of the NFC playoffs on Sunday at 4:30 p.m.

They’ve been in a commercial together. They text. They’ve played each other in Connect 4 and chess, a game Barkley said, “I won, by the way.”

May the better running back win on Sunday, and it very well could come down to the ground attack on both sides.

“He’s probably one of the best all-purpose backs to ever do it,” said Barkley who is very plugged into the great running backs in league history. “I don’t know if he’s better than Marshall (Faulk) yet, but he’s getting there. Big fan of him, and we’re good friends. We have a good competitive side when we go against each other, so hopefully that comes out this week.”

Saquon Barkley — Saqun Barkley's second locker contains signed jerseys of running backs the Eagles have played in the 2025 season. | Ed Kracz/Eagles on SI

This is Barkley’s second straight trip to the postseason, and already he is closing in on becoming the franchise’s all-time leading rusher in the playoffs.

He’s played just four postseason games and has already stockpiled 499 yards on the ground. Just ahead of him is Brian Westbrook, who is at the top of the team’s list with 591 games, though it took him 11 games, from 2002 to 2009, to do it. Heck, the NFL’s reigning Offensive MVP could break that on Sunday with a 92-yard output.

Despite just his second visit to the postseason with the Eagles, he’s learned much from a season ago.

“The way you win Game 1 (in the regular season) is the same way you win in the playoffs, how you win the championship game, how you win the Super Bowl,” he said. “The vibes can be great. It could be chemistry between the two teams. But at the end of the day, when the whistle blows, who’s going to be more detailed? Who’s going to make more plays? Who’s going to score more touchdowns?

“That’s just how football is always going to be, no matter if it’s the playoffs or not. We did a really good job of that last year. We just gotta continue to do what we know.”

Much was made of Barkley’s workload last year, when he had 4482 touches between the regular season and playoffs. McCaffrey has 413 touches this season; Barkley has 317.

“I feel great,” said Barkley. “I felt great going into last week. When we sat out the last week of last year, my body probably needed it more than this year, just because of how the season went. But I feel great. We all feel great. We’re excited. We get a home game. Go make the most of it.”

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