As Eagles' Saquon Barkley looks to break NFL rushing record, will ...

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Eagles Saquon Barkley, Kenny Pickett: It's hard replacing Jalen Hurts

Eagles RB Saquon Barkley and backup QB Kenny Pickett on what it was like without Jalen Hurts

PHILADELPHIA − In reality, Eagles running back Saquon Barkley is well within reach of Eric Dickerson's NFL record of 2,105 rushing yards heading into the season finale against the Giants next weekend.

Barkley needs 101 yards after getting 167 yards on 31 carries Sunday in the Eagles' 41-7 win over the Cowboys on Sunday.

Barkley said he would love to break a record that has stood for 40 years, but only within the context of winning the Super Bowl.

“The way I look at it is, if it's in God's plan, then it is," Barkley said. "I'm not overly trying to go get it. I’m not scared of it. I would love to, but at the end of the day, also, we’ve got bigger things that we're focusing on ...

"Rest, I'm fine with that too, because I didn't come here and sign here just to rush for 2,000 or break a record. I want to do something special, meaning special with the team."

The Eagles might have already made that decision for Barkley.

That's because when Barkley passed 2,000 yards on a 23-yard run with 11:34 left in the fourth quarter, Eagles coach Nick Sirianni called timeout. The fans stood and gave Barkley a standing ovation. They chanted "MVP! MVP!" as Bruce Sprinsteen's "Born To Run" blared over the loudspeakers.

Then Barkley sat out the rest of the game.

Still, Eagles left tackle Jordan Mailata was among some of the players who said he wants the starters to play against the Giants, who are 3-13 and have one of the worst run defenses in the NFL.

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And Mailata said it doesn't matter to him that the finale against the Giants is meaningless now that the Eagles are locked into the No. 2 playoff seed in the NFL. That means the Eagles would have to play the first weekend of the playoffs.

So it's likely they'd use the regular-season finale as a pseudo bye week for the starters. But Mailata said he still wants the starters to play so Barkley can get the record.

"Absolutely," Mailata said. "It’s an opportunity to make history. We tried to do it today ... We never really spoke about the Giants next week, but we just had the feeling that if we don’t go for it today, we might sit out (next week). We don’t know. Coach hasn’t really said anything yet."

Added wide receiver A.J. Brown: "Of course. Why not? I want to be a part of it. Looking back on the year, I want to say that was my teammate. It would mean a lot for history purposes. I like to say to my kids I was a part (of the team) when Saquon did that."

For the record, Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said "we'll see," and it depends on other factors. That, however, was before the Eagles were eliminated from getting the No. 1 seed by Minnesota's win over Green Bay later Sunday.

Health also plays a part, clearly.

That's why right tackle Lane Johnson said he's pretty sure Barkley's record chase is done. He also added that Dickerson's record came during a 16-game schedule as opposed to the current 17-game schedule.

Then again, Dickerson had 379 carries in 1984. Barkley is at 345, which shatters his previous career high by 50.

"I mean, Eric Dickerson’s record was in 16 games," Johnson said. "So if it was 17 games, it’s not going to make sense anyway. Eric Dickerson is who he is. Saquon is who he is. We just wanted to get to 2,000 and we were fine with that. It’s better to be safe than sorry."

Still, it looked early on that the record discussion was going to be moot anyway. That's because the Cowboys focused on Barkley throughout the first half with Kenny Pickett at quarterback replacing Jalen Hurts, who was ruled out with a concussion.

Hurts as a running threat prevents defenses from loading up to stop Barkley. That's not the case with Pickett, who was playing with sore ribs that limited his mobility anyway.

Barkley had just 25 yards rushing on 12 carries with 36 seconds left in the first half. That's when the Eagles got the ball back on CJ Gardner-Johnson's second interception of the first half. Barkley gained 15 yards on the first play as the Eagles eventually scored a touchdown as the half ended.

Then the Eagles went extensively to Barkley in the second half. He hinted that some pregame trash talk from Cowboys star edge rusher Micah Parsons might have helped.

"Let’s just say in the pregame, one of my good friends − not going to mention names − said, ‘You’re going to have to break that record next week,'" Barkley said with a laugh.

"Everyone is aware of what we're able to do, what we're close to doing. So, you could definitely say the mindset (for the Cowboys) was not letting that happen. But with that being said, I think everybody else stepped up and made the plays we needed to do.

"And once we were able to throw the ball a little bit, we got the run game going. We also didn't go away from it. They gave me a chance to get the 2,000, and I also appreciate that too."

In fact, Johnson said in the huddle when the Eagles got the ball back with 14:25 left in the fourth quarter, that they knew Barkley needed 47 yards to reach 2,000.

So he got the ball five straight times, gaining 6, 11, 3 and 9 yards. Then facing a 1st-and-10 from the Cowboys' 46, third-string QB Tanner McKee handed the ball to Barkley, who ran to the left behind Mailata through a hole before getting pushed out of bounds at the Cowboys' 23 for a gain of 23 yards.

That gave Barkley 2,005 yards. It was only after the Eagles called timeout that Barkley knew that he had done it.

"I didn't know I broke it on that run. I'm not going to lie," Barkley said. "We definitely knew what the number was to at least get to 2,000, and we weren’t leaving this field without at least accomplishing that. Those aren’t the words from me. Those are the words from the guys up front. So that means a lot to me.

"When you see that, and those guys are like, ‘This mother effer needs this to get it. Let's go get it,’ it puts a little pressure on you too. But at the same time, it's pressure that you want."

Contact Martin Frank at mfrank@delawareonline.com. Follow on X @Mfranknfl.