Philadelphia Eagles superstar Saquon Barkley is off to an underwhelming start on the stat sheet, but his former teammate isn’t letting that impact how the New York Giants game-plan for the running back.
“[It] could be teams scheming for him [why Barkley is off to a slow start]. It happens, but you don’t want to be the team to let him get hot,” Giants defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence said about Barkley on Tuesday ahead of the team’s Week 6 matchup against the NFC East-rival Eagles in New Jersey. “So, you’ve got to stay disciplined Thursday and go win.”
Through Philadelphia’s first five games, Barkley has rushed for 267 yards and three touchdowns on 3.2 yards per carry. For context, Barkley rushed for 2,005 yards and 13 touchdowns on a career-high 5.8 yards per carry last season, becoming just the ninth player in NFL history to rush for 2,000-plus yards and helping the Eagles win Super Bowl LIX in the process.
After leading the NFC in rushing yards in 2024 with 179.3 rushing yards per game, Philadelphia is averaging just 99.8 yards per game on the ground this season, good for 25th in the NFL. New York, however, is surrendering 140.0 rushing yards per game, good for 26th in the sport.
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“He’s Saquon Barkley, great running back. Just got to do well to attack his O-line, not let him get on our DBs and stay disciplined in your run lanes and I think we’ll have a good day,” Lawrence said.
Lawrence, a three-time Pro Bowler, has totaled one interception, two passes defended and 11 combined tackles this season.
Of course, Barkley spent the first six seasons of his career with the Giants (2018-23), who selected him with the No. 2 pick in the 2018 NFL Draft out of Penn State. Across 74 regular-season games played, Barkley stands fourth in Giants history with 5,211 rushing yards and tied for sixth with 35 rushing touchdowns, while earning two Pro Bowl nods with the franchise.
Philadelphia enters Week 6 at 4-1, while New York is 1-4. The Eagles swept the Giants in the 2024 regular-season series and have won 18 of the past 22 matchups in the all-time series.
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