Former Penn State Star Saquon Barkley Suffered New Injury in Eagles-Cowboys Game

Former Penn State star Saquon Barkley played for the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday Night Football against the Dallas Cowboys after missing two weeks with a hamstring injury.

Unfortunately, Barkley can't escape the injury bug this season.

Barkley tweaked his back on a 29-yard run in the first quarter. His last snap of the game came in the third quarter. 

"It's kind of the school of thought I come from: I truly love this game, and I feel like if you're able to go, sometimes you've got to push your body to the limit," Barkley said after the game. "I'm trying, it's just not responding the way I want it to respond right now. It sucks because I'm trying to be the best leader I can be, and it's hard when you're not able to be out there and perform for your team."

Barkley finished the Cowboys-Eagles game with 62 rushing yards, one rushing touchdown and nine receiving yards. He played a total of nine snaps and touched the ball every time he was on the field.

Barkley is the first NFL starter in the past 20 seasons to play at least nine offensive snaps in a game and get a touch on all of them.

A one-time Super Bowl champion, Barkley played 38 games for Penn State. He rushed for 3,843 yards and 43 touchdowns and had 1,195 receiving yards and eight receiving touchdowns. 

Barkley won the 2016 and 2017 Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year awards. He's one of the best players in Penn State school history. 

The New York Giants selected Barkley with the second overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft. Barkley spent his first six seasons in the NFL with the Giants. He recorded 5,211 rushing yards, 35 rushing touchdowns, 2,100 receiving yards and 12 receiving touchdowns.

In March 2024, Barkley left the Giants for the Eagles in free agency. The three-time Pro Bowler helped Philadelphia win Super Bowl LIX against the Kansas City Chiefs. 

For the Eagles this season, Barkley has 244 rushing yards and one rushing touchdown. It's been a down year for the star RB, but that's mainly because he hasn't been healthy.

The Eagles play the Washington Commanders on November 1. It will be fascinating to see if Barkley plays in that contest. 

After Philadelphia lost to Dallas, Barkley said he didn't think the back issue would keep him out going forward, but he deferred to the training staff.

Penn State fans will pray that Barkley's back injury isn't serious and that the talented RB plays against the Commanders. The NFL is better when Barkley is healthy and playing. 

The Eagles are 2-5. They started the season 2-0 but have lost five games in a row since.