With a playoff matchup on Sunday between the Philadelphia Eagles and San Francisco 49ers, Saquon Barkley took a moment to acknowledge one of the game’s biggest stars on the other side.
Barkley will be tasked with figuring his own things out, as he’ll need to be just as good as ever for the Eagles to win.
However, speaking this week, Barkley had nothing but praise for Christian McCaffrey, calling him one of the best players that the league has ever seen, adding that he studies the position and has always liked what McCaffrey has done.
“I’m a fan of the position, and I study all of them: I give my hat off to him. He’s one of the best to ever do it, to be completely honest,” Barkley said, per Bleacher Report. “As a fan of the game, you’re definitely going to be watching and see what he’s doing. But just, there’s nothing he can’t do. He can run the ball, he can catch the ball. Literally, he’s an all-purpose back, probably one of the best all-purpose backs to ever do it.
“I don’t know if he’s better than Marshall (Faulk) yet — he’s getting there — but (I’m a) big fan of him, and we’re good friends. So we have a little competitive side when we go against each other, so hopefully that comes out this week.”
Mentioning Marshall Faulk puts McCaffrey in elite company, and Barkley has a point when saying he could get there, as he’s been that good.
This matchup should be a very fun one, and the running back contest is a big reason why.
Both offenses lean heavily on their stars, and both Barkley and McCaffrey are asked to do a lot to help their respective offenses get going.
However, when the Eagles and 49ers finally face off, the compliments will be over. Barkley and McCaffrey are two of the biggest competitors in the game and will both be looking to outduel one another in what will be the biggest game of the season thus far.
While there will be other factors, if one significantly outplays the other, it could be the reason why a team wins.