ALLEN PARK — Listen to Dan Campbell talk about Saquon Barkley, and you’ll hear the Detroit Lions head coach describing an oxymoron.
Barkley couples elite size (233 pounds) and strength at his position with rare talent and athleticism. The combination makes him one of the NFL’s best running backs, even if his production in 2025 isn’t quite as historic as it was in 2024, when Barkley ran for a league-best 2,005 yards, helping power the Eagles to their second Super Bowl win in eight years.
“He’s big, but he’s got the agility and the speed of a scat back,” Campbell said of Barkley this week. “He’s powerful, he’s strong, explosive. He can hit the hole. And if he’s got a step and there’s a hole, he can take it the distance. And so you can’t just stick an arm out and pull this guy down. That’s what it is. You’re talking about a power back that’s got very good feet, lateral quicks, and explosiveness and speed to go the distance. That’s what it is.”
Barkley has rushed for 579 yards and four touchdowns on 149 attempts this season, numbers that rank 16th, 17th and eighth, respectively, among all running backs. The Eagles and new offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo haven’t quite found a way to unlock Barkley to his fullest potential, like last season. Barkley is averaging 3.9 yards per carry (31st) and has a rushing success rate of 42.3% (39th).
Perhaps the biggest difference in Barkley’s production is a downtrend in explosive plays. Barkley paced the NFL in designed rushing attempts of 15 or more yards last season (32), according to Pro Football Focus. He’s at seven this season, which currently is tied with Baltimore’s Derrick Henry and Chicago’s D’Andre Swift for 11th.
Those numbers, however, don’t change the Lions’ respect of Barkley. The running back flashed his explosive capabilities in the fourth quarter of a win over the Green Bay Packers on Sunday, when he caught a pass behind the line of scrimmage and spun away from cornerback Carrington Valentine on the way to picking up 41 yards. The play set the Eagles up to score their only touchdown of the game on their next snap.
“I think he is an explosive player, that every time his hands are on the ball, he’s a threat to score a touchdown,” outside linebackers coach David Corrao said. “You can’t give him a crease. He outruns angles. You see DBs come out of the secondary (and) they think they’ve got the angle on him, and he just runs by them. Then he runs you over. He’s physical, he’s fast, and he’s a complete back that, every time he touches the ball, you better find a way to get multiple guys there to get him on the ground.”
Defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard called Barkley a “generational talent.”
“If you give 26 a lane, he’s going to find it, and he has home run ability,” Sheppard said. “He’s one of the most elite backs in this league.”