NEW ORLEANS – The Season of Saquon Barkley continued on Thursday night when he was named the NFL’s Offensive Player of the Year.
The Eagles running back received 35 first-place votes to become the first Eagles player to ever win the award. Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson received 12 first-place votes with Ravens running back Derrick Henry, Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, and Bills quarterback Josh Allen picking up one first -place vote each.
Barkley is rewriting the NFL record books with the season he has put together, his first in Philadelphia after being castoff by the New York Giants, for whom he toiled for six seasons. He rushed for 2,005 yards – just the ninth player in NFL history to run for more than 2,000 yards in the regular season - and 13 touchdowns this season.
He had seven touchdown runs of 60-plus yards, including playoffs, which is an NFL record for a season and three more than the next player. Jim Brown and Adrian Peterson each had four 60-plus yard touchdowns.
Barkley has 2,447 rushing yards this season (including playoffs), 30 yards shy of passing Terrell Davis for the most in a season in NFL history. He also has 2,760 yards from scrimmage, three shy of passing Davis for most in a season in league history (including playoffs). Barkley and Davis are the only players in NFL history to have 400-plus rushing yards and 5-plus rushing touchdowns in a single postseason. He is also 138 yards away from passing Darren Sproles (2,897) for most all-purpose yards in a single season (including playoffs).
Eric Dickerson, who set the league record for most yards rushing in a season with 2,105 in 1984, did not win either the MVP or Offensive Player of the Year that season. Both awards went to Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino.
