After stirring up the entire Eagles’ fanbase with some comments about his future retirement, Saquon Barkley has not only committed his future to the National Football League, but has also promised that his best is yet to come. Interestingly, Eagles Head Coach Nick Sirianni didn’t seem fazed by talks regarding the span of Barkley’s career, rather he is luxuriating in the feelings of the present, taking every moment as it comes.
Saquon clarifies retirement comments
As is customary, most teams in the National Football League began their mandatory minicamps following their organized team activities which spanned the past few weeks. For Saquon Barkley and the Philadelphia Eagles, their mandatory minicamps began on Tuesday at the NovaCare Complex.
When queried by reporters regarding his controversial claims of an early retirement. His response was different and comforting, a beam of hope to Philadelphia Eagles fans and the NFL, as he promised to keep playing for the meantime.
As reported by The Athletic’s Zach Berman, Saquon Barkley said,
“I don’t plan on retiring anytime soon. I feel like I’m entering my prime.”
When compared with the last statement he made on his retirement, this is a huge sigh of relief for the Eagles, who would want to see the NFL’s reigning Offensive Player of the Year spend more years in the league and smash more records.
While agreeing that Barkley still has so of much the game running through his veins, Sirianni wasn’t too bothered about what the future holds, enjoying every bit of the present instead.
“Yeah, I guess anybody could do that, right? I just know he’s got a lot of good football left in him,” Sirianni said in a press conference on Tuesday.
Just weeks ago, the Philadelphia Eagles’ running back, in an interview with Chris Long on an edition of “The Green Light” podcast, was asked about his future—if he would pick an early retirement over a prolonged career, and his response sent shockwaves down the spines of even non-Eagles fans.
“I’ll probably be one of those guys that it’ll be out of nowhere. I’ll probably just wake up one day, whether it’s next year or two years or four years, and just be like, ‘Yeah it’s over,” Barkley said. “I don’t think I will ever lose that passion. I’m just a competitor. The competitive nature is always going to be there.”
Considering that the former Giant is coming off of a season where he ran for an NFL record 2,504 yards in both the regular season and the playoffs, breaking Terrell Davis’ record of 2,476, it’s safe to say that any talk of retirement is a little premature.
He also compared himself with Barry Sanders, who had one of the most unexpected retirements in NFL history in 1999. He retired at the age of 31 after 10 NFL seasons, closing the curtains on a decorated career with the Detroit Lions, where he made the Pro Bowl 10 times.
While Barkley, on the other hand, is 28 and is entering his eighth season, he has now promised his retirement won’t be coming anytime soon. With this news and the presence of other top talents, like Devonta Smith, Jalen Hurts, Lane Johnson and A.J. Brown, the Eagles will be looking to repeat their terrific feat in the previous season that saw them win the Vince Lombardi Trophy for a second time.
REUTERS/Brian Snyder
