PHILADELPHIA -- Saquon Barkley is off to the next chapter of his career with the Philadelphia Eagles, reunited in the state of Pennsylvania where he became a household name and was beloved by the Lehigh Valley region and Penn State alumni and fans alike.
That appreciation carried over to the city of New York and the New York Giants fanbase for the past six years. Once Barkley left the Giants to head down Interstate 95 to join the NFC East rival Eagles, hearts were broken in the Big Apple.
Barkley didn't add fuel to the fire, but he didn't give Giants fans a proper goodbye on his way out the door, either. He wanted to make amends to a franchise that gave him his shot at NFL glory.
"The last six years, they've been great to me and to my family," Barkley said at the NovaCare Complex on Thursday. "I don't think I really handled it the right way on social media. I think I've could have given it a proper goodbye. Once I announced I was going to the Eagles, everything kinda got hectic.
"I'm forever grateful for Giants fans and thankful for them. Unfortunately the NFL's a business and I was able to get to a place that I know I can come here, I can compete, I can win, I can stay close to home. And I'm just happy I can be a part of this team."
Barkley was one of the top running backs in franchise history, ranking fourth all-time in rushing yards (5,211) and seventh in yards from scrimmage (7,311). He and Tiki Barber are the only two players in franchise history with 5,000+ rushing yards and 2,000+ receiving yards, and Barkley was the quickest player in Giants history to rush for 5,000 yards (70 games). His 35 100-yard scrimmage games in a Giants uniform trailed only Barber.
— Saquon Barkley (@saquon) March 15, 2024
As Barkley closed the book on his Giants career, he's ready to write a new one with the Eagles. The decision to come to Philadelphia had plenty of factors, with the main one being an opportunity to play near his home town of Coplay -- which Barkley's mom said was about a 50-minute drive when they traveled down to the Eagles practice facility.
Barkley actually spent time at Eagles training camp as a spectator during the days when Michael Vick was quarterback. The Eagles held training camp at Lehigh University (a 20 minute drive from Coplay) from 1996 to 2012, creating many Eagles fans in the process.
Barkley wouldn't reveal if he was one of them, but he had a good sense of what it meant to put on an Eagles uniform just based on his experiences at those practices.
"It's a blessing to stay close to home," Barkley said. "It's a blessing every Thanksgiving or Christmas I get to go right to my momma's house or to by nana's house. My kids can see their grandparents, their aunts, their uncles, their cousins. That was important.
"I feel like a rookie all over again. I'm a special player. I feel like I got a lot left and I got a lot to prove."
