Jalen Hurts and Saquon Barkley gift Eagles offensive linemen with custom golf carts
Hurts and Barkley teamed up to show appreciation for a line that has paved the way for offensive success.
The Eagles offensive line takes care of Jalen Hurts and Saquon Barkley on the football field. So Hurts and Barkley made sure to take care of the group for the holidays.
Late Tuesday afternoon, Hurts and Barkley teamed up to gift each offensive lineman a custom four-seater golf cart. From the starters to the backups, each player received a black or white cart with his last name and number emblazoned on the side. Hurts’ and Barkley’s logos for their personal brands decorated the back of each cart.
Through its performance this season, the offensive line has earned the gratitude of two of the most important players on the team. Barkley had high expectations for the group from the outset. On the first day of training camp, Barkley said the franchise’s history of talent along the offensive line was the reason he signed a three-year, $37.75 million deal to join the Eagles. With help from the linemen, he said he could show his true potential.
His aspiration is coming to fruition. Barkley leads the league with 1,838 rushing yards, just 268 yards shy of breaking Eric Dickerson’s NFL single-season record that was set in 1984. According to Pro Football Reference, Barkley leads all running backs with 3.8 yards before contact, which reflects on skill of the running back and his protection. Throughout the season, Barkley has reiterated that his success wouldn’t be possible without the players blocking up front.
The respect is mutual. Earlier this month, Landon Dickerson hung two framed pictures of Barkley on the back wall of the locker room close to the stalls of the starting offensive linemen at the NovaCare Complex. The words “OUR SAVIOR” and “THE CHOSEN ONE” are written on pieces of white tape beneath each frame.
In his fourth season as the starting quarterback, Hurts is well-acquainted with the abilities of the offensive line. They’ve continued to combine their talents on the Tush Push, the Eagles’ rendition of the quarterback sneak. Hurts has scored 11 of his 14 rushing touchdowns off of the Tush Push — two away from breaking the NFL single-season quarterback record, which he and Josh Allen set last season. After the Eagles’ win over the Pittsburgh Steelers two weeks ago, Jordan Mailata said he had a “hate-love” relationship with the play because of its violence vs. the high level of execution.
Hurts also has benefitted in the passing game from his protection up front. When kept clean this season, he leads all starting quarterbacks with a 78.9% completion rate, according to Pro Football Focus. His 116.8 quarterback rating on those dropbacks ranks third among starters.
After one training camp practice, Jalen Hurts drove Nick Sirianni and Dom DiSandro around the field in the chief security officer’s golf cart. Next summer, Hurts and his offensive linemen can take a spin in their own.
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