Eagles film review: How Saquon Barkley became the NFL’s most explosive running back behind Birds’ O-line

It hasn’t taken long for the Eagles’ bet on Saquon Barkley to pay significant dividends.

When assessing the rationale behind the decision to sign Barkley over the offseason, it wasn’t a complicated formula. One of the best running backs in the NFL, behind one of the league’s best offensive lines equals a dominant run game.

That combination was on full display in the Eagles’ 28-23 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars as Barkley ran for 159 yards and one touchdown, caught three passes for 40 more yards and another score while also providing one of the most memorable moments in the NFL’s modern era.

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Watching the All-22 film of Barkley’s big day, the broken tackles aren’t the only thing that stands out, though. The brute force of the Eagles offensive line is hard to miss, and instrumental in how the 27-year-old has managed a league-high 23 explosive runs (rushes for more than 10 yards) this season.

Let’s look at the film:

Aside from the addition of Barkley and his ability to create additional yards after contact, one major difference in the Eagles run game compared to last year is the diversity of run schemes at their disposal.

It may be reductive to say most teams stick to only gap scheme runs with pulling guards and down blocks or zone-running schemes with linemen moving laterally and climbing to the second level, but the Eagles alternate between the two noticeably.

Barkley’s first carry came on an under-center run — another wrinkle from last year’s system — with zone blocking as Fred Johnson and Cam Jurgens worked up to the second level. Landon Dickerson got an initial push against Jacksonville defensive tackle Davon Hamilton to reset the line of scrimmage and Jack Stoll did a nice job sealing off edge rusher Josh Hines-Allen, creating space for Barkley’s 6-yard gain.

What’s telling about the play is how close it was to hitting for more, with Fred Johnson getting sidestepped in the hole rather than displacing Jags linebacker Devin Lloyd on his way to making the tackle.

Barkley made his impact felt in the passing game with a 20-yard touchdown catch after beating Jacksonville safety Darnell Savage on a wheel route up the sideline.

Facing second-and-10 with the Jaguars presenting a single-high safety look, the Eagles motioned wide receiver Jahan Dotson across the formation in an “orbit” motion behind the quarterback. The Jags appeared to pass Dotson off to the lone deep safety, signaling man coverage and isolating Barkley against Savage with tight end Grant Calcaterra occupying the outside cornerback on a post route.

Take note of when Jalen Hurts begins his throwing motion, because the trust he has in Barkley to win the matchup is evident.

Before we get to Barkley’s most impressive moment of the evening, it’s worth noting what happened a few plays earlier.

With the Eagles facing second-and-3 late in the first quarter, Barkley broke his first big run of the game thanks to Lane Johnson’s awareness to seal off Jacksonville linebacker Ventrell Miller on the second level. He finishes the run by lowering his shoulder against Savage, who ducked his head just before impact. Barkley was visibly frustrated after the 11-yard gain.

Three plays later, Barkley elected the audacious backward hurdle against Jags corner Jarrian Jones rather than lowering his shoulder to finish off the play Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said was the greatest he’d ever seen.

It’s probably worth including more than one angle.

Even on the runs that didn’t hit for the Eagles offense, the frequency with which the offensive line displaced the Jaguars’ defensive front stands out.

Facing first-and-20 late in the second quarter, Dickerson and Jurgens had an excellent combo block on an inside zone run spoiled by right guard Mekhi Becton getting beat across his face resulting in a 2-yard loss.

Becton had his share of highlights, though. One of his best came late in the fourth quarter, when the Eagles showed they can create space in the running game even when their opponents load the box to sell out against the run. There are several blocks worth watching here, but it’s worth singling out Becton, who tosses Jags defensive tackle Tyler Lacy a few gaps over to clear space along with Lane Johnson.

Speaking of Johnson, the All-Pro right tackle showed why he is, in fact, an All-Pro right tackle.

Along with the 11-yard run mentioned earlier where Johnson reacts quickly to seal off a linebacker on the second level, Johnson showed his ability to adjust to angles in the running game early in the third quarter as well. Eagles left tackle Fred Johnson takes a kick step at the snap, which puts him into Lane Johnson’s path as the right tackle pulled across the formation to lead the way for Barkley.

Johnson adjusts from the collision and still works up to the second level to occupy Lloyd enough for Barkley to get 13 yards. It’s also worth noting these are the gap-scheme changeups the Eagles are so adept at calling to balance out the zone runs.

Jurgens had his share of well-executed blocks both in space and operating in tandem with Becton as well. On Barkley’s first-quarter touchdown run, Jurgens did well to get to the second level to occupy a linebacker long enough for Barkley to gain the edge against the Jags’ out-of-position defensive backfield.

While most of these clips show what it looks like when Barkley and the offensive line work well in tandem, there are times where Barkley has made the front right and made unblocked defenders miss.

He did exactly that late in the third quarter, with the Eagles offensive line pulling one direction and Barkley running the other after taking the handoff from Hurts. Isolated with an edge defender in space, Barkley gave up ground in a manner most running backs would be discouraged from doing, but he’s able to win the footrace, turn up the sideline and gain 9 yards on the play.

The play helps explain why Barkley’s taken the Eagles’ run game to the next level. He’s not only enjoying the most yards before contact of his career according to Next Gen Stats, he’s also creating the most yards per carry after contact on plays like the one above.