Hall of Fame running back Eric Dickerson may not have the most gracious response when asked about Saquon Barkley possibly breaking his mark for most rushing yards in a single season. But he’s certainly honest in how he feels about possibly being topped in the record book.
“I don’t think he’ll break it,” Dickerson said to the Los Angeles Times’ Sam Farmer. “Do I want him to break it? Absolutely not.”
Barkley is 268 yards away from Dickerson’s record of 2,105 yards, set during the 1984 season with the Los Angeles Rams. The Philadelphia Eagles have two games remaining on their regular season schedule, giving Barkley a chance to overtake Dickerson.
With 1,838 yards, the seven-year veteran has to average 133.5 yards in those final two games to seize the all-time mark. Barkley has topped that number in six of his 15 games this season. With quarterback Jalen Hurts out while in concussion protocol, the Eagles may rely more on their ground game versus the Dallas Cowboys.
Dickerson is also quick to point out that if Barkley does surpass him, he’ll do it in 17 regular season games — one more than Dickerson played in 1984.
“I don’t pull no punches on that. But I’m not whining about it,” he added. “He had 17 games to do it? Hey, football is football. That’s the way I look at it.”
If Barkley doesn’t overtake Dickerson for the single-season rushing mark, he can still join an exclusive club of NFL running backs who gained 2,000 yards. Eight others have rushed for 2,000 more in a season. Derrick Henry did it most recently, gaining 2,027 yards in 2020 with the Tennessee Titans. O.J. Simpson was the first to break the 2,000-yard mark in 1973 with the Buffalo Bills — doing so in 14 games.
Here is the current list of 2,000 rushers:
Eric Dickerson – 2,105 (1984)
Adrian Peterson – 2,097 (2012)
Jamal Lewis – 2,066 (2023)
Barry Sanders – 2,053 (1997)
Derrick Henry – 2,027 (2020)
Terrell Davis – 2,008 (1998)
Chris Johnson – 2,006 (2009)
O.J. Simpson – 2,003 (1973)
Dickerson is also aware that Barkley could set the rushing mark against the New York Giants, the team that let him go as a free agent. That would likely feel like redemption for Barkley and provide another embarrassing note in what’s been a miserable 2024 for the Giants.
“How ironic would it be for him to break the record on them, the team that let him go,” Dickerson said. “A true slap in the face.”
