Saquon Barkley is set to become the highest paid running back in the NFL.
The Philadelphia Eagles announced Tuesday that they had signed Barkley to a two-year extension keeping him on the roster through the 2028 season. The extension has a total value of $41.2 million with some $36 million guaranteed. He is set to make $20.6 million in 2025, making him the highest-paid running back and the first to make more than $2o million a year.
“It’s very obvious when you watch the tape how good of a player he is, right?” head coach Nick Sirianni said in a post announcing the deal on the team’s website. “But the things that he has that he brings to our football team as far as his leadership, his work ethic ... he’s an awesome teammate. Those are the things that make him very special. And that’s pretty special that I’m saying that even more after you see him jumping over guys backwards and all that stuff.”
Barkley was the cornerstone of the Eagles’ offense in 2024. He rushed for a league-leading 2,005 yards in the regular season, becoming just the ninth player in NFL history to break the 2,000-yard mark. He set the franchise record for total yards from scrimmage with 2,283 yards; he also set single-game franchise records against the Los Angeles Rams in Week 12 with 255 rushing yards and 302 scrimmage yards. He became the first Eagles player to win four NFC Offensive Player of the Week awards. He also broke the record for most rushing yards—2,504—and yards from scrimmage—2,857—in a full season, including playoffs.
His success earned Barkley a First Team All-Pro Nod, a Pro Bowl invitation, the NFL Offensive Player of the Year award, and a third-place finish in MVP voting. Barkley also helped the Eagles win Super Bowl LIX, which fell on his 28th birthday.
Barkley initially signed a three-year, $37.75 million deal in March 2024 with $26 million guaranteed and a potential increase to $46.75 million with incentives. The new deal adds $41.2 million in new money, with $36 million guaranteed and $15 million in incentives. It would make him the highest-paid running back in the league with a base salary of $20.6 million; San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey previously reset the running back market with a two-year, $38 million extension and a base salary of $19 million per year. Barkley’s deal is not the largest contract in the league, however. That title belongs to Josh Jacobs, who signed a four-year, $48 million contract with the Green Bay Packers in 2024.
Throughout all of his success in 2024, Barkley was especially grateful to the offensive line that led the way for him all season. When the decision was made to rest the Eagles’ starters in Week 17, depriving Barkley of the chance to break Eric Dickerson’s all-time single-season rushing record, he cited his appreciation for the hard work of his linemen as part of the reason he chose not to chase the record, making the point that he would not have had the opportunity without them, and therefore he would not want to break it without them.
Barkley and quarterback Jalen Hurts also lavished their linemen with gifts during the season. They bought each of their linemen personalized golf carts for Christmas with their names and numbers printed on them. When Hurts and Barkley were set to appear on “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon” after their Super Bowl win, they refused to attend if the line did not come with them. Hurts, Barkley, Fallon, left tackle Jordan Mailata, left guard Landon Dickerson, center Cam Jurgens, right guard Mekhi Becton, and right tackle Lane Johnson all shotgunned beers on the show that night. Ahead of the Eagles’ Super Bowl parade, Barkley bought all of his linemen truckloads of beer.
