Eagles News: Fantasy football advice says to avoid Saquon Barkley

Let’s go to the Philadelphia Eagles links …

The 2024 Shy-Away 30: Barkley and Diggs Lead the List – Rotoworld
Saquon Barkley (Yahoo ADP: 13.1). When I take a running back in the top of the second round, I look for quality touches — goal-line carries plus targets — and elite efficiency. Does Barkley have either of those things? Because the Eagles have a free touchdown play in Jalen Hurts and the tush push, they rank 26th in running back carries inside the three-yard line. Hurts also isn’t one to throw to his back. Last year, the Eagles’ backfield ranked 21st in targets per game. Barkley’s efficiency has also been lacking in recent years. Over the past three seasons, he’s never finished higher than 30th in yards after contact per carry. His numbers will improve behind Philly’s elite offensive line, but the change of scenery will have to turn back a half-decade to make Barkley look like the superstar he once was. It’s too much to ask that the first 15 picks factor in a return to form, a change in goal-line tendencies and an increase in the number of running backs targeted.

Eagles’ ‘cocky’ Saquon Barkley can’t wait to show how Giants have stifled his talent – Inquirer
Six years ago, Eagles fans chafed at the sight of Barkley — who wore the burgundy and gold of Whitehall High School, then the blue and white of Penn State — squeezing his thundering thighs into the red, white, blue and gray of the New York Giants. In the swamps of East Rutherford, N.J., Barkley wasted the first six seasons of his career. “You definitely get a better sense (of my capabilities) in this offense,” Barkley said. “I’m not trying to sound cocky — the tape speaks for itself.”

5 Things to Be Excited About in the 2024 Eagles – BGN
Saquon Barkley is going to be “the guy” in the Eagles’ new offense. Head coach Nick Sirianni said this week that the team was ready to fully let the former Giants star and Pro Bowler go, saying “he can do whatever he wants here” after watching a Barkley run in practice on Monday that made him look twice. I’m also fascinated to see if the Eagles can finally use a running back out of the backfield as a pass-catcher, and how much that will help Jalen Hurts. I’m curious to see what Barkley can do running behind a real quarterback in a real offense with real weapons that teams should be focusing on other than him. In New York, all eyes were on him. In Philadelphia, he might be option 3 or 4 at times. Some believe the offense will run through Barkley, but whether or not that’s true, I’m most excited about a potentially monster season from him.

Game Week – Iggles Blitz
I’m most excited to see Saquon in action. I watched him for three years at Penn State. He was a special player there and did some special things while he was stuck with the Giants. Saquon finally gets to be part of a good team. He’s a good blocker. He’s part of a good passing attack. All of this should bring out the best in him. Saquon could have a special season. Special teams is an x-factor every season. With the new kickoff rules, that could be true. Michael Clay did a great job with the STs last year. Let’s hope he can repeat that. This team should be a Super Bowl contender again. They need to stay relatively healthy. They need Jalen Hurts to play the way he did in 2022. And they need a good defense. This offense can be special, but they can’t be in a shootout every week. 2024 should be a fun season. It will be interesting, to say the least.

Eagles-Packers Player Matchups to Watch in Week 1 in Brazil – NBCSP
Jalen Carter vs. Jordan Morgan. The Eagles have high hopes for Jalen Carter this season. Carter showed enough last season to project an All-Pro ceiling. There’s a strong case to be made that he’ll be the Eagles’ top defender in 2024. And Carter will likely be going up against a rookie in Week 1. The Packers drafted Jordan Morgan with the 25th overall pick in April and moved the former Arizona left tackle to right guard this summer. Morgan sat out the preseason while dealing with a shoulder injury. So not only is he switching positions and switching sides, but Morgan also missed some time in training camp and sat out the preseason. His first game in the NFL will be at a new position and against a guy who could be an All-Pro in 2024.

NFL QB Index, Week 1: Ranking all 32 starters entering the 2024 season – NFL.com
10) Jalen Hurts. This is where I’m going to anger Dolphins fans (again), who, frankly, have a case for their QB in the top 10. But I feel confident putting Hurts here for one major reason: We still don’t know what the hell happened to the 2023 Eagles. I firmly believe that by the end of 2024, we can reach one of two conclusions: The second half of last season can be dismissed as an anomaly, or it was the first sign of the Eagles’ demise under Nick Sirianni. At this point, I’m going to lean on past evidence and predict that they’ll do well this season, with Hurts returning to the elite tier he occupied through 2022 and the first half of 2023. When he’s competent and collected, Hurts is a special quarterback whose play is worth the $51 million a year he makes. He’s only 26 years old and has a whole career ahead of him, I for one can’t wait to see how it unfolds.

NFL Executives Rank NFC Teams: 49ers Still Reign, But Can the Packers Overtake the Lions? – The Athletic
One executive noted that new defensive coordinator Vic Fangio brings a strong personality to a staff led by a head coach (Nick Sirianni) whose seat got warmer last year. Another said a motion-heavy offense under new coordinator Kellen Moore might not be a natural fit for vaunted incumbent line coach Jeff Stoutland, who may prefer simpler looks for blockers to cleanly execute. “The new system could also put more on (quarterback) Jalen Hurts,” the executive said. “Without (retired center) Jason Kelce as that bridge, it’s pretty interesting to me how all those pieces come together.” It all looks good — on paper. “I have a lot of respect for Kellen Moore and Vic Fangio,” said one of the executives who projected Philly at third. “That offense was broken. When you bring in someone with a good track record in their Dallas offense, and you add Jahan Dotson and Saquon Barkley to DeVonta Smith, AJ Brown and (Dallas) Goedert, they might have the best weapons in football.”

Eagle’s mother happy to see son smiling again after turbulent times with former team – NJ.com
“He’s still adjusting,” Mailata told NJ Advance Media. “I’m not going to sit here and tell him the truth and say he’s got it all figured out — he hasn’t. It’s a huge adjustment. He’s come a long way though. Oh my God, he looks great, he looks great. But like me, there’s always room for improvement. That’s where we really have to keep getting into this. That’s where I hold Mekhi to that standard. … He had a great week this week, man. We’re talking about coming out of camp and going into the first week, we’re just piling on the days. That’s what you want to see heading into the first game. I’m excited.”

Spadaro: Eagles-Packers an underrated rivalry – PE.com
NFL Championship Game 1960: Eagles hold on to defeat Packers The game at Franklin Field the day after Christmas in 1960 ended literally with Eagles linebacker Chuck Bednarik atop Green Bay running back Jim Taylor as the clock ticked down to zero and the Eagles won their first NFL championship since the 1949 season. The 17-13 victory was a thriller, featuring a touchdown catch by Tommy McDonald and a touchdown run by Ted Dean, and the Eagles held off a Green Bay team that would go on to send 11 members of the team (including head coach Vince Lombardi) to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. It was the only playoff loss of Lombardi’s brilliant tenure.

Packers Injury Report: TE Tucker Kraft Suffers Back Injury – Acme Packing Company
If Kraft is unable to play against the Eagles, there is a chance that fullback Andrew Beck, who can play a hybrid role at 6’3” and 252 pounds, could be promoted from the practice squad. Beck is one of the more experienced players on the Packers’ practice squad, having played in 66 games (22 starts) during his NFL career.

Cowboys, Mike McCarthy are very familiar with Browns DC Jim Schwartz – Blogging The Boys
Of course, that familiarity works both ways. Schwartz has cheated QB Dak Prescott and had success against him many times before. Some of Prescott’s worst performances in those first four years came against the Eagles, so Schwartz knows how to frustrate him. While Prescott is an older, wiser passer now and no longer running Scott Linehan’s offense, we’ve also noticed trends that have never been forgotten about him since he entered the NFL. This is only the fifth meeting between Dallas and Cleveland since 2000, so a lot changes between each game. The Browns are almost a completely different team now than the one we saw in 2020, but Jim Schwartz brings at least one familiar element to the Cowboys and Mike McCarthy. We’ll find out soon enough how that knowledge benefits one side or the other.

Did Hard Knocks Caught Joe Schoen Scouting Quarterbacks? – Big Blue View
Scouting the upcoming quarterback class makes sense for a number of reasons. And we know that Schoen scouted last year’s class extensively, getting at least one look at each of the top prospects in person. But we also have to be careful not to read too much into this. Just because Schoen scouts quarterbacks doesn’t mean the team will draft a quarterback. Jones could flourish in his renovated environment, or the team could decide that an imperfect Jones is still better than their options in 2025.

Film Session: Why Commander Skills Are Underrated WR Olamide Zacchaeus – Hogs Haven
In their latest unofficial depth chart, the Washington Commanders listed Olamide Zaccheaus as a starting wide receiver. Of course, there will be a lot of rotation among receivers on any given game day, but Zaccheaus could benefit greatly from the opportunity he has earned with Washington. Last year was a wasted season for Zaccheaus, with just ten catches on 20 targets in 17 games played. However, in his previous two seasons before his unfortunate decision to sign with Philadelphia, he had shown himself to be an up-and-coming player for the Atlanta Falcons.

Commanders suspend VP for comments about players, Jones, Goodell – ESPN
The Washington Commanders have suspended an employee who made anti-gay comments about the team’s players, accused Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones of racism and anti-gay behavior and called NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell a “$50 million puppet.” The team said it has suspended its four-year vice president of content, Rael Enteen, over comments he made to an undercover reporter for O’Keefe Media Group.

The Jaguars’ 2020 draft class is truly the worst in NFL history – SB Nation
4th Round, No. 137: CB Josiah Scott, Michigan. Scott played one season with the Jaguars before being cut. He signed with the Eagles, played in several games — but is currently unsigned.

…

Social media information:

BGN Facebook page: Click here to like our page

BGN Twitter: Follow @BleedingGreen

BGN Instagram: Follow @BleedingGreenInsta

BGN Manager: Brandon Lee Gowton: Follow @BrandonGowton

BGN Radio Twitter: Follow @BGN_Radio

BGN cameo: Request a video message