Saquon Barkley on 2024 Super Bowl champion Eagles: ‘Top-5 team of all-time'

Street Knowledge

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When a team wins a Super Bowl, that’s special. That’s immortality. You are immediately among the best NFL teams ever assembled.

Fans and pundits like to make lists of the GOATs of this, best of that, but one member of the reigning Super Bowl champion Eagles believes the 2024 Birds are special.

Running back Saquon Barkley was a guest on the Exciting Mics podcast with teammates Cooper DeJean and Reed Blankenship, and a few months removed from winning it all, he made a lofty observation about what his team had just accomplished.

“I firmly believe when you look at our team,” Barkley said, “and we’re not looking too far into the past… I think we’re a top-five team of all-time.

“If you really look at the season after the first four games, it was belt to a--.

“When you have the talent and the skill that we have on our team, mixed with the coaches… we all play together, how we played, teams really stood no chance. You see that in the playoffs. You see that in the Super Bowl. The [final] score was 40-twenty-something, but in reality, it wasn’t really a game.”

What Barkley said was boastful, but he isn’t that far off, when you consider the facts. After the team’s Week 5 bye, it played 17 games. It went 16-1 in those games. To say the defense was dominant in that span may actually be an understatement.

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From Week 6 through the end of the regular season, the Eagles allowed a league-low 15.9 points per game. They allowed 251.5 yards a game, also best in the NFL — by 50 yards a game. They outscored their opponents, on average, by 13 points a game, including their three-point loss to the Commanders in Week 11. That loss was the only game after the bye in which they allowed more than 23 points, including all four playoff games.

And Barkley himself? He rushed for 1,570 yards — after the bye. That’s more than 22 entire NFL teams over those 13 weeks.

And if you’re talking about the Super Bowl? We could roll out statistics and facts galore, but just one paints a perfect portrait of the drubbing the Eagles handed one of the best quarterback-head coach duos in league history: With 2:33 left in the third quarter, and trailing 34-0, Kansas City crossed midfield for the first time.

Perhaps time and perspective will hash out where the 2024 Eagles rank among the best of the best teams and seasons. But Barkley’s evaluation is not without merit.

 

tru_m.a.c

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name the 5
You beat the rams by 6 my guy, a rookie next week, and a team that got propelled into the super bowl by the refs, then proceeded to play their worst game in a decade.

Just take the SB win and peace out. This other shyt is unnecessary.

This discussion is unnecessary.
 

Based Lord Zedd

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Crazy statement, if you're not looking too far back who cares if you're top 5. Doesn't mean anything. Just say you had a good year and are excited about this season.

“I firmly believe when you look at our team,” Barkley said, “and we’re not looking too far into the past… I think we’re a top-five team of all-time.
 

Controversy

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No one understands how great we were...we had talent everywhere and we had depth

I loved our balance, we could beat teams through the run game, vertically through the air on occasion, our pass rush causing hell, a stout run defense, and our secondary forcing turnovers

Our only weakness (a dynamic pass game) took care of business in the NFCG and SB

Objectively, we should've had about 10-11 pro bowlers (Barkley, AJ, Lane, Cam, Landon, Mailata, Baun, Carter, Dejean and Mitchell)

And then you had guys who weren't pro-bowl caliber but they were still really good (Milton Williams, Josh Sweat, Slay, Nakobe Dean, Becton, Goedert, Hurts, Blankenship, Nolan Smith, etc...)

We were really loaded everywhere

I think we're the most talented team since the 94 Niners
 

wire28

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name the 5

You beat the rams by 6 my guy, a rookie next week, and a team that got propelled into the super bowl by the refs, then proceeded to play their worst game in a decade.

Just take the SB win and peace out. This other shyt is unnecessary.

This discussion is unnecessary.
You said a lot to say “I don’t have a five”
 

Avisible Man

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No one understands how great we were...we had talent everywhere and we had depth

I loved our balance, we could beat teams through the run game, vertically through the air on occasion, our pass rush causing hell, a stout run defense, and our secondary forcing turnovers

Our only weakness (a dynamic pass game) took care of business in the NFCG and SB

Objectively, we should've had about 10-11 pro bowlers (Barkley, AJ, Lane, Cam, Landon, Mailata, Baun, Carter, Dejean and Mitchell)

And then you had guys who weren't pro-bowl caliber but they were still really good (Milton Williams, Josh Sweat, Slay, Nakobe Dean, Becton, Goedert, Hurts, Blankenship, Nolan Smith, etc...)

We were really loaded everywhere

I think we're the most talented team since the 94 Niners

fresh-prince-we.gif
 

Dorian Breh

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Crazy statement, if you're not looking too far back who cares if you're top 5. Doesn't mean anything. Just say you had a good year and are excited about this season.

:russell:

He means you don’t have to look too far back into the past to look at the Eagles team
 

Stop_It_5

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I can't speak on the 70s Steelers/80s 9ers/90s Cowboys that are the default choices for that list, but within the past 25 years it's an easy call.


The main thing I've taken away from the discussion it sparked and the lists people are putting out (all-time and "modern" era") is how disrespected 2013 Seattle is. It's almost like they would've been better off not getting back the next year, that Malcolm Butler play has overshadowed and defined an incredible four year run.
 
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