The operative number with Barkley is 250 - his League leading number of touches. He currently is averaging roughly 23 touches per game and is on pace for the most of his career at 364 even presuming he sits the final week.
The Eagles are irresponsibly using him up to accumulate gaudy but largely meaningless regular season numbers long before the games that really matter start...and it's not just relevant for this year. As I noted before the season started, Barkley had not yet reached the 1,500 level of touches where RBs historically have essentially one more high-level season between 1,500 and 1,800 touches. Barkley was at 1489, so 2024 is not a huge surprise in terms of age and performance.
Chronological age is too often overrated for RB aging curves as compared to touches. Barkley has missed material action in three seasons which ironically has helped preserve him later in his career. However, as Barkley shatters the 1,500 touches wall and likely exceeds 1,800 touches by the end of this year, 2025 and 2026 now seem likely for serious regression.
As I warned at the start of the season, Philadelphia paid for 3 seasons to get 1 good one...as they burn through their one year like the worst irresponsible startup with delusional VC money.
Consider the eerily similar case of Christian McCaffrey who I similarly warned about at the start of this year. In 2023 he – like Barkley - entered the season at 1467 touches and was promptly overused to the tune of a League leading 339 touches...all as the media wildly applauded. Now, both McCaffrey and San Francisco are suffering the sins of their organizational shortsightedness. For comparison, Barkley at his current rate will have 25 more touches over 16 games than McCaffrey did last year.
Barkley, like McCaffrey, also has a history of injuries. He's never played a full season and only twice played 16. With the NFC East now looking like a cakewalk as the Commanders are fading, and Detroit sitting pretty with the likely #1 seed...what the hell are they doing giving him 30 touches to beat the lowly Rams in a game they had in hand after the 3rd quarter?
I'm sorry, it's just the height of irresponsibility. No other way to look at it.
The Eagles are only 11 games in. The key to their entire season is to dial back Barkley now and lower his usage significantly. Philadelphia needs to stop playing for the media's accolades and start playing for the games that matter in January...
The operative number with Barkley is 250 - his League leading number of touches. He currently is averaging roughly 23 touches per game and is on pace for the most of his career at 364 even presuming he sits the final week.
The Eagles are irresponsibly using him up to accumulate gaudy but largely meaningless regular season numbers long before the games that really matter start...and it's not just relevant for this year. As I noted before the season started, Barkley had not yet reached the 1,500 level of touches where RBs historically have essentially one more high-level season between 1,500 and 1,800 touches. Barkley was at 1489, so 2024 is not a huge surprise in terms of age and performance.
Chronological age is too often overrated for RB aging curves as compared to touches. Barkley has missed material action in three seasons which ironically has helped preserve him later in his career. However, as Barkley shatters the 1,500 touches wall and likely exceeds 1,800 touches by the end of this year, 2025 and 2026 now seem likely for serious regression.
As I warned at the start of the season, Philadelphia paid for 3 seasons to get 1 good one...as they burn through their one year like the worst irresponsible startup with delusional VC money.
Consider the eerily similar case of Christian McCaffrey who I similarly warned about at the start of this year. In 2023 he – like Barkley - entered the season at 1467 touches and was promptly overused to the tune of a League leading 339 touches...all as the media wildly applauded. Now, both McCaffrey and San Francisco are suffering the sins of their organizational shortsightedness. For comparison, Barkley at his current rate will have 25 more touches over 16 games than McCaffrey did last year.
Barkley, like McCaffrey, also has a history of injuries. He's never played a full season and only twice played 16. With the NFC East now looking like a cakewalk as the Commanders are fading, and Detroit sitting pretty with the likely #1 seed...what the hell are they doing giving him 30 touches to beat the lowly Rams in a game they had in hand after the 3rd quarter?
I'm sorry, it's just the height of irresponsibility. No other way to look at it.
The Eagles are only 11 games in. The key to their entire season is to dial back Barkley now and lower his usage significantly. Philadelphia needs to stop playing for the media's accolades and start playing for the games that matter in January...