Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley put together his lowest volume of work this season as Philly was stunned at home against the Denver Broncos 21-17 on Sunday.
Barkley had nine touches for 88 yards, 47 of which came on a Jalen Hurts-designed pass that led to a touchdown in the third quarter. While the 88 yards were Barkley's second-highest "yardage" of the young season, his nine touches were his lowest this year.
Barkley didn't back down from the media on their question of his touches in loss to Broncos
After the game, Barkley was asked by the media about the low number of touches he had in the game, and he was not having any of it.
"I don't really know what you want," Barkley said via The Athletic's Zach Berman. "If I touch the ball too much sometimes, we're not throwing enough. If we throw it too much and I only have nine touches — I'm not in the business of, what are we doing enough? I'm in the business of winning football games. We didn't win the football game. With nine touches, we had the opportunity to win the football game still. We weren't detailed enough. Too many mistakes, too many penalties."
Barkley's answer would rival that of a politician in Washington, offering little substance while shifting and deflecting to another issue at hand.
The Eagles' offense continues to be a constant area of criticism, with the team entering Week 5 as one of the NFL's worst collective units, ranking in the bottom three of the league. While Barkley did shift blame to penalties in their week five loss, it is worth noting that Philadelphia had nine penalties (compared to Denver's 12) for 55 yards (Denver had 121), leaving the Eagles the more "disciplined" team.
Read more: Broncos made Quinyon Mitchell look human after Eagles' devastating loss
Barkley has yet to "pop" so far this season, with his largest output being 94 all-purpose yards in Week 2. While Barkley has been extremely serviceable, his output is nowhere close to being replicated from the 2024 season. The Eagles will have a chance to get back on track with their week six matchup against the New York Giants this Thursday.