2,005 rushing yards, 13 touchdowns, and one very memorable backward hurdle later, and Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley is your 2024 AP NFL Offensive Player of the Year award winner.
Barkley racked up 35 first-place votes and 406 points, beating out Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson (183 points), Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase (171), Ravens running back Derrick Henry (92), and Bengals QB Joe Burrow (78) for the prestigious award.
He finished the 2024 regular season rushing for 2,005 rushing yards on 345 attempts and 13 rushing touchdowns. He also reeled in 33 receptions for 278 receiving yards and two more scores.
Barkley became just the ninth player in NFL history to log 2,000-plus rushing yards in a single season and currently holds the eighth-most rushing yards in league history. He was also 101 rushing yards away from breaking Eric Dickerson’s single-season rushing record, but the Eagles chose to rest their starter in Week 18 ahead of the playoff run.
“It’s an honor and privilege to be selected the Player of the Year,” Barkley said. “I’d like to give thanks to God first, without him, none of this would be possible. I’d like to give thanks to my family, my fiance, my children, my mom and dad, my brothers and sisters. Thank you guys so much for the love and support throughout this journey. I’d like to thank the fans of Philadelphia for showing so much love to me and my family, especially being the newcomer.
“And last but not least, I’d like to thank my teammates and coaches. ‘You can’t be great without the greatness of others,’ is one of my favorite quotes, and you definitely can’t accomplish awards like this without the big boys up front. So thank you, guys, so much again, like I said, it’s an honor and a privilege.”
Barkley has a chance to make even more history on Super Bowl Sunday as he needs just 30 rushing yards to take over Terrell Davis’ combined regular and post-season NFL rushing yards record.
