Barkley Touches Ball on All Nine Snaps in Eagles Loss to Cowboys

Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley returned to the field Monday night and handled the ball on every snap he played, finishing with seven carries for 62 yards and a touchdown plus two receptions for 9 yards in a 38-21 loss to the Dallas Cowboys. Barkley had been listed as questionable for the game while recovering from a hamstring injury.

The Eagles held him to nine offensive snaps. Barkley is the first NFL starter in the past 20 seasons to record a touch on every offensive snap he played in a game, provided he reached a minimum of nine snaps. He said afterward that his "hamstring came out great."

His role shrank further as the game went on. Barkley said he tweaked his back on a 29-yard run in the first quarter and that the issue worsened from there. He spent time in the medical tent and stretched with trainers on the bench. After an 8-yard touchdown run on Philadelphia's opening possession, he moved to an exercise bike on the sideline. His final snap came in the third quarter.

Barkley does not expect the back problem to keep him out, though he said he would defer to the training staff. "It's kind of the school of thought I come from: I truly love this game, and I feel like if you're able to go, sometimes you've got to push your body to the limit," he said. "I'm trying, it's just not responding the way I want it to respond right now."

Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said the team weighed medical clearance before deciding Barkley's workload. "Do they feel ready to go? Do the doctors and trainers feel like he's ready to go? And we felt like that was the case today," Sirianni said. He added that he had to hold Barkley back, saying the player would take every snap if allowed.

Philadelphia's running back room is depleted. Will Shipley (foot), Tank Bigsby (abdomen) and Carson Steele (shoulder) are on injured reserve. Dameon Pierce left the game in the fourth quarter with an undisclosed injury, which pushed the remaining carries to Elijah Mitchell, elevated from the practice squad for the game. The Eagles' next contest has not been announced in this report.