PHILADELPHIA — There are certain times in the heat of training camp when Saquon Barkley has to remind his teammates he’s one of the best football players on the planet.
The reigning NFL Offensive Player of the Year picks his battles against Vic Fangio’s defense, knowing when to seize the moment. Usually after a big run or a bang-bang play where he takes a good hit, Barkley can be seen jawing with the leaders of the Eagles defense after the whistle.
A part of Barkley’s game that went largely unnoticed last year? Trash talking.
The superstar running back didn’t run his mouth as much when he made big plays during training camp. This year, no one is safe.
“I was kinda the newbie last year,” Barkley said with a smile. “Getting my feet wet, seeing what my role is … something that I’m really good at is talking crap and competing. I feel like that’s my best attribute.”
Barkley has been engaged in trash taking as training camp has hit its summer lull, on the giving and receiving end. If there was a white jersey on the field, Barkley’s mouth was yapping.
The Eagles running back broke through the defense for long run during last Friday’s training camp practice, letting Eagles safety Reed Blankenship aware of his presence once he hit the second level. Barkley was also engaging with Jihaad Campbell and Jalen Carter after they collided, getting the rookie linebacker and star defensive tackle fired up prior to going back to the huddle.
Carter didn’t mind it one bit.
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“That’s what I like, just having a little energy in practice,” Carter said. “We can’t hit each other, we don’t want to hurt each other like that, but just getting a little thud in, letting him know I was there, stuff like that. Just friendly competition.”
There’s a method to Barkley’s madness, as he’s using the trash talking to engage with is teammates. The Eagles had multiple captains last season that led in their own way. A leader with the Giants — but not a captain in Philadelphia (yet) — trash talking is Barkley’s way of connecting with his teammates and bringing out the best in them.
“I feel like that was an area I could help out. It’s something that I’ve done before,” Barkley said. “We have so many leaders and so many captains on the team, which is a great thing. I feel it’s a place I can help a bit more.”
“Camp is hard, it’s supposed to be hard. But when you have guys jawing on each other, in a friendly competition, and not being stupid, it brings out the best in us…We laugh about it in the locker room, in the huddle after. That’s what football’s about. Going out and getting the best of each other.”
Barkley did ask Carter and Blankenship if he was an annoying trash talker, just to get the vibe from two of the defensive leaders. Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Jalen Ramsey is one of his favorite trash talkers, along with former Eagles teammate Brandon Graham.
Don’t worry. Graham’s famous trash talking is an art.
“BG’s like annoying, that’s the best way I can put it,” Barkley said as he laughed. “You don’t know what he’s saying, he’s saying anything and it just doesn’t stop.”
Barkley has also had a few run-ins with safety Cooper DeJean during the hot training camp practices. Normally the two are exchanging words with smiles on their faces, continuing the conversation as they head back to the huddle.
DeJean couldn’t repeat what either he or Barkley said, but it’s the part of Barkley he enjoys when both are butting heads on the field every day.
“He likes to talk, and we love that,” DeJean said. “It’s good competition. He gets in that mode on the field where he’s just on the go, and he’s always talking – crazy stuff, sometimes. But I love it. It makes me laugh sometimes.”
As the trash talking continues to grow, so does Saquon’s game. He’s gotten a boatload of targets during camp in the passing game and looks every bit as fresh as he did throughout that 2,000-yard campaign. If there are signs of decline after finishing with 482 touches last season, Barkley certainly isn’t showing it.
The only aspect of Barkley’s game that’s a noticeable change is the trash talking. That’s part of what drives Barkley to be great.
“I’ve been doing it for a long time,” Barkley said. “I look at it as like pick up basketball. There’s no difference between coming to my house on July 4 and we’re playing hoops with family and friends, it just brings that side out.
“You’re gonna make plays, and when you make a play [trash talk] it’s funny. You laugh about it, give props and respect, but it also pushes all of us.”
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