He broke the Philadelphia Eagles single-game rushing record, had a career-high for rushing yards in a single game, and has a career-high for rushing yards in a season with six weeks left in the regular season.
Barkley and Jalen Hurts dominated at SoFi Stadium defeating the Los Angeles Rams 37-20. The Rams had good performances from their top receivers, but could not keep up with the pace of the Eagles to take control of the NFC West.
Barkley's record-breaking performance
Despite all efforts, the Rams could not contain Barkley, who is now a possible MVP candidate. He ran for 255 yards on 26 carries and entered the top ten for rushing yards in a single game. He averaged 9.8 yards per carry, and almost averaging a first down per carry is a tough stat to achieve.
The Philadelphia running back took off and broke through Los Angeles with a 70-yard rushing touchdown at the start of the second half and a 72-yard rushing touchdown in the fourth quarter. He also had four receptions for 47 yards, totaling 302 scrimmage yards.
Positives for the Rams offense
There were positives for Matthew Stafford and his receivers. Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp combined for 177 receiving yards, 117 belonging to Nacua. Stafford still threw for 243 yards despite matching up against a dangerous defensive secondary.
The Eagles rookie cornerback duo learned a lot from their wide receiver matchups. Quinyon Mitchell influenced his assignments despite playing perfect coverage during snaps. Top receivers like Nacua still found a way to find the slightest space for a reception. Cooper DeJean makes plays on defense. He ended two Rams positions with critical 3rd down tackles, which would have become a first down if DeJean could not make the tackle.
The reason why Barkley had a successful career night was because of his offensive line. A running back's greatest attribute is when their offensive line can block and create gaps.
Another dangerous player in the backfield was Hurts, who can scramble and gain positive yards when out of the pocket. This favored the Eagles' offensive line since the Rams wanted to contain Hurts inside the pocket in an attempt to limit his impact.
Braden Fiske and Jared Verse lead rookies in their positions for quarterback pressures. However, Los Angeles wanted to contain Philadelphia's quarterback to the pocket to force him into plays. Hurts was protected and only sacked once by Fiske.
Playoff Implications
With the Washington Commanders losing to the Dallas Cowboys, the Eagles have extended their lead in the NFC East to two games. They are competing against the Detroit Lions for the top seed in the NFC and have almost secured a top-two seed, but Detroit leads the conference with a game advantage over Philadelphia.
The loss hurts the Rams more than the victory helps the Eagles. Everything is to play for in the NFC West as the Rams and San Francisco 49ers are 5-6 a game behind division leader the Seattle Seahawks and the Arizona Cardinals at 6-5. A wild card spot does not look likely from this division, so winning their three remaining division matchups might be enough to make the playoffs.
What is next?
For week 13, Los Angeles will visit the New Orleans Saints, while Philadelphia has a highly anticipated matchup with Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens in Baltimore.
