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In Roob’s Eagles Observations: How many touches make sense for Saquon Barkley? originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
What’s the ideal number of touches for Saquon Barkley? Who remembers when the Eagles had an international game cancelled three days before it was supposed to be played? And an appreciation of unheralded all-time Eagles great Pete Pihos.
This week’s Roob’s 10 Random Eagles Observations covers a lot of ground, and because the Eagles play their opener on Friday instead of Sunday that means you get two editions of 10 Obs in six days. Lucky you!
1. It’ll be fascinating to watch how the Eagles use Saquon Barkley, how many touches he gets, how often he gets spelled by Kenny Gainwell or Will Shipley and what he’ll look like when he’s not the only weapon on the field for the first time since his rookie year. Not counting 2020, when he missed almost the entire season, Barkley averaged 20.3 touches per game with the Giants, with a high of 22 touches per season in 2018 and 2022 and a low of 15.6 in 2021. If you’re Kellen Moore you’re looking for the perfect balance between protecting Barkley and doing everything possible so he’s healthy come December and January and also trying to maximize his ability. I think 22 is way too high. Considering wear and tear and injuries and a desire to keep him healthy all year and also considering the other weapons Moore has at his disposal, I feel like somewhere around 18 per game makes the most sense. Miles Sanders and D’Andre Swift both made the Pro Bowl the last two years at around 16 ½. Barkley is more of an every-down back than them, so he needs to be higher, but anything beyond 18 and you’re probably going to get diminishing returns. The number will fluctuate, but based on his career average of 5.3 yards per touch, 18 touches gets him to run around 95 scrimmage yards per game. And with the other weapons on this offense and the best o-line he’s ever played behind? He should surpass that 5.3…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/roobs-eagles-observations-many-touches-012620929.html
Author : NBC Sports Philadelphia
Publish date : 2024-09-01 01:26:20
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