The Philadelphia Eagles are off to a 2-0 start following wins over the Dallas Cowboys and Kansas City Chiefs.
Superstar running back Saquon Barkley has been solid for the Eagles through the first two weeks, rushing for 60 yards and a touchdown in Week 1’s 24-20 win over the Cowboys, and 88 yards and a touchdown in this past Sunday’s 20-17 win over the Chiefs.
One of Barkley’s impressive Week 2 runs came after a dump-off screen pass from Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts. After reeling in the catch, Barkley lowered his helmet and ran through Kansas City cornerback Chamarri Conner.
The 28-year-old running back was praised for his physical running style by Tom Brady on the Fox Sports broadcast, and no flag was thrown on the play.
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But on Saturday, the NFL retroactively deemed the play an illegal hit (impermissible use of the helmet) by Barkley. The league fined the Eagles RB $46,371 for lowering his helmet on Conner.
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The NFL reviews every play, even if no penalty was called on the field.
“Player infractions may come to the league’s attention in a variety of ways,” the NFL rulebook reads. “The league may respond to an official’s call during a game or to a specific play that a team submits for review. The NFL Officiating Department also reviews every play from every game and refers potential violations to the Football Operations compliance team.
“League staff members examine the plays identified as having potential infractions to determine whether there is cause for additional review.”
Barkley is invaluable to the operation of Philadelphia’s offense. Through 16 regular-season games in his debut season with the Eagles, the 2024 Offensive Player of the Year recorded a league-leading 2,005 rushing yards and 13 rushing touchdowns.
He continued his stellar play into the postseason, helping the Eagles to a Super Bowl LIX title.
Barkley and the Eagles will kickoff against the Los Angeles Rams at 1 p.m. ET on Sunday.
