Saquon Barkley admitted seeing New York Giants fans burn his jersey was "crazy" before he torched his former team on his return to MetLife Stadium.
Back in the offseason, Barkley ended his six-year run with the Giants by sensationally leaving for their NFC East rivals, the Philadelphia Eagles , in free agency. The Giants had selected the running back with the second overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft , and he quickly became one of the team’s most popular players.
Following the 2023 NFL season, the Giants chose not to franchise tag Barkley - a move that allowed him to hit free agency. The 27-year-old Pennsylvania native controversially signed a three-year deal with the Eagles, leading Giants fans to furiously react .
As Barkley arrived for his first game back in East Rutherford since making the switch within the NFC East, Giants fans certainly showed their anger. Before serenading him with boos throughout the game, Big Blue made a point of burning Barkley’s old jersey and making sure the running back saw it.
“That was crazy,” Barkley told reporters. “I mean I’ve seen my jersey get burned before on social media, but the timing of it - I’m locked in, I’m listening to my music. All I see is fans just pointing, I look. I’m like, ‘What are they pointing at?’
“I see smoke, and it’s my jersey getting burned, so yeah, that was definitely different. I don’t know if I’ve ever experienced anything like that in my life and hopefully, I don’t experience that again, but in that moment, I was ready for 3rd and 1 - let's just say that.”
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Barkley used the frosty reception as motivation and delivered in Philadelphia's crushing 28-3 win . He turned 17 carries into 176 yards and a touchdown, tallying significantly more yardage than the entire Daniel Jones-led Giants offense after the front office infamously decided to commit to the quarterback rather than Barkley.
In a grueling first half of a few offensive highlights, Barkley took off on a sensational 55-yard burst up the left-hand sideline. After being ushered out of bounds, Barkley simply stared down the Giants fans given they had been vehemently booing him throughout the opening stages.
Barkley then powered into the end zone for a three-yard rushing touchdown. He celebrated by helping Dexter Lawrence to his feet, only to shove his helmet into the dominant defensive tackle’s face before walking away.
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The 27-year-old continued to terrorize his former team, breaking away for more long runs as the Giants defense had no answer. Last week, Barkley was held to a season-low of 47 rushing yards at just 2.6 yards per carry - but he was clearly motivated to deliver on Sunday.
Barkley’s 4-2 Eagles take on the 3-4 Cincinnati Bengals at Paul Brown Stadium on Sunday, Oct. 27.
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