Eagles running back Saquon Barkley ran for 119 yards in Sunday’s win over the Packers, but he could have run for 59 more and chose not to on his final carry of the game.
After he gained the game-clinching first down, Barkley went down at the Eagles’ 41-yard line, even though he had a path to the end zone and could have scored. Afterward, Barkley said that he knew the first down won the game and didn’t care about anything else.
“Stats don’t matter. The only stat that matters is the win,” Barkley said. “Whether we throw for 400 yards, rush for 400 yards or win 3-0, I don’t give a fuck, to be honest. I just want to win.”
Asked if it was tempting for him to score a touchdown, Barkley said it wasn’t.
“It wasn’t tempting. Situational football,” Barkley said. “A first down you win the game? Get the first down and sit down.”
Barkley did say some of his teammates were razzing him about missing a chance at a highlight-reel touchdown to cap off the game.
“They told me I should’ve taken a little bit more, but at the end of the day the most important thing in the playoffs is winning and advancing,” Barkley said on Fox after the game.
Winning and advancing was exactly what Barkley did.
“The most important thing is winning games,” Barkley said. “The stat line don’t matter. The only stat that matters is getting Ws.”
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