Ground Index

RB Index, Week 12: The main thing standing between Saquon Barkley and MVP honors? His quarterback

Published: Nov 22, 2024 at 02:32 PM

Maurice Jones-Drew

NFL.com Analyst

Every season, it seems like one running back works his way into the conversation around the MVP award, which has been otherwise dominated by quarterbacks since the turn of the millennium. Last year, that RB was Christian McCaffrey. It was Derrick Henry the year prior. In 2024? Philadelphia newcomer Saquon Barkley.

After jumping from one NFC East team (the Giants) to another (the Eagles) in the offseason, the 27-year-old is enjoying the best campaign of his career. He's recorded six games with 100-plus rush yards this season, already matching the total he compiled with Big Blue between 2020 and 2023. He is averaging career highs in rush yards per game (113.1), yards per carry (5.8) and scrimmage yards per game (134.7). He's on pace to amass 1,922 rush yards and 2,290 scrimmage yards in 17 games.

That's spectacular production. It really is. But there is one category in which his numbers are somewhat pedestrian, and it's a category that running backs usually need to post otherworldly totals in to truly get to the front of the MVP pack: touchdowns. Through 10 games, Barkley has eight rushing touchdowns and two receiving TDs, putting him on pace to finish with 17 scrimmage TDs. That would be seven fewer than the average (24) scored by the last five RBs to win MVP: Adrian Peterson (13, 2012), LaDainian Tomlinson (31, 2006), Shaun Alexander (28, 2005), Marshall Faulk (26, 2000) and Terrell Davis (23, 1998).

To this I say: There is one thing standing between Barkley and that MVP award ... his quarterback.

That might feel a little harsh, but hear me out. Each of those five MVP-winning RBs listed above easily paced their teams in scrimmage TDs, but this is not the case for Barkley in Philly, where Jalen Hurts heads the leaderboard, thanks to his 11 rushing touchdowns. And we all know why that is -- the Tush Push, a QB sneak that Philly has all but mastered over the last few seasons. According to NFL Research, Barkley has been tackled at the 1- or 2-yard line 12 times this season, most in the NFL, and a majority of the carries on the very next play go to Hurts. On goal-line carries (inside the 3-yard line) this season, Hurts has scored eight touchdowns on 12 attempts, while Barkley has two scores on half as many carries, per Next Gen Stats.

Barkley is certainly not unaware of his lack of goal-line opportunities. His contract even seems to account for it: NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport recently reported that Barkley receives zero dollars in incentives based on touchdowns in the three-year, $37.8 million pact he inked with Philly.

Saquon seems like the ultimate team player. Take Week 6, when he and the Eagles played his former team at MetLife Stadium. Barkley was 13 rush yards away from his single-game career high (189) late in a blowout victory -- but as an exchange with head coach Nick Sirianni showed, Barkley was more than OK sitting on the sidelines while letting the backups take over.

I mean, I get it. But come on, Saquon. There are other running backs practically demanding they get the rock near the end zone, based on their usage and success. Enter Houston's Joe Mixon, who just scored a hat trick of TDs against the Cowboys last week. This season, Mixon has eight goal-line carries to C.J. Stroud's one, with the RB scoring on five of those attempts. In Baltimore, quarterback Lamar Jackson -- who is an elite runner -- doesn't have a single carry in such situations, leaving that job to Derrick Henry, who has 11, plus a league-leading 13 rushing touchdowns in 2024.

All of this to say, the Eagles wouldn't be sitting atop the NFC East at 8-2, rolling with the league's best rushing attack, without Barkley or Hurts. The quarterback's ability to make positive gains with his legs and get into the end zone when called upon is huge for a team with Super Bowl aspirations. Unfortunately, it could also be the reason his teammate falls short of MVP honors.

Former NFL rushing leader and current NFL Network analyst Maurice Jones-Drew will survey all running backs and rank his top 15 each week of the 2024 season. His rankings are based on this season's efforts. Here is MJD's list heading into Week 11, with up/down arrows reflecting movement from Week 11's pecking order.

NOTE: Stats and rankings DO NOT incorporate production from any running backs involved in Week 12's Thursday Night Football matchup between the Steelers and Browns.

Rank

Saquon Barkley

Philadelphia Eagles · Year 7

Barkley's monster outing against the division-rival Commanders culminated in Eagles fans loudly thanking the New York Giants. I mean, New York is missing out. Barkley had 146 rush yards, two rush TDs and 52 receiving yards in that Thursday night win. He now has as many games with at least 140 rush yards (four) this season as the Giants do as a team. As mentioned in the intro, Barkley is producing at a career-best clip.

Rank

Derrick Henry

Baltimore Ravens · Year 9

The miscues piled up for the Ravens in a big division loss to the Steelers. While Henry scored his 13th rushing touchdown of the season (he's posted at least one rushing or receiving TD in each game), he also lost his first fumble of the campaign -- and his first in 538 touches, with the last one coming in Week 16 of 2022. That turnover led to one of Pittsburgh's six field goals. Henry, who finished Sunday with 5.0 yards per carry on his 13 attempts, wasn't the only Ravens player to make a mistake, but I can speak from experience when I say he wants that one carry back.

Rank

Jahmyr Gibbs

Detroit Lions · Year 2

Another week, another dominant outing from the Lions backfield. Gibbs topped 100 scrimmage yards again, logging 69 rush yards (including a 1-yard TD run in the second quarter) on 11 carries for 6.3 yards per attempt while hauling in his lone target for a 54-yard catch-and-run down the sideline to set up the Lions' fourth TD of the day against the Jags.

Rank

Josh Jacobs

Green Bay Packers · Year 6

The Packers were better than the rival Bears by the margin of a blocked field-goal attempt, extending their win streak against Chicago to 11 consecutive games. While there were some good plays by Jordan Love through the air, the ground game continues to be the offense's steady hand. Jacobs finished the day with 134 scrimmage yards, including a 7-yard touchdown run in the third quarter. According to NFL Research, Jacobs is the first Packers player with at least 90 scrimmage yards in six or more consecutive games since Eddie Lacy's 10-game streak in 2014-15.

Rank

Alvin Kamara

New Orleans Saints · Year 8

What year is it?! It was the Taysom Hill show against the Browns in New Orleans, as he rushed for 138 yards and a TD hat trick (with 50 receiving yards on eight catches), but he wasn't the only efficient Saint. Kamara played his role within the offense by rushing for 4.2 yards per carry and an 18-yard pickup that put the Saints in the red zone to set up their second of three fourth-quarter touchdowns. These Saints have found a more balanced attack over the last two weeks (both wins), a positive development heading into their Week 12 bye.

Rank

James Cook

Buffalo Bills · Year 3

Cook only managed to log 27 scrimmage yards in Sunday's win over the Chiefs, but it's tough to knock a player who scored twice down the list. Both of his touchdowns came in the first half; he found the end zone on Buffalo's first offensive possession on a 3-yard run and again on a 6-yard scamper in the second quarter. Believe it or not, Cook became the first RB with at least two rush TDs against the Chiefs since Derrick Henry in Week 9 of 2022. He'll take it.

Rank

David Montgomery

Detroit Lions · Year 6

Like Gibbs, Montgomery ran through the Jaguars defense, which gave up a mind-boggling 645 yards (!). Montgomery finished with 15 carries for 75 yards and a pair of first-half touchdowns -- on runs of 2 and 6 yards. Montgomery has had a rush TD in eight games this season, second-most behind Baltimore's Derrick Henry (10).

Rank

Bijan Robinson

Atlanta Falcons · Year 2

The Falcons' offense was out of sorts all day in the Mile High City, generating just 226 total yards -- there wasn't much to be excited about. Robinson's day ended with 63 scrimmage yards, marking the first time since Week 5 that he was held under 100 scrimmage yards, snapping a five-game 100-scrimmage-yard streak. Tough week for Atlanta, which will have sit with this performance for two weeks until its next game, a Week 13 meeting with the Chargers.

Rank

J.K. Dobbins

Los Angeles Chargers · Year 5

It was the Justin Herbert show for a majority of Sunday night's win -- at least, until Dobbins scored the game-winning touchdown on a 29-yard run with 18 seconds remaining. It marked the second time in three games that he's scored two TDs on the ground.

Rank

Joe Mixon

Houston Texans · Year 8

Apparently unlike Barkley, Mixon wants ALL the touchdowns. In Houston's rout of Dallas, he logged 153 scrimmage yards (109 rushing) and three rush TDs -- his second career game with at least three scores on the ground. He has scored a rush TD in six straight games, tied for the longest streak in franchise history (matching Arian Foster and Domanick Williams). We'll see if he can break it Sunday against Tennessee.

Rank

James Conner

Arizona Cardinals · Year 8

The Cardinals go as Conner goes in 2024. They are 5-1 when the veteran running back has 100-plus scrimmage yards and 1-3 when he doesn't reach the mark. He's been so productive due to his tackle-breaking ability. According to Next Gen Stats, Conner led the NFL with 68 forced missed tackles this season heading into Week 12, which bodes well against a Seahawks defense that has missed 12.8 percent of tackle opportunities (11th-lowest rate).

Rank

Kyren Williams

Los Angeles Rams · Year 3

Despite converting one-fourth of third-down tries in the win over New England, a lot seemed to go right for the Rams offense. Matthew Stafford dialed up four TD passes, while Williams rushed for 86 yards on 15 attempts (5.7 yards per carry, thanks to a big gain in the first quarter). Next, the Rams face an Eagles defense that hasn't allowed an opposing team to total 100 rush yards in a game since Week 6. It'll be a tough matchup for Williams, who hasn't hit the century mark in rush yards since Week 5.

Rank

Chuba Hubbard

Carolina Panthers · Year 4

Hubbard gained some major momentum heading into the team's Week 11 bye, totaling 225 rush yards and three rush TDs in back-to-back wins. He'll need fresh legs Sunday against a Chiefs defense that ranks third against the run and hasn't allowed a 100-yard rusher since Week 1 (Lamar Jackson). It could be tough if rookie Jonathon Brooks cuts into his carries, but Hubbard has been great this season.