Saquon Barkley of the Eagles is on the verge of a record loss and has to miss the Giants

PHILADELPHIA – Eagles running back Saquon Barkley is expected to miss Sunday’s regular-season finale against the New York Giants, coach Nick Sirianni said, ending his quest for the single-season rushing record.

With Philadelphia’s postseason seeding secured, Sirianni suggested that Barkley will be one of the starters to rest as the Eagles prepare for the playoffs.

“He’ll probably be someone who rests,” Sirianni said.

If that’s the case, Barkley will end the regular season 101 yards shy of Eric Dickerson’s NFL record of 2,105 yards set in 1984.

“Of course it is a very special record that has been set for a very long time by a great player. It’s a team record that everyone has a stake in. You weigh all these things. But at the end of the day you just try to do the best for the team.”

Nick Sirianni

Whether he should have a chance to win the rushing title has been a hot point of discussion this week in Philadelphia and beyond. The Eagles (13-3) clinched the NFC East division title and are seeded No. 2 in the NFC, making the Giants game irrelevant from a playoff positioning perspective.

With a bye in Week 5, Philadelphia has played 12 straight games, which factored into the decision to sit out some core players.

“Of course it is a very special record that has been set for a very long time by a great player. It’s a team record that everyone has a stake in. You weigh all those things,” Sirianni said. “But at the end of the day you just try to do what’s best for the team. The farewell was about how the boys feel, what bumps and bruises we can take care of. We put ourselves in a position to be like that in that situation…It wasn’t the easiest decision, but we have great people in this building and got a lot of input from a lot of people, including the players.”

Sirianni said he spoke with Barkley. He did not reveal the content of those discussions, but noted that on this team there are “selfless people who want to do the best for the football team.”

Sirianni also announced that quarterback Jalen Hurts remains in the concussion protocol. He suffered the injury in Week 16 against the Washington Commanders and did not play Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys.

After the win over the Dallas Cowboys in Week 17, opinions in the Philadelphia locker room were divided. Right Tackle Lane Johnson tended to give the starters a break under the premise that “it’s better to be safe than sorry.”

Left tackle Jordan Mailata, meanwhile, said he plans to “push” the starters for the game against New York.

“It’s an opportunity to make history,” Mailata said. “We never really talked about the Giants next week, but we just felt like if we didn’t try today we might sit out. We don’t know. The coach hasn’t really said anything yet. We’ll see.

Barkley said he agreed with Sirianni’s decision.

“Whatever his decision is, I’m all for it,” Barkley said. “If he thinks like that, we’ll go out and try it, I’ll go out and try it. If he thinks like this, let’s rest and prepare for this run, then I’m all for it too.” .. I came here to do something special. Breaking a record is special, but I want a banner up there.

With his 167-yard performance against Dallas, Barkley became just the ninth player in NFL history to rush for more than 2,000 yards.