Saquon Barkley’s pursuit of Eric Dickerson’s 40-year-old rushing record could get grounded by his coach.
Nick Sirianni’s decision is more difficult than it seems.
Barkley needs 101 yards rushing against his former team on Sunday to set the NFL’s single-season record. But the Philadelphia Eagles (13-3) are locked into the No. 2 seed in the NFC so the outcome of their game won’t affect the standings.
Win, lose or tie against the New York Giants, the Eagles will host the Green Bay Packers or Washington Commanders in a wild-card playoff game.
They don’t have a bye so this game is an opportunity for Sirianni to rest most of his starters ahead of the playoffs and avoid risking injuries to key players.
Winning a Super Bowl is Philadelphia’s priority. The Eagles are built to win it all. They have a dynamic offense and the league’s top-ranked defense.
Putting the team first is a coach’s responsibility. Chasing individual records could jeopardize the organization’s championship hopes if Barkley goes down in a meaningless game.
The Eagles can’t afford to lose quarterback Jalen Hurts, receivers A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith or any of their starting offensive linemen, especially right tackle Lane Johnson.
All those reasons make it a simple choice for Sirianni to rest Barkley.
It’s not that easy, however.
“Everything is taken into account,” Sirianni said Tuesday on WIP radio in Philadelphia. “I’m going to always do what’s best for the team and the individuals going for that. I’m still thinking through a little bit of this, too. ... Take a lot into account. What’s the best thing for the team and then also what’s the best things for the individuals going for the record.”
Sirianni said he plans to speak to everyone, including players, coaches, general manager Howie Roseman and owner Jeffrey Lurie before making his decision.
In 2021, Sirianni rested several starters in the final regular-season game with the Eagles locked into the No. 7 seed. But he played wide receiver Smith long enough for him to break the team’s rookie receiving record.
Barkley became the ninth player in NFL history to reach 2,000 yards rushing early in the fourth quarter of a 41-7 victory over Dallas. Sirianni immediately pulled him out with several minutes remaining and Barkley finished the game at 2,005 yards. Dickerson had 2,105 for the Los Angeles Rams in 1984.
When Barkley ran for 176 yards against the Giants in his former home stadium in October, Sirianni asked him if he wanted to stay in the game to chase his career high. He needed 14 more yards at that point. Barkley declined, telling his coach to let the other running backs get their carries.
Barkley eventually surpassed his personal mark when he ran for 255 yards against the Rams on Nov. 14.
As for Dickerson’s record, Barkley isn’t lobbying to play.
“The way I look at it, if it’s in God’s plan, then it is,” Barkley said. “I’m not overly trying to go get it. I’m not scared of it. I would love to, but at the end of the day, also, we’ve got bigger things that we’re focusing on. ... Rest, I’m fine with that, too, because I didn’t come here and sign here just to rush for 2,000 or break a record. I want to do something special, meaning special with the team.”
With Barkley on board publicly, that takes pressure off Sirianni.
Still, he’s debating what’s best for the team.
Bill Belichick and Jim Harbaugh presented arguments for playing the starters.
“We’re gonna be playing to win at all times. That never changes,” Harbaugh said Monday night on SiriusXM’s “Let’s Go!” “And I like what Derwin James said, he’s our captain. ... he said: ‘Eleven wins sounds better than 10.’ We’re attacking it with an enthusiasm unknown to mankind. You know, the thing that doesn’t resonate right now is ‘play the backups.’ What are we gonna do, dress 25 guys for the game?”
Harbaugh has guided the Los Angeles Chargers (10-6) to an AFC wild-card berth in his first season with the team after leading Michigan to a national championship last year. The Chargers can’t finish lower than the No. 6 seed and have a chance to move up to the fifth spot with a win and a loss by the Steelers.
Belichick, the six-time Super Bowl champion head coach, often faced a late-season decision on whether to rest starters during his time with the New England Patriots.
“That’s what some people, I think, have a hard time with is, ‘Well, don’t play your starters.’ I mean, you can only have seven inactive guys. Who are they?” Belichick said. “And it’s tough to go to your team and say: ‘Well, we’re not gonna play you guys over here, but the rest of you get out there. We don’t really care about you. If you get hurt, that doesn’t matter, but these six or seven guys we’re going to protect.’ You can’t say that to the team. That doesn’t resonate well at all, nor should it. So I always had a hard time with that one.
“Now, if a guy was fighting an injury and everybody understood that the guy was fighting an injury, OK, that’s one thing. But to just say: ‘Well, you guys are important, but you other guys aren’t, we don’t care what happens to you. Get out there and play.’ That’s not a message I could ever send to the team. Even though there were people in the organization that wanted me to send that, I just couldn’t do it.”
Hurts could be a factor in Sirianni’s decision to play or rest Barkley and the starters. Hurts has missed the past seven quarters after sustaining a concussion against Washington.
He could be rusty going into the playoffs after a nearly three-week layoff. So, Sirianni could choose to play Hurts a few series, one quarter or however long enough to get him back on track.
If so, the starting offense would play. But playing Hurts may be too risky for a team with Super Bowl aspirations.
Ultimately, the same goes for Barkley.
On Football analyzes the biggest topics in the NFL from week to week. For more On Football analysis, head here.
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Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley, center, leaps as Dallas Cowboys linebacker Marist Liufau tries to trip him up during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 29, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley talks to reporters following an NFL football game against the Dallas Cowboys, Sunday, Dec. 29, 2024, in Philadelphia. The Eagles won 41-7. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley (26) runs the ball against the Dallas Cowboys during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 29, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The pilot of a small plane attempted to make an emergency landing shortly after takeoff before crashing through the roof of a building in Southern California, according to air traffic control audio that includes panicked gasping and a female voice saying, “Oh my God,” moments before the crash.
The crash Thursday left two people dead and 19 injured. The plane was owned by Pascal Reid of Huntington Beach, California, according to Federal Aviation Administration records. The Huntington Beach High School girls soccer team posted Friday on Instagram that Reid and his daughter Kelly, a student at the school, died in a plane crash.
“Yesterday our soccer family suffered an unimaginable loss,” the post read. “Kelly was a natural caregiver and always put others first. She will be deeply missed. Her father was at every single game, always so proud of his daughter.”
The coroner's office hasn't yet identified the dead or confirmed they were on the plane.
The plane had just taken off from the Fullerton Municipal Airport when the pilot told the air traffic control tower, “Immediate landing required.”
The pilot initially told the air traffic controller that he planned to land on Runway 6. The air traffic controller then told another aircraft to turn away from that area and told the pilot he could land on either Runway 6 or 24. The pilot responded that he was going to land on Runway 24 instead. Moments later, panicked gasping and an “Oh my God” could be heard just before the audio went quiet.
Federal investigators said the aircraft asked for a return to the airport at about 900 feet (274 meters). It crashed about 1,000 feet (305 meters) short of Runway 24, through a sprawling furniture manufacturing building owned by Michael Nicholas Designs.
According to a preliminary Federal Aviation Administration report, the aircraft crashed under “unknown circumstances.”
Eleven people were taken to hospitals, while eight were treated and released at the scene, police said. The injuries ranged from minor to very serious, said Michael Meacham, Fullerton deputy chief of fire operations.
Security camera footage from Rucci Forged, a wheel manufacturer across the street, shows the plane was tilted on its side as it dove into the building, causing a fiery explosion and a black plume of smoke.
Chris Villalobos, an airport operations worker, said the airplane’s owner was a regular at the airport with his own hangar and had frequently taken off from there.
The FAA identified the plane as a single-engine, four-seat Van’s RV-10, a popular home-built airplane sold in kit form. Investigators said the aircraft was built in 2011.
Tim Olson, an aviation enthusiast and an early purchaser of the RV-10 plane kit, said he had exchanged emails with Reid over the years and knew him as a “diligent, responsible” pilot and aircraft builder. Olson said the RV-10 had become popular as an “easy-to-build” plane from a reputable kit manufacturer. He said he has flown more than 1,500 hours on his own plane, even taking it to the Cayman Islands.
“It’s real sad to hear that it ended this way for him,” Olson said. “I know from talking back and forth that he did travel, camped out with his plane around the country a bunch.”
Reid's daughter Kelly is listed on school sports websites as a junior at Huntington Beach High School who played flag football, soccer and lacrosse.
The airport in Fullerton has one runway and a heliport. Metrolink, a regional train line, is nearby and flanks a residential neighborhood and commercial warehouse buildings.
The Fullerton City Council posted a statement on social media calling the crash a “solemn tragedy.”
“The City of Fullerton is committed to providing support for all those affected and working with the agencies involved to uncover the details of this incident,” Mayor Fred Jung said in the statement. “We are grateful for the strength of our community and the compassion we show one another in times of crisis.”
Another four-seat plane crashed into a tree a half-mile (0.8 kilometers) from the airport in November while making an emergency landing shortly after takeoff, The Orange County Register reported. Both people on board suffered moderate injuries.
Fullerton is a city of about 140,000 people about 25 miles (40 kilometers) southeast of Los Angeles.
A mourner weeps as they are embraces before a memorial service at First Christian Church in Huntington Beach, Calif., Friday, Jan. 3, 2025, for those killed in a small plane crash the day before. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
Mourners arrive for a memorial service at First Christian Church in Huntington Beach, Calif., Friday, Jan. 3, 2025, for those killed in a small plane crash the day before. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
Daniel Villalbazo, left and Efrain Romero show photos on their mobile phones, Friday, Jan. 3, 2025, in Fullerton, Calif., after witnessing a plane crash the day before at the warehouse of a commercial building where the accident happened. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
Workers line up to enter a warehouse of a commercial furniture factory to collect their belongings Friday, Jan. 3, 2025, in Fullerton, Calif., where a small plane crashed the day before. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
People attend a vigil at First Christian Church in Huntington Beach, Calif., on Friday, Jan. 3, 2025, for those killed in a small plane crash taking off from the Fullerton Municipal Airport the day before. (Jeff Gritchen/The Orange County Register via AP)
Mourners embrace before a memorial service at First Christian Church in Huntington Beach, Calif., Friday, Jan. 3, 2025, for those killed in a small plane crash the day before. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
People stand outside of a building where a plane crash occurred Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025, in Fullerton, Calif. (AP Photo/Kyusung Gong)
Workers stand near police lines at the scene of a small plane crash, Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025, in Fullerton, Calif. (AP Photo/Kyusung Gong)
A firefighter enters a building where a plane crash occurred Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025, in Fullerton, Calif. (AP Photo/Kyusung Gong)
Firefighter stage outside a building where a plane crash occurred Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025, in Fullerton, Calif. (AP Photo/Kyusung Gong)
Firefighter walk down a ladder outside a building where a plane crash occurred Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025, in Fullerton, Calif. (AP Photo/Kyusung Gong)
Firefighters load a person onto an ambulance after a small plane crashed into a commercial building on Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025, in Fullerton, Calif. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
Firefighters stage outside a building where a plane crash occurred, Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025, in Fullerton, Calif. (AP Photo/Kyusung Gong)
Firefighters respond to a commercial building where a small plane crashed on Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025, in Fullerton, Calif. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
A woman is carried on a stretcher near the site of a plane crash, Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025, in Fullerton, Calif. (AP Photo/Kyusung Gong)
