Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley has developed a close relationship with Detroit Lions great Barry Sanders.
Appearing for an interview on the latest ‘Hot Ones’ episode, the league’s best running back praised Sanders, and called the Pro Football Hall of Fame running back his favorite to have played the position.
“Man, Barry’s my guy. He’s my favorite running back of all time,” Barkley said. “When I was a little kid, I used to wear number 20, and I used to run around and reverse the field and they used to call me, ‘Little Barry.’ At this time, I went to my dad and I’m like, ‘Who are they talking about?’ He made me sit down and go on YouTube, and that’s when I kind of fell in love with Barry Sanders as a running back.”
Barkley continued, “And then being able to meet him in person and have conversations with him and have a great relationship with him, him sending that out to me, I’m lucky. Sometimes I look back and I just smile and think how blessed I am.”
In a recent interview, Sanders expressed Barkley, who recently signed a two-year extension worth north of $41 million, has restored his faith in the running back position, which had been devalued across the league the past couple of years.
“What Saquon did, I think he really restored a lot of faith in what the running back position can do,” Sanders told rg.org, via Pro Football Network. “He’s a unique individual in that his skill set, the way he plays the game, the situation he’s in, the great team that he’s surrounded by, all those things matter and help with what he’s doing. But, he’s certainly a generational type of talent.”
