Eagles Reportedly Get Auspicious Saquon Barkley Injury Update

No. 26 is back. Philadelphia Eagles star running back Saquon Barkley is expected to return to practice Thursday and play in the team's Monday night matchup at home against the Dallas Cowboys, NFL Media reported on Thursday morning. Barkley missed Philadelphia's last two games due to a hamstring injury that he suffered in the team's Week 4 loss to the Los Angeles Rams. The Eagles have also been without running backs Tank Bigbsy (placed on injured reserve on Oct. 6 due to core muscle surgery) and Will Shipley (placed on injured reserve on Oct. 16 due to a foot injury). With Barkley sidelined, Dameon Pierce rushed for 49 yards and one score on 2.1 yards per carry over the Eagles' last two games. Philadelphia also has running back Elijah Mitchell on its practice squad. Prior to the injury, Barkley, the 2024 NFL Offensive Player of the Year Award winner, rushed for 182 yards and zero touchdowns on 5.1 yards per carry. In all, the Eagles' offense is just 29th in the NFL in rushing yards (82.2 per game), 24th in total yards (311.2 per game), 23rd in passing yards (194.3 per game) and 19th in points (22.3 per game). Barkley is coming off an underwhelming season by his standards, as the three-time Pro Bowler rushed for 1,140 yards and seven touchdowns on 4.1 yards per carry in 2025. This was after Barkley became just the ninth player in NFL history to rush for 2,000 yards in a single season in 2024, tallying 2,005 yards and 13 rushing scores on 5.8 yards carry en route to Philadelphia winning Super Bowl LIX. Barkley's return comes in the wake of the Eagles placing quarterback Jalen Hurts on injured reserve and his season over due to blood clots in both the quarterback's calf and lungs. Tanner McKee, who started in the team's Week 6 loss to the Carolina Panthers, is expected to be under center for the Eagles moving forward.