Who Should I Start? Saquon Barkley or Michael Thomas

Tuesday, July 7, 9:28 AM

Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley was the fantasy MVP in 2024 in his first year in Philly behind an elite Eagles' offensive line, running for a league-high 2,005 yards and 13 touchdowns on a league-high 345 carries in 16 regular-season starts. Barkley still had 1,140 rushing yards in 2025 behind a subpar offensive line, but his four runs of 20-plus yards were 13 fewer than he had in 2024. And his rushing yards over expected went from second in the league to 24th, per NextGen Stats. Since 2024, Barkley ranks second in 100-plus-yard rushing games (14), behind only Derrick Henry (17). "My only criticism is that he doesn't always produce when things aren't completely clean," an NFL coordinator said. "That's dating back to the Giants. Tends to need things perfectly set up for him." The 29-year-old is still a three-down workhorse with high-end RB1 fantasy value, especially since he's expected to be more involved as a pass-catcher in Sean Mannion's new offense in 2026. However, there is more bust potential if Philly's offense can't bounce back from a poor showing last year.