NFL Insider Predicts Saquon Barkley's Historic Eagles Contract Won't Shift RB Market

Multiple NFL sources do not believe that Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley's historic two-year, $41.2 million contract extension will change the market for players at his position, as told to ESPN's Brooke Pryor.

"Good players are going to get paid well," a league source told Pryor. "But I don't think the trend is all of a sudden to pay running backs because of Saquon."

An AFC talent evaluator seemed to agree with that notion.

"It's going to give pause to folks who maybe haven't invested in running backs to rethink that," the evaluator said to Pryor. "But I'm not sure it's going to move the needle so much that you see a real sea change across the entire position."

The Eagles signed Barkley to a three-year, $37.75 million contract with $26 million guaranteed last offseason. He rewarded the Eagles with an NFL-record 2,504 rushing yards (including playoffs) en route to the team's second Lombardi Trophy. In 20 total games, Barkley finished with 2,857 scrimmage yards and 20 scores.

Now Barkley is under contract with the Eagles through 2028.

The deal made history via the average annual value. He's now the first-ever $20 million-plus per-year running back in NFL history, per Schefter. Barkley can also get $15 million more in incentives and escalators, and he got $36 million fully guaranteed at signing.

Needless to say, it's a great deal for Barkley, but perhaps not one that's about to lead to other running backs breaking the bank.

Simply put, Barkley got this deal because he enjoyed a record-breaking running back season, one that propelled the Eagles to a Super Bowl win. Teams perhaps aren't likely to pay their running backs more based on what Barkley just accomplished in a one-off, historic campaign.

Still, one can't help but notice the great impact Barkley had on his team's Super Bowl season. It's not impossible to see teams who have a good talent core and offensive line (as the Eagles did) invest heavily in a running back and hope for similar success.

For now, though, Barkley is enjoying a well-deserved deal after a great season.