LeSean McCoy played six seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles, resulting in the most rushing yards in team history.

But his best campaign arguably came in 2013 when he rushed for a then franchise single-season record 1,607 yards in 16 games. 

Saquon Barkley broke that record in just 13 games.

Barkley rushed for 124 yards as the Eagles squeezed out a 22-16 victory over the Carolina Panthers on Sunday.

The Eagles (11-2) won their ninth consecutive game, which tied the longest winning streak in franchise history. Oh, and they clinched a playoff berth, too.

Barkley needed 109 yards Sunday to break McCoy’s single-season mark. It was Barkley’s ninth game this season with 100-plus yards, and his fourth straight. The 27-year-old now has a league-leading 1,623 yards this season. 

Despite Barkley’s record-setting afternoon, the win wasn’t exactly pretty.

I predicted the Eagles to win 33-18. Maybe they could have scored 33 points if they just scored in the first quarter (more on that later).

But deep down inside, I assumed the game would be closer than expected. Carolina has been playing better the last few weeks, so the feeling of a “trap game” was there.

Still, I would have loved to see the Eagles get a big win over the 3-10 Panthers. Luckily for the Eagles, a potential upset never happened. 

The Eagles’ weren’t necessarily great but they got the job done. Really, that is all that matters. The Panthers had the opportunity to score a touchdown with under a minute left, but the Eagles held on. You want to see them be able to close out these types of games, especially this late in the season. 

Overcoming adversity and finding ways to win — that is the mark of a good team. I am willing to bet the Eagles would have lost this type of game down the stretch last season. 

Still, the defense was not perfect, but the unit held the Panthers to just 16 points, six of which were in the second half. Holding any team to under 20 points is always a positive.  

On fourth-and-9 with 37 seconds remaining, Darius Slay made a great defensive play, staying with Adam Thielen and knocking down a pass from Bryce Young. Say what you want about Slay, he can still make plays. And that’s what a veteran should do!

Nakobe Dean and Zach Baun led the Eagles with 12 and 11 tackles, respectively. C.J. Gardner Johnson made some impressive plays, both with his six tackles and his interception late in the second when the Panthers led 10-7. Those three were very strong.

It was just the final drive that bothered me. 

On third-and-11 at Carolina’s 2-yard line, Young threw a 31-yard pass to Xavier Legette. On fourth-and-7, Young threw a 13-yard pass to Thielen. Two huge opportunities to end the game, and the Eagles just couldn’t do it. The Eagles allowed Carolina to hang around, and that just can’t happen. 

It was just too close for comfort. However, they played bend-but-don’t-break defense. They found a way to win and, really, that’s all that matters. Sure, as fans we do not always want to see that. But the main thing is the Eagles walked away with the win. Again, you can’t be perfect every week. 

Same goes for the offense.

Jalen Hurts went 14 for 21 for 108 yards with two TDs. Not a terrible outing, but also not the best. He missed some throws, like the one where he had A.J. Brown wide open. Hurts took a couple sacks when he had time to throw the ball away. And, by the way, for those who blast Hurts for “taking too many sacks,” a little news flash for you — Hurts is tied with Patrick Mahomes and Justin Herbert with 35 sacks this season.

And Hurts did not have any turnovers. He had only thrown one interception in the last 10 games. That alone is a recipe for success, more so than just his stats. When you aren’t turning the ball over, the chances of winning are much higher. His 61 rushing yards, including his huge 35-yard scramble that led to a TD, also added to his decent performance. 

Also, I saw media outlets call out Kellen Moore for only giving Barkley 20 carries against one of the worst run defenses in the league. I am actually glad Barkley was used a little less. We are talking about a guy who is arguably the most important piece on this offense. In fact, he’s the most important piece on his whole team.

The Eagles need him for the playoffs! Without him, who knows where this team would be right now. Let’s try to rest him as much as possible and keep him fresh. The Eagles will need him next week against the Steelers, so the less wear-and-tear on his body is crucial. The last thing the Eagles need is for Barkley to get injured. I really want to see him have a 2,000-yard season, and that should come.

However, I would rather have a Super Bowl. I’m not saying to not use Barkley, rather I’m saying the Eagles should take as much load off his shoulders as possible until the playoffs.

Brown, who finished with 43 yards on four receptions, hinted at that after the game Sunday.

Speaking to reporters in front of his locker, Brown was asked about the performance of the offense and what he felt the unit needed to improve on the most in the coming weeks. 

“Passing,” he said. 

He didn’t say much more, besides it being “incredibly tough” to get into a rhythm with the offense being so run-focused.

Here’s the issue— I agree that there should be more passing. I always defend Hurts. I think he’s a good quarterback. Why doesn’t Hurts throw more? With Brown, DeVonta Smith and others on the offense,  there really isn’t an excuse to not be throwing. 

Hurts’ TD passes to Smith and Grant Calcaterra were great, in my opinion. He showed patience and made those throws. Moore may be the one calling a more run-heavy approach, so Brown may have called him out with his comments. Or maybe Brown was calling out Hurts? 

Hurts did miss him on a few passes, but Hurts still only threw the ball 21 times. Young had 34 pass attempts. Maybe Moore needs to dial up more passing plays. Does he not trust Hurts? Moore passed a lot more when he was with the Dallas Cowboys.

Maybe there’s even a deeper issue here.

The Eagles just cannot seem to have a fast start, can they? They have only scored 17 first-quarter points in 13 games. They have been outscored 59-17 in the first quarter this season. Off that, the Eagles have outscored their opponents 325-175 in the last three quarters. It’s just crazy! Moore needs to find a way to get this offense in a rhythm early. It’s one thing doing this against the Panthers, but what about the Packers or Vikings or Lions or 49ers in the playoffs? What if the Eagles make the Super Bowl and play the Bills or Chiefs? Do you think starting slow would be a good idea then?

The Eagles host the Steelers (10-3) next Sunday in a battle of Pennsylvania. The Steelers have won seven of their last eight games. The Eagles definitely cannot start slow against Pittsburgh and its stout defense. I have been saying this all season, but the Eagles have to find a way to start faster and score in the first quarter. The coaching staff has said the same thing throughout this season, but there has not been any answers yet. Maybe, just maybe, this will finally be addressed against the Steelers.