The 1972 Miami Dolphins, 1985 Chicago Bears, 2000 Baltimore Ravens, 2007 New England Patriots, and … the 2024 Philadelphia Eagles?
That’s the level the reigning Super Bowl champions belong to, according to Saquon Barkley, who considers the 2024 Eagles one of the greatest teams in NFL history.
“I firmly believe – when you look at our team that we had last year, and I know that we’re not looking too far into the past – but our team last year, I think we’re a top-five team of all time,” Barkley recently said on the “Exciting Mics” podcast hosted by Eagles defensive backs Cooper DeJean and Reed Blankenship.
Barkley added: “When we look back on it 10 to 15 years, and we’re all old and we’re reflecting on our glorious days … the year that we had last year, people don’t give us enough credit.”
The Eagles had an inconsistent start to the 2024 season and went 2-2 before their bye. However, Philadelphia caught fire after its week off, ultimately winning 12 of its last 13 regular-season games to finish the campaign 14-3. The team’s only loss in that span came to the Washington Commanders in December.
In the playoffs, Nick Sirianni’s outfit dominated its opponents en route to claiming a 40-22 victory over Patrick Mahomes’ Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl.
“From how dominant you guys were on defense and how dominant we were on offense and special teams, people don’t realize how great of a team that was,” Barkley said.
“Teams really stood no chance,” he added.
Philadelphia ranked seventh in points scored and second in points allowed last year. Barkley was the biggest difference-maker for an Eagles team that had suffered a disappointing wild-card loss months before signing the superstar running back.
He led the NFL with 2,005 rushing yards (5.8 per carry) in his first year in Philly and finished the campaign with 2,283 yards and 15 touchdowns from scrimmage.
Philly’s roster also includes quarterback and Super Bowl MVP Jalen Hurts, who’s surrounded by a top-three offensive line and one of the sport’s best duos in receivers A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith. Defensively, Vic Fangio helped turn things around by building a strong unit led by lineman Jalen Carter, linebacker Zack Baun, and defensive backs DeJean and Quinyon Mitchell, among others.
Barkley mentions the 1972 Dolphins, 1985 Bears, and 2000 Ravens as the best teams in NFL history, adding that squads from the Patriots’ and Chiefs’ dynasties should be in that conversation, too.
The 1985 Bears and 2000 Ravens are remembered for building two of the best defenses of all time. The Dolphins went 14-0 in ’72 and remain the only team to achieve a perfect season in Super Bowl history. With Tom Brady and Bill Belichick, the Patriots lifted six Lombardi Trophies, though New England’s most dominant team fell short in the 2007 season. Finally, the Chiefs have won three rings with Mahomes, including back-to-back championships in 2022 and 2023.
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