'It'll be out of nowhere': Saquon Barkley speaks on how he'll handle retirement from NFL

It's been a big week for Saquon Barkley. The running back was announced as the cover star for Madden 26 on Monday, and also made waves with his comments on former Eagle Chris Long's "Green Light" podcast on Tuesday. 

Barkley and Long touched on a variety of topics from Barkley's historic season to the Eagles' dominant offensive line to what it will take to repeat as Super Bowl champions. 

The biggest storyline came at the very end of the conversation, where Long asked Barkley about when he'd retire. 

"I'll probably be one of those guys that it'd be out of nowhere," Barkley said. "I'll probably just wake up one day, whether it's next year or two years or four years, and I'd be like, 'It's over.'"

Long's initial line of questioning was centered around whether Barkley would retire in a similar way to Aaron Donald, who left the sport before having a steep decline. It was the final thing Long asked Barkley in a 30-minute plus conversation. Like Donald, it looks like when Barkley leaves football, it'll be on a relative high.

"Probably my favorite player of all time is Barry Sanders, so probably similar to that," Barkley said. "Maybe one day like, it'll be out of nowhere. I'll probably be ballin and just be like, yeah, call it quits."

Sanders retired unexpectedly in July of 1999, when he was 31. Barkley is currently 28. Sanders was practically at the top of his game when he retired. He had just rushed for 1,491 yards in 1998, and was just two seasons removed from going to 2,053 yards. Barkley hasn't been nearly as consistent as Sanders was during his career, but injuries and playing behind a bad New York Giants offensive line didn't help. 

During his first season with the Eagles, Barkley set the NFL record for the most rushing yards in a season (playoffs included). He's still far off what Sanders accomplished on an individual level, but with the how talented the Eagles are, Barkley can do a lot of damage in the upcoming years. 

Last offseason, he signed a three-year, $37.75 million with the Eagles after the Giants were reluctant to pay him. The Eagles rewarded him with a new two-year, $41.2 million deal this offseason after he won Offensive Player of the Year, making him the highest-paid running back in NFL history. 

Barkley's under contract for four more years. Based on what Barkley told Long, there's no guarantee he'll play out the rest of his contract. It's also not a certainty he'll retire in the next few years. Barkley just revealed that when he decides to hang his cleats up, it'll likely be a surprise. 

This was a fun story from Grace Del Pizzo at On Pattison 🚦

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— Tim Kelly (@timkellysports.bsky.social) June 3, 2025 at 6:00 PM