In its’ inaugural year, the Time100 Most Influential People in Sports 2026 list includes Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley among many prestigious names. Several NFL players were included in the list, including Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Myles Garrett, Fernando Mendoza, and even NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell — notable was the absence of Jerry Jones or anyone from the Cowboys organization.
The feature explains their reasoning behind selecting the Eagles’ running back:
“Just when the ground game
was falling out of fashion in the pass-happy NFL, Saquon Barkley went bonkers. In 2024, the Philadelphia Eagles running back became the ninth player in league history to rush for more than 2,000 yards in a season. He continued to thrive in the playoffs, including a 78-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter against the Los Angeles Rams in the divisional round, putting the Eagles on path to a Super Bowl victory. Fans of the New York Giants, the team that let Barkley walk away as a free agent before that 2024 season, are still reeling. After playing so well in his first year in Philadelphia, Barkley was rewarded with a contract extension that made him the first $20 million-a-year running back. His production declined in 2025, which is the norm: the previous eight 2,000-yard rushers all had less impressive statistics the next season. But if he can return to his outstanding form and get the Eagles back to the top of the NFL, we offer this PSA: check in on your Giants fan friends.“
Barkley continues to rack up accolades for his impressive 2,000-yard season, but it’s a little surprising he’d been getting this one after the year he had in 2025. Still, the Eagles have a new offensive coordinator, Sean Mannion, a new run-game coordinator, Ryan Mahaffey, and the offense with have a whole new style this season, which should give Barkley plenty of opportunities for break-out runs and dominant performances.
Philadelphia legend Dawn Staley was also named to the Time 100 Most Influential People in Sports 2026 list, and she deserves every bit of love she gets for all she’s done for women’s basketball — plus, she’s a huge Jalen Hurts’ supporter, so she knows ball.
