The Philadelphia Eagles entered Thursday Night Football a half-game ahead of the Washington Commanders for first place in the NFC East. For much of the game, the Eagles offense, including running back Saquon Barkley, were held in check. But as the game wore on, Barkley wore down the Commanders' defense.

He stepped up big when it mattered most. Does that remind you of anyone? Well, prior to the game, Barkley was spotted rocking the earrings of Kobe Bryant, showing the influence The Mamba has had on him.

Bryant built a legacy on being clutch. That is something Barkley displayed on Thursday night.

With the Eagles trailing 10-6 in the second half, Barkley took a Jalen Hurts pass and went 43-yards into the red zone. A few plays later, Hurts ran it in from a yard out.

The next Eagles drive, Barkley took one 23 yards to the house. He was only getting warmed up. After the Commanders failed on a fourth down attempt, the former Giants running back struck again.

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Barkley made a beautiful cut against the grain and scored from 39 yards out for his second of the game. All told, the former All-Pro had 198 total yards and two touchdowns as the Eagles improved to 8-2, 26-18.

In a game where Philadelphia struggled to get much going offensively, Saquon Barkley injected life into the offense. He has numerous second-effort plays, made Commanders tacklers miss and kept drives alive.

Hurts finished with just 221 yards passing and the combination of AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith combined for just 94 yards receiving on nine catches.

This was the Eagles' sixth straight win. They now hold a 1.5 game lead in the division and will play at Los Angeles against the Rams next week.