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Eagles star Saquon Barkley hurdles onto cover of EA Sports' Madden 26

Geno's Steaks rebrands to "Steakquon's" to celebrate Saquon Barkley's Madden 26 cover
Geno's Steaks rebrands to "Steakquon's" to celebrate Saquon Barkley's Madden 26 cover 04:01

Philadelphia Eagles star running back Saquon Barkley was named the , becoming the second player in franchise history to be featured on the popular sports video game's cover.

Barkley will be featured on the cover of Madden's two upcoming editions. The video game's standard cover will feature Barkley's sensational backwards hurdle against the Jacksonville Jaguars from Week 9 of the Eagles' Super Bowl LIX-winning season.

EA Sports' deluxe edition of Madden 26 has a tight shot of Barkley in his Eagles midnight green game-day gear.

Barkley's release-day rating will be 99 overall, becoming the first Eagles offensive player to join the "99 Club."

EA Sports Madden 26 Football
This combo of images provided by EA Sports shows Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley on the cover of EA Sports' Madden 26 deluxe edition, left, and standard edition. (EA Sports via AP) EA Sports via AP

"Starring on the cover of Madden NFL 26 and being named to the Madden NFL '99 Club' are both dreams come true," Barkley said in a news release. "I'm grateful to my teammates, coaches, and Eagles fans for their support, and I can't wait to hit the field again to give Madden players more highlight-reel moments in Madden NFL 26."

Barkley joins Donovan McNabb as the only two Eagles to appear on a Madden cover. McNabb graced the cover of Madden 06.

The season McNabb graced the cover, he missed seven games. But Eagles fans who spoke with CBS News Philadelphia aren't worried about Barkley.

"You have to be aware of the curse as well," Eagles fan C.J. Robbins said. "But if there's anybody that can break that, it's Saquon."

"I ain't worried about that stuff," Chris Girardo, another Eagles fan, said. "If anything, this man could go for 3,000 yards."

The Eagles' running back leapt into NFL history in his first season in Philadelphia. 

Barkley set the record for the most rushing yards (2,504) in a single season, including the playoffs, and broke LeSean McCoy's single-season franchise record with 2,005 yards in the regular season. He became the first Eagles player to win the NFL Offensive Player of the Year. He was named to the Pro Bowl, an All-Pro, and won the NFC Offensive Player of the Week award four times and the NFC Offensive Player of the Month honor once.

In South Philadelphia, Geno's Steaks has rebranded for a week to celebrate Barkley's cover athlete announcement.

barkley-genos.jpg
CBS News Philadelphia

The cheesesteak shop was transformed into "Steakquon's," complete with a giant banner featuring Barkley's now-iconic hurdle.

"No better way to do it, put it at Geno's Steaks and have 'Steakquon' on top of it," Geno's Steaks general manager Jeffrey Beres said.

Geno's is also selling a "hurdle sandwich," a traditional whiz cheesesteak with or without onions, that comes with a commemorative cup.

"It's like repaying them, not that you could ever do that, by him donning our building," Beres said. "So, it's pretty exciting for us."

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