During most of his six-year tenure with the Giants, Barkley struggled to elevate a porous offense and dealt with nagging injuries. So Giants general manager Joe Schoen didn’t believe signing Barkley to an expensive new deal would be a smart investment.

As in the loud, proud fans of Philadelphia football Eagles, a sui generis NFL species—aggressively passionate, seldom content, and never shy. On Sunday their beloved squad won their eighth game in a row,