In his first carry for the Eagles, Saquon Barkley slips but recovers to score a touchdown for Philadelphia.

The Eagles' season started with a loss, but Barkley bounced back to score a crucial touchdown.

On Friday night, during the Eagles' first drive against the Packers in Brazil, the plan was to start the game with a toss play that would give Barkley the first carry. However, when Barkley caught the toss, he slipped and fell, resulting in a five-yard loss.

The Eagles' offense struggled early, with Barkley's slip setting the tone. On the next play, Hurts threw an incompletion, followed by an interception on third down, which led to a Packers' field goal.

On Philadelphia's next drive, Barkley got another chance at a carry but only gained three yards. Two plays later, the Eagles turned the ball over on a fumbled snap, which set up another field goal.

During the third drive of the game, Barkley made amends for his earlier mistakes by catching an 18-yard touchdown, putting the Eagles in a 7-6 lead and marking their first visit to the end zone of the 2024 season.

The field surface at Corinthians Arena in Sao Paulo, Brazil, is familiar to the Eagles, despite playing in unfamiliar territory during the game.

The playing surface at Corinthians Arena utilizes GrassMaster, a product that blends perennial Ryegrass with artificial fibers. This results in a hybrid of real grass and turf fibers, rather than using solely turf.

The Eagles and Packers use the same material for their stadium playing surfaces.

Barkley is not accustomed to this surface on his home field, but he needs to adapt.

In the 2023 offseason, the Giants were unable to reach a contract agreement with Barkley, leading to his departure to the Eagles. Barkley signed a three-year, $37.75 million deal with the Eagles, which included a maximum average-per-year salary of $15.833 million, making him the second-highest paid running back in NFL history.

In six seasons with the Giants, Barkley, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft from Penn State, amassed 5,211 rushing yards and 35 touchdowns. Additionally, he had 288 receptions for 2,100 yards and 12 touchdowns.

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