Heading into the Eagles' matchup against the Los Angeles Rams, Barkley clocked in at +5000 odds to win the MVP at BetMGM, which was still considered extremely far from being the favourite. Then he played as if he took offence to those odds.
Barkley set an Eagles franchise single-game rushing record with 255 yards on the ground, 16 short of a career-high, and complimented it with two touchdowns and 47 receiving yards.
His 302 total yards made him the first player in Eagles history to achieve that feat.
Barkley could become the first running back since Adrian Peterson (2012) to win the NFL MVP award. He's currently sitting in the sportsbooks third behind Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen (+150) and Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson (+250).
“I didn’t know I would have this much success," Barkley told CBS Sports. "(But) I’m thankful to be here. I’m thankful for the fresh start. A big reason why I wanted to come here (is) I felt like this is a spot where I could rewrite my story and show everyone the type of player that I feel like I can be and was meant to be, and it’s working out right now.”
Barkley is also now the clear runaway favourite for the Offensive Player of the Year away sitting at -400 odds, all the way up from what he started the season at +2500.
Ravens running back Derrick Henry is starting to fall away from the award's odds sitting at +275 despite a big night against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Barkley is also the third favourite to win MVP over at DraftKings with +475 odds, up from +4000 before the Rams matchup.
The dynamic running back currently has made headlines for the second straight week after hitting a 180 hurdle over a defender a couple of weeks ago against the Jacksonville Jaguars, which trended so much that EA Sports even put the move in the current Madden videogame.
Barkley is currently first in the league in carries (223), first in yards (1,392), and tied for fourth in rushing touchdowns (10). Despite the Eagles having six more games, his 1,392 yards have already set a season-high. He will need just two more touchdowns on the ground to set a new season high.
Barkley and the Eagles are heading to Baltimore on December 1st to take on a Jackson-Henry offence that ranks second in scoring and first in yards per game. Three MVP candidates battling it out - what more could NFL fans ask for?