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Super Bowl - English
The White House - English
The Eagles aren’t new to drama. After all, this is the team that turned the underdog mask into a symbol of a Super Bowl run. But lately, it’s not underdog spirit buzzing through the locker room – it’s tension.
It kicked off when Saquon Barkley, Philly’s newest star running back, spent April 27th playing a round of golf with President Donald Trump at Bedminster. He even hopped on Air Force One afterward to join the Eagles’ White House visit. What was supposed to be a celebratory trip turned into a hot-button debate inside a locker room that’s spent years carving out its own activist identity.
Nothing but brick! Super Bowl champion Saquon Barkley is a terrible basketball player and it shows
Malcolm Jenkins, one of the architects of that identity, didn’t hold back. Speaking to MLF Football, Jenkins said Barkley’s decision was “disappointing, to say the very least.” Jenkins wasn’t just talking about politics-he was talking about culture. The same team that once skipped a White House visit entirely over anthem protests now had one of its biggest names paling around with the man who canceled that 2018 trip.
And it wasn’t just Jenkins. Jalen Hurts, asked at the TIME100 Gala about Barkley’s Trump connection, didn’t exactly offer a full-throated defense. His hesitant “Um…” spoke volumes.
Barkley tries to clear the air, but the fallout lingers
Barkley took to X to explain himself. “Maybe I just respect the office, not a hard concept to understand,” he posted. He pointed out he had recently golfed with former President Obama too, trying to frame his actions as bipartisan respect. Barkley wasn’t picking sides, he insisted – he was just honoring the role, no matter who holds it.
But in Philadelphia, where social activism is stitched into the Eagles’ fabric, those explanations didn’t seem to land. For a lot of players and fans, optics matter. Intentions matter too, but when those optics involve a round of golf with a polarizing figure, the damage tends to outpace the defense.
To make things even more awkward, Trump leaned into the moment, joking that he almost challenged Barkley to a footrace. Even a lighthearted moment like that – and a cute clip of Trump’s grandson racing Barkley in the Rose Garden – couldn’t paper over the cracks.
Multiple players told The Philadelphia Inquirer they felt Barkley’s decision “missed the moment.” Instead of bringing the locker room closer after a massive season, it introduced friction heading into OTAs.
Whether Barkley becomes a bridge or remains a point of division is a story that’ll unfold over the summer. For now, the Eagles are trying to figure out if they can rally around a season of huge expectations-or if small fractures will become bigger ones when the games start counting again.
This news was originally published on this post .
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