Right now, life is difficult if one is a starting running back in the NFL.
Numerous executives are refusing to pay even some of the best running backs what many feel they’re worth, and it has caused the market for the position to collapse.
Just this offseason, Saquon Barkley, Josh Jacobs, Austin Ekeler, and Jonathan Taylor have all asked their teams for a new contract, and all four have been denied, putting their futures with their squads in jeopardy.
Mark Ingram, a former running back himself, says that while players at that position should diversify their skills to increase their value, he seems to feel that teams have been disrespecting them, via “The Herd With Colin Cowherd” this week.
“You need to take care of your star players… It’s highly unfortunate and I’m rooting for my running back brothers.”
— @markingramII discusses the NFL RB market pic.twitter.com/njCFnzZoQz
— Herd w/Colin Cowherd (@TheHerd) August 10, 2023
The current attitude toward running backs seems to be that they’re disposable and interchangeable and that a team’s best bet is to let such players leave after their rookie contract ends.
Part of that thinking seems to be that by doing so, teams will have more salary cap space to upgrade at other positions and retain star players and key contributors.
However, that thinking has reached a definite extreme, and teams could be hurting their own cause as a result.
The New York Giants, for instance, are overdependent on Barkley for offense since they lack any bona fide threats at wide receiver, and if he were to leave, they would be in a world of trouble.
On the other hand, Christian McCaffrey received a big contract extension in 2020, and a big reason why is he puts up lots of receiving yards each season.
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