It’s a tough market for NFL running backs right now. With such a high emphasis on quarterbacks and receivers, teams don’t seem to worry as much about the backfield situation. Cleveland Browns running back Nick Chubb says it’s a really difficult situation for the position group.
Chubb participated in a Zoom call about running backs and the current contract situation. When asked about the current situation, he spoke a pretty harsh truth.
“Right now, there’s really nothing we can do,” Chubb said, per ESPN. “We’re kind of handcuffed with the situation. We’re the only position that our production hurts us the most. If we go out there and run 2,000 yards with so many carries, the next year they’re going to say, you’re probably worn down. It’s tough. . . . It hurts us at the end of the day.”
Two of the most notable holdouts this season come at opposite ends of the country. New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley and Las Vegas Raiders ball carrier Josh Jacobs both plan to skip training camp as a result of contract disputes.
Both believe their contributions are not valued properly, creating separation between the front office and the players. And it’s a problem that’s likely to continue for the position.
Because of the game’s evolution, there’s a belief that most running backs are interchangeable. That then takes pressure off front offices to sign those players to long-term, high-money deals.
Plus, with the NFL season extending from 16 to 17 games, the “wear and tear” conversation only grows. Running backs endure a lot of contact throughout the course of a year, creating the perception that they’re less durable.
Comments made by Chubb echo what current Carolina Panthers and former Philadelphia Eagles running back Miles Sanders recently told the Rich Eisen Show. He talked about the struggles about playing the position in today’s NFL.
“It’s nothing that we’re doing wrong,” Sanders said on the Rich Eisen Show. “We’re doing everything that we have to do as far as on the field and stuff like that. For people and GMs or owners to think that running backs are not as valued as much is a lie because you’ve got to see how everything plays out. You’ve got to see what guys like Christian McCaffrey, the stuff he does, things that Saquon Barkley (does), the things that Josh Jacobs (does) consistently each year. …
“You want to franchise tag and create a certain market for running backs just because you have this way of thinking that they only last three or four years. I think it’s B.S., honestly. Almost every running back is underpaid right now. I don’t know what it’s gonna take. That’s a topic that needs to be brought up a little more because it sucks to be a running back right now, honestly.”
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