NEW YORK— The New York Giants have pulled off a rarity by signing their superstar running back.
The New York Giants have signed running back Saquon Barkley to a one-year contract worth $11 million after Barkley failed to sign the franchise tag the team placed on him earlier this year. The franchise tag for running backs is set at $10.091 million.
The Dallas Cowboy’s Tony Pollard and Las Vegas Raiders Josh Jacobs are set to make the franchise tag price after not getting a deal done.
One thing that has worked against Barkley is the injuries he has had to deal with. He had over 2,000 scrimmage yard in his rookie season and in 2019 played only 13 games. In 2020, Barkley played in two games until he tore his ACL. Last season, Barkley went for over 1,000 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns.
This comes after NFL running backs have made it known that they’re upset with how the position is being handled by front offices. ESPN’s Matt Miller upset the NFL rushers with a tweet that said basically said for teams to draft a running back, play the running back, place a one-year tag on the running back then repeat.
The Los Angeles Charger’s running back, Austin Ekeler, responded:
This offseason, big name backs such as Ezekiel Elliott and Dalvin Cook were cut after great seasons. While the stats of either Elliott or Cook were good, it did not match what teams were spending on those players. Elliott, who is an NFL leading rusher in the past, had 876 yards and 12 touchdowns. Cook had 1,173 yards and eight touchdowns. Both rushers signed big contracts in the past.
The one thing that matters to fans and owners and teams is winning the Super Bowl and paying a running back hasn’t been the biggest necessity.
- 2021- Cam Akers- Los Angeles Rams- $1,171.186
- 2020- Leonard Fournette- Tampa Bay Buccaneers- $2,000,000
- 2019- Damien Williams- Kansas City Chiefs- $1,050,000
- 2018- Sony Michel- New England Patriots- $480,000
- 2017- LeGarrette Blount- Philadelphia Eagles- $900,000
- 2016- LeGarrette Blount- New England Patriots- $760,000
- 2015- C.J. Anderson-Denver Broncos- $585,000
- 2014- LeGarrette Blount- New England Patriots- $730,000
- 2013- Percy Harvin- Seattle Seahawks- $2,500,000
That being said, here are the highest paid running backs in the NFL:
- San Francisco 49ers- Christian McCaffrey- $16,000,000
- New Orleans Saints- Alvin Kamara- $15,000,000
- Free Agent- Dalvin Cook- $12,600,000
- Tennessee Titans- Derrick Henry- $12,500,000
- Cleveland Browns- Nick Chubb- $12,200,000
Running backs will always be important to the NFL, but with the way the game as evolved over time and with the workload these players put themselves through, it is understandable to want some guarantees.
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