In 2014, the free agency process revealed a veteran running back market in the range of $3.5 million or so per year. Which meant that it paid more in several instances to be a punter or a kicker.
This year, that’s changed. Sort of.
The top of the tailback market has gone berserk, with Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch averaging more than $10 million per year on a new three-year contract, Eagles running back DeMarco Murray averaging $8.4 million on a five-year deal, and Bills running back LeSean McCoy getting $8 million annually on a new five-year contract. (Still lurking is Vikings running back Adrian Peterson, who is currently due to make $13 million in 2015.)
And then there’s the other end of the spectrum, with Saints running back Mark Ingram signing a four-year, $16 million deal, the Giants getting Shave Vereen for $12.35 million over three years, Colts running back Frank Gore inking for $12 million over three, Eagles running back Ryan Mathews signing for $11.5 million over three, and Ravens running back Justin Forsett saying put for $9 million over three.
That’s a gap of (abacus engaged) roughly $4 million per year between the first and second tier. So while it shows there’s still hope of getting paid a lot of money to carry the football, only a few really cash in. Which means that more and more guys will eventually agree with running back Ben Tate’s assessment that he should have been a safety. For some of these guys, they would have been better off learning to kick the ball, too.