Quote:
Originally Posted by albionmoonlight
Jim: I'd love your take on the discussion we were talking about that they had on The Athletic Podcast where they were saying that veteran RB salaries are so depressed that a top-ten drafted RB is probably being overpaid, even with the rookie scale.
Thoughts?
On the one had, that's a pretty simple proposition, and I get it. On the other hand (and maybe this is just my 1980s showing), it feels like if you've got a chance to get a fresh-legged RB stud, you draft him and don't overthink it and convince yourself that you should instead get . . . Miles Sanders at half the price or whatever.
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I think true 3 down running backs are still worth a first and sometimes even a high-ish pick. However, true 3 down running backs are rare. Some guys play 3 downs because they're being paid to play 3 downs.
Thinking back to recent picks, Fournette really had no business going as high as he did at the time. He actually developed into a well rounded back, but not until he was in Tampa in a more limited role.
Zeke was guy I thought would be worh a top 10 pick and Dallas handled him pretty well for the most part. They rode him until he broke down and drafted someone to step in. They got every bit of value they could out of him but the extension was a huge mistake.
Saquon I didnt like as high as he went. He was a boom/bust runner. Those guys can put up some nice numbers but don't tend to impact winning all that much.
And under no circumstances do I think a 2nd contract is a good idea for a RB. The percentage of those that have worked out has been incredibly small.