Here’s an excerpt from my latest TribLive.com column. To read the entire piece, click HERE.
NFL running backs had a “workers of the world unite” Zoom meeting. Here’s hoping somebody brought Viagra, because that was impotence on parade. Austin Ekeler was the catalyst for the gathering. He got the starting job with the Los Angeles Chargers when Melvin Gordon got hurt. Ekeler showed he could do the same or better for cheaper. Now Ekeler went on Zoom to lead his peers in whining about the exact business model that got him his job.
Nothing will change. Backs will keep being valued (and paid) less than they would like.
The NFL CBA isn’t up ‘til 2030. Even then, how could one position receive different treatment than the rest of the NFL Players Association?
As Cleveland RB Nick Chubb said, “We’re kind of handcuffed with the situation.”
The value of running backs can't be artificially stimulated. The NFL won’t go out of its way to make things right, especially when nothing is wrong.
It’s not unfair. It doesn't need fixed. It’s supply and demand. It’s Economics 101. It’s tough ***t.
You don’t see many blacksmiths now. That’s because people drive cars. They don’t ride horses.
Same with candlestick makers. We’ve got electricity and light bulbs.
The NFL is a passing league. Running the ball barely registers.
Running backs can fade away and classify themselves as obsolete.
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