Are running backs a dime a dozen? The price tag should be cheap this year
Reggie Bush, Steven Jackson and DeAngelo Williams were the latest reported salary-cap casualties this week. And at some point, Adrian Peterson could also wind up joining a free-agent class that already includes DeMarco Murray, Mark Ingram, Frank Gore, Ryan Mathews, Justin Forsett, C.J. Spiller, Shane Vereen, Knowshon Moreno, Chris Johnson, Darren McFadden and several other mid-level guys.
On top of that, many analysts including ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. believe that this year’s draft class is deep with running backs in the middle rounds — a cheaper route that more and more teams have started to take in recent years, according to ESPN.
“There are a lot of guys out there [in free agency] that are proven entities, but they also have a lot of tread on the tires,” Kiper said. “I’d always go the rookie route. I would not take a running back in the first round, but I would from the second round on.”
With that being said, could the price tag for a running back be dirt cheap this year? Remember Knowshon Moreno and Ben Tate were the best running backs available last year, and neither received a big pay day. Now with the market flooded with guys, could the price tag keep getting lower for the position that takes the most damage on the field? It is starting to look like the running back position is a dime a dozen, do you agree?
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