Austin Ekeler Latest RB To Lament Depressed Market

Running backs across the NFL are growing increasingly forlorn, and the L.A Chargers’ Austin Ekeler is one of them. 

Austin Ekeler is coming off the back of two straight career years but has not received improved terms. He earned $6.25 million in 2023, and requested a trade away from the Chargers.

The problem is, running backs aren’t getting paid – they’re getting tagged or cut altogether. Instead of granting his request, the Chargers added $2 million in incentives to his current contract.

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The Cowboys cut Ezekiel Elliot and tagged Tony Pollard. The Raiders’ Josh Jacobs and the Giants’ Saquon Barkely were also franchise tagged.

There is no deal Ekeler can point towards to demonstrate how much he ought to be paid. Miles Sanders’ four-year deal with the Panthers is worth $25.4 million. Meanwhile David Montgomery signed a three-year, $18 million deal with the Detroit Lions.

Those were the big deals. The majority of free agent running back deals this offseason are worth $4 million or less annually.

“For me, I understand that I have one more obligation here,” Austin Ekeler said. 

“One more year that I’m obligated to be here. I wanted to go poke around and see if there was any other value. If not, right? Come back and have my last year. Like I said before, do what I can do here.”

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“I think with what’s just been happening is the atmosphere around the running back market has been pretty tough,” he said.

“To say, ‘No, you’re going to have to risk it all again on a one-year guaranteed contract,’ and tell someone that and put them in that situation, and not give them a choice, is just tough for me to accept, even though it is the way it is.”