Super Bowl Domination

Chapter 78 Cruel Reality
The three-foot-thick ice does not form overnight, and the difficult situation of running backs in the league is not the result of one or two days, but a situation caused by many aspects.

Firstly, it is becoming increasingly difficult for top running backs to secure big contracts after having a top season.

The team is worried that the running backs will not be able to continue to perform at the top level, and they also believe that the running backs' contribution to the offense is limited. So when quarterbacks, wide receivers and even offensive linemen continue to win big contracts that break historical records, the star running backs need to "beg for food."

It is difficult to renew a contract, difficult to renew a long-term contract, and difficult to renew a high-level contract.

Secondly, the draft prospects for rookie running backs are getting worse and worse.

The NFL has strict regulations on rookie contracts. The minimum salary for each rookie in each round is clearly stated in black and white. This also means that the team must consider the cost-effectiveness. Should they choose a running back or other positions with the same amount of money?
Instead of selecting running backs in the first three rounds, the professional league has gradually begun to choose running backs in the sixth and seventh rounds, or even among undrafted rookies.

It is truly a good product at a low price. Just use the running back as a working ox.

What if the rookie running back isn’t good enough?

It doesn't matter. It's just a sixth or seventh round pick. It's cheap and there's no need to waste it. After abandoning it, you can always find some blue-collar substitutes.

In fact, the league today still lacks excellent running backs and top running backs. Many teams are troubled by the insufficient ability of their running backs, which leads to the inability to open up the offense. However, due to cost-effectiveness and salary cap issues, team managers often refuse to admit it, and even more so refuse to spend a lot of money on running backs. They would rather change the situation from other positions in the offensive group than be treated as a sucker and give a top running back a top contract.

Naturally, the prospects for running backs in the draft are becoming increasingly bleak, and as time goes by, there is no sign of improvement.

It's the same thing in front of me.

The "Crimson Tide vs. Trojans" game is over, and Levi's strong performance has dominated the screen. When the team saw the data, their eyes lit up. If this was a quarterback, or a wide receiver, or a tight end, it would be a treasure. Even teams that don't need these positions would still cast their eyes on him.

However, after taking a closer look, they realized it was a running back, and they immediately became weak. Moreover, this running back had only risen in one game, so his reference value was limited and there was no need to continue observing him. More than half of the team managers had already closed their eyes and directly threw the resume into the trash can.

Reality is so cruel.

This is true in the NFL and the NCAA.

Strictly speaking, the NCAA is slightly better.

Because universities do not need to consider salary caps or cost-effectiveness, the value of running backs can often receive more attention. There are still many traditional universities that insist on ground offense, and there are also many traditional running back schools like the Crimson Tide, and they can still win the championship.

Just look at one statistic: the Heisman Trophy.

As the highest award in the college arena, the Heisman Trophy is awarded to the player with the best performance in the season. Although the quarterback is undoubtedly the star of football, the Heisman Trophy has been awarded to quarterbacks thirteen times in the sixteen selections since the millennium, and the other three times were awarded to running backs.

Looking back at history, as of 2023, running backs, including halfbacks and fullbacks, dominate the Heisman Trophy with winners, followed by quarterbacks with a total of winners.

However, the NFL is not like that.

As of 2016, running back is the second most-selected position in the draft, with appearances, second only to quarterback, who has been selected as the No. pick times.

But the reality is that the last time a running back was selected with the first pick in the first round was in 1995.

Moreover, it is not just the No. 1 pick, the statistics of the first-round picks also show the severity of the situation.

During the millennium era, in 2000, 2001, and 2002, the number of running backs selected in the first round was five, three, and three, respectively.

Now, in the past three years, the number of running backs selected in the first round has been one, zero, and two respectively. The decline in numbers is obvious.

Just this April, at the latest draft, Crimson Tide running back and new Heisman Award winner Derrick Henry, a dominant running back hailed by fans as "Henry the Great," was not selected by the Tennessee Titans until the 45th pick in the second round, and did not even make it into the first round.

this is the truth.

But, doesn’t the team need a running back?

No, of course not, 100 percent not.

In fact, on the contrary, there are more than one or two teams that lack excellent running backs, and there are more than one or two head coaches who know how to cherish excellent running backs.

For example, the Carolina Panthers.

This is a strong team, a very, very good team. Since using the first pick in 2011 to select quarterback Cam Newton from Auburn University, the deathbed of the University of Alabama, the team has leapt from a bottom-ranked team to a strong opponent in the league's first tier. Since the 2012 season, it has made the playoffs for four consecutive seasons, with strong performances and stable output.

Last season, the team had an outstanding record of 15 wins and 1 loss in the regular season, entered the playoffs as the number one seed, and made it all the way to the Super Bowl; unfortunately, they performed poorly on the Super Bowl stage and were completely suppressed by the Denver Broncos led by Peyton Manning, regrettably missing the championship.

Now, under the leadership of head coach Ron Rivera, the Carolina Panthers are still expected to be a strong contender in the new season.

But Rivera knows his own business, and he is worried about the condition of quarterback Cam Newton.

Newton is a typical running quarterback. Together with Russell Wilson, Robert Griffin III and Colin Kaepernick, he is known as the four kings of the new generation of running quarterbacks. Last season, Newton won the regular season MVP and topped the list of the top 100 superstars voted by NFL players for the first time. He can be said to be in high spirits.

So what is Rivera worried about?

Injury.

The new generation of running quarterbacks have the ability to pass and run the ball and are two-way threats, but like running backs, running quarterbacks need to run with the ball themselves, which means collisions, confrontations, and potential injuries.

Look at Griffin, who suffered four serious injuries in the past three seasons. The 2011 Best Offensive Rookie has become a complete waste and was even out for the season last year.

That year, the Washington Redskins (renamed the Washington Commanders in 2022) spent three first-round picks and one second-round pick to get Griffin as the second pick, but this offseason they transferred Griffin to the Cleveland Browns like a clearance sale.

Rivera doesn't want to see this scene. After all, the quarterback should be responsible for passing the ball, while the running back should be responsible for running the ball.

Rivera believes the team needs an excellent running back to assist Newton, however... team manager David Gettleman disagrees.

In this year's draft, Jetman completely ignored Rivera's request and did not select a running back for the team until the end of the draft, which made Rivera furious; plus they had just renewed Newton's contract for five years and $103.8 million last year, and there was no extra salary cap to trade players in the free market.

then.

Rivera's idea had to be shelved.

When he saw Levi, Rivera's mind became active again.

Second update.

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(End of this chapter)