Saquan Barkley Is Now The 4th Highest Paid RB In The NFL

[bobsfoodbasics]

Drafting a RB that high was definitely a mistake.

[Ace_Aladdin]

Worth the money if he is your #1 RB & #3 WR 

[TheSpecialJuan]

DG is an OG

[LinvilleGorge]

That's what happens when overall RB salaries aren't increasing relative to other positions and you take a RB #2 overall. Pretty sure CMC is in the 15-20 range.

[top dawg]

RBs, just like any other position, are not really plug and play. I know that myth has perhaps become pervasive among many NFL fans, but I never ever believed it. Different players have different levels of talent and skill, and some are much more versatile than others. It was only a matter of time for multi talented RBs, who account for a great percentage of a team's offense, to get their just due and respect from a financial standpoint, and Barkley is just the beginning. 

[Toomers]

  The value of the contract is very reasonable. Paying 5.6M(cap hit) for a player that will touch the ball on approximately 40% of the offensive snaps isn’t bad at all. 

  The value DG missed on. IMO, was the package of draft picks he could have received for that pick. I’m probably as big a fan of Barkley and his skills as anyone could be. But unless you’re taking a QB, you do what the Colts did and get a bunch of picks to move down a couple spots. 

[LinvilleGorge]

1 minute ago, top dawg said:

RBs, just like any other position, are not really plug and play. I know that myth has perhaps become pervasive among many NFL fans, but I never ever believed it. Different players have different levels of talent and skill, and some are much more versatile than others. It was only a matter of time for multi talented RBs, who account for a great percentage of a team's offense, to get their just due and respect from a financial standpoint, and Barkley is just the beginning. 

Barkley's pay has nothing to do with RBs getting their due respect from a financial standpoint and everything to do with where he was drafted due to the rookie wage scale. He would've gotten the same contract regardless of the position he played.

[Toomers]

34 minutes ago, LinvilleGorge said:

Barkley's pay has nothing to do with RBs getting their due respect from a financial standpoint and everything to do with where he was drafted due to the rookie wage scale. He would've gotten the same contract regardless of the position he played.

  100% correct. But as the OP and Josh Norris did, the comparison was made to all contracts with litlle to no understanding or context given to the situation. 

[tondi]

Not that bad if he gets 300 productive touches this season, which wouldn't be surprising. 

[Metal_Sparty]

46 minutes ago, LinvilleGorge said:

Barkley's pay has nothing to do with RBs getting their due respect from a financial standpoint and everything to do with where he was drafted due to the rookie wage scale. He would've gotten the same contract regardless of the position he played.

True, but you've got to believe that it'll be looked at by other RB's and influence future contracts. Just like the QB contracts ballooning up to ridiculous portions.

[Toomers]

6 minutes ago, Metal_Sparty said:

True, but you've got to believe that it'll be looked at by other RB's and influence future contracts. Just like the QB contracts ballooning up to ridiculous portions.

  Why would 4-5yr veterans care about a FIXED salary for a rookie that would have been the same no matter what position he played. 

 Leveon Bell turned down 5/70M. And Gurley and Elliot will be the next ones to sign large RB contracts. What Barkley gets as a rookie has no relevance to any veteran RBs  

[Metal_Sparty]

Why wouldn't a veteran care if a rookie is making more than him or not? Pay scale or not, if he's getting paid more, it'll be brought up in negotiations.

[LinvilleGorge]

33 minutes ago, Metal_Sparty said:

True, but you've got to believe that it'll be looked at by other RB's and influence future contracts. Just like the QB contracts ballooning up to ridiculous portions.

I doubt that slotted rookie contracts will have much impact on veterans negotiating new contracts.

QB contracts (and WR contracts) ballooning to ridiculous levels is inversely related to declining RB values. The league is evolving more and more toward the passing game. QBs and WRs are becoming more valuable while RBs become less valuable. If this trend continues (and if anything, more rules to combat concussions may accelerate this trend), CMC may become the new prototype for an NFL RB - a guy who is honestly more adept at catching the ball out of the backfield than he is at running between the tackles.

[Toomers]

25 minutes ago, Metal_Sparty said:

Why wouldn't a veteran care if a rookie is making more than him or not? Pay scale or not, if he's getting paid more, it'll be brought up in negotiations.

  Because neither the team nor the player negotiated anything but a slight increase from the 2nd overall pick in 2017. Which is set as part of the CBA. Players and agents know exactly who their comps would be in negotiations. And it’s not draft picks. You think Aaron Rodgers is bringing up Baker Mayfields contract? No. Because they are completely different situations. What part of this are you not understanding?