Christian McCaffrey and the running backs are proving NFL front offices wrong

Fubo News presents Christian McCaffrey and other running backs who are providing huge value. Watch the NFL on Fubo.

One of the biggest narratives coming into the NFL season this year is the lack of big contracts for running backs and the general lack of respect the position has garnered in the league. The Kansas City Chiefs winning the Super Bowl last year with a seventh-round pick leading the team in rushing and scoring a touchdown in the biggest game of the season did not help matters. The problem with the theory that running backs are not as valued by teams is that this season six of the nine undefeated teams in the NFL early this season have top 10 rushers on their roster, including Christian McCaffrey and Tony Pollard, who are leading two of the best offensives in the league.

Watch the NFL in 2023 with Fubo: Start your free trial now!

Heading into this season, big-name running backs with resumes were either cut by their teams, forced to hold out or settle for lesser contracts than they had hoped for. Ezekiel Elliot, Dalvin Cook and Kareem Hunt were let go into free agency, while Josh Jacobs, Austin Eckler, Jonathan Taylor and Saquan Barkley all entered the season with deals that were not to their liking.

Those players are all looking at the play of the top running backs this season and the way the position is playing overall through two weeks with dollar signs in their eyes.

The biggest example of running back value this season has been the play of McCaffrey, who is leading the league with 268 yards on 42 carries, two touchdowns and leading the San Francisco 49ers (2-0) to having one of the best offenses in the league. The team has scored 30 points in each of the two games, building the offense around his playmaking. 

McCaffrey also comes out of the backfield as a receiver with six catches and 36 yards. He is the prototype running back in the NFL who makes plays all over the field, opening up the passing game and making San Francisco a Super Bowl contender. 

Watch the NFL in 2023 with Fubo: Start your free trial now!

Right behind McCaffrey on the rushing leaderboard is rookie Bijan Robinson, who has 180 yards on the ground and 75 yards as a receiver making the Atlanta Falcons (2-0) one of the most surprising teams early in the season. Robinson is already one of the best all-around backs in the NFL just eight quarters into his career, forming a dynamic duo with Tyler Allgeier (123 yards and two touchdowns).

Four more undefeated teams have running backs at the top in rushing this season, with the Philadelphia Eagles’ D’Andre Swift (178 yards), the Miami Dolphins’ Raheem Mostert (158 yards), Brian Robinson Jr. (146 yards) and the Dallas Cowboys’ Pollard (142 yards).

Having an elite quarterback and disregarding the traditional running game for a running back by committee approach works, but is the outlier in a league that does not have more than two or three quarterbacks of that variety capable of taking a team to the Super Bowl each year. 

Watch the NFL in 2023 with Fubo: Start your free trial now!

The norm is a balanced attack with either a dynamic running back or a backfield that can take the pressure off of the offense, creating a balanced attack like McCaffrey, Robinson, Swift, Pollard and others are doing early this season.

Regional restrictions may apply.