It's hard out here for a running back these days. Of all the positions in the league, there might not be a more unvalued one than this. In  recent weeks we've seen guys like Saquon Barkley and Josh Jacobs, two of the very best in the league, struggle to get the pay they deserve while everyone around them is getting big bags of money. 

What's the reason for this? It is increasingly easy to get a good running back these days. They're coming out in the draft and you can find one in basically any round. You can even find one as an undrafted free agent. The market is flooded with guys that can run the ball and run the ball well. 

So if you're the one doling out the pay checks, you might find yourself wondering why you should pay your incumbent running back a ton of money when you can just grab a guy in the draft and pay him a rookies salary. It's all about saving money. 

Detroit Lions rookie Jahmyr Gibbs finds himself coming into the league right in the middle of all this. The big question for him is does he find himself in no win situation being a running back? Or could he be part of a new breed of player that can demand a higher salary when the time comes? 

If he's just a running back, it seems like he's in a spot where the Lions can get what they need from him for a few years and then easily move on from him once it comes time to pay him.  They can just pay a rookie instead, so why not? 

Worst yet, if he's really good, he just proves that the formula of drafting a running back in the draft as opposed to paying your incumbent a fair salary is working. 

Here's the other side of things. Gibbs is not a running back. You heard Brad Holmes say it on Peter Schrager's podcast a few weeks back, Gibbs is an position-less weapon. 

Is that the future? Are teams going to start prioritizing players that can do a bunch of different things and play multiple positions? If that's the case, is there going to be a market for that type of player that's separate from the running back market?  

Gibbs could be on the forefront of a brand new movement in the NFL. If he succeeds, he should open the door for position-less weapons to get big money. He might also change the way teams draft players and even run their offense. It's a lot more efficient when you have a player that has multiple tools as opposed to multiple players that do one thing each. 

The question is going to be about how many position-less weapons there can be in the league and who will actually be able to qualify to be a position-less weapon. Will every team have a position-less weapon by the time Gibbs contract is up? Or will it be still be a finite thing? Right now it seems to lean the latter way. There currently aren't a lot of players that can do the things that Jahmyr Gibbs can do. 

Either way, it seems the market is shifting drastically and Gibbs is right in the middle of that shift. It's not something that anyone needs to worry about for a while, but it's going to be interesting to see where the market is, or what the market is, when it comes time to pay Gibbs his money. 

What to expect from Jahmyr Gibbs’ rookie year

Breaking down what Gibbs can add to the Lions in year one

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