Adrian Peterson: Running Backs Not Appreciated

Adrian Peterson thinks he's underpaid, undervalued and not appreciated. That part might be a leap on my end but it's very likely true.

The same goes for running backs around the NFL.

He's totally right.

So are NFL teams to be leery of paying running backs anywhere near the age of 30 a boatload of cash.

Adrian Peterson: It's disrespectful how NFL teams value running backs https://t.co/0lrmP751Wj
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) June 28, 2020

It's just haunted teams going back to Shaun Alexander (at least) and the Seattle Seahawks after their Super Bowl run.

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"I think the change is going to come," Peterson told TMZ in apparently the same interview that he conducted last week. "Me and Frank Gore continue to show guys, 'Hey, we are valuable. We can have 10, 14-year careers as well, so value us as well like you would value a quarterback, you know?'

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So let me just be straight up: Peterson is completely out to lunch (nicest way for me to say it) if he thinks the NFL is ever going to value the running back position as they do quarterbacks.

Because of Frank Gore and himself? Two current but mostly isolated examples?

Not a chance.

I would be willing to strongly bet if there were ten Peterson and Gore type backs - the trend would be very different.

The NFL is not a smart league. It's not a progressive league. It's a reactionary group. They copy what they see works and won't budge for the most part until then.

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Here's my concern with what Peterson says here: He's clearly not happy about this issue which almost surely means he's not happy with his own salary.

That could cause issues this year for the Redskins and he could go from being a model citizen over the last two years to well, you know.

Peterson signed a two year, $5.03 million contract with the Redskins. $1.5 million is guaranteed, per OvertheCap.com (OTC) from Peterson's current contract in March 2019. An additional $1.5 million in incentives is available.

Per "OTC Valuation", Petersons value in 2019 was $2.625 million. Peterson got almost 30% of his two-year deal guaranteed per OTC.

His signing bonus percentage is right in line with top stars but he does not have any roster bonuses built into his deal (he does have per game bonuses), which inflate the amount of guaranteed money that stars like Ezekiel Elliott and others will get.

Peterson, per OTC Premium, earned $6,179 per snap last year

There's no doubt that Peterson is underpaid in an NFL world. The media crushes running backs.

I don't. I value them and will always value backs. Reasonably.

Peterson deserves a bonus or a raise from the Redskins in an ideal world. They surely can afford it. The Redskins have the second most cap space (unofficially) remaining in the NFL, just behind the Cleveland Browns.

I would also say this: If Peterson is going to start to squawk about salary and wanting more money, that's not going to sit well with fans and probably not with Ron Rivera and Kyle Smith.

Peterson would be best served letting his production do the talking for him instead of being a disgruntled squeaky wheel. All he has to do is look at how Quinton Dunbar and Trent Williams were disposed of to figure out how quickly things can end.

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Chris Russell is the Publisher of RedskinsReport.com & Sports Illustrated's Washington Redskins channel. He can be heard on 106.7 The FAN in the Washington D.C. area and world-wide on Radio.com. Chris also hosts the "Locked on Redskins" Podcast and can be read via subscription to Warpath Magazine. You can e-mail Chris at russellmania09@Gmail.com or follow him on Twitter at @Russellmania621.