In the span of a few days, the NFL went from having one running back averaging $20-plus million per year in salary to four. Days after the Atlanta Falcons set the new top of the market with Bijan Robinson, the Detroit Lions reset it with Jahmyr Gibbs. And Jonathan Taylor got a correction.
Paying running backs has become the thing to do again, after years of deeming them irrelevant, if you have someone worthy, of course. The next generation of young backs should be especially happy with that development, as they hope to prove themselves deserving of a hefty investment.
Las Vegas Raiders running back Ashton Jeanty is, of course, a prominent name on that front. He managed to produce solidly as a rookie despite all that worked against him, and there are lofty hopes for what he can do in Klint Kubiak's offense this season and beyond.
Under the timeline that Gibbs and Robinson got their contract extensions, Jeanty has two more seasons to show he's worthy of that kind of pay day. Add in a fifth-year option that would be picked up if he does produce at a high level, and a new deal wouldn't fully kick in for him until 2030.
But Las Vegas' young back now has something else to aim for after this financial renaissance at the running back position around the league.
Raiders' Ashton Jeanty has a clear bar to strive for now with NFL RB extensions
Gibbs' three-year, $67.5 million contract extension has a new money average annual value of $22.5 million, with a max total value of $75.75 million ($25.25 million per year). The deal includes a reported $51.5 million in guaranteed money.
Using the template of draft classes producing young running backs who get paid like Robinson and Gibbs just did as members of the 2023 draft class, the 2024 draft class had zero running backs get selected in the first round and just one selected in the first two rounds.
Jeanty was the first of two first-round running backs in the 2025 draft.
So, barring a slightly older running back getting a big new contract from what would be out of nowhere, as we see it right now, Gibbs should remain the highest-paid running back in the league for a little while.
In totality, Jeanty's rookie season production was not all that much different than Gibbs'. Then Gibbs really took off in his second year, and he had a similarly excellent campaign last season.
If Jeanty can follow that same trajectory over the next two seasons, and there's ample reason to believe he can, becoming the league's first $25 million-a-year running back (before any incentives or escalators) is in the range of possibilities. And it's certainly something he's aiming for.
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