Austin Ekeler is not happy at all with how the league is treating running backs. Amid the problems of several players, the Los Angeles Chargers‘ member has threatened NFL owners in order to address their situation as soon as possible.
Running backs are having a really rough year. Players such as Saquon Barkley, Tony Pollard, and Josh Jacobs, were unable to reach an agreement for a long-term deal despite being key pieces for their teams.
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Unfortunately, Austin Ekeler has also gone through a rough situation. The Los Angeles Chargers denied him a contract extension earlier this year, so now he has had enough and decided to raise his voice against NFL owners.
Austin Ekeler desperately sends message to NFL owners about running backs’ problems
The NFL is set to face a huge problem soon. Several running backs are not being paid as much as they think they deserve, and players are starting to express their desperation against the league.
This offseason, Barkley, Jacobs, and Pollard received the franchise tag. It was expected that they would secure a long-term deal before the deadline, but unfortunately, none of them were able to reach an agreement with their teams.
The news was not well taken by the rest of the league, especially running backs. Numerous players gave their point of view on this matter, and Austin Ekeler, who is also struggling with his contract situation, didn’t hesitate to address the problem.
“I’ve been pretty vocal about this just because it’s not good for our running back market as far as capital coming in, it’s putting like a ceiling on it, there’s no new contracts being made, there’s no new comparables that are actually relevant because there’s been a set number set on guys,” said Ekeler to CBS Sports. “From a player’s aspect, we have no control of that. I have no control. So really who we want answers from is the ownership. Like, why are you doing this? What’s the reasoning?”
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Austin Ekeler on negotiating with the Chargers: "I kind of got punched in the face"
Ekeler, who was denied a contract extension earlier this year, sent a threat to NFL owners, asking them to change their situation soon. “You poked the bear, and you’re going to have to make us do something,” the running back said.
