NFL teams have been increasingly cautious about extending running backs in recent years, but it seems Carolina Panthers are not one of them. Panthers are reportedly already discussing a contract extension for Christian McCaffrey despite having their Pro Bowl back under contract for the next two years.
McCaffrey is entering the final year of his rookie deal, but the Panthers also can pick up his fifth-year option, which will keep him with the organization through 2021. But Carolina would prefer the player to ink a long term extension earlier than later.
Panthers’ general manager Marty Hurney told reporters on Monday that the team has had “internal discussions” about McCaffrey’s new deal.
“Obviously, we’ve had internal discussions,” said Hurney. “Everybody knows what we think of Christian as a player. Other than that I can’t really say any more.”
Christian McCaffrey was one of the rare bright spots for Carolina Panthers last season, picking up 2,392 yards from scrimmage. McCaffrey, who earned Pro Bowl and First-Team All-Pro nods in 2019, had 1,387 rushing yards and 15 rushing touchdowns to go with 116 receptions, 1,005 receiving yards, and four caught TDs.
With several Panthers’ greats like Luke Kuechly, Cam Newton, and Greg Olsen departing the franchise following the 2019 season, McCaffrey is expected to be the franchise’s cornerstone for years to come. This is why extending him early sounds like a good idea. However, there have been multiple cases of teams regretting the decisions to invest big in running backs.
Los Angeles Rams signed RB Todd Gurley to a four-year, $60 million contract extension in 2018, only to release him two years after while David Johnson also didn’t see through his three-year, $39 million contract extension with Arizona Cardinals. Le’Veon Bell, on the other hand, had one of his worst years after signing a four-year, $52.5 million contract with the New York Jets.
All of this caused NFL teams to avoid giving RBs a big contract, and the trend is likely to continue in the future. It remains to be seen whether McCaffrey ends up being the exception.
