Jerick McKinnon remains available to any, every team
When a player tweets a comment without context, the usual response is to apply common sense to provide meaning.
So when free-agent running back Jerick McKinnon says on the social-media platform that recently has supplanted bird outline with Dogecoin logo, “The disrespect is crazy,” the initial reaction becomes to tie it to the fact that, nearly four weeks into free agency, he has no NFL team.
The lack of an acceptable contract offer isn’t anything personal against McKinnon, who has been a key piece of the broader offensive puzzle in Kansas City during the 2021 and 2022 seasons. It’s a reflection of the broader market for veteran running backs.
McKinnon’s resurgence started in the 2021 playoffs, with 315 yards from scrimmage in three postseason games. Last year, McKinnon had 803 yards from scrimmage and 10 total touchdowns in the regular season. His nine receiving touchdowns in 2022 set a single-season record for running backs, breaking the three-way tie of eight previously held by Marshall Faulk (2001), Chuck Foreman (1975), and Leroy Hoard (1991).
That obviously means little to teams looking for running backs in an era where supply far outweighs demand, and where a fresh crop of young, cheap, and healthy options enter the league every April. That’s why Austin Ekeler can’t get the Chargers to pay him more than $6.25 million per year. It’s also why no other team was willing to trade for him and, in turn, give him the contract he wants.
And it’s why McKinnon and others remains available to anyone and to everyone.
While McKinnon’s current frustrations are understandable (if that was indeed the impetus for his tweet), he’s one of the few players in recent years to defy the ongoing trend away from giving big money to running backs. When he finished his rookie contract with the Vikings, the 49ers signed McKinnon to a four-year, $30 million contract, with $11.75 million fully guaranteed at signing.
McKinnon suffered a torn ACL just before the start of his first season in San Francisco, and he missed two straight years due to the injury and its aftermath. He eventually played 16 regular-season games for the 49ers in 2020, with 572 yards from scrimmage.
The Chiefs came calling in 2021, giving McKinnon a chance to prove he still can perform at a high level. But with his 31st birthday looming and the injury history that derailed his career just as it would have been entering his prime, he’ll likely keep waiting, along with the likes of Ezekiel Elliott, Leonard Fournette, Kareem Hunt, J.D. McKissic, Mark Ingram, and more.
Jerick McKinnon remains available to any, every team originally appeared on Pro Football Talk
