Overview
- In early August the Atlanta Falcons, Detroit Lions and Indianapolis Colts signed Bijan Robinson, Jahmyr Gibbs and Jonathan Taylor to multi‑year extensions that raised each player into the top tier of RB pay.
- Saquon Barkley publicly praised the recent contracts, saying the deals reflect how the position should be valued and noting a string of high‑pay signings that began with earlier stars.
- Salary aggregators including Spotrac estimate total NFL spending on running backs rose from about $250 million in 2022 to roughly $550 million for 2026, showing a clear rise in team investment.
- Over the Cap data cited by reporting lists Gibbs, Robinson and Taylor as the highest‑paid running backs by average annual value, with Barkley ranking just behind them.
- The shift reverses a multi‑year decline in RB earnings and could change team cap planning, shorten teams’ willingness to wait on bargains, and raise pay expectations for other top backs.