Monday’s franchise tag extension deadline has come and gone, with none of Saquon Barkley, Josh Jacobs, or Tony Pollard agreeing to long-term deals with their respective NFL teams. While Washington Commanders defensive tackle Daron Payne and Jacksonville Jaguars tight end Evan Engram reached extensions with their clubs after being assigned the franchise tender in March, no member of the tagged running back group was able to work out a deal.
Saquon Barkley, Josh Jacobs, and Tony Pollard Fail To Reach Franchise Tag Extensions
Not only did none of Barkley, Jacobs, or Pollard come to terms on an extension, but none of the franchise-tagged backs seemed particularly close to a fresh pact.
Pollard signed his tag with the Cowboys just a few weeks after being tendered, and Dallas — perhaps wary of extending an RB after their disastrous deal with Ezekiel Elliott — never seemed to express any serious desire to get him under contract for the long haul.
Meanwhile, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported earlier this week that a “significant gap” remained in talks between Jacobs and the Raiders.
In New York, Barkley has gone through a roller coaster ride during his negotiations with the Giants. This week, Big Blue initially offered Barkley a deal with $19.5 million guaranteed; the Giants then upped that total to $22 million guaranteed while reducing Barkley’s proposed annual value, according to the New York Post.
The $22 million figure was a focal point in Barkey’s discussions with the Giants, as he would have secured roughly that total over the course of 2023 and 2024 were New York to franchise him again next season. With no deal in place, Barkley, Jacobs, and Pollard are all set to play out next season at a $10.1 million salary.
RBs in a tough spot in todays @NFL pic.twitter.com/BVzLT5vWgb
— trey wingo (@wingoz) July 17, 2023
The failures of Barkley, Jacobs, and Pollard to garner long-term extensions only underscores the rough offseason veteran running backs went through in 2023. Dalvin Cook, Ezekiel Elliott, and Leonard Fournette were released and have yet to find new homes. Aaron Jones and Joe Mixon were forced to accept pay cuts to remain with their clubs.
NFL teams have clearly adopted a new plan with running backs: draft them (preferably not in the first round), retain them via the franchise tag if they succeed, then let them walk in free agency. As running back extensions continue to dwindle, the franchise tag number for RBs will concurrently decrease, resulting in a self-perpetuating cycle.
Running backs are being put in an increasingly difficult position, but it’s unclear what changes will help the position in the future. Teams will continue to devote more resources to premium positions, and the NFL’s salary cap makes finances a zero-sum game. It’s not as if clubs are declining to hand out money — they’re just giving it to players at more valuable positions than running back.
As Barkley tweeted immediately after today’s deadline, “It is what it is.”
What Comes Next for Barkley, Jacobs, and Pollard?
Neither Barkley nor Jacobs is expected to be present when the Giants and Raiders assemble for training camp. Because neither player has officially signed his franchise tag, they won’t be subject to fines for missing camp sessions.
Both Barkley and Jacobs have made noise about skipping regular-season games, but sitting out once the year begins doesn’t make much sense. They’d sacrifice more than $560,000 for each contest they missed, and they probably wouldn’t gain anything aside from preventing a serious injury.
Pollard has already inked his tender, so he’ll have to report to Cowboys camp when Dallas convenes next week. NFL Network recently reported there were no “extensive discussions” between Pollard and the Cowboys regarding a long-term deal, while ESPN indicated the two sides had an “exchange of proposals” but never got into contract specifics.
Barkley, Jacobs, and Pollard are all projected to hit free agency next offseason, but nothing will prevent their teams from tagging them again in 2024. However, because each back would be playing on his second franchise tag, they’d be entitled to a 20% raise, pushing their salaries to $12.1 million.
Given that the 2024 salary cap is expected to surpass $250 million, a $12.1 million salary may only represent 5% of the cap and could be viewed as a bargain. Barkley and Jacobs can no longer secure an extension, but they could use their training camp holdouts as a means to tweak their existing one-year deals, perhaps by asking for a no-franchise tag clause in 2024.