Robert Turbin
Appearances
Freakonomics Radio
620. Why Don’t Running Backs Get Paid Anymore?
I had a Ricky Waters jersey when he was with the Eagles, actually. I wore it on the first day of school, I think of first or second grade.
Freakonomics Radio
620. Why Don’t Running Backs Get Paid Anymore?
Number one, the CBA. That's the meat and potatoes of the conversation. when it comes to the running backs.
Freakonomics Radio
620. Why Don’t Running Backs Get Paid Anymore?
What happens is you come into the league as a 22-year-old rookie, and basically you are handcuffed for five years. So realistically, you don't have an opportunity to re-up or get a second contract unless Until you're 27 years old.
Freakonomics Radio
620. Why Don’t Running Backs Get Paid Anymore?
By the time you're 27 years old, if you've carried the ball 250 times per year, they're He may not have it the way he used to. That may not be true for most running backs. It is true for some. The CBA is really what devalued the position because let's say you were able to get out of that contract or re-up out of that contract after three years.
Freakonomics Radio
620. Why Don’t Running Backs Get Paid Anymore?
Now you're a 25-year-old back still in this prime with an opportunity to maximize on economics from a contractual standpoint.
Freakonomics Radio
620. Why Don’t Running Backs Get Paid Anymore?
I mean, five years is, that's obviously not a full career. That's not the type of career you would imagine for yourself. But we know that the average is less than three. I was fortunate to play eight for a back. That's pretty damn good. I'll never forget when I was in Indianapolis. This was 2017. I'm 27 years old. And I'm talking to a scout from another team.
Freakonomics Radio
620. Why Don’t Running Backs Get Paid Anymore?
And I dislocated my elbow in week six of that year. So I was coming back. He asked me, he says, how old are you? I said, I'm 27. He said, oh, okay. So you got about another year or so left. And I said, what? Like, what are you talking about? But that's the thought process for a lot of executives until proven wrong. It's almost like you're guilty until proven innocent as a running back.