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We now know the one NFL team that has shown major interest in the Los Angeles Chargers‘ Melvin Gordon.
As reported late Tuesday night by Josina Anderson of ESPN, one team had been in talks with the Chargers regarding a trade for the Pro Bowl running back. According to Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated, that one team is none other than the Philadelphia Eagles.
According to Breer, the Eagles offered starting running back Jordan Howard in exchange for Gordon.
Did a little digging around on the Melvin Gordon trade market. To give you an idea of where it is, only offer I came across was from Philly.
In that deal, Jordan Howard would go to LA, the teams would swap mid-round picks, and the Chargers would eat salary. LA obviously said no.
In other words, the Chargers — who are looking for at least one first-round draft pick in a trade swap for Gordon — would trade their star running back for a lesser one, lose money and gain nothing in return. Well, except simply getting rid of the headache of Gordon.
Breer — as Anderson reported hours prior — stated that there’s been very little interest in the Chargers running back since he was given permission to seek a trade elsewhere.
There just hasn’t been much action on Gordon. And that’s not bc he can’t play. It’s bc there aren’t teams willing to fork over draft capital and the kind of $$$ Gordon wants.
You could deal for him as a 1-year rental. But (as the Philly offer shows) that lessens his trade value.
Eagles Are Not Desperate for Melvin Gordon
Breer makes sure to end his thoughts by stating that although the Eagles were involved in trade talks — with an offer in mind — that they’re pretty content with their current running back situation without Gordon.
“And on the Eagles’ end, this was more of conceptual conversation that hadn’t gotten to any serious stage. They like their backfield depth, with Howard, rookie Miles Sanders, etc. Philosophically, they look into everything. That’s what this was for them.”
To make matters even worse for Gordon, his fellow holdout counterpart, Ezekiel Elliott, received the biggest contract in NFL history when he agreed to a six-year, $90 million contract with the Dallas Cowboys early Wednesday morning. The contract is record-breaking in more ways than one, as Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reported.
The #Cowboys & RB Ezekiel Elliott agree on a 6-year, $90M extension that makes him the highest-paid RB in the NFL, sources tell me and @SlaterNFL. Roughly half guaranteed. In all, it’s $103M over 8 years—the 1st Cowboy to eclipse $100M in total value, the richest RB contract.
With Elliott receiving his new deal, you can be assured that Gordon isn’t going to back down from his stance of wanting to be paid $13 million per season. On the other hand, the Chargers believe their starting running back is worth $10 million — and Gordon ended up rejecting that contract offer.
Chargers Still Hold All of the Leverage over Gordon
Considering the demand for running backs is not great around the NFL — only one team has shown serious interest — the Chargers hold all of the leverage in this situation.
The Chargers are reportedly asking for either a 2020 first-round draft pick or a combination of a 2021 first-round and 2021 fifth-round draft pick.
Although the Chargers’ asking price is ridiculous for a guy that they clearly don’t value very highly, they’re not the ones with their backs against the wall.
Via Mike Florio of NBC Sports.
“Maybe they don’t want a one and a five. Maybe it’s an opener. Maybe they’ll eventually come down. Maybe they won’t.
Ultimately, the Chargers can do whatever they want. They hold the cards, and they can sit and wait for Gordon to show up, get credit for the fifth year of his rookie deal, and then let him walk away as a free agent, sign him to a long-term deal, tag him, or tag him and trade him.”
For now, the Chargers are content with going with Austin Ekeler as their starting running back — he’s averaged 5.3 yards per carry in spot duty during his first two years in the NFL — while Gordon generates little to no interest on the trade market.
It’s a tough time for running backs, indeed.
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