The Los Angeles Chargers made headlines on Friday when they signed running back Austin Ekeler to a five-year, $24.5 million contract that includes $15 million guaranteed. Ekeler’s new deal averages just over $6 million per year, which might be notable for the Denver Broncos.
The Broncos have said that Phillip Lindsay is a candidate for a revised contract this offseason and Lindsay’s agent may view Ekeler’s deal as a benchmark in negotiations.
Ekeler (5-10, 200 pounds) is similar to Lindsay (5-8, 190 pounds) in that he is an undersized back from Colorado who entered the league as an undrafted free agent. Ekeler has averaged 4.8 yards per carry and Lindsay has averaged 4.9 yards per carry.
Lindsay’s agent will likely point out during negotiations that Lindsay has rushed for over 1,000 yards in back-to-back seasons — Ekeler is yet to top 557 rushing yards in one year. Denver may respond by pointing out that Ekeler is a much bigger threat in the passing game than Lindsay.
Ekeler has totaled 1,397 receiving yards and 11 receiving touchdowns over the last two years. During that same time, Lindsay has 437 receiving yards and one touchdown. So while they are similar players, they’re certainly not replicas of each other.
Lindsay might be seeking a similar contract worth around $6 million per year but it’s hard to imagine the Broncos being willing to pay that much. The team will probably hold off starting any negotiations with Lindsay until after the two waves of NFL free agency signings later this month.
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