DeMarco Murray Is the Least Respected Star Running Back

That’s just ahead of Greg Hardy, who missed football all of last year because of the domestic violence case, who could still be suspended for a chunk of this year, and is one more incident from being basically out of football. All DeMarco Murray did (besides getting a spray tan) was be a running back in 2015–probably a bigger crime within the league.

This is not to say that list is necessarily wrong. We’ll see where the market puts Murray’s services relative to, say, other players in front of him on that list like Brandon Flowers and Derrick Morgan. It is to say that Murray is a rather unique case when it comes to that perception.

If he signs with another team, DeMarco Murray would have the most yards from scrimmage for any running back who played with a different team the following season. Here are the other backs to have the most yards from scrimmage before changing teams. (Eric Dickerson and Herschel Walker were traded after the start of the next season–all data from pro-football-reference.com).

Murray put up one of the top 15 seasons in total yards from scrimmage in NFL history. Yes, he did so playing behind the best run blocking line in 2015, where both Tyron Smith and rookie Zack Martin were selected first team all-pro. His yards per carry average before last year was still over 4.8. His main issue was missing games, not that he wasn’t productive.

So yes, I think he certainly benefitted from where he played, in terms of statistics. You know who else did? Lots of guys ahead of him on the list. Green Bay is letting Randall Cobb test the free agent market. You don’t think his reception numbers are because he catches passes from Aaron Rodgers? Julius Thomas is going to be the most sought-after tight end target in free agency. Every one of his career touchdown passes has come from Peyton Manning.

Yeah, yeah, I know what you are saying. But it’s running back, the most dangerous position in football, and teams don’t want to play. Two years ago, I looked at that. A lot of that is perception because running backs are more visible and we remember when a guy at age 25 is washed up at age 29. The actual evidence is that running backs don’t stop playing earlier than other physical positions, like linebacker, safety, tight end, and defensive line. You probably won’t hear those same concerns about teams signing defensive linemen or safeties in this free agency cycle.