Soon-to-be unrestricted free agent running back Tevin Coleman wants to get paid this offseason, but his reported asking price is simply too high when considering his four-year production and – more importantly – the value of his position.
Per D. Orlando Ledbetter of the AJC, “Coleman’s contract negotiations will start at the four-year, $30 million [Jerick] McKinnon received.” McKinnon, a career backup with the Minnesota Vikings with upside as a pass-catcher, signed a four-year, $30 million ($18 million guaranteed) contract with the San Francisco 49ers after a career year in 2017. The $7.5 million average per year made McKinnon the seventh-highest paid back in the NFL in 2018, per Over The Cap.
Coleman, though his career draws striking similarities to McKinnon, isn’t worth such a high percentage of any team’s allotted cap space. And, to be fair, the 49ers’ investment in McKinnon wasn’t money well spent, either.