Melvin Gordon Has Colossally Screwed up, Y’all

Melvin Gordon recently signed a two year deal with the Denver Broncos worth significantly less than the deal the Chargers offered him a year ago.

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Lost offseason, the Los Angeles Chargers made an offer to running back Melvin Gordon that was reportedly in the neighborhood of $10-$11M. Gordon wanted to be one of the highest paid running backs in the NFL, so he turned ’em down and decided to hold out for a contract that never came. The Chargers even let him seek a trade when he didn’t accept their offer.

He ended up playing in 12 games for the Chargers in 2019, rushing for 612 yards and eight touchdowns, and catching 42 balls for 296 yards and one touchdown reception. Hardly production you’d pay $12M for. Of course, the Chargers also had Austin Ekeler and Justin Jackson to chew into Gordon’s opportunities, but the past couple of years have been far from the level at which Gordon was playing in 2017.

A season later, and Gordon has signed a deal to join the Denver Broncos for just two years and $16M. Only $13.5M of that is guaranteed. It certainly looks like Gordon left at least $6.5M on the table over the course of the next two years. Ian Rapoport reported that he actually had a better offer with another team, but turned it down in order to play against the Chargers twice a year. That’s some elite level grudge holding. He loses out on money, then leaves EVEN MORE on the table in order to act on his emotions. AND, he’ll just be going from one running back committee to another in Denver. Why shouldn’t Phillip Lindsay still be the guy in Denver?

So, what happened?

Melvin Gordon has a wealth of talent. Back in 2017, it certainly appeared as though he was poised to become one of the best and most dynamic backs in the entire NFL. The lack of playing time, the attitude, the dip in production when he finally did play, and the demand for more money than should’ve been reasonably expected compounded matters.

The market just didn’t develop the way that Gordon expected it to, and here we are. Congratulations. You played yourself.

I don’t know who or what to blame…did Gordon just get some bad advice along the way? We see it from time to time in sports. Athletes will fire their agents and claim that they weren’t acting in the best interest of the athlete. Maybe someone was telling Gordon that he could get that $13M pay day. Or, was Gordon simply stubborn enough and confident enough to roll the dice? Any time you turn down a contract, you’re taking a huge gamble. But, instead of calling it a loss and moving on, Gordon seems to have taken this whole thing personally.

The Miami Dolphins were reportedly in on Gordon, but not for $12M a year. There were a couple of other teams that were interested…and yet, Gordon elected to stay in the AFC West. It just seems crazy, and it’s hard to call it anything other than a colossal botch that cost Gordon playing time and a substantial amount of money.

The idea of holding out hasn’t panned out well for running backs in recent history, but Gordon’s case may just be the worst of them all. There’s a lesson in here about surrounding yourself with the right people, knowing and understanding your value, and quite simply, about pride and ego.

Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD and #BeBetter. “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, Nashville, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley

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