It's a tale as old as time. The longer the Atlanta Falcons wait to sign Bijan Robinson to a long-term extension, the higher his price tag will get. Not only do they have Jahmyr Gibbs and the Detroit Lions to worry about, the RB market in the opening wave of free agency is sure to drive up his price tag.
Within the first few hours of free agency, the New Orleans Saints kicked off their spending spree by signing Travis Etienne to a four-year, $52 million contract and followed that up by signing Bills OG David Edwards for $15.25 million AAV. That's a lot of investment in the young core in New Orleans, and now they're breaking more hearts in Atlanta by reuniting with Kaden Elliss.
The Saints' splashes came hours after the after the Kansas City Chiefs signed reigning Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker to a three-year, $43.05 million deal. Walker is set to make $14.35 million per year on his new deal and can make as much as $15 million, while Etienne is set to make $13 million a year.
If these good-not-great RBs are making this much money on the open market, there's no telling what Bijan will make on an extension. There's been talk of him coming close to, if not surpassing the $20 million a year benchmark, and if this market is any indication, he's in for a big payday as long as he shines in 2026.
Bijan Robinson is being set up for a massive payday by the NFL's evolving RB market
At the moment, Saquon Barkley is the highest-paid running back in the NFL, and is the only back to make over $20 million annually. But this is a number that both Bijan and Gibbs are expected to surpass, even though it's historically unprecedented to pay a running back that much money.
Still, Bijan more than deserves it. If Walker and Etienne are both inside the top-eight highest paid RBs in the NFL and are making more annually than Jonathan Taylor, he definitely deserves a payday. Even if it doesn't hit $20 million as expected, he'll certainly be knocking on the door of that price range.
Following a historic season in which his 2,298 scrimmage yards broke the franchise record, reality is setting in for Cunningham: you don't let a talent like this leave the building, under any circumstances. The Giants lived to regret it when they let Barkley walk, so they better not do the same with Bijan.
The Saints live for screwing over their division rivals, so now that them and the Chiefs spent heavily on running backs, it's driving up the price tag even further for a world-class talent Atlanta can't afford to lose in any universe.