Terry Fontenot has 2,000 reasons he must ensure Bijan Robinson retires a Falcon

Bijan Robinson has helped to transcend the Atlanta Falcons' offense, and he deserves to be compensated as such. The third-year back is eligible for a long-term extension this offseason, and any new deal in Atlanta could see him become one of the highest-paid running backs in NFL history.

The Falcons also have to negotiate new contracts with Drake London and Kyle Pitts, and they can't afford to let the nucleus of their offense walk. But the longer Terry Fontenot and Arthur Blank wait to put the pen to paper, the higher the probability that their franchise cornerstone could test the waters.

In the Falcons' Week 16 win over the Cardinals, Bijan surpassed 2,000 scrimmage yards after totaling a team-high 92 receiving yards and 168 scrimmage yards in the 26-19 road win. And given only six active players have totaled 2,000 scrimmage yards in a season, he's in the presence of elite company.

The New York Giants were in a similar predicament, and it blew up in their faces. They spent years negotiating a long-term extension with Saquon Barkley, but Big Blue instead opted to extend Daniel Jones, which saw Barkley quickly turn heel in free agency by signing with the Philadelphia Eagles.

The Falcons have to sign Bijan Robinson to a long-term extension ASAP

After Barkley landed in Philadelphia, he ran for over 2,000 rushing yards and was named the NFL Offensive Player of the Year as he turned out to be the Eagles' missing piece amid their Super Bowl run. And even the selection of Cam Skattebo didn't change the fact the Giants regret letting him walk.

Through 15 games this year, Bijan has dazzled despite the lack of team success. His 1,250 rushing yards rank fourth in the NFL and is averaging five yards per carry. Moreover, he leads the league in scrimmage yards after tallying an astonishing 345 scrimmage yards across his last two games.

The 6-9 Falcons are starting to waste his generational talent, and it's starting to show shades of how Barkley's tenure in New York ended. Tyler Allgeier has continued to be the primary goal -line back, but the 23-year-old's dual-threat skillset has been invaluable to an offense that has struggled mightily.

Luckily, the running back market isn't as fruitful as the wide receiver market. Barkley's extension in Philly made him the only back in the league and the first in NFL history to make over $20 million per year, and only three running backs are being paid over $15 million per season in average annual value.

He'll be under contract with the team through 2028, but it's never too early to get a deal done. Talents of his caliber are incredibly rare, so the front office needs to do whatever they can to ensure the Texas native remains in red and black for an incredibly long time—since his best days have yet to come.