LOS ANGELES — NFL running backs are like buffalo: wondrous, thunderous, but burdened by a sameness. Rarely anymore does one differentiate himself from the herd.
Furthermore, they are branded with early expiration dates. Exactly one of the 27 running backs who rushed for more than 800 yards in 2022 (the Miami Dolphins' Raheem Mostert) had celebrated his 30th birthday.
Fifteen rushed for more than 1,000 yards, and teams deemed them interchangeable. Their peak years often are played for free in college, and they are drafted late and tossed aside just as they are due a big paycheck.
