How does the Raiders - Josh Jacobs controversy in 2023 help the LA Rams in the future?

One of the most obvious trends in the NFL right now is the devaluation of the running back in modern offenses. Once the backbone of NFL Championship teams, the running back position was the headliner, the names of the NFL's most highly paid and recognizable names. The LA Rams franchise has been one of the NFL teams that elevated the position to such lofty heights.

If you look at the 15 greatest running backs of all time for the Rams franchise, you will see the names and learn about the careers of players who truly set the bar for production and professionalism. Yet, it is the Rams franchise that helped to pivot the NFL away from the ground assault and attract more and more teams to the aerial attack that we have come to recognize in the modern NFL offense.

Rams are no longer a Ground Chuck offense

It was the Greatest Show on Turf chapter of the then Saint Louis Rams that redefined NFL offenses into the pass-centric, high-scoring juggernauts of the modern era. Yet it was the arrival of LA Rams head coach Sean McVay who devalued the role of the running back even further. It's the Rams' offensive success with no true 1000-yard rusher since the 2018 effort of RB Todd Gurley. FYI, Gurley was the last running back to be re-signed by the LA Rams.

But I don't want to give you the impression that this has all been a scheme, intended or otherwise, by the Rams football team. More and more NFL offenses have all but abandoned the run, run, pass strategy that was so prevalent in offenses of the past. The San Francisco 49ers have devalued the running back position by featuring an offense with a committee approach. The New England Patriots proved that lesser running backs could be effective in the NFL.