Enough is Enough, Baltimore Ravens Simply Must Pay Ray Rice

Conventional NFL wisdom says that running backs are like running water—cheap and easy to replace. A stud running back from last year thus isn't worth rewarding for that past performance because who knows just when he may run out of juice—and apparently, the fear is that he'll do so just after getting his first big check.

But the Baltimore Ravens need to take that conventional wisdom, stomp on it, wad it up into a ball and burn it. It's time to pay Ray Rice.

No other non-quarterback offensive player was as important to his team in 2011 than Rice (save maybe Adrian Peterson, who already has his much-deserved mega-deal). In fact, for the past three seasons running, Rice has ended the year in the top three in total yards from scrimmage, and ranked first last year.

Not only did Rice have over 1,300 rushing yards last year, he had the second-most receiving targets of any Raven (104, to Anquan Boldin's 105) and caught the most passes of any player in the AFC North (the Pittsburgh Steelers' Mike Wallace was second with 72).

Though it's unfair to the Ravens to say that they wouldn't have an offense without Rice, it would certainly be an entirely different team. Rice makes things happen on the ground and in the passing game and though it seems as though running backs are interchangeable cogs in this pass-heavy modern NFL, Rice is the kind of singular talent who is worth risking big money on.

The Chris Johnson holdout is the freshest example in teams' minds when it comes to overpaying a running back for what he did in a previous year. Johnson received an astounding four-year, $53 million extension that included $30 million in guaranteed money last September, following it up with an unimpressive (for him) 1,465 yards from scrimmage and just four touchdowns.

But Rice is a far different player and person than Johnson. First, he's not holding out because he's being selfish—he's doing so because he knows what he's meant to his team and what he can continue to contribute (he is 25 years old, after all).

Second, Rice is more valuable in the passing game than Johnson. In his best receiving year, 2009, Johnson had 503 yards and two touchdowns; in Rice's (2011), he had 704 yards and three scores. With the Ravens still trying to find a formula that works when it comes to passing the ball, Rice's presence is even more crucial to his team than Johnson's.

Though the Ravens would be better served to find a passing attack that involves Rice less, until they get there (and likely, they won't until they part ways with offensive coordinator Cam Cameron), then Rice is going to factor into that part of the game heavily. Where are the Ravens going to find those 700-plus passing yards without Rice on the field when their passing game is so inherently conservative?

Crickets, I know.

Yes, Rice is set to make over $7 million this season if he signs the franchise tender the Ravens gave him months ago—and he likely will if no new deal is offered to him by the July 16 deadline. The tag pays him well—for this year—but doesn't guarantee him any job security. If the season stretches on with no substantive progress made in contract talks, then things could get strained exponentially—potentially to the point where Rice moves on next season.

That would be a major blow to the Ravens, one I don't think the team is well-equipped to absorb. The newly-drafted Bernard Pierce is talented, but he's not Rice. No one is, except maybe another back in the very same situation as Rice right now—Chicago's Matt Forte. 

The Ravens are playing a very dangerous game of chicken right now with Rice, and if Rice isn't the one to flinch, they could end up bidding him farewell. No, your average NFL running back isn't worthy of a $9 million or $10 million per year deal, but Rice is anything but an average back.

In fact, the Philadelphia Eagles just locked up their star back, LeSean McCoy, to a five-year, $45 million deal; though he's two years younger than Rice, and certainly talented and valuable, his contributions again don't match up to those that Rice has made in his time in Baltimore.

For every rule there is an exception, and when it comes to the rules about paying running backs big-money contracts, Rice is most certainly an exception. He means far too much to the team and is far too talented for Baltimore to fail to meet his demands any longer. This is a problem with a clear solution: Pay Ray Rice.

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