Melvin Gordon Rumors: FA Contract Offers Not Remotely Close to Chargers' in 2019

When Melvin Gordon III held out on the Los Angeles Chargers last season, the running back reportedly received an offer to play for $10 million per season. He turned it down. 

According to NFL Network's Mike Garafolo, that turned out to be a costly mistake. Speaking on NFL Network, via NBC Sports, Garafolo said the market for Gordon isn't "remotely close" to what the Chargers were offering last season. 

After sitting out the first four games of the year, Gordon rejoined L.A. and rushed for a career-worst 612 yards, losing touches to Austin Ekeler. 

Gordon's gamble last season appears to have backfired in a big way. 

The two-time Pro Bowler tried to keep the upper hand when negotiating with the Chargers, but that all changed as Ekeler starred during his holdout. Gordon's yards-per-carry average dropped from 5.1 in 2018 to 3.8 in 2019. Ekeler, meanwhile, finished 2019 with 557 yards rushing, 993 yards receiving and 11 total touchdowns. 

Combined with a history of knee injuries, Gordon went from arguing for a raise to arguing for a job. 

Where that leaves him in free agency remains unknown at this point. Most teams in need of a lead back have already filled those positions. The Arizona Cardinals used a transition tag on Kenyan Drake, the Cleveland Browns placed a second-round tender on Kareem Hunt, the Houston Texans acquired David Johnson, the Kansas City Chiefs picked up the option on Damien Williams contract, the Miami Dolphins agreed to a two-year deal with Jordan Howard and the Tennessee Titans used the franchise tag on Derrick Henry. 

Spotrac's Market Value tool has Gordon worth $8.3 million per season. That would put him a bit ahead of Mark Ingram II ($5 million average salary) and Devonta Freeman ($8.25 million average salary). 

If Gordon is going to work his way into the ranks of the league's highest-paid running backs, he may have to swallow some pride along the way. Otherwise the next time he's on the sidelines for game day won't be voluntary.