2021 NFL Draft: Teams who must be in the rookie running back market

There is less than a month until the NFL Free Agency begins. For the next couple of weeks, teams need to take a deep dive into their rosters and evaluate their needs and what they can improve on. One of the most important parts of the evaluation process is figuring out what is the best way to address their needs. Teams could add players at a position of need via free agency, trade, or the 2021 NFL Draft.

When teams figure out the best way to fix a need on their roster, they need to factor in their available cap space, tradable assets, and where they are selecting in the draft. Those factors will determine what level of talent a team can bring in to upgrade what they already have at the position.

Evaluating the running back position is different than any other position because the position is valued much less than other positions. This because of the short shelflife of running back and the influx of running backs entering the league every year.

Some teams have shown that they are unwilling to pay for a running back on a second contract because of how large their salary is and how likely they will hit a major decline in talent and production. A couple of examples of this in recent years have been Le’Veon Bell, David Johnson, and Todd Gurley. Only a few years ago, those three were considered three of the best running backs in football and now they are shells of the players they used to be.

Teams who do not want to go the veteran route will have to draft one of the many viable starting running backs in this year’s draft. There are a couple of teams who are more likely to fill their need at running back via the draft because of their current roster situation. Here are those teams who should add to their backfield through the 2021 NFL Draft.