Cardinals Reset Pay for Running Backs

Afternoon Edition

April 24, 2026

The Cardinals took a big swing selecting Jeremiyah Love with the No. 3 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. The team also helped reset the salary structure for running backs: Love will be in line for a four-year, $53.02 million contract, with a fifth-year team option. And like all rookie deals, it’s all guaranteed.

—Eric Fisher

First Up

Nick Wright spoke with Front Office Sports about his career, his show’s first Emmy nomination, and his beef with the Ball family. Read the story.
President Donald Trump likened the U.S. soldier indicted for using insider information on Polymarket to Pete Rose “betting on his own team.” Read the story.
Cal has posted more than 20 new positions related to Strawberry Creek Studios, the athletic department’s new content creation venture. Read the story.
The PGA of America is expected to select Jim Furyk to lead the 2027 U.S. Ryder Cup team in Ireland, nearly a decade after he was first captain. Read the story.

With Jeremiyah Love, Cardinals Reset RB Pay Structure

Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The Cardinals not only swung big with their selection of Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love with the No. 3 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, the team has helped reset the salary structure at the position.

Even before Love plays a single down in the NFL, he has far more guaranteed money in his contract than any other running back in the league.

As a result of his draft position and the NFL’s rookie wage scale, Love will be in line for a four-year, $53.02 million contract, with a fifth-year team option. Like all rookie deals, the entire pact is guaranteed.

Because of that, Love races well past the $36 million in guaranteed money that the Eagles’ Saquon Barkley has in his two-year, $41.2 million contract, and had been the NFL leader for running backs. The average annual value of $13.255 million is also good for fifth in the NFL behind Barkley, the 49ers’ Christian McCaffrey, the Ravens’ Derrick Henry, and the Colts’ Jonathan Taylor.

The pick also means Love is the highest-drafted running back since the Giants selected Barkley at No. 2 in 2018.

A Different Skill Set

Running backs are often not as valued around the NFL compared to in prior generations, in part due to injury rates at the position and a greater focus on passing in many team offensive plans. Love, however, moved up many draft boards leading up to the event and became the Cardinals’ top target due to a unique set of attributes.

Love averaged nearly seven yards per carry as he ran for 1,372 yards and 18 touchdowns for the Fighting Irish, and finished third in Heisman Trophy voting behind Indiana quarterback and No. 1 selection Fernando Mendoza, picked by the Raiders, and Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia. Love is also seen as a big-play threat both as a runner and a receiver out of the backfield.

“There is no secret in this league. ‘Explosives’ are massive,” said newly hired Cardinals head coach Mike LaFleur. “Outside of points, what are the two biggest factors offensively? It’s turnovers and explosives. Any way you can generate explosives, it’s a good thing for the offense.”

The Cardinals, meanwhile, are trying to rebound after a 3-14 season in 2025, the team’s ninth non-playoff campaign in the last 10 years.

How the WTA Sets the Standard

In our latest Future of Sports episode presented by ADP, WTA Chief Brand Officer Sarah Swanson breaks down how leadership is shaping the next era of women’s tennis.

She explains how the WTA has built one of the most valuable platforms in women’s sports, from its global reach to the consistency of its tour, and why that scale continues to separate it from the rest of the market.

Swanson also dives into the evolving business case for women’s sports, sharing why brands are increasingly prioritizing investment in the space as returns become more compelling.

It is a candid conversation on leadership, growth, and the rising value of women’s sports.

Watch the full episode here.

FOS News

Dr. J on the ABA, NIL Money

FOS graphic

Julius Erving, the only player to win MVP in both the NBA and ABA, sat down with Front Office Sports to talk about Soul Power, his new four-part documentary on Prime Video that tells the untold story of the ABA and why the league changed basketball forever.

Dr. J also talks about NIL money flooding college sports, and what his advice would be for young athletes cashing their first real checks.

Watch the video.

One Big Fig

Draft Reboot

LA Rams YouTube

26.5 million

The still-growing number of video views for the Rams’ viral, draft-themed reimagining of the famed 1995 movie Friday. The team’s social clip, Thursday, played up the start of the NFL Draft in Pittsburgh, as well as the Rams’ own Draft House effort in Inglewood, Calif. The clip features O’Shea Jackson and Destin Tucker, the real-life sons of Friday stars Ice Cube and Chris Tucker.

The traffic so far, representing by far the most-watched social clip in franchise history, includes more than 11.5 million views on the Rams’ own channels, and another 15 million from an Instagram post by iconic hip-hop artist Snoop Dogg. Though just debuting last week, Thursday was roughly four years in internal development and was produced in-house by the team.

“We knew going into this it was going to be good and something fans enjoyed, but we definitely didn’t plan for this kind of spark and for it to hit so hard,” Rams SVP of studios and marketing Marissa Daly tells Front Office Sports. “But this really struck a chord with Los Angeles and Rams fans. It’s very much about our town.” The clip also represented a soft debut of the Rams’ slightly tweaked uniforms that were also formally unveiled last week.

Status Report

Three Up, One Down

Sep 17, 2025; San Jose, California, USA; SAP Center during the fourth quarter of the Golden State Valkryies vs. Minnesota Lynx game two of round one for the 2025 WNBA Playoffs at SAP Center.

David Gonzales-Imagn Images

Golden State Valkyries ⬆ The WNBA franchise announced that it has sold out its season tickets for the 2026 season, surpassing 12,000 season-ticket holders. Last year, the team’s first season in the WNBA, it sold out all 22 home games, setting the WNBA record for average home attendance (18,064) and total attendance (397,408).

Türkiye ⬆ Formula One will return to Istanbul next season, the start of a five-year deal that runs until 2031. The country hosted an F1 race from 2005 to 2011, then served as a substitute race in 2020 and 2021 when the COVID-19 pandemic altered the racing calendar.

WNBA ⬆ The get-in price to the preseason game between the Chicago Sky and Phoenix Mercury in Sioux Falls, S.D., is $379, according to StubHub. It’s the first WNBA game that will be held in South Dakota. The game will be played at the Sanford Pentagon, which has a capacity of 3,250.

Nike ⬇ The footwear giant is cutting roughly 1,400 jobs as it continues to struggle with a turbulent retail landscape. It’s the second round of layoffs for Nike after it cut about 775 jobs in January. Nike stock is down around 29% in 2026.

Draft-Day Confusion

Apr 23, 2026; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Southern California Trojans receiver Makai Lemon is introduced before the 2026 NFL Draft at Acrisure Stadium.

Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

It must have been a surreal and confusing moment for wide receiver Makai Lemon on Thursday night.

While Omar Khan, the GM of the Steelers—who held the 21st overall pick—was congratulating Lemon on getting drafted by Pittsburgh, the Eagles were calling him at the same time. As it turned out, Philadelphia GM Howie Roseman worked out a trade with the Cowboys to jump up to the 20th pick, which the Eagles used to draft Lemon. NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport explained that the Steelers believed the former USC star would fall to them because the Cowboys were widely expected to select a defensive player before they traded their pick.

In footage of Lemon on the phone with Khan, he receives another call and asks, “Hey, why is Philly calling?” Lemon’s agent informed him, “Philly just traded for you!” Read the story.