According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, RB Melvin Gordon and the Los Angeles Chargers have recently exchanged proposals, but "there is mounting pessimism that Gordon will not be reporting anytime soon and his holdout threatens to go into the regular season."
Gordon is entering the final year of his contract and is set to make about $5.6 million, 11th-highest according to Spotrac among running backs. Schefter also reports that "Gordon told the Chargers through his representation that if he does not receive a new deal, he'll sit out and demand a trade." While it might be unlikely the Chargers actually trade Gordon, this battle seems to set to drag on for a while. While Gordon is out, Austin Ekeler will be the biggest beneficiary, with Justin Jackson and Detrez Newsome also in line for work. Our John Paulsen notes that even in games where Gordon played last season, Ekeler still averaged 8.5 touches per game for 68 yards and 0.45 touchdowns. The more work Ekeler receives during camp, the more RB2 upside he brings to the table. At the moment, in our current PPR rankings, Gordon sits at No. 21 among running backs while Ekeler is at No. 30 and brimming with potential.
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