Stephen Dubner

Well, other than that... I guess the serious question I'm asking is, what kind of questions do you hope to answer or explore as we move forward? You've got some data, you've talked to a bunch of people, but plainly your appetite is deeper than that. Why? What do you want to know?

Well, other than that... I guess the serious question I'm asking is, what kind of questions do you hope to answer or explore as we move forward? You've got some data, you've talked to a bunch of people, but plainly your appetite is deeper than that. Why? What do you want to know?

Well, other than that... I guess the serious question I'm asking is, what kind of questions do you hope to answer or explore as we move forward? You've got some data, you've talked to a bunch of people, but plainly your appetite is deeper than that. Why? What do you want to know?

So today on Freakonomics Radio, Roland Fryer and I explore the decline of the running back. We speak with one of the analytics gurus who sparked the revolution.

So today on Freakonomics Radio, Roland Fryer and I explore the decline of the running back. We speak with one of the analytics gurus who sparked the revolution.

So today on Freakonomics Radio, Roland Fryer and I explore the decline of the running back. We speak with one of the analytics gurus who sparked the revolution.

We will hear an agent explain why the position is so difficult.

We will hear an agent explain why the position is so difficult.

We will hear an agent explain why the position is so difficult.

The upcoming Super Bowl, the Philadelphia Eagles against the Kansas City Chiefs, will feature a running back who had a historically great season. So does this mean we're looking at a running back renaissance? I don't think so. The causes and consequences of the running back decline starting now.

The upcoming Super Bowl, the Philadelphia Eagles against the Kansas City Chiefs, will feature a running back who had a historically great season. So does this mean we're looking at a running back renaissance? I don't think so. The causes and consequences of the running back decline starting now.

The upcoming Super Bowl, the Philadelphia Eagles against the Kansas City Chiefs, will feature a running back who had a historically great season. So does this mean we're looking at a running back renaissance? I don't think so. The causes and consequences of the running back decline starting now.

This is Freakonomics Radio, the podcast that explores the hidden side of everything with your host, Stephen Dubner.

This is Freakonomics Radio, the podcast that explores the hidden side of everything with your host, Stephen Dubner.

This is Freakonomics Radio, the podcast that explores the hidden side of everything with your host, Stephen Dubner.

Roland Fryer is a Harvard economist. He has also co-founded a few companies and he's won some major awards for his research on education and policing. You may remember him from an episode we made a few years ago called Roland Fryer Refuses to Lie to Black America. But when he was a kid, he did not dream of being an economist.

Roland Fryer is a Harvard economist. He has also co-founded a few companies and he's won some major awards for his research on education and policing. You may remember him from an episode we made a few years ago called Roland Fryer Refuses to Lie to Black America. But when he was a kid, he did not dream of being an economist.

Roland Fryer is a Harvard economist. He has also co-founded a few companies and he's won some major awards for his research on education and policing. You may remember him from an episode we made a few years ago called Roland Fryer Refuses to Lie to Black America. But when he was a kid, he did not dream of being an economist.

In the early 1980s, when the running backs Eric Dickerson and Walter Payton were tearing up the NFL, Rowland was doing the same in Pop Warner football.

In the early 1980s, when the running backs Eric Dickerson and Walter Payton were tearing up the NFL, Rowland was doing the same in Pop Warner football.