Stephen Dubner

The 2011 agreement created a rookie wage scale that set contract terms based on draft order. It also mandated a four-year contract with a cost-controlled fifth-year option that their team could exercise. This structure is still in place today, and that's what Robert Turbin is talking about when he tells Roland Fryer that the team has control of you for five years.

The 2011 agreement created a rookie wage scale that set contract terms based on draft order. It also mandated a four-year contract with a cost-controlled fifth-year option that their team could exercise. This structure is still in place today, and that's what Robert Turbin is talking about when he tells Roland Fryer that the team has control of you for five years.

The 2011 agreement created a rookie wage scale that set contract terms based on draft order. It also mandated a four-year contract with a cost-controlled fifth-year option that their team could exercise. This structure is still in place today, and that's what Robert Turbin is talking about when he tells Roland Fryer that the team has control of you for five years.

For some positions in football, including quarterback, a player is just coming into his prime at age 27. That is not the case for running backs.

For some positions in football, including quarterback, a player is just coming into his prime at age 27. That is not the case for running backs.

For some positions in football, including quarterback, a player is just coming into his prime at age 27. That is not the case for running backs.

If you go back 20 years, the average career length for an NFL running back was around five and a half years. That number started dropping right around the 2011 collective bargaining agreement. And today, the average length is around two and a half years. Let's hear now from another former running back, Robert Smith. Like Robert Turbin, Smith played for eight years.

If you go back 20 years, the average career length for an NFL running back was around five and a half years. That number started dropping right around the 2011 collective bargaining agreement. And today, the average length is around two and a half years. Let's hear now from another former running back, Robert Smith. Like Robert Turbin, Smith played for eight years.

If you go back 20 years, the average career length for an NFL running back was around five and a half years. That number started dropping right around the 2011 collective bargaining agreement. And today, the average length is around two and a half years. Let's hear now from another former running back, Robert Smith. Like Robert Turbin, Smith played for eight years.

All of his were with the Minnesota Vikings. Smith retired after the 2000 season.

All of his were with the Minnesota Vikings. Smith retired after the 2000 season.

All of his were with the Minnesota Vikings. Smith retired after the 2000 season.

Today, Smith calls NFL and college games for Fox Sports. His reverence for the running back position goes deep.

Today, Smith calls NFL and college games for Fox Sports. His reverence for the running back position goes deep.

Today, Smith calls NFL and college games for Fox Sports. His reverence for the running back position goes deep.

Those occasional bursts of excitement are, of course, offset by thousands of hours of training and by the physical punishment.

Those occasional bursts of excitement are, of course, offset by thousands of hours of training and by the physical punishment.

Those occasional bursts of excitement are, of course, offset by thousands of hours of training and by the physical punishment.

Robert Smith had a lot of reasons to walk away, a lot of things beyond football that excited him. He is an amateur astronomer, a prolific reader, and in addition to his broadcasting duties, he is working on a health and wellness startup, plus which he made good money as a younger man. His final contract paid him $25 million over five years.

Robert Smith had a lot of reasons to walk away, a lot of things beyond football that excited him. He is an amateur astronomer, a prolific reader, and in addition to his broadcasting duties, he is working on a health and wellness startup, plus which he made good money as a younger man. His final contract paid him $25 million over five years.