Should Chris Johnson be highest-paid running back in NFL history?

Writers from around the Tribune Co. discuss the topic. Check back throughout the day for more responses and weigh in with a comment of your own.

Dom Amore, Hartford Courant

Should Chris Johnson be the highest-paid running back ever? Next question: Could he be considered the best in the NFL right now? Sounds like yes to each question.

Salaries don’t go down. They might level off for a time, but the upward spiral is inevitable. Being the “highest paid ever” may carry the implication that that athlete is the greatest of all time in their sport, but that is irrelevant. In a game that now generates $9 billion in revenue, the best get paid in record fashion.

Running backs in the NFL average about 2½ seasons, and any tackle could be, if not the last, one that diminishes the runner for good. Even the great ones, once they lose a step, disappear quickly. Right now, it’s Chris Johnson’s time. His historic 2009 season, in which he rushed for more than 2,000 yards and gained a record-breaking 2,500 from scrimmage, stakes this claim. Last season, he dropped — how could he not? — but still managed 1,300 yards.

The Titans are wise to make him feel wanted, appreciated, and make him the highest-paid runner ever. Now, it’s up to Johnson to accept and get back to work.