Nebraska Football: Why Rex Burkhead Signing with the Patriots Makes Sense
By Frank Soukup
Last week, Nebraska football fan favorite running back Rex Burkhead made the decision to leave Cincinnati, where he spent the first four years of his career.
He instead decided that he would sign with the defending Super Bowl Champions.
Reports state that the contract Burkhead signed is for one year at $3.15 million, including a $1.1 million signing bonus.
This contract is higher than any other running back currently on the Patriot roster. This means that New England likely will not be re-signing LeGarrette Blount.
Many fans scratched their head at why Burkhead would sign with New England, given that their offense has primarily been pass-oriented with Tom Brady.
However, if you really look at what he is gaining, it makes perfect sense.
One of the major reasons is that he was buried on the depth chart in Cincinnati. Burkhead only got minimal playing time during his four years with the Bengals while playing behind Giovani Bernard and Jeremy Hill.
As a matter of fact, he only carried the ball 87 times.
With Burkhead signing a contract that will make him the highest paid back on the New England roster, it is clear that the Patriots are anticipating him being their star rusher. They also have a long history of using running backs in the passing game.
This facet of a team’s offense suits Burkhead’s skill set to a tee.
Keep in mind that a cornerstone of Bill Belichick’s coaching has been in finding hidden gems and making superstars out of them. Think of names like Wes Welker, Julian Edelman, Chris Hogan or any other number of players. Even Tom Brady was a sixth round draft pick coming out of Michigan.
In addition to the possibility of being a number one back and learning under Belichick comes and underappreciated part of Burkhhead, his strong commitment to community relations.
During his time in Lincoln, he was very active with the Team Jack Foundation and has continued his efforts while in the NFL.
Given that New England has had some negative headlines thrown at them in the past several years related to players like Aaron Hernandez or possible cheating scandals, it makes sense for them to sign a player who is more likely to create positive headlines.
Burkhead will no doubt ingratiate himself well into the fabric of Foxborough and surrounding communities.
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While we don’t have a crystal ball to tell us whether or not this signing will truly re-energize Burkhead’s career, we can say that New England made a wise choice by signing him.
Plus, it wouldn’t hurt for Nebraska to have another alum with a strong choice to hoist the Lombardi Trophy.