Right from High school, Melvin Gordon showed that he is a talented player with the body and discipline to make it at the biggest stage. Thus, it comes as no surprise that he is one of NFL’s best running backs, having joined America’s premier football league in 2015. Although he has had his fair share of controversy off the field, Melvin has recorded several successes as a player, building a modest net worth in the process.
Of course, it hasn’t been smooth sailing for the Denver Broncos running back. He has had to deal with injury issues and contract trouble. Still, his profile remains one of the most impressive in the league, and here is everything you need to know about how he makes it happen.
Melvin Gordon’s Difficult Background Drives His Success
Having a difficult childhood is not a unique experience. Even if that difficulty exists in the form of a father who was a drug dealer. But the mental response to growing up in such a situation can be unique, and in the case of Melvin Gordon, it was. Raised by his mother, Carmen Gordon, the running back quickly understood the impact of being poor.
This understanding led to a mental desire to overcome his upbringing, and for Melvin, sport was the answer. Blessed with excellent speed, the future Broncos player excelled at track and field and football. His high school years were filled with achievements such as winning Gatorade Football Player of the Year and first-team All-State by the Associated Press.
By the time he left high school and joined the University of Wisconsin-Madison as a football player, Melvin Gordon added discipline to his arsenal. Despite the fame and attention that came with being a college player, his discipline kept him at the top of his game, regularly featuring for his team. Melvin played 44 games for Wisconsin and started half of them, scoring 45 rushing touchdowns and four receiving touchdowns. Through those games, he set 19 records, three of which were NCAA Division I records.
This personal ethos continues to be his drive as a professional player in the NFL. Melvin Gordon has become one of the league’s best running backs, building up impressive career stats in the process.
His NFL Career Stats
Joining the NFL draft in 2015, the Heisman Trophy finalist was picked by the San Diego Chargers as the 15th overall pick in the year’s draft. He then signed a 4-year contract with the professional team in May 2015 and debuted in September 2015, in a game against the Detroit Lions. He eventually finished his rookie season with 833 total yards, 184 carries, 641 rushing yards, and 33 receptions.
The 2016 season remains one of the best for the offensive player. He recorded a total of 997 rushing yards with ten touchdowns. Thomas also had 419 receiving yards for two touchdowns and 41 receptions, all from playing a total of 13 games, starting all but two. The 2017 season was injury-free for the young player, and he recorded one of his best individual seasons. Melvin Gordon ended the season with 1,105 rushing yards and eight rushing touchdowns. He also had 58 receptions, 476 receiving yards, and four receiving touchdowns.
By the 2018 season, Melvin had shown that he was no fluke, and San Diego Chargers picked up the fifth-year option in his contract. He repaid the faith by playing 12 games, recording 885 rushing yards and ten touchdowns. Michael also had 490 receiving yards and four touchdowns. In that year, he helped the Chargers to the playoffs, where they played two games, against the Baltimore Ravens and New England Patriots.
His last season at the Chargers, he started 11 out of 12 games, scoring eight touchdowns from 612 rushing yards. He also had one touchdown from 296 receiving yards.
Staying in the AFC West.@Melvingordon25 ➡️ @Broncos! pic.twitter.com/DwBV3OKcv9
— NFL (@NFL) March 20, 2020
At the end of the 2019 season, he signed for the Denver Broncos. So far, the Wisconsin-born running back has played 67 games in the NFL, starting 62 of them. He has 36 touchdowns to his name from 4,240 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns from 1,873 receiving yards.
Injury Record
If you are looking for another reason why Melvin Gordon has been a successful player, his injury record is an excellent pointer. Many a time, terrible injury records have ruined great players and kept them from achieving their potential. Not for Melvin Gordon. Since he joined the league in 2015, he has only been injured six times. His first injury came in the second week of preseason in August 2015 and his last in November 2018 during Week 12. He missed just three games.
So far, the running back has missed less than 20 games through injury and holds a durability rating of 4/5, according to sportsinjurypredictor.
See Also: Michael Crabtree Biography, Injury and Career Stats, Age, Height, Weight
Melvin Gordon’s Salary, Endorsements, and Net Worth
Melvin Gordon’s first contract as a professional footballer was a four-year $10.66 million deal with San Diego Chargers. He earned $6.4 million out of it in his first season, $6 million of which was his signing bonus and the rest, $421,000, his salary. He earned $919,990 in salary for his second season and $1.4 million in his third.
In 2018, San Diego took the fifth-year option in his contract. He earned $1.88 million in his fourth season and a further $4.6 million in his fifth. After a controversial contract holdout, Melvin Gordon left the Chargers for the Denver Broncos at the end of the 2019 season.
With them, he signed a two-year $16 million contract. The running back will earn $9 million in his first year and a further $7 million in his second year with the team.
So far, Melvin Gordon has earned more than $15.3 million as a player in the NFL, bringing his net worth to an estimated $3 million.
I've been getting a lot of questions about the Holdout, but this video from @DrSquatchSoapCo should explain things:https://t.co/1d18K9XkZq
— F L ⚡️ S H (@Melvingordon25) October 1, 2019
While a player of his reputation commands a degree of brand interest, his exact endorsement portfolio remains unknown. So far, his only known brand partnership is with Dr. Squatch Soap, and the financial remuneration to the player is yet to be determined.
