Why be a jerk? Tyler Allgeier embracing RB tandem with Jeremiyah Love

GLENDALE — It’s been an interesting NFL career for Arizona Cardinals running back Tyler Allgeier.

Kicking off his NFL career with a 1,000-yard season as a rookie in 2022, the fifth-round pick quickly emerged as a threat in the Atlanta Falcons’ backfield.

Then came 2023 first-rounder Bijan Robinson. The addition eventually led to Robinson seeing more than twice as many carries as Allgeier the past two seasons.

Allgeier still got his, highlighted by his eight-touchdown season last year, but it was clear who the leader in the backfield was.

So when free agency hit, Allgeier weighed his options before landing on the Cardinals, who at the time had a murky-at-best running back situation with both James Conner and Trey Benson coming off season-ending injuries.

For the first time since he was a rookie, Allgeier had a really good chance at reclaiming that RB1 role.

Then came 2026 first-rounder Jeremiyah Love. Once again, Allgeier was overshadowed by another young and up-and-coming runner before a snap was even played.

Going through that not once but twice would be infuriating for a lot of players. Just when it looked like the runway might be clear, the Love plane came in for a landing.

Allgeier, however, is once again embracing the situation he’s in and taking the rookie under his wing.

 

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“There’s no point in being a jerk about it because that’s not really going to get you anywhere in life in this business, in this sport,” Allgeier said Thursday. “I’m just super humble anyway.

“I’ve grew with that just because positions and all that stuff growing up as a kid. I’ve been overshadowed but just having that underdog mentality and just having that starter mentality. … So that’s just the biggest thing for me. It’s just a mindset I think.”

While the expectation is Love handles the bulk of the carries, it’s expected to be a process, with LaFleur not looking to overload the running back in Year 1. Robinson (214) and Allgeier (186) weren’t that far off in carries in their first year together. A similar blueprint could be followed in Arizona.

And based on the early training camp optics, it wouldn’t be all that surprising.

Love is getting plenty of first- and second-team work, but it’s Allgeier getting the first crack at the first-team offense just about every day this camp. The one exception was a jog-through period during the open portion of practice, where Love got the first look.

Could there be some gamesmanship involved? Absolutely, but it appears LaFleur is down to get multiple backs in the mix. It’s a growing NFL trend and was a key part to the Los Angeles offense LaFleur coordinated.

“It’s probably the best thing you can do. Obviously, it saves the body. … I think that’s a privilege being able to have two or even three great guys in the room being able to compete and being able to be a running back community or whatever, just having that rotation because it’s pretty taxing. I think you can see that around the league.

“Like some guys obviously are elite at doing it, but they take care of themselves in practice but being able to just feed off each other and having that rotation, I feel like it’s a really good thing.”

There’s no telling how exactly the snap split is going to look for Allgeier, Love and a guy like James Conner.

For Allgeier, it’s all about trying to add to his toolbox to be that much more ready for whatever situation he is in.

Among the biggest areas is as a pass catcher — he’s never had more than 18 catches in a season — though blocking and upping his elusiveness in the second and third levels are right up there, too.

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