With the league leaning further and further into the passing attack, the Denver Broncos are looking to zag, as they invest in a lethal ground-and-pound assault.
That vision has the running back room look like one of the roster’s most talented position groups as training camp nears, but who will survive roster cuts, and who will win the starting job? Plus, what can Broncos Country expect from young talents Audric Estime and Jaleel McLaughlin? Let’s find out.
Position Preview article series so far:
Grading The RBs and TEs Podcast Episode:
Starter: Javonte Williams
Will He Make The Roster? Almost definitely. That said, with at least three other roster-worthy backs on the roster, if the Denver Broncos come to the conclusion that Javonte Williams’ leg is fried and he’ll never be the same again, they could look to part ways early.
Williams’ contract expires after this season, so if the Broncos don’t think he’ll be back to himself this season, it might make sense to cut bait now, and try to recoup some draft capital.
All that said, any trade or cut scenario is relatively far-fetched.
What Will His Projected Role Be? Week 1 starting running back. How long he keeps that job will have a lot to do with how healthy he is.
If the Denver Broncos get the same version of Williams they got a season ago, Estime could steal the job as the lead back by midseason.
If the Broncos get the same version of Williams they got pre-injury, however, he should keep a vice-like grip on the starting job all season, although Estime should still contribute a great deal.
What Would Define A Successful Season? Returning to be the same old Javonte Williams or developing his vision enough so that it doesn’t matter.
Admittedly, neither of these seem overly likely. Williams’ 2021 knee injury is one of the most devastating injuries we’ve seen anywhere in football over the last half-decade. The fact he returned at all is amazing, let alone the fact that he was a competent starter for much of last season.
So, now demanding that same player to perform as if such an injury never happened is a ridiculously tall order, but it’s also likely the bar Williams will need to clear for the Broncos to want to re-sign him at season’s end.
On the flip side, it all feels extreme to ask Williams, who has some of the shakiest backfield vision in the league, to take huge strides in an area where we so rarely see notable NFL development. The injury recovery honestly seems more likely.
What Questions Does He Still Have To Answer? Can he be as impactful as he once was?
Rookie year Javonte Williams is one of the best power backs we’ve seen in the modern NFL, and that’s not hyperbole. In terms of breaking tackles, only Nick Chubb and prime Marshawn Lynch have had comparable rates of shaking defenders off, per PFF. He comfortably led the league in missed tackles forced per carry, and the gap between him and second place was nearly the same as the gap between second place and the league average.
That rushing ability is so valuable to have, because it doesn’t rely on the offensive line. So often we talk about the line having more impact on the ground game than the back, and that’s absolutely true, but possessing a skillset like Williams does makes it more of a conversation.
It also negated Williams’ vision issues. It didn’t really matter if Williams chose the wrong hole because he could still gain four yards by shaking off or carrying opposing defenders downfield.
Starter: Michael Burton
Will He Make The Roster? Almost definitely. Maybe Nate Adkins could challenge him a little bit for this spot, considering the Broncos would save $167,000 by moving on. That said, as one of the best fullbacks in the league, Burton isn’t worth cutting for such a paltry amount of money, and there is no clear challenger on the roster.
What Will His Projected Role Be? Starting fullback. He might even see some work as an inline blocker depending on how the blocking tight end battle shapes up.
What Would Define A Successful Season? Continuing to be one the league’s best fullbacks. It’s hard to expect much out of Burton, given his position, but considering the fact the Denver Broncos are paying him like one of the league’s best fullbacks, he needs to perform as such.
What Questions Does He Still Have To Answer? This might be the only player with no questions left to answer really. I guess you could reach for, ‘Is he worth taking up a roster spot, considering his position?’ But the retort is very quick ‘yes.’
Rotational: Audric Estime
Will He Make The Roster? Weirdly, the Day 3 rookie projects to be the safest member of the Denver Broncos’ backfield, thanks to Williams’ health concerns and Burton’s position.
Estime is a pro-ready back who runs with violence and offers high-end vision from the jump. If this line provides him a crease, he’ll fire through it and leave some bruises on whoever tries to bring him down.
He lasted until the fifth round because of his lack of demonstrated receiving ability, and his extremely poor 40-yard dash time. While both shortcomings will impact his ability to regularly create explosive runs, he could easily be Denver’s best snap-to-snap back from Week 1 on.
What Will His Projected Role Be? Rotational back that sees a larger and larger share of the snaps as the season wears on.
Although Denver’s backfield is more talented than it was a season ago, they’re still without a clear star running back, and so they’re likely to use all three of their rostered backs very regularly. This means Estime should have plenty of time to shine and present his case to the coaching staff as the Broncos’ lead back of the future.
Aiding Estime in that pitch is the fact that the Broncos’ coaches are financially motivated to see him as the long-term answer over Williams, because doing so allows them to let Williams walk without much sweat.
In the NFL, teams often have a way of making the evaluation they want to make, though that’s not to say Estime couldn’t win this job on his merit alone, as he certainly could. This just gives him the inside track.
What Would Define A Successful Season? Instilling confidence in the staff and Broncos Country that the Denver Broncos have their starting back for 2025 already under contract.
Doing so would not only allow them to let Williams walk, but it would also make it much less likely the Broncos look to add serious competition to the backfield, inflating Estime’s job security.
A more niche goal, and one that will help determine the result of the first, would be for Estime to develop as a pass-catcher. He doesn’t have to be a playmaker out of the backfield, but if he can show soft enough hands to be a reliable check-down target, he’ll be well-positioned to be Denver’s lead back moving forward.
What Questions Does He Still Have To Answer? How concerning is the 40-yard dash time? Beyond the receiving ability, this is another big question of his.
Based on tape alone, it doesn’t look like much of a problem. Estime looks plenty fast to translate to the next level, but his 40 time was an extreme negative outlier.
Can he show enough quickness to consistently make it through smaller and shorter NFL windows, or will the uptick in speed be too much for him?
Rotational: Jaleel McLaughlin
Will He Make The Roster? It seems pretty likely that Jaleel McLaughlin will make the final 53, but with legit challenges coming from Samaje Perine and Blake Watson, he’s far from safe.
What Will His Projected Role Be? Sean Payton’s new ‘Joker’ — a prominent receiving role that has long existed in Payton’s offense.
“The ‘Joker’ player for us is not a receiver,” Payton said last summer. “It’s either a running back or a tight end with exceptional ball skills, and then you can work matchups. We’ve had that at the running back [position]. Reggie Bush was the ‘Joker,’ Darren Sproles and Alvin Kamara [were the ‘Joker’]. Those were all unique players, not just in the running game, but they had passing game skill sets that allowed you to do multiple things.”
Last offseason, it was heavily hyped that Greg Dulcich was emerging in practice as Payton’s ‘Joker’, but when he got injured, that hype quickly evaporated, and considering Adam Trautman’s remarkable lack of production last year, it’s safe to say he didn’t pick up the mantle.
It was McLaughlin and Perine who slid into that role, with McLaughlin getting more and more of those looks as the season went on. McLaughlin showcased an impressive understanding of how to read out his option routes, and, unlike Perine, had the jets to slice a defense’s jugular when given the chance.
The table is set for McLaughlin to thrive in this role, so long as he can beat out Perine in camp.
What Would Define A Successful Season? Taking a serious leap towards fulfilling this ‘Joker’ role for Sean Payton.
He’s unlikely to ever be the down-to-down workhorse back that Alvin Kamara was, but imagining him as a lesser Darren Sproles is easy to do.
A year from now, if we don’t have to preface that comparison with the word ‘lesser’ when projecting what we want to see for 2025, it would be the result of a remarkably successful season from McLaughlin.
What Questions Does He Still Have To Answer? Will his physical limitations in pass protection limit his ability to become a high-end receiving threat?
There’s a reason why the players primarily tasked with blocking pass rushers are built like redwoods, and not like the 5-foot-7, 187-pound Jaleel McLaughlin. When he’s asked to stay in to pass protect and winds up picking up an incoming rusher, there’s very little resistance he can provide, and that’s not even really his fault. It’s just the fact of the matter given his physical profile.
That profile also lets him pull away from defensive backs on occasion, so you live with it, so long as his blocking limitations don’t make him too one-dimensional. That will require him to figure out some tricks to maximize his blocking ability, and/or furthering developing his lethality as a pass-catcher and rusher.
Cut: Samaje Perine
Will He Make The Roster? It’s close to a coin flip, but it seems more likely that Samaje Perine is cut.
Perine was an incredibly useful player last year, especially in the passing game, but the addition of Audric Estime seems likely to squeeze him out. Jaleel McLaughlin is a more appealing rusher and a more dynamic receiver, so if Javonte Williams is healthy, the pitch for Perine is going to come down to veteran know-how and his pass protection ability.
For a team in a Super Bowl window with an aging immobile quarterback, that would be appealing. But for a cheap, rebuilding operation that is desperately searching for talented youth, it’s much less appealing
Plus, the Broncos would save a few million dollars by parting.
What Will His Projected Role Be? If he makes the roster, he should be the go-to third-down back much like he was last season. He still has the best skillset there for now, as he’s a proven receiver and pass-protector, while McLaughlin only checks one of those boxes, and it’s one he has to develop further.
If he doesn’t, he will quickly be signed by a contender for running back help. With that in mind, the Broncos might be wise to seek out some form of cheap trade, so they can part ways without being left empty-handed.
What Would Define A Successful Season? If Perine is able to sustain a level of production anything like his 2023 season, he would secure another solid NFL contract in 2025 free agency as one of the league’s more reliable pass-game running backs. Perine is unlikely to ever become a ‘bell cow’ back, so that’s likely the best possible outcome for him here.
What Questions Does He Still Have To Answer? Why should the Denver Broncos keep him and not Jaleel McLaughlin?
Audric Estime is practically guaranteed a roster spot, as are veterans Javonte Williams and Michael Burton. Odds are the camp battle comes down to McLaughlin vs. Perine, and the argument for McLaughlin seems more appealing.
He is the younger, cheaper option, who the Broncos have roster control over for longer, boasts more upside, and is already a more dynamic threat both as a receiver and ball carrier. Meanwhile, Perine’s case is largely going to rely on veteran know-how, reliability, his high-level pass-blocking ability, and the fact he’s a strong receiving back in his own right.
Perine has to find a way to catch McLaughlin if he wants to make the final 53.
Practice Squad: Blake Watson
Will He Make The Roster? Probably not. Watson projects a niche role player, who will struggle mightily in pass protection, due to physical limitations, but can make up for it with exceptional quickness.
Unfortunately for Watson, the Broncos already have a young, cheap running back, who they will have roster control of for years and Jaleel McLaughlin has already proven to be an impactful regular-season NFL player. Odds are Watson sticks on the practice squad if he sticks around in Denver at all.
What Will His Projected Role Be? He projects to be a very similar player to Jaleel McLaughlin, so odds are he’s used very similarly. The problem is there isn’t room for two of those guys on a 53-man roster. As a result, Watson will probably serve as McLaughlin’s backup from the practice squad.
What Would Define A Successful Season? If Watson makes the roster as a rookie undrafted free agent, in one of the Denver Broncos’ deepest and most competitive position groups, his season would be a rousing success. Frankly, if Watson makes a strong positive impact during his several months on the practice squad, that would be a win.
What Questions Does He Still Have To Answer? Can his slight frame hold up to NFL contact? That’s always a question with smaller backs (5-foot-9, 195 pounds), and we won’t know until at least preseason.
Can he be a dynamic enough receiver to offset his pass protection limitations? If he’s a liability in pass protection, teams will know he’s almost certainly either going out for a route or getting the ball. That’s not great, but it gets even worse if he’s a limited receiver or runner, as it would instantly make him one-dimensional.
Cut: Tyler Badie
Will He Make The Roster? Almost certainly not. He would have to outperform three of the backs ranked ahead of him here, and most of those backs were around to push Badie down to the practice squad a season ago.
In other words, why would he make the roster now, if he couldn’t when the room was less talented?
What Will His Projected Role Be? Maybe he sneaks onto the practice squad, but it seems the Broncos would prefer Blake Watson, at this point, so he’ll likely be looking for work outside of Denver.
What Would Define A Successful Season? If Badie sticks around on the practice squad again, and doesn’t have his NFL dream thrown into further jeopardy, that would be a win. Making the roster would be a triumph.
What Questions Does He Still Have To Answer? How does he stack up with Blake Watson? It seems like the practice squad running back spot will be determined by the winner of that battle, so how Badie compares to the Memphis UDFA will be massive.
