ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — It has been an offseason of bold proclamations from Denver Broncos coach Sean Payton. He has expressed a belief that second-year quarterback Bo Nix will be one of the NFL’s “four or five” best within the next two seasons. He has an inkling that this Denver roster, like the six in New Orleans that previously gave him the same feeling, has a chance to compete for a Super Bowl.
On Thursday, Payton offered another prediction.
“You’re going to see, hopefully,” the coach said, “a markedly different running game.”
The Broncos worked tirelessly this offseason to fulfill that promise. After Denver’s season ended with a thud in a lopsided loss to the Buffalo Bills in the wild-card round of the playoffs, the lack of production from the running back spot stuck out like a sore thumb. The three players at the position produced only 37 yards on 11 carries. Nix, not a running back, was the team’s leading rusher (43 yards) for the sixth time in the team’s 18 games.
This offseason, the Broncos “upgraded that position,” Payton said, selecting RJ Harvey in the second round of April’s NFL Draft before signing JK Dobbins in the late stages of free agency.
“I think this with the running game: It’s going to be different,” Payton said after Thursday’s joint practice with the Arizona Cardinals. “When we went through the cutups and watched the offensive line, we just felt like there are other teams where that player is the spaghetti sauce — sometimes there’s a safety that’s (forced) down in the box. We brought in leadership with JK, and we drafted Harvey early, so you’re going to see a difference.
“… It’s not always going to be perfect, but that’s the magic of the good back. There’s been a lot of great runs where maybe the looks weren’t as clean, and it was the ability (of the player). When we watch tapes, sometimes we say, ‘The play or the player?’ As coaches, we’re trying to give them as many plays (that are) good, clean, and yet there are times where it’s the player (who makes the play work). I think that we’re going to be further along there.”
The Broncos changed not only the players featured in the running game this offseason, but the plays as well. During training camp, a parade of blockers who have spoken at a podium outside the team’s locker room following practices have made references to a scheme that has undergone substantial tweaks. Most notably, the offense emphasizes more outside zone concepts, an adjustment that better suits Denver’s personnel both along the offensive front and in the backfield.
“I think we’ve always wanted to be kind of an outside zone team and (now) we’re just kind of committing to it,” tight end Adam Trautman said.
The hope is that the changes — both in personnel and scheme — will make the Broncos not only more consistent as a rushing outfit, but also more explosive. The team’s running backs produced only one run of more than 25 yards last season, tied for the second-fewest in the NFL. The Broncos ranked 27th in runs of 20 or more yards from running backs with four.
“We first look at ourselves, the scheme, and are we doing it the way we want to?” Payton said when discussing the team’s attempts to create more chunk plays in the run game this season. “Then, we’re looking at who are we asking to do it with. Obviously, we’ve added some players in the running back room, and we’re going to be much improved in that area.”
Harvey saw significant action as a ball-carrier in last week’s preseason opener against the 49ers. He showcased the dynamic outside element the Broncos believe he’ll add to their running game when he bounced a zone run outside and got the edge before turning upfield for a 12-yard gain. On another play, though, Harvey got antsy, bypassing a big inside hole just as it materialized, and instead, re-routing the carry to the outside. He nearly reached the edge, but a 49ers defensive back made a shoestring tackle to drop Harvey for a loss. It was a lesson for the rookie ball-carrier. Still, the Broncos are also being careful not to put too many restrictions on Harvey, who Payton calls “an extremely instinctive runner.”
“There are times, maybe, where he bounces it (outside) where you wish he hadn’t, but he usually outruns everybody, so it works out,” offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi said. “He’s doing a really good job and I think he’ll just keep getting better.”
As much as the Broncos are optimistic about Harvey and the running game’s potential, Payton said Thursday the complete picture for that phase is still coming together with Denver’s season opener against the Tennessee Titans about three weeks away. Harvey and Dobbins, who have split first-team reps throughout most of training camp, will be on the roster. The rest of the running back room is still to be determined. Each of the other four backs — Jaleel McLaughlin, Audric Estimé, Tyler Badie and Blake Watson — has had bright moments in camp and brings different elements to the room. But even if the Broncos keep four running backs at cutdown day, something Payton said is well within the realm of possibility, that leaves a pair of talented backs off the initial 53-man roster.
“If you recall, at the start of training camp, I said we’re all going to know (who the right running backs are),” Payton said Thursday. “I hopefully am going to be right, but we all don’t know and it’s still a very competitive spot. … We don’t know yet.”
Payton plans to rest his starters in Saturday’s second preseason game against the Cardinals. That likely means Dobbins and Harvey will be spectators as the other four enter their biggest audition of the offseason so far. They are all vying to be part of a “markedly different” run game that serves as the key to Payton’s other bold predictions for the season coming to life.
“We’re rooting for them all,” Payton said.
(Photo of RJ Harvey: Thearon W. Henderson / Getty Images)
