Broncos Draft Fits: 3 Sleeper Running Backs
In modern times, you want to find a running back on Day 3 of the NFL draft or even a college free agent that can really better the depth chart. That is especially true for the Denver Broncos, the team responsible for the trend of devaluing running backs after they were able to churn out 1,000-yard rushers with a lower investment year after year.
As time goes by, that diminishing value of running backs continues to become more and more pronounced.
With the Broncos really being the forefathers of the 'running backs don’t matter' trend, thanks to the Mike Shanahan/Alex Gibbs zone-blocking scheme, it would be weird to see them place a high round draft value on the position. However, GM George Paton was part of a team that spent a second-round pick on a running back who has since become one of the better players at his position, when healthy, in the NFL.
While the Broncos might have a history and reputation, their new general manager may have a very different view on the value. In the video above, I break down a trio of Day 3 backs flying under the radar for the very factors discussed above.
- Elijah Mitchell, Louisiana
- CJ Marable, Coastal Carolina
- Jermar Jefferson, Oregon State
Denver has an obvious need at the position, especially with Phillip Lindsay potentially on his way out the door and Melvin Gordon and Royce Freeman both having a year left on their respective deals with the Broncos. The team needs to find running back help to, at the very least, add competition in the stable for depth.
Ideally, the Broncos are finding a potential Lindsay or even Gordon replacement in the 2021 draft.
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