Melvin Gordon is Well Within Striking Distance of a 1,000-Yard Rushing Season
Since arriving in the NFL as a then-San Diego Chargers first-round pick back in 2015, running back Melvin Gordon has posted just one 1,000-yard rushing season. He's earned two Pro Bowl nods along the way, which certainly helped him land the two-year, $16 million deal with the Denver Broncos this past spring.
Heading into the season-finale vs. the Las Vegas Raiders, Gordon is on the doorstep of another 1,000-yard season. How close?
107 yards.
Gordon has posted just two 100-yard rushing games in his first season as a Bronco, and, oddly enough, one of them was exactly 107 yards — in Week 4 at the New York Jets. The big boys on the offensive line, you can believe, want that 1,000-yard season for Gordon in a bad way.
Whether or not he gets it will be contingent on a few factors, not the least of which is Gordon's own play, but also game-flow, blocking, and the play-calling. If offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur makes it a focus and in-game objective, Gordon will have a great opportunity to get over the hump.
“As far as the 1,000 yards, it's always an accomplishment to get 1,000 yards, but honestly I feel like my play is better than just 1,000 yards," Gordon said on Wednesday. "It's not really the season I wanted. It's not the season I wanted individually or team-wise, but definitely looking forward to changing that next year."
Gordon's first year in Denver has been a disappointment for the team. The Broncos enter Week 17 at 5-10 and will miss the playoffs for the fifth-straight year since winning Super Bowl 50.
However, despite an ill-advised DUI charge in Denver, Gordon has been a lynchpin to the Broncos offense, helping provide second-year QB Drew Lock a steady presence in the backfield, and picking up the slack left in the wake of Phillip Lindsay's first truly injury-riddled season.
"We have the young team—everybody knew that—it’s not an excuse," Gordon said. "Coming here, them getting to know me, knowing how I run, what I like to run and everything. Being close to 1,000—I haven't got 1,000 yet. I've got to 997 before and missed it, so excuse me if I'm not as amped as I should be, but I feel like I'm way better than that."
Gordon has proven to even the most doubtful Broncos fans that he can be a dynamic playmaker in that backfield. He can catch the ball and pick up the blitz, and when he's on, he can be a very dynamic ball-carrier — provided he doesn't fumble.
That's been the thorn in Gordon's side throughout his NFL career but especially in Denver. He's fumbled four times this year.
However, with Lindsay being as banged up as he's been all year, outside of one three-game reprieve, imagine what the Broncos offense would have looked like this year, as bad as Shurmur's unit has been, without Gordon shouldering the load that he has.
Gordon has accounted for 1,034 yards from scrimmage and nine precious, ever-so-scarce touchdowns. Has his play been worth the $8M APY the Broncos are paying him? I'll let you answer that question, but I'll say this; Gordon has impressed me and given me reason to change my opinion on the value of his contract.
The good news is, the Raiders defense is the statistical mirror image of the Broncos offense. Offensively, the Broncos are ranked in the bottom third in almost every major stat category, and the same can be said for the Raiders defense.
Las Vegas is relinquishing an average of 126.1 yards per game on the ground and heading to the thin air of Mile High with nothing to play for besides pride, the Broncos could really push them around and blast open enough holes to get Gordon over the 1,000-yard hump.
Such an individual achievement might be cold comfort to a fanbase that is sick of losing, but it would provide at least one modest bright spot to end the season, especially if the Broncos can emerge with a win and split with the Raiders.
Follow Chad on Twitter @ChadNJensen and @MileHighHuddle.
