Terrell Davis Questions Broncos' New Timeline for RB Javonte Williams
Hopes remain high within Denver Broncos HQ that star running back Javonte Williams is on track to make an impressive ahead-of-schedule return from a grievous knee injury. Broncos head coach Sean Payton said recently that Williams should return just in time for training camp.
While that is certainly music to Broncos Country's ears, Terrell Davis, the greatest running back in Broncos history, has enough experience of rehabbing knee surgeries to suggest with some authority that baby steps might be the most prudent approach for Williams.
“The knee injury is tricky because nobody wants to be on the field more than we do,” Davis told Phil Milani of the team website. “But you have to listen to your body, and a lot of times your knee, or whatever your injury is, is not responding based off whatever the time period is. 6 to 8 months? And you come back, and you're like, ‘Wait a minute, I know they said it was going to be 100% but it’s not ready.' You would much rather slow roll this thing than to try and get back sooner, and then all of a sudden, you have a setback and you’re not 100%.”
Should Williams suffer any kind of setback, or the medical staff opts to extend his recovery program, the current contingency plan would be power-back Samaje Perine, the runner the Broncos picked up in free agency from the Cincinnati Bengals. Davis knows Perine's game well, so he's fully aware of the physicality the 27-year-old can bring to the table when his number is called.
“Watched him for a very long time. I like his game,” Davis said. “You compliment that with the power in the backfield—that’s what Sean Payton—[is] now trying to find, that little jitter-bug guy is probably the next step.”
READ: Broncos Sign Prolific XFL Running Back
As Davis suggested, inserting a scat-back type option into the mix might be a nice way to round out what the Broncos have assembled to date. No one was added to the running back room during the draft, although a pair of college free agents and an XFL vet were signed. Williams' recovery timeline suggests fairly strongly that the Broncos felt comfortable rolling with what they already had in the room.
The rumor mill continues to connect the high-profile name of Minnesota Vikings superstar running back Dalvin Cook to the Broncos, but that would be a real front-office coup by GM George Paton that would require some serious juggling.
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