The Denver Broncos are favorites to represent the AFC in the Super Bowl, but they're still trying to sort out their running game. They are without last year's leading rusher after releasing Willis McGahee in the offseason, and the current depth chart consists of Ronnie Hillman, Montee Ball, Knowshon Moreno and Lance Ball.
Broncos RB battle remains wide open, fantasy status remains confusing
The Broncos’ running back battle is nowhere close to being settled yet. We break down the fantasy implications.
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Hillman is penciled in as the started and played with the first team in last week's preseason opener against the San Francisco 49ers. He didn't get a chance to do much, gaining nine yards on three carries. Hillman rushed for 327 yards on 84 carries in his rookie year, but his struggles in pass protection kept him from getting on the field much.
Ball came in after Hillman. The second-round rookie is sharing first-team reps with Hillman and has a chance to steal the starting job, but he hasn’t earned that yet, getting nine yards on five carries.
Knowhon Moreno was next. He filled in nicely last year after McGahee went down with a leg injury and didn’t drop off much in preseason, gaining 23 yards on six carries. His biggest strength among the running backs is his pass protection, which should be good enough to earn him third down snaps.
Fantasy impact: After one preseason game and several weeks of training camp, the Broncos’ backfield still has more questions than answers. Most of the beat writers expect the team to use a true rotation, with touches being spread across evenly. It all makes for a confusing fantasy situation, and we probably won’t have any clarity on this battle until the start of the regular season. The Broncos’ next preseason game will be in Seattle on Saturday.
