Five Burning Questions: Broncos RB Royce Freeman on Year 2 and more
Jun 26, 2019, 7:29 AM | Updated: 11:47 am
After being selected by the Denver Broncos in round three of the 2018 NFL Draft, running back Royce Freeman had high expectation placed upon him for his rookie campaign. But those expectations were hampered a bit by injuries and the emergence of Pro Bowler Phillip Lindsay.
Sports Radio 104.3 The Fan caught up with Freeman a couple of weeks ago at Coors Field during the 2019 UCHealth Healthy Swings Charity Home Run Derby, where he dished on his expectations for his sophomore season and his offseason plans:
Digital content producer Johnny Hart: What’s the next step for you in year two?
Royce Freeman: Just improving. Using this time, OTAs, minicamp, training camp to improve on things. Last season, I feel I can work on. I always feel I can get better. But year two, establishing more comfort, establishing more familiarity with everything. Just working toward everything (to become) a better overall player.
Hart: How do you balance competitiveness among the running backs room with being able to keep pushing each other?
Freeman: We have a lot of Pac-12 backs in the backfield in Devontae, me, Phil, Khalfani and we just kind of feed off each other. We’re so competitive and everything, even from practice and the film room. Obviously, we’re always helping each other come back and be like, ‘What did you see?’ Getting that honest opinion from your teammate so you can get better. You know, iron sharpens iron. And it’s just like the friendly nature, that comfort that we have with each other, I think that’s what helps us grow, especially in the running back room. We have to trust each other that no matter who’s in the game the job’s going to get done.
Hart: What do you do during the offseason? Do you go on vacation? Do you just try to rest? Do you study up?
Freeman: I think you’ve got to do a combination of all three. It’s always a working job. You study, make sure you’re training your body still, keeping in the groove so you don’t come back out of whack. You get to see your family or your loved ones, people that are important to you. It gives you that wholesome feeling, that cause and a purpose and how you got to where you are. That’s how I feel. And then, take some downtime for yourself. Enjoy it because when the season starts, you’re locked in from then on.
Hart: Playstation or X-Box?
Freeman: Always Playstation. It’s always been Playstation. I’ve never really been an X-Box person. But I only play a couple of video games. I don’t even play a lot of them. I stick to that rotation.
Hart: Favorite all-time video game?
Freeman: “Super Smash Bros.” on GameCube. Recently, if it’s just a regular game, it’d probably be “Modern Warfare 2.”
