It’s time for the Broncos to trade for an All-Pro RB

The Denver Broncos entered the season as Super Bowl favorites after winning 14 games last season, but right now it doesn’t seem like they can win a Super Bowl after bad quarterback play and running back play.

The Broncos can solve one of those issues by going out and trading for an All-Pro running back.

Going into the season, the Broncos faced the hardest six-game schedule in the NFL and many were hopeful that the orange and blue would finish with a 3-3 record. Instead, Denver came out of that stretch with a 4-2 record by losing only to the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers. In all honesty, the Broncos could be 5-1 if it wasn’t for a struggling offense that’s averaging just 19 points per game.

A lot of the blame falls on quarterback, Bo Nix, but there needs to be some blame from the Broncos running backs as well.

So far, the Broncos are averaging just 84.2 yards per game on the ground which ranks 27th in the NFL.

Denver’s lead running back, J.K Dobbins, has just 270 yards through six games and averaging just 3.3 yards per carry. Last season, Dobbins had 442 yards and averaged 4.9 yards per carry up to this point of the season.

The Broncos were also hopeful that second-year man, RJ Harvey would add on to his impressive rookie campaign, but that hasn’t been the case either.

Through his first six games last season, Harvey had 154 rushing yards on 33 carries and averaged 4.7 yards per carry. This season, Harvey has just 81 yards on 21 carries for just 3.9 yards per carry.

Broncos head coach has been asked questions about how his offense can off to faster starts and he’s talked about getting more yards on early downs to make 2nd and 3rd down more manageable, but it continues to be an issue from the run game.

This season, the Broncos have run the ball 69 times on 1st downs and have gained four yards or less 51 times. That is nearly 74% of the time that the Broncos are in 2nd and 6 or longer. Denver has also gained just two yards or less 36 times.

It’s fair to say that there isn’t any explosive plays coming from the Broncos’ rushing attack. They’ve had only five rushes go for over 10 yards this season compared to having nine at this point last season.

Before the trade deadline last season, the Broncos could’ve made a trade for New York Jets star running back, Breece Hall, even after Dobbins went down with an injury. Denver’s front office didn’t want to meet the asking price of the Jets which was a third-round pick.

In free agency, the Broncos had chances to make strong pushes for free agent running backs, Kenneth Walker or Travis Etienne Jr. Instead, Denver decided to pass on both and draft Jonah Coleman out of Washington and he has only played in one game before suffering a high ankle sprain.

Etienne is in New Orleans averaging 4.3 yards per carry and Walker is with Kansas City leading the NFL with 665 yards and six touchdowns.

Since the Broncos have failed to swing the bat twice, they can’t let strike three happen by not making a move for an All-Pro running back while they’re in a Super Bowl window.

On July 19, the Indianapolis Colts fired general manager, Chris Ballard after his Colts started off with a 2-4 record. This means that the Colts could look to punt their season and begin rebuilding if they don’t turn things around.

On “Up and Adams,” James Palmer explained, “You make a move with your general manager in the middle of the season, what does it usually do. Well the man who put the team together, who acquired those players is no longer in the building. So that person is no longer fighting to say ‘hey we want to keep this guy.” Palmer continued, “Are veterans going to be potentially on the move before November 10th (trade deadline)? Is anyone interested in Jonathan Taylor?”

Currently, Taylor is 6th in the NFL in rushing yards (492), averaging 4 yards per carry and is tied for the lead in rushing touchdowns from the running back position.

The Broncos could send the Colts some draft picks so that they can begin their rebuild.

Taylor currently has an out in 2027 where he would have a dead cap of $10 million otherwise he remains under contract through 2028 and will have cap hits of $21 million and $22.9 million in each of the next two years.

Another running back that could become available is Philadelphia Eagles running back, Saquon Barkley.

Currently, Barkley is out with a hamstring injury, but should be back sooner than later. He’s averaging 5.1 yards per carry in the four games he’s played in and is averaging 82.5 yards per game when he’s carried the ball 15 times in two of the four games.

With quarterback, Jalen Hurts missing the remainder of the season due to blood clots and the Eagles having so many guys injured, things could take a turn for the worst in Philly.

Fans want Nick Sirianni out and if things continue to get worse, general manager Howie Roseman could make a change.

Don’t forget that Roseman does like to make trades and seems to always want to make a deal no matter what. If for some reason, the Eagles have to find a new quarterback in the draft, this upcoming draft is the one to do it where potentially four to five quarterbacks can be selected in the first-round.

Philadelphia don’t have multiple picks in the first two rounds of the 2027 draft, but they do have multiples in 2028. If the Broncos are willing to give up a high draft pick for Barkley, that could help the Eagles put a package together to move up and draft their next franchise quarterback.

Barkley had a cap hit of $9.8 million entering the season and his number will go up in 2027 to $13 million and $17 million in 2028. Denver could restructure Barkley’s deal to make it more friendly for themselves before Barkley’s contract would be up.

Another name that the Broncos could look to trade for is Tennessee Titans running back, Tony Pollard.

Despite not being an All-Pro, he did make the Pro Bowl in 2022 and is coming off four-straight 1,000-yard seasons.

Pollard is in the final year of his contract and the Titans have started the season 1-5.

So far, Pollard is 14th in the NFL in rushing yards with 349, but is averaging 4 yards per carry which is more than what Dobbins and Harvey are averaging for the Broncos.

As the Titans continue to rebuild around their young quarterback and head coach, Denver could send them a mid to late-round pick to spark their running back room for the rest of the season.

The Broncos cannot sit and wait to see if one of their running backs can break out and improve the offense. It’s understandable that they’re high on their rookie, Coleman, but can you trust a rookie when your team is in a Super Bowl window?

If the Broncos decide to make a trade for one of these three running backs, they would not only improve the offense on early downs, they would also help Bo Nix who is in a funk right now.

Denver could be playing on Valentine’s Day with one of these running backs.

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