For Audric Estimé to keep getting carries, he’ll have to remain the ‘hot hand’

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Audric Estimé staked his claim to the role of primary Denver Broncos ballcarrier last Sunday against the Kansas City Chiefs.

And by the time the Broncos needed a drive to win the game in its dying moments, Estimé was the obvious focal point. He carried the football 6 times on that march, mindful of ball protection after two fumbles earlier this season and another in the preseason — a collective tally that threatened to erase any possibility at extensive opportunities.

“I wouldn’t say that was the main thing on my mind, but I definitely had to keep it in the back of my mind,” Estimé said. “We knew that they’re going to try to get the ball out, but that’s just a testament to Coach [Sean] Payton and [running backs] Coach Lou [Ayeni] trusting in me and moments like that — and hopefully they keep on trusting me in moments like that.”

That may well depend on whether Estimé can stay hot.

Until that drive, Estimé had 8 of the Broncos’ 17 rushing attempts. Marvin Mims Jr. had 3. Jaleel McLaughlin and Bo Nix had 2 apiece — with Nix adding one more on that final drive — while Javonte Williams toted the football once while adding a pair of receptions.

But will that carry forward to future games?

“I think if he keeps running the ball like he did, it certainly appeared like that,” offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi said. “He had some success early, and you ride the hot hand.”

And that would mean that getting greater chances against Atlanta would rely on Estimé starting the way he did in Kansas City, when he picked up 24 yards on his first three carries.

“We feel good about him. But we feel good about Javonte. We feel good about Jaleel,” Lombardi said. “But he was the one that was kind of on the good end of the reps.

“And [if] you keep gaining yards when you get the ball, we keep giving you the ball.”

 

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Estimé vowed to be ready.

“I just got to be ready when my time is called,” he said.

And when the emotions of the narrow defeat in Kansas City were still raw, Estimé laid down the gauntlet of how the loss would fuel him.

“I felt something similar [in college], but it’s different, man. It’s more at stake,” he said after last Sunday’s loss. “I’m at the higher level and just the first one I really felt this way in the NFL.

“It’s definitely tough, but I think it’s going to make me into a monster.”

Whether he gets there this Sunday could depend on how he starts. Because after all, he’s built to finish strongly — just as he did in Kansas City.

“We’ll see how it shakes out going forward,” Lombardi said. “But, yeah, I think he’s a big, tough, strong guy, and those guys are built to last.

“So, yeah, he can definitely handle the carries.”