Competition at Running Back?

[Morpheus]

Broncos RB C.J. Anderson Hopes to Push Montee Ball

I am all for the idea of RB by committee to keep these guys healthy over the course of a season.

And as I have previously stated, concerned about pass protection and receiving out of eh BF at the RB position.

Should we have a lone starter at #1? Or should they rotate?

 

[MrDoc420]

I think Ball has the build to be a 250+ carry back, but I honestly hope Hillman and Andersen are given their chances in camp to earn playing time. I especially like what little I saw of Andersen in preseason last year, so maybe the kid will shine again this year and get some touches. The RB carousel seems to be the popular way to go these days.

I know alot of people are high on Ball, but I personally haven't seen enough from him (granted, one season) to just go into 2014 saying that he's gonna be the man. This could be a very interesting competition going into camp.

 

[cdumler7]

Just a quick stat that I saw earlier today that I thought I would throw out. In 241 carries last season Moreno had 21 broken tackles. Ball carried the ball 120 times and had 19 broken tackles. You give Ball Moreno's carries and he continues at the pace he was going he would have finished in the top-5 in the NFL. Not saying that shows he will succeed this year but I will say in a Manning lead offense if a RB with only a 6 man box can make one guy miss it is usually 10-15 yards before he sees another player near him.

 

[Morpheus]

I think Ball has the build to be a 250+ carry back, but I honestly hope Hillman and Andersen are given their chances in camp to earn playing time. I especially like what little I saw of Andersen in preseason last year, so maybe the kid will shine again this year and get some touches. The RB carousel seems to be the popular way to go these days.

I know alot of people are high on Ball, but I personally haven't seen enough from him (granted, one season) to just go into 2014 saying that he's gonna be the man. This could be a very interesting competition going into camp.

Anderson actually has 7 attempts for 38 yards in the Regular season last year.

There will definitely be competition in camp this year. Personally, I have seen enough of Hillman and think the only asset he really has is speed.

But rotating Anderson and Ball would be a pretty nice backfield tandem if they can get the job done and stay healthy.

 

[Morpheus]

Just a quick stat that I saw earlier today that I thought I would throw out. In 241 carries last season Moreno had 21 broken tackles. Ball carried the ball 120 times and had 19 broken tackles. You give Ball Moreno's carries and he continues at the pace he was going he would have finished in the top-5 in the NFL. Not saying that shows he will succeed this year but I will say in a Manning lead offense if a RB with only a 6 man box can make one guy miss it is usually 10-15 yards before he sees another player near him.

I still am not sure anyone at RB currently can replace Moreno's Pass Protection ability and receiving out of the backfield.

Not saying it can't be done by any of these guys. But Ball was not exemplary in pass protection last year.

 

[cdumler7]

I know Ball started out bad at the beginning of the season in pass blocking but just a little piece of info on how he finished in PFF actually had Ball as the better blocker of the two with him finishing 26th in the league and Moreno finishing 30th in pass blocking. Now given PFF isn't the end all be all in trying to grade players and such but they are a good starting point. I think Ball's blocking was a bit overblown as most people just remember him whiffing in the preseason against Seattle and getting Manning almost killed.


Also been hearing reports from camp that Ball has been much better at knowing exactly which player he is supposed to block and that coaches have been impressed with his technique. Now given this is without pads on yet so hard to tell too much but the fact that he knows who he is supposed to block on every play is a good start. Also coaches have been very impressed with his receiving skills so far. He also improved in this area as the season went on so my guess is this off season he spent most of his time focusing on those 2 things and conditioning.

 

[randymon]

I feel very confident in Ball and actually have high hopes for Hilman to turn things around this yr and earn the # 2 slot behind Ball. I know he's worked very hard, put on some more weight/ muscle and has a very improved attitude this yr. He very well could surprise us and be that guy everyone thought he'd be coming in. I'm rooting for the guy no doubt. We'll see in camp and pre-season.

 

[MileHigh64]

Frankly, I'm a little nervous about our running backs this upcoming season. I like all of them for different reasons but feel like the group is young and unproven. There seems to definitely be upside with all of them but I would feel better if there was a proven veteran in the group. I wouldn't be surprised if the Broncos staff doesn't add a vet at some point to provide some leadership and trustworthy performance. It can be very difficult to learn the Broncos offense on the fly but a veteran would certainly understand pass protections and ball security.

I hope my nervousness is not warranted. I really want to see the Broncos field a more balanced offense. The fact that we had become such a finesse, passing team really hurt us in the Superbowl, in my opinion. Peyton and our receiving corps are going to be great again, but I yearn for the years when Terrell Davis was tearing the league to pieces! Go Broncos!

MH64

 

[DownSetHutch]

I agree MH. As I have stated before, we need someone who can get the tough yards, like on 3rd and short, 4th and 1, and goal-line situations. I'm hoping C.J. Anderson can fill that role, as Ball and Hillman are a little on the small side. We shall see.

One thing that should (hopefully) help the running game out is having a bigger, more powerful line to open holes. I hope Franklin is able to be productive at LG. He is pretty nasty, so I have high hopes for him.

 

[TDs3nOut]

I agree MH. As I have stated before, we need someone who can get the tough yards, like on 3rd and short, 4th and 1, and goal-line situations. I'm hoping C.J. Anderson can fill that role, as Ball and Hillman are a little on the small side. We shall see.

One thing that should (hopefully) help the running game out is having a bigger, more powerful line to open holes. I hope Franklin is able to be productive at LG. He is pretty nasty, so I have high hopes for him.

That might be more of a factor than whether we have good enough backs. We do play against what figure to be some of the better defenses in the league this year.

I guess that losing Moreno's production from last year has me a little concerned about RB depth. At the same time, I don't know that the RB situation a year ago looked a lot more promising than it now does. I suspect that Knowshown at least equaled, if not surpassed, what most were expecting from him a year ago. Not out of the question that this year's group produces as well as our backs last year did. Ball played pretty well down the stretch last year and CJ showed some good physicality in the preseason.

 

[Broncos6482]

I agree MH. As I have stated before, we need someone who can get the tough yards, like on 3rd and short, 4th and 1, and goal-line situations. I'm hoping C.J. Anderson can fill that role, as Ball and Hillman are a little on the small side. We shall see.

One thing that should (hopefully) help the running game out is having a bigger, more powerful line to open holes. I hope Franklin is able to be productive at LG. He is pretty nasty, so I have high hopes for him.

The Broncos have Ball listed 5'10 215 and Anderson 5'8" 224. He's really not much bigger than Ball.

Personally, I'm really excited to see what Ball can do. He really seemed to come into his own at the end of last season. I think he was finally comfortable in the offense and he appeared to have overcome his fumbling issues. I think he can really open up the running game in this offense. I appreciate that Moreno was a great teammate and hard worker, but he really had limitations. I've heard it said that if you block the play for 5 yards, Moreno will get you 5. If you block it for 10, he'll get you 10. I think Ball can turn some of those plays into much longer plays (the game against the Chiefs comes to mind where he broke a tackle after about 7 yards and churned out a 45 yard gain).

That brings me to Hillman. Man I really hope he's finally figured out the fumbling, and the Broncos can find a way to use him in space because his speed could really be a weapon. That said, I'm sick and tired of the Broncos seeming attempts to make him the feature back, or force him to be the between the tackles, goal line runner they tried to make him at times last year (the Indy game being the perfect example). That said, he should be on an extremely short leash and the first time he fumbles I hope I never see him again.

As for Anderson, I did like what I saw from him in preseason last year, but that's tempered by the fact that he was going up against a bunch of third and fourth stringers. I'm not really expecting much out of him.

 

[Morpheus]

I am hoping for the best but this is a young group and they have a lot to prove on the field.

I have high hopes for Ball and I think CJ Anderson can have an impact, especially in the short yardage game.

As for Anderson, I did like what I saw from him in preseason last year, but that's tempered by the fact that he was going up against a bunch of third and fourth stringers. I'm not really expecting much out of him.

He did see some regular season carries last year and averaged over 5 YPC. Granted it was only 7 attempts, but it was against starting defenses, not 3rd and 4th string players.

 

[Broncos6482]

I am hoping for the best but this is a young group and they have a lot to prove on the field.

I have high hopes for Ball and I think CJ Anderson can have an impact, especially in the short yardage game.



He did see some regular season carries last year and averaged over 5 YPC. Granted it was only 7 attempts, but it was against starting defenses, not 3rd and 4th string players.

I know that but 7 carries isn't nearly enough to form an educated opinion about him.

 

[Morpheus]

I know that but 7 carries isn't nearly enough to form an educated opinion about him.

Sure, but he had some decent performances at CAL against some tough PAC 12 teams, Stanford, USC, Oregon.

And the coaches are pretty high on him. At the very least he will compete.

 

[randymon]

Can`t wait to see how all the rbs perform in camp and pre-season. Could be Denver has to release some possible future stars. Looks to be quite the battle among these guys for roster spots. Special teams play could be deciding factor as to who sticks around.

 

[cdumler7]

Can`t wait to see how all the rbs perform in camp and pre-season. Could be Denver has to release some possible future stars. Looks to be quite the battle among these guys for roster spots. Special teams play could be deciding factor as to who sticks around.

That is actually a big reason Lance Ball stuck around so long. Coaches loved him on special teams and was a guy that could step in if needed for a game or two and give us 15 or so carries. Now given he was only going to average 3 yards a carry during that time but as a 4th option he fit his role well.

My one concern with so much youth in the backfield is just going to be the inexperience in the big moments. I don't think either of the 2 UDFA rookies are going to be ready week 1 so we are going to have to hope that if they are needed it isn't till the end of the year. I'm hoping both Ball and Anderson have worked on their blocking more than anything else. Both actually ran the ball better than Moreno last year (given smaller sample size) but both when in had to have Manning point to the exact guy he was supposed to block. Slows down our offense and takes away from the focus of Manning. I have heard Ball has definitely improved but nothing on Anderson yet.

 

[randymon]

Good point on Lance cd and there's this other guy some might have heard of that made this major stick on some dude during a kick off return that opened some eyes, got him a roster spot and some Denver Broncos infamy....Terrell something..

 

[cdumler7]

Haha that is probably one of my favorite TD moments! Every year before the season starts I love to watch that play at least 10 times. I'm hoping the team plays that play sometime during OTA's to those guys trying to make the roster as a reminder of just how important ST plays can be not only for the team but also in making an impression on the coaching staff.


Heck we have a guy right now in Bruton who got paid a decent contract because of what he does on special teams.