Who could be in line for a breakout season?
Q: Ryan, if Mike Boone is healthy, is he going to be the No. 2 running back this year? I loved watching him play when he was with the Vikings.
— Don Smith, Loveland
Ryan: If the Broncos had to roll the football out and play a game before Thursday, Boone would be their No. 2 running back behind Javonte Williams.
General manager George Paton must have something cooking because Boone has never carried more than 49 times in a season and the organizational mandate is likely going to be not overusing Williams.
Boone could never get out of the blocks last year. He sustained a quad injury in the joint practices at Minnesota and missed Weeks 1-5. He was then a healthy scratch in two of the next six games, carried four times for 35 yards at Kansas
City, but tested positive for COVID-19 days later.
I expect the Broncos to address running back in this weekend’s draft, but don’t count out Boone from having a small role in the offense.
Q; Who do you think is in line for a breakout season? Javonte Williams looks like he’s in store for 1,000-plus yards. What do you think about someone like Jonathon Cooper? Given the injury history of our starting edge rushers, do you think he could surprise some folks?
— Ron, Parker
Ryan: Can we even count Williams as a break-out candidate? I say we don’t because he carried 203 times last year.
Cooper? Possibly, but he may not get enough playing time to earn breakout consideration.
A few choices:
Receiver KJ Hamler if he is fully recovered from his torn left ACL sustained late September. (I think I said him last year, too.). Tight end Albert Okwuegbunam will also get a chance after Noah Fant was traded.
On defense, outside linebacker Bradley Chubb could be a Re-breakout Player and defensive end Dre’mont Jones would be a good choice.
Q: Do you see the Broncos trading back into the first round Thursday? And if they do, is there anyone they could be targeting? Maybe a defensive tackle?
Parker
Ryan: I would be shocked if the Broncos are willing and find a way to move from No. 64 all the way up to No. 32 on Thursday night. Two reasons: They don’t have a ton of draft capital at their disposal (no first- or second-round picks in 2023). And those big moves are usually made to secure a quarterback and obviously that’s not an issue.
I’ll spin the question around for Marshall: Will the Broncos move up from No. 64 within the second round? I think that’s a long shot, but if they do, it will be for a position of need like a tight end (CSU’S Trey Mcbride) or an edge rusher.
Q: Russell Wilson has two years left on his deal. Any worries he might just up and leave for free agency after next year?
— R.P., San Diego
Ryan: The Broncos should have no worries; if they did, the trade would not have happened. That was the lone luxury of Wilson carrying a no-trade clause. Once talks had progressed far enough with Seattle, the Broncos were permitted to talk to Wilson and sell their franchise, their program and their championship aspirations with him. He liked the message and agreed to be traded.