The NFL draft is in the rear-view, but as we covered on Monday, the Denver Broncos might not be done adding to their roster. There are a few positions that could use a little touch-up before fully falling into line for the long march of the 2025 regular season.
Running back is one of those positions. The Broncos drafted RJ Harvey in the second round, and while Audric Estime offers some between-the-tackles power, Sean Payton is lacking a proven veteran presence in Bo Nix's backfield.
CBS Sports' Cody Benjamin sees former Cleveland Browns running back Nick Chubb as a prime option to offer the Broncos that proven veteran presence.
"Sean Payton handpicked a new face of the backfield in RJ Harvey, the club's second-round draft pick out of UCF," Benjamin wrote. "The rookie offers a workhorse mentality, but he's also smaller by NFL standards (5-foot-8, 205 pounds). Chubb could give the team more proven insurance and a potential safety valve for young Bo Nix under center."
Insurance is a good word for it. The Broncos could use some at running back, even though the team is absolutely thrilled and confident in what Harvey brings to the table.
Chubb suffered a MCL and a damaged ACL in September of 2023, and subsequently, started off the following season on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list. He would go on to appear in just eight games in 2024, rushing for 332 yards and three touchdowns, with an average of 3.3 yards per carry, a career-low.
But, as Broncos Country saw following Javonte Williams' 2022 injury, it can take a running back time to fully recover from a grievous knee injury. In his full prime, Chubb produced four straight 1,000-yard rushing seasons, with his career-high coming in 2022 (1,525 yards and 12 touchdowns), garnering All-Pro accolades and four Pro Bowl nods.
Chubb is still under 30 (birthday crossing the milestone is in December), so a reasonable one-year mercenary deal could offer a team like the Broncos a low-risk, high-reward insurance policy behind Harvey and Estime — the team's top-two projected running backs.
There's a reason why Chubb has lingered on the free-agent market this long, though. It's not just that teams are wary of his knee and relative age; he looked utterly diminished when he returned to the field last year.
Before 2024, Chubb's career rushing average was an eye-popping 5.4 yards per carry. To turn in a season a full two yards under that career average is the biggest reason why NFL teams are skeptical.
However, when the rubber starts hitting the road in training camps across the fruited plain, running backs will get hurt. That's when experienced guys like Chubb will start to come at a premium.
The Broncos could get ahead of that curve by signing him now. All in all, I don't disagree with Benjamin's read on the situation. The Broncos could use one piece of veteran insurance at running back.
