The Denver Broncos might be a pass-first offense, but that does not mean they can get away with not having a quality run game. Last year the team made it to the Super Bowl partially because Knowshon Moreno put up a career-high season on the ground. Not to mention he had Montee Ball and Ronnie Hillman to back him up and help strengthen the rotation. The Broncos were hoping to get by with just an improved Ball and Hillman could handle the ground game, but an injury to the starter has Denver scrambling for depth.
Ball entered this year as the No. 1 running back and was going a solid job with new title. However, the running back suffered a groin strain on Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals when he was blocked on a 20-yard pass. The injury was originally reported as a freak accident that appeared to be minor. However, the Denver Post is reporting that things might be worse than thought, leaving Ball off the field for a number of weeks or even the whole season. The running back denied the idea.
"It's a process, another process I have to go through. A healing process," Ball said, via the team website. "I'm most definitely going to listen to the training staff again, because they took care of me last time I went through something like this. It's an unfortunate situation for me. That's why I'm not panicking. I want to use a different word, but the word I can think of is, 'It sucks. I mean, it does. It's not good for me, but for the team, we have some backs that showed they are capable of stepping up."
The Broncos are certainly preparing their backup plan if Ball is out for a significant period of time. For now, Hillman takes over the starting job, meaning fantasy owners would be wise to grab him off waivers as quickly as possible. Both running backs are essentially the same type of player in terms of size and athletic ability. However, Hillman has quality hands and could see more plays as a receiver out of the back. In 26 regular-season games, he has 23 catches for 188 yards. The Broncos will look to utilize that immediately.
The Broncos are also looking to the free agent market for help with depth. According to the Denver Post, the Broncos are looking at Mikel LeShoure who came in for a workout. The running back has shown signs of true potential in his short career. He was the victim of a crowded roster in Detroit while putting up 807 yards and nine touchdowns in three seasons. He would at least be a second quality option for the team.
