Among Sean Payton\u2019s many \u2013isms is his specific view on an offense\u2019s running-back carousel, crafted from years of wildly different skill sets in New Orleans. It\u2019s easy to feature two RBs, Payton has said. Harder to feature three.<\/p>\n
And yet the Broncos now find themselves with three running backs who demand featuring.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it\u2019s a good problem to have,\u201d Payton said Thursday, asked if he still believes in his own adage. \u201cI know you can feature two. I think three is difficult\u00a0sometimes. But I\u2019m not worried about that right now. Just \u2014 let\u2019s go, and these guys are all competing for their spots.\u201d<\/p>\n
Two days later, asked on Payton\u2019s two-not-three belief, Broncos running backs Lou Ayeni visibly suppressed slight disagreement. The truth is that Denver did\u00a0find concrete roles at times last season for three backs \u2014 RJ Harvey, Jaleel McLaughlin and Tyler Badie all had their niche down the stretch \u2014 and there\u2019s wiggle room in new coordinator Davis Webb\u2019s offense for a stable of RBs to run.<\/p>\n
J.K. Dobbins will lead the pack again. RJ Harvey is developing and has torn Denver linebackers and safeties up all camp on wheel and choice routes out of the backfield. Plus, the Broncos didn\u2019t draft Jonah Coleman early in the fourth round just to stash the rookie in 2026 \u2014 and Coleman\u2019s already outrunning expectations in training camp.<\/p>\n
\u201cListen, if you\u2019re a good player, we\u2019ll find a way to use you,\u201d Ayeni told The Post on Saturday. \u201cLike, yeah, I understand what Coach is saying about \u2013 I don\u2019t know if it\u2019s about featuring them, or putting them all in the right position to help us win games. I think that\u2019s what we\u2019ll do with those guys.\u201d<\/p>\n
The greater force powering this potential three-back carousel is Coleman, the 220-pound rookie who made an immediate impression on Denver\u2019s brass in an initial interview at the NFL Combine in February and has only gained momentum since. Ayeni noted, specifically, that Coleman played for Washington head coach Jedd Fisch for all four years of college football, who comes from a pro coaching tree and told The Post this spring that the running back will walk into the Broncos\u2019 building with an understanding \u201cof a lot of NFL protection schemes.\u201d<\/p>\n
That has played out through Denver\u2019s offseason program and beyond, as Coleman has frequently made plays as a chip-and-release back in passing situations during team periods this training camp. When asked Wednesday if any player has been a pleasant surprise in camp, Payton took a few seconds to think before specifically pointing to Coleman: \u201cYou don\u2019t feel a rookie,\u201d Payton said.<\/p>\n
Ayeni took that evaluation a step further on Saturday.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou just see a guy who doesn\u2019t get rattled,\u201d Ayeni said on Coleman. \u201cHe can solve problems on the field. He\u2019s a quick processor. And there\u2019s just no panic in his game. There\u2019s a lot of little savviness to him, for a rookie. Which is kind of hard to \u2013 usually, you grow into that. And he\u2019s already got it. And I think the biggest thing for me with him is, like, man, he\u2019s a lot better route-runner than you think. Got a little more quickness than you think. Better hands than you think.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s just a good football player.\u201d<\/p>\n
In team periods, through a few weeks of camp, Coleman has already put more on tape than Harvey in getting skinny on between-the-tackles carries, which was a major growth point for the second-year back in his rookie season. Harvey scored 12 touchdowns in 2025 and was one of the more impressive backs in the league in bouncing off contact in the open field. But he appeared to struggle with his vision and decisiveness in hitting holes at times as a rookie, trying too often to hit home runs to the edge and averaging just 3.0 yards per carry when running outside the tackles.<\/p>\n
Harvey, still, hasn\u2019t had many flashy reps through camp on cutting back to an inside hole on wide-zone carries. Still, he took clear RB1 reps Saturday in an apparent veteran-rest day for Dobbins, and the Broncos are encouraged by his progress in several areas. Ayeni\u2019s own kids, after all, darted around on the practice field wearing No. 12 Harvey jerseys.<\/p>\n
\u201cI just see a better player,\u201d Ayeni said of Harvey. \u201cI really do. I see a player out here \u2013 like, he\u2019s a fast kid already, and that was always his crutch. But now he\u2019s playing faster.\u201d<\/p>\n
In particular, Harvey took leaps last season as a pass-protector because he\u00a0had\u00a0to, as Ayeni pointed out, with Dobbins\u2019 season-ending injury in Week 10. Denver\u2019s utilization of Badie as their third-down back last season wasn\u2019t just because the Broncos trusted him more in obvious pass-protection situations; it was also to give Harvey a \u201cbreather,\u201d as Ayeni said, as he was banged up down the stretch in 2025 while shouldering an RB1 burden.<\/p>\n
Coleman brings ready-made third-down traits, with pass-catching ability and enough force as a blocker to lift Commanders first-round LB Sonny Styles from air to dirt in a game against Ohio State last season. But Harvey has been getting significant work as the primary back in hurry-up team periods, signaling more trust in him in pure-passing situations.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe certainly has the mind and the ability to go do that stuff, and then maybe we can get him more involved in some of the pass-game stuff when we\u2019re doing it.\u201d<\/p>\n
The room, as a whole, has taken a massive leap \u2014 as Payton has pointed out several times \u2014 since the Broncos\u2019 head coach first arrived in 2023. Badie\u2019s role may become obsolete with Coleman\u2019s addition, but he\u2019s still a steady, high-IQ veteran who Denver trusts on passing downs. Fourth-year RB Jaleel McLaughlin has flashed typical standout speed on both pass-catching and outside runs in camp, and Denver has liked December waiver-claim Cody Schrader enough to give him significant third-team touches in camp.<\/p>\n
\u201cName six running backs on an NFL team,\u201d offensive coordinator Davis Webb proclaimed Saturday, \u201cthat are as good as our depth right now.\u201d<\/p>\n