While the Denver Broncos are seeing a speedy recovery from Javonte Williams, Samaje Perine is now in the fold, and the team still needs to settle who the third running back will be. It's early in training camp, but the forgotten man, Tyler Badie, seems to have a hold on the job.
Badie saw the reps behind Williams and Perine when camp started, with the other running backs behind him. Word has been that Badie has been impressive, which increases his hold on the job. Of course, undrafted rookie Jaleel McLaughlin is also fighting for RB3, and he's also been impressive.
There's still a lot of camp to go, but there's a lot pointing to Badie being Denver's third running back. It goes beyond how he's looked at camp, but also the fact he is entering Year 2, while McLaughlin is an undrafted rookie out of Youngstown State.
That's a tough leap for a rookie to make, going from a team that went 7-4 in a smaller division to jumping up the NFL. McLaughlin was impressive at Youngstown State, though, picking up over 1,500 yards and 11 touchdowns, but it's still a tough leap, even for a running back.
Badie doesn't have much experience, with only two touches in the NFL. However, he came to the NFL from Missouri and the SEC, which are some tough defenses to face. In his final year, he picked up 1,600 yards and 14 touchdowns in such a tough division.
Badie has the speed and receiving ability to be a complete threat. What is great to hear coming out of camp is hope he has done in pass protection. On Day 7 of Broncos camp, Badie picked up a free-rushing Nik Bonitto in pass protection to give Russell Wilson time to throw.
In that same practice, Williams was held out. That led to more first-team reps for Badie, which led to his best day of practice. Although camp is only started and the preseason games are yet to be played, Badie seems to be the frontrunner for the RB3 job.
The question has become, can Badie hold onto the job and continue to stand out through the preseason? As with teams during the regular season, it isn't about how you start but how you finish.
A strong start from Badie can be undone with a lackluster finish to the summer.
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