Broncos RB RJ Harvey Earns First Major Accolade of NFL Career

A second-round pick out of UCF, Harvey is a former quarterback. He has a high football IQ and a tremendous amount of talent.

That experience served Harvey well last week vs. the Cowboys when he lined up as the quarterback in a Wildcat set and drove forward for a touchdown. The Broncos have a high-quality signal-caller in Bo Nix, so don't expect to see a lot of Harvey taking snaps, but the coaches have confidence in the rookie's competency in that realm. We'll see more of it, especially in the red zone.

“Yes, it’s been in for a while. We had a handful of plays today that have been in [Wildcat]," Broncos head coach Sean Payton said post-game. "Sometimes plays stay in because they still fit. So that’s been in quite a while. RJ’s third-down call has been in for like five weeks. It’s a man zone read. We put him outside of the tight end. We saw the linebacker, we climb them back in. So there are some of those plays that you’re like, ‘All right, they can come off the call sheet. You’ve just been running them. But yeah, clearly he’s comfortable getting a snap. When you take the quarterback and someone leaves to cover him, then you kind of get your numbers back. You’re really playing 10 on 10.”

Harvey's Rookie Season Thus Far

Harvey and Ashton Jeanty were the two most explosive running backs in the FCS last year. Jeanty went No. 6 overall in the NFL draft to the Las Vegas Raiders, while Harvey went 60th to the Broncos.

Working behind J.K. Dobbins in the Broncos' backfield, Harvey has carried the ball 44 times for 200 yards and two touchdowns this season, averaging 4.5 yards per carry.

As a receiver, Harvey has caught 18 passes for 115 yards and three touchdowns. He's found the end zone in three straight games, totaling four touchdowns over that span.

The Broncos are developing a good one-two punch at running back with Dobbins and Harvey. Not to be outdone, Dobbins is coming off his second 100-yard rushing game of the season. He ranks third in the NFL in rushing.

The Broncos' ground attack was a bit hit-or-miss over the first few weeks of the season, but the offense is coming together. The offensive line is blocking really well of late, while Dobbins and Harvey are showing great vision, explosiveness, and tackle-breaking ability.

Harvey's two longest runs of the season have been 50 and 40 yards, respectively. He scored a touchdown on the 40-yarder last week. He's just getting started.

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