The Denver Broncos Must Sign Kendre Miller

The Denver Broncos Must Sign Kendre Miller

The New Orleans Saints cut ties with running back Kendre Miller on Saturday, November 7, one day before their first game back from the bye. The move first reported by Nick Underhill ends a frustrating run for the 2023 third-round pick. Health was the biggest problem: Miller suited up for only 21 games across his first three years, losing time to hamstring trouble, a concussion and a torn ACL that wiped out the back half of 2025. When he did get on the field this fall, the results were thin, with 57 carries producing just 159 yards, or 2.8 per attempt. New Orleans had also grabbed Audric Estimé off waivers before the bye and expects Travis Etienne back from injured reserve, which left Miller without a clear job. Pro Football Talk noted the Saints likely shopped him without finding a trade partner, so he now heads to waivers, and to free agency if nobody claims him.

None of that means the talent is gone. Miller is still only 24, and back at TCU in 2022 he piled up 1,399 rushing yards and 17 touchdowns at 6.2 yards a carry as the Horned Frogs’ lead back. At roughly 6 feet and 220 pounds, he has the build of a physical, between-the-tackles runner who can still get to the edge. He also showed this season that he can handle a real workload, posting his best game with 20 carries for 70 yards against the Giants in Week 6. For a contender, that is exactly the kind of player worth a cheap look: a back with starter traits who needs a fresh start more than he needs a big role.

Denver has a fresh hole to fill. RJ Harvey hurt his knee in practice before the Week 8 game against Kansas City, was ruled out, and was then moved to injured reserve on October 31. That stint keeps him out for at least four games, and he can’t rejoin the active roster until Week 13 against Miami. It is part of a rough stretch for the second-year back: he had offseason surgery on a torn shoulder labrum from the AFC Championship Game, then pulled a hamstring in the 2026 opener. With Harvey down, Denver is leaning on J.K. Dobbins and rookie Jonah Coleman, who just came back from his own IR stint, and the team had to elevate Cody Schrader from the practice squad for depth. One more injury would leave the backfield dangerously thin.

Then there is the Sean Payton factor. To be clear, Payton never coached Miller; he stepped away from New Orleans in early 2022, more than a year before the Saints drafted him. The link runs through the Saints pipeline Payton built in Denver. Since taking over, he has filled his roster and staff with former Saints, from kicker Wil Lutz to tight end Adam Trautman. The most direct tie is Cody Rager, now Denver’s vice president of player personnel, who was New Orleans’ assistant college scouting director when the Saints picked Miller in 2023. That means someone in Payton’s building scouted Miller up close and knows his strengths and his medical history. Payton has shown again and again that he trusts players his former organization knows well.

On the field, Miller would not be asked to carry the offense. Payton has used a committee in 2026, and Coleman has emerged as the lead back, taking 49% of the snaps in his first game back while Harvey and Dobbins split the rest. Miller could slide into Harvey’s spot as a third back, spelling Coleman and Dobbins and giving Denver a bigger body for short-yardage downs. The financial risk is small, too. Miller is in the final year of the four-year, $5.65 million rookie deal he signed in 2023, so Denver would owe only what’s left of this season’s salary, with no long-term commitment. The one catch is the waiver order: teams ahead of the Broncos could claim him first, so Denver may have to wait and see whether he reaches free agency.

Put it all together and Miller makes sense for Denver. The Broncos need a healthy body while Harvey is out, they have a front-office voice who already knows Miller’s game, and they are coached by a man who is comfortable bringing in players from the Saints’ system. Miller gets a new team where he doesn’t have to be the savior, and Denver gets a low-cost bet on a 24-year-old with real tools. If his body holds up, the Broncos could end up with the steal of the deadline. If it doesn’t, they lose almost nothing.