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Broncos Need to Keep an Eye on Jerome Felton

By Ian St. Clair

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To get this out there, Jerome Felton is a fullback.

Yes, the position still exists in the NFL but it’s akin to an endangered species. You just don’t see them very often, so when you do, you best take a picture before they disappear forever.

The Denver Broncos were privileged to have the services of Howard Griffith for the back-to-back Super Bowl years. The chemistry he had with Terrell Davis was one of the reasons the rushing game was so effective for the Broncos. The fullback was another piece in that puzzle, and Griffith was one of the best in the NFL.

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One of the men responsible for that offense is now the head coach in Denver, and with it the same system. Gary Kubiak and Rick Dennison will more than likely make that a position on the Broncos roster again.

The last time Denver utilized a fullback in their offense was Chris Gronkowski, who his best known for being the brother of that obnoxious tight end in New England.

Needless to say, the position wasn’t of much importance under good old “take a knee” John Fox and bubble screen guru Adam Gase. Despite the fact their offense never consistently ran the football. Makes a lot of sense.

That will change with the emergence of Kubiak, Dennison and consultant/zone-blocking wizard Alex Gibbs. The fullback will return to the Broncos offense. The kind of role the position plays in the offense hasn’t been decided yet but it will more than it has.

Dec 7, 2014; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Vikings fullback Jerome Felton (42) recovers a fumble for a touchdown during the second quarter against the New York Jets at TCF Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports

You have seen stories on who John Elway and the Broncos need to keep an eye on – I talked about Ndamukong Suh and Bryan Bulaga. As for the fullback Denver needs to pay attention to, that’s Jerome Felton.

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Most recently with the Minnesota Vikings, he was the lead blocker for Adrian Peterson. Felton was a Pro Bowl fullback in 2012 when Peterson rushed for over 2,000 yards, and despite not playing much last season (because Peterson didn’t play) he was still the top-rated fullback in the NFC North by Pro Football Focus.

In Norv Turner’s offense, Felton only saw the field on 16.7 percent of the team’s offensive snaps (175 out of 1,050), including four games where he failed to reach double figures in snaps played. Again, some of that is tied to Peterson not playing given he was in the Pro Bowl in 2012. Felton opted out of his contract with the Vikings to become an unrestricted free agent.

Most have Felton as the top fullback on the market and Elway needs to get him to Denver. As PFF said on its 2014 All-NFC North Team, “while the fullback position has been used less and less, Felton shows that there is still value when you have a dependable fullback leading the way.” Kubiak has proven what his offense can do with a great fullback, and that’s Felton. Felton has shown what he can do with a great running back. Imagine him doing the same for C.J. Anderson in this offense.

The other benefit is fullbacks don’t cost that much, given they’re on the endangered species list of NFL positions.

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Dec 7, 2014; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Vikings fullback Jerome Felton (42) celebrates his touchdown with running back Joe Banyard (23) during the second quarter against the New York Jets at TCF Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports

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