Predominantly Orange
FanSided

Denver Broncos breakout candidates for 2022 and beyond

By Lou Scataglia

Javonte Williams #33 of the Denver Broncos celebrates scoring a touchdown in the second quarter of the game against the Los Angeles Chargers at Empower Field At Mile High on November 28, 2021 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images)
Javonte Williams #33 of the Denver Broncos celebrates scoring a touchdown in the second quarter of the game against the Los Angeles Chargers at Empower Field At Mile High on November 28, 2021 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
1 of 3
Next
DENVER, COLORADO – DECEMBER 19: Javonte Williams #33 of the Denver Broncos carries the ball against the Cincinnati Bengals at Empower Field At Mile High on December 19, 2021 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
DENVER, COLORADO – DECEMBER 19: Javonte Williams #33 of the Denver Broncos carries the ball against the Cincinnati Bengals at Empower Field At Mile High on December 19, 2021 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images) /

The Denver Broncos have a solid core of young players. Which of those players can enjoy breakout seasons in 2022 and beyond?

If I asked someone to give me 3 breakout candidates for the Denver Broncos in 2022, I’d probably get a plethora of answers.

What’s great about the Broncos is the young core of players they have, which can give them long-term stability for years to come.

On both sides of the ball, Denver boasts some of the league’s best young talent. In fact, going into the 2021 season, Denver had one of the youngest rosters overall.

All eyes will be on what Denver decides to do at the quarterback position for 2022 and beyond.  They have the cap space and draft picks to acquire a veteran, and also have the ability to draft someone and surround them with quality players.

I think regardless of who is under center to begin 2022, the Denver Broncos will see a few players have major breakout seasons for the team.

Who are those players?

Denver Broncos breakout candidates for 2022 – Javonte Williams

Javonte Williams was a 2nd round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft out of UNC. I admittedly did not like the pick at first but grew to love Javonte as the season wore on.

Williams is one of the toughest players to bring down, boasting exceptional power and contact balance.

Williams actually led the league this year with 31 broken tackles. That’s ahead of guys like Dalvin Cook, Jonathan Taylor, and Joe Mixon. This is even more impressive when you consider he was splitting carries with Melvin Gordon.

Javonte Williams is set to be the every-down back for Denver in 2022, even if the team brings back Melvin Gordon, which I hope they don’t do.

The stage is perfectly set for Williams to take over as one of the best running backs in the NFL. He can enjoy a breakout season like Jonathan Taylor.

Another point is that Williams carried the ball 203 times this season for 903 yards. His yardage total ranked 13th in the NFL. Mind you, he was splitting carries.

Williams averaged 4.4 yards per carry in 2021.

So, let’s say he averages that exact number in 2022 but carries the ball 292 times, which is Joe Mixon’s season total.

Williams would then rush for nearly 1,300 yards. Honestly, given that Williams now has a year under his belt and adjusted to the NFL, I think rushing for 1,500 yards is a perfectly reasonable number.

Home/Broncos Roster