It's not a mystery to anyone who watched the Denver Broncos after Week 10 this year that the team has a desperate need for running back help. After J.K. Dobbins went down, the run game totally cratered, as outside of a few explosive runs from RJ Harvey, the rushing attack was flat-out bad on a down-to-down basis.
Fortunately, there are a ton of capable running backs set to hit the free agency market in about three weeks, including Dobbins, who appears to be a fan favorite. Not only that, but Dobbins was playing his tail off during the 10 games he was healthy for the team. His efficiency was top-tier, and he was a legitimate RB1 option for the Broncos.
But his injury history could make it hard for Denver to bring him back, and with some major news dropping on Tuesday at the position, the Broncos might have yet another running back option to look to in free agency.
The Denver Broncos may have another option at running back in free agency
According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, the Seattle Seahawks do not plan to use the franchise or transition tag on running back Kenneth Walker, which is great news for the Broncos, among other teams.
The free agent market at the position was already going to be rather deep had the Seahawks angled to keep Walker, but it seems like he will absolutely hit the open market, which could give Denver another viable option to fix the backfield.
Now, right off the bat, the Broncos might have to proceed with some caution here with Walker, as if the defending Super Bowl champions are fine with him walking out the door, is there something we don't know?
Walker did win the Super Bowl MVP, but he's not quite the elite runner that many people saw during the Super Bowl. Nonetheless, he has two 1,000-yard seasons and over 3,500 yards across his four years in the NFL and is going to get paid on the open market.
He's still just 25 years old and did play in all 17 regular season games this year, so he stayed healthy. Walker has 4,560 scrimmage yards in his four years in the NFL, along with 31 touchdowns. Those figures average out to 1,337 yards and nine touchdowns per 17-game season.
This is the level of production the Broncos could reasonably expect by signing Walker. He's going to finish with, roughly, 1,000 yards on the ground and give you about 300 receiving yards. Forming a nice duo with RJ Harvey could allow both running backs to settle into roles that best fit their skillsets.
Along with Walker, though, other backs like Breece Hall, Travis Etienne, Rico Dowdle, and the team's own Dobbins are slated to be free agents. The Broncos should have several options to choose from, and it's not off the table for the team to perhaps sign two free agent backs to put a stamp on fixing this room.
With Walker likely slated to hit free agency, he becomes yet another option for Denver to get this run game fixed once and for all.