The running back position has been a tricky one for the Denver Broncos to navigate the past few years, but their room might be as talented as it has been in the past decade heading into the 2026 season. The Broncos are set to return JK Dobbins and RJ Harvey and have added fourth-round rookie Jonah Coleman to the mix to create a formidable three-man group in the backfield.
Dobbins has missed time with a significant injury each of the last five years, and the Broncos' lack of depth at the position derailed the production of their backfield last year. The Broncos made it very clear in March that they would add to the position and found a perfect fit in Coleman. The question isn't if Coleman will see the field in 2026, but how much he will.
The Broncos don't exactly have a set formula for snaps at running back this far out, and it feels as though all that is set in stone is that Dobbins is their starter. All three backs are going to produce for head coach Sean Payton's offense, but it could come in what feels like a million different ways. This far out from the first preseason game, all we have to go off of are quotes and reports.
Sean Payton is never afraid to throw his support behind players early and often, and he just did so with the rookie Coleman. A quote from the Broncos' head coach might not seem like much at first, but it could be an early tell of how much we should expect to see Coleman on the field in 2026.
This quote from Sean Payton could be a reason Jonah Coleman sees immediate playing time with the Denver Broncos
In a recent story by Jeff Legwold from ESPN, a quote from Payton was highlighted as one reason the Broncos liked Coleman so much in the pre-draft process. Payton has not been afraid to show how big a fan of Coleman he is, but this quote could begin to paint a picture for him to see a good deal of snaps in his rookie season:
"You saw it in the college tape. Most of the time when you're drafting or signing a college running back, there's going to be a learning curve with protections. ... That was a strong suit when you were looking at his tape, different than the rest of the class."
The Broncos saw the pass protection learning curve in real time last year, especially once Dobbins went down for the season. Harvey took over the starting role down the home stretch and struggled considerably at times to compete in pass protection. It led to more snaps for running back Tyler Badie, who ended up being incredibly ineffective as a rusher and receiver. If Harvey had been able to protect better, the Broncos might have been able to get more production out of their backfield.
If Coleman performs better at pass protection than Harvey does, then there comes an immediate conundrum as to who the Broncos' backup running back is. In a play-action-heavy offense, having a back who can protect is paramount for the Broncos. As of now, it is all hype and quotes for Coleman, and we can't forget that Harvey set the Broncos' single-season rookie touchdown record, but there appears to be serious momentum behind Coleman in Denver already.
Payton and the Broncos seem to love a specific style of back, and Coleman fits that mold pretty well. With that type of back, being able to run block is one of the most important areas of their game. Coleman's pass-blocking skills have already caught the eyes of the Broncos' decision makers, and could be an indication of how much we should expect to see him on the field next year.
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