One of the Denver Broncos' most notable cuts as the team assembled its initial 53-man roster was second-year running back Audric Estimé. Estimé was a 5th-round pick in last year's draft, and someone the team thought very highly of as a prospect.
Sean Payton had previously told the media that the team had a 3rd-round grade on Estimé, which inspired some hope in the fan base that he could realistically play well above his NFL Draft status. Unfortunately, things got off to a really rocky start for Estimé, who struggled early on with fumbling issues and found himself in the proverbial doghouse.
Estimé was unceremoniously benched for the team's playoff game against the Buffalo Bills last year in favor of Tyler Badie, who spent most of the year recovering from injury. Despite being so young (21) and talented, Sean Payton gave everyone the obvious reasons why Estimé was let go before the start of the season, despite running back being one of the team's biggest roster question marks.
Audric Estimé got lost in the shuffle of Broncos overhauled RB room
“Sometimes it’s a combination of things. I had a long visit with him today. His career is not by any chance over. That’s really not uncommon for a fifth-round selection. There’s also a credit to [RB Tyler] Badie’s experience, but also some of his versatility. Clearly when you add, and have the ability to sign a [RB J.K. Dobbins] and draft a [RJ] Harvey, that room changed immediately and the competition changed immediately.”
- HC Sean Payton (via Broncos PR)
So, we have a few obvious reasons for Estimé being cut here from Sean Payton. Of course, the first one he mentions being that it's not uncommon, generally speaking, for a fifth-round selection to be cut year-to-year.
Second, and perhaps most crucially, Payton mentions the fact that Estimé was basically beat for a roster spot by Tyler Badie, whose "experience" and "versatility" were key determining factors. Badie put his versatility on display in the preseason by making plays as a runner, receiver, return man, and in pass protection. He can do it all.
The other major factor Payton mentioned was the way the running back room changed after the additions of both RJ Harvey and JK Dobbins.
Ultimately, you can blame any number of these things on Estimé no longer being part of the Denver Broncos, but it's clear that the team has been motivated to upgrade over him -- and pretty much everyone on the roster last year -- for quite some time.