Broncos Rookie 2nd-Round Pick Called ‘Secret’ Weapon After Turning Heads

The Denver Broncos are facing a key question in their quest to win the AFC West and a Super Bowl berth. That is, can the Broncos run the ball effectively enough to support Bo Nix, the passing game, and even the defense, and that is where RJ Harvey can help.

Denver made Harvey the No. 60 overall pick of the 2024 draft, and the youngster impressed teammates and coaches right away.

CBS Sports’ Tyler Sullivan picked Harvey as Nix’s “secret best friend” for this season.

“Denver just paid new money to Courtland Sutton, who has little competition as Nix’s No. 1 target out wide. Evan Engram is also onboard as the new tight end,” Sullivan wrote on August 19. “But coach Sean Payton seems committed to keeping this operation old-school, emphasizing the ground game and the defense this offseason. That means Nix might benefit more from Harvey, the rookie bruiser of the new-look backfield. J.K. Dobbins is also in place as a splashier complement, but Harvey might end up being the trusted option when it comes to pounding the rock in the red zone.”

Harvey started the Broncos’ preseason Week 2 win over the Arizona Cardinals, tallying 18 yards and 1 touchdown.

Harvey had a 7-25-0 line against the San Francisco 49ers in the Broncos’ preseason opener. But his outlook is muddled by the presence of Dobbins, a former second-round pick by the Baltimore Ravens and a starter for the AFC West rival Los Angeles Chargers in 2024.

RJ Harvey Facing Stiff Competition in Broncos’ Backfield

Harvey joins the Broncos with 4,512 total yards from scrimmage and 47 touchdowns in his five-year collegiate career at UCF. However, it remains uncertain how much that will translate to the NFL, particularly in the regular season.

That is where Dobbins has the edge over Harvey in the Broncos’ re-tooled backfield as a known commodity.

Both players are key to Payton’s plans for the Broncos.

“I think this with the running game,” Payton told reporters on August 14, “it’s going to be different. When we went through the cut-ups and watched the offensive line, and we just felt like, ‘Man, there’s other teams that player is the spaghetti sauce.

“We’ve immediately upgraded that position. We brought in leadership with J.K., and we drafted Harvey early. And so, you’re going to see a difference, and, hopefully, a marketably different running game. And it’s not always going to be perfect, but that’s the magic of the good back. There’s been a lot of great runs where maybe the looks weren’t as clean, and it was the ability. When we watch tapes, sometimes we say the play or we say the player.”

“As coaches, we’re trying to give them as many plays [that are] good, clean. And yet, there’s times where it’s the player, and I think that we’re going to be further along there.”

For Payton and the Broncos’ sake, Dobbins and Harvey had better be the answer.

Complementary Football Broncos’ ‘Biggest Challenge’

Dobbins and Harvey must be the solution to what CBS Sports’ Jared Dubin called the Broncos’ “biggest challenge” for the 2025 season.

“Denver’s offensive line was great in pass protection last season,” Dubin wrote on August 13. “But the group up front was just okay in the run game, and the Broncos’ stable of backs did just about nothing with the holes that they did create. The team brought in two new backs in JK Dobbins and rookie RJ Harvey, and they’ll have to do a lot better than last year’s group in order to give Denver the more balanced offensive attack that Sean Payton typically likes to feature.

The Broncos’ leading rusher from 2024, Jovante Williams, signed with the Dallas Cowboys in free agency this past offseason. Their returning backs – Audric Estime, Blake Watson, Jaleel McLaughlin, and Tyler Badie – combined for 902 yards and 3 TDs on 204 carries.

The Broncos ranked 13th in rushing attempts and 16th in rushing yards last season.

However, they were 21st in yards per attempt. Payton must lean on Dobbins and Harvey, but the Broncos’ new dynamic duo must also deliver when called upon.