By Jordan Long
The Denver Broncos are preparing to face the San Diego Chargers this Sunday. They will be without starting running back C.J. Anderson who is dealing with a bone bruise. The injury occurred during the Broncos’ 27-9 victory over the Houston Texans. What will this mean to the Broncos’ running game?
C.J. Anderson has rushed for 437 yards and 4 touchdowns with an average per rush of 4.0 yards this year. He also added 128 yards receiving. Besides his ability to run and catch the football, Anderson is important in protecting the quarterback because he can block the opponents’ pass rush.
The Broncos have running backs to replace Anderson. Devontae Booker is a rookie and has been the change-of-pace back. He is faster than Anderson when he runs the football. Booker has run for 244 yards and 1 touchdown. The problem with Booker is he can’t block the defenders like Anderson. When the pass rush comes, Booker reads the blitz, but can’t hold his block. Quarterback Trevor Siemian will get hit or sacked which could change field position.
If the Broncos want a running back that runs like C.J. Anderson, they could call up Juwan Thompson from the practice squad. His running style is similar to Anderson. He can also go out in the open field to catch passes.
In order to protect the quarterback, the Broncos could go with Kapri Bibbs. Bibbs may not be able to gain the big yardage on the ground but can assist the Broncos by stopping the opponents’ blitz. He will be able to defend Trevor Siemian from getting hit.
The Broncos are in decent shape to replace Anderson due to their depth at running back. They are hoping it will only be a few weeks that Anderson is out of the lineup. Denver needs to be able to run the football to put games away and take the pressure off of Semian. Hopefully the running back core will be able to do so. If they don’t, the Broncos will be forced to pass the football and teams will not respect the Broncos’ running game.
How will the Broncos replace C.J. Anderson?
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