Mile High Monday: Broncos lack size at RB, Fant expecations and SDCC

It’s time to get back to Mile High Monday. I’m back from vacation and have a ton of thoughts to get to.

Traveling across the country, I talked to many fans in different locations. I like talking to Broncos Country, and it’s interesting to hear what’s on the mind of the fanbase.

This is going to be a “Road to Redemption” for Denver in 2019, but how far can this team go? I like thinking about all the possibilities.

I also like contemplating life and sports when driving around with the top down on my old Jeep TJ. The following is a result of those trips during the week.

Buckle up, let’s take a ride through my thoughts.

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Lack of size

The Broncos have to consider bringing in some veteran running backs out there in free agency. As I said on Friday in my “60 Seconds with Cecil” video series, perhaps they should consider signing Jeremy Hill.

Last year, Hill was with the New England Patriots but injured his knee in Week 1 of the 2018 regular season. He’s been recovering ever since and is close to being 100 percent healthy.

A second-round pick in the 2014 NFL Draft, Hill rushed for more than 1,000 yards as a rookie. He has almost 3,000 yards rushing and has averaged a strong 4.1 yards per carry in his pro career.

Hill has experience that no back on the roster has at this time, but he has one thing the Broncos could use in the running back room: size.

Phillip Lindsay and Royce Freeman are the top two backs for the Broncos, and they should make for one hell of a 1-2 punch in 2019. Lindsay is listed at 190 pounds and Freeman is listed at 230 pounds. Behind those two, the Broncos lack size at the position.

Yes, Devontae Booker and his 219-pound frame are still on the team, but I wouldn’t call him a “lock” to make the final roster. Behind Booker, the Broncos have a pair of 175-pound backs in Khalfani Muhammad and Devontae Jackson.

If something happens to Freeman, the Broncos would lack a “power” back who could grind out some short-yardage or goal-line work. If he makes the team, Booker would be that next man up, but I don’t trust him as a runner. He’s a fine receiver out of the backfield, and that’s his best role, but Booker is not good running inside and is certainly a bad fit for the zone-blocking system.

Career stats: Jeremy Hill and Orleans Darkwa

Player	From	To	Games	Attempts	Yards	TDs	Y/A

Jeremy Hill	2014	2018	55	708	2898	29	4.1
Orleans Darkwa	2014	2017	52	246	1038	9	4.2

If not Hill, other veteran backs out there, like Orleans Darkwa, could be an option for Denver. This team brought in veteran Stevan Ridley back in 2017 for training camp, and while he didn’t make the Broncos roster, Ridley did look good and gave them some veteran insurance during the preseason. Ridley signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers later that year and played for them in 2017 and 2018. Adding a similar back like they did with Ridley a couple of years ago may not be a bad idea.

The Broncos don’t need a big back for carries, but having one for insurance might be a wise move.

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Odds stacked against Fant?

Broncos first-round pick Noah Fant’s impact is “more likely to come in 2020 and beyond” because only four rookie tight ends in NFL history have reached 700 receiving yards, according to Bill Barnwell of ESPN.com. Barnwell does good work for ESPN, and he is correct about the number of tight ends who have reached that plateau, but we have to look at how today’s game is changing.

Rookie TEs with 700 or more yards in NFL history

Player	Year	Team	Games	Yards
Jeremy Shockey	2002	NYG	15	894
Keith Jackson	1988	PHI	16	869
Charle Young	1973	PHI	14	854
Evan Engram	2017	NYG	15	722

Forget history when it comes to Fant. Look at his opportunity with the Broncos in 2019.

Fant is going to be catching passes from Joe Flacco this season. Flacco is well known for his love of the tight end position, and he could force-feed the ball to Fant early and often. The last time Flacco played a full 16-game season (2017), he made then 37-year old tight end Ben Watson a 60-plus catch guy.

I’m not saying Fant will catch 60 passes this year, but if he caught 40 passes it wouldn’t surprise me. Flacco loves to go to the tight end as a security blanket, and Fant should be the top pass-catching option at the position.

Not only does Fant have a quarterback who loves to throw to the tight end, but he’s also in an offense that features his position. New offensive coordinator Rich Scangarello was the quarterbacks coach for the San Francisco 49ers last season. As Broncos fans are well aware of (and fantasy GMs loved), 49ers tight end George Kittle had one of the best seasons of a tight end in NFL history. He caught 88 passes for 1,377 yards and five touchdowns in 2018.

He’s not going to duplicate those numbers as a rookie, but Fant is in a system where he could produce at a higher level than history would suggest.

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Challenge accepted

Von Miller has a new challenge in 2019. Back in April, Miller said he wanted 20 sacks this season and, eventually, Bruce Smith’s all-time sacks record.

“Whenever you set out to do something, you just want to be the best,” the Broncos linebacker told Lila Bromberg of USA Today. “I’ve got an opportunity to do something great.”

This weekend, Dallas Cowboys defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence threw down the gauntlet, per NBC Sports.

“My goal is to be the best that’s ever played this game,” Lawrence said Saturday at SportsCon 2019 in Dallas. “For sure, I want to beat that sack record, make it my own, so (Miller) can talk about beating my record. I’m going to just wait until I get to the season and then worry about sacks.”

Von Miller career sack totals

Year	Games	Sacks	Approx. Value
2011	15	11.5	12
2012	16	18.5	17
2013	9	5.0	5
2014	16	14.0	12
2015	16	11.0	17
2016	16	13.5	17
2017	16	10.0	12
2018	16	14.5	14
Career	120	98.0	106

Miller is going to get a great opportunity in 2019 under new head coach and long-time defensive guru Vic Fangio. Never in his career has Miller reached the 20-sack mark. He did have 18.5 sacks in his second year in the league (2012) and has had at least double-digit sacks in every season except one (2013) wherein he only played in nine games.

I’ve always thought that Miller has the potential to get a 20-sack season in his career, and maybe more than one. This season, Miller could be at his best. He’s still in his prime and has now been challenged by Fangio to be better than he’s ever been.

I feel that Miller is going to respond in 2019, and it will be fun to watch this mini-competition between him and Lawrence this season.

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One eye on San Diego

It’s not only the start of training camp this week, but it’s also San Diego Comic-Con. This year Comic-Con kicks off on July 17 and runs through July 21. As a huge comic book fan, this event is always an exciting one to monitor.

Now, it’s mostly about comic book movies and less about actual comic books, but SDCC is something all of us fans of pop culture anxiously await every year. Even with Warner Bros not present in the famous “Hall H” at SDCC this year (no new “Joker” or “Wonder Woman” trailers), and Disney having their own convention (D23) later this year, SDCC is going to have some new reveals about shows, movies, comic books that are coming out in the near future.

I’m most looking forward to previews on Amazon Prime’s new series “The Boys.” The series debuts on Amazon on July 26, and it should be one wild ride. “The Boys” is definitely NSFW, but it’s a fresh take on what the world would look like with superheroes in it. This is most certainly not Marvel, and “The Boys” makes “Deadpool” look like “Winnie The Pooh” with swords. I’ve read the comic book for years and can’t wait to see how Amazon translates it to the small screen.

I’m going to be attending training camp every day and writing or talking about the Broncos constantly starting on Thursday. However, when I’m at home and decompressing after a long day, I can’t wait to see what kind of information we get out of SDCC.

Follow @CecilLammey