DENVER – Broncos Head Coach Vance Joseph is giving a rookie the chance to jump-start Denver’s running game, which has been mostly dormant for the last five years.
Joseph announced Oregon rookie Royce Freeman will start over Devontae Booker, who’s entering his third season in Denver.
Freeman was a third-round selection out of Oregon, where he was the Ducks’ all-time leading rusher. In Eugene, Freeman ran for 5,621 yards and 50 touchdowns on the ground. He added more than 800 career receiving yards and four touchdowns as a receiver at Oregon.
The Broncos are counting on both Freeman and Booker to replace and improve upon the production of C.J. Anderson, who now plays in Carolina.
Anderson ran for 1,007 yards and three touchdowns for the Broncos in 2017. Anderson was the first 1,000-yard rusher for the Broncos since 2013 when Knowshon Moreno ran for 1,038 yards in Peyton Manning’s first season with the Broncos.
