May 24, 2019

2018 was supposed to be the Royce Freeman show, but things did not go plan. A player with a lower pedigree proved to be arguably a better talent. Phillip Lindsay, the undrafted hometown kid out of Colorado burst onto the scene and took over with his 5’9 190-pound frame and became the man in Denver. With 192 rushes for 1,037 yards and nine touchdowns, Lindsay was a Pro Bowler as a rookie. Does this mean we don’t want anything to do with Royce Freeman? Not so quick, yes, Lindsay had a solid rookie year, but he was also injured in the last game and required offseason arm surgery. Surgery which will likely keep him on the sidelines until after the start of the preseason. This opens up a whole new world of opportunity for Freeman to show he belongs as the guy. He was the one drafted in the third round out of Oregon, and he was the one they were excited about last preseason. It is time to show the Broncos why there was that excitement. Despite not getting as much work as Lindsay, Freeman still finished with 521 yards and five touchdowns on 130 carries, adding 14 receptions on 20 targets. At 6’ and 229 pounds, Freeman also has the size to hold up far better than the far smaller Phillip Lindsay when taking hits from defenses who will key on him out of the backfield. Lindsay is currently being drafted as RB23 in the middle of the fourth round. That price is far too high for a player who may or may not be fully healthy when the season starts. Freeman, on the other hand, is being drafted as RB40 in the ninth round. A fine value for a player who may be the starter sooner rather than later. Whether he ends up beating out Lindsay for the starter's job or stays in a committee the price is right for Freeman whereas when it comes to Lindsay there are much better choices in the same area. Players like Kerryon Johnson, Aaron Jones, and David Montgomery provide so much more for the same price.--Dominick Petrillo - RotoBaller