Javonte Williams heard his head coach.
Sean Payton was asked Monday if he thought rookie running back Audric Estime would see an increased workload in the second half of the season.
“That’s a good and fair question, and one that I think I would answer, ‘Yes,’” Payton said then.
Of course, Payton said similar to Estime and other young players previously. He regularly says it’s difficult to get three running backs going in rotation throughout a single game.
So, how Sunday’s game against Kansas City unfolds will be interesting to watch at running back.
Is it a three-man rotation? Does Estime take substantial snaps from Williams or Jaleel McLaughlin? Or does the supposed uptick in workload for the fifth-round draft pick wait at least another week?
Williams told The Post on Thursday that he tries not to worry too much about that.
“I mean, it’s just my job. I signed up for this my rookie year,” Williams said. “Whoever the coach is, however things go, I just do my job and do what I’m supposed to do.”
Williams, the fourth-year back from North Carolina, had a surge of a four-game stretch that culminated with a Thursday night performance at New Orleans in which he averaged 6.29 yards per carry and 111 total yards (88 rushing) plus two touchdowns. The per-carry rate was the fourth-best mark for a game in Williams’ career, trailing only three games in a six-week stretch during his rookie season in 2021.
The touchdowns are his lone scores of the year.
It’s not that he hasn’t done good things since — his 34-yard catch-and-run on a Bo Nix scramble against Baltimore stand out — but the Broncos’ run game has gone back into neutral the past two weeks.
For the season, Williams’ 3.8 yards per carry is a tick up from the 3.6 he averaged last year. He’s still a reliable pass-catcher and easily Denver’s best pass-protecting back.
It’s easy to scoff at the protection element of the game. Those reps don’t go viral on social media and don’t go in the box score. But coaches and teammates know how much they can mean to a play.
Williams said Nix makes a point of highlighting Williams’ thumping pick-ups in the film room.
“Bo definitely gives me props,” Williams said. “That’s all I really want to do is make sure he’s clean and he can see his reads.”
To him, that counts as much as a first-down reception or a waltz-in 8-yard touchdown against New Orleans.
“Once you’re doing that for your teammates and showing them that you can do that, too, the o-line loves it,” he said. “The quarterback loves it. Everybody loves it.”
All the same, the Broncos need more juice in their run game and Estime might get the chance to show it on a bigger scale that he can produce.
Audric Estime (23) of the Denver Broncos breaks away from Ar’Darius Washington (29) of the Baltimore Ravens during the fourth quarter of the Ravens’ 41-10 win at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, Maryland on Sunday, Nov. 3, 2024. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post)
Out of 42 qualified running backs, NFL Next Gen Stats puts Williams No. 38 in estimated points added per rush. If McLaughlin had enough carries to qualify, he’d be tied for No. 24.
That’s opened the door for Estime to get a longer look this weekend or later in the season.
“I don’t know if there’s anything specific,” offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi said of what the team thinks it might have in Estime. “He and Javonte both are big, strong, powerful guys. He’s just a talented player that we’ll keep getting a look at.”
There’s one element that will prevent that audition from sticking, through ball security. Estime has put the ball on the ground twice in 15 carries and fumbled in the preseason, but he’s also averaging 6.3 yards per carry.
Williams laughed when asked if he gave Estime a ball to walk around with for the week, as Payton said he did, after the rookie’s latest fumble.
“No, that was coach,” Williams said.
But he knows what it’s like to be a young player trying to get the hang of the NFL.
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“Honestly I think it’s just about the speed of the game and getting used to how fast things are moving,” Williams said. “Even if it’s the same speed as college, you’re a little more nervous and jittery, so just once (Estime) gets out there and gets those out of him, I feel like he’ll be alright.”
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