This would be some irony.
The Denver Broncos signed veteran running back J.K. Dobbins to a one-year deal last week. Dobbins spent last season with the Los Angeles Chargers and his signing could make the Broncos a little too full in the running back room.
The Broncos have Dobbins and second-round pick RJ Harvey as their top two backs for the upcoming season and while Sean Payton prefers to have a complex committee at the running back position, the team could look to deal one of its running backs rather than to just waive them.
The Chargers have Najee Harris and first-round pick Omarion Hampton, but the team could look at adding depth behind them. Even though it would be a trade within the division, Anthony Palacios of Last Word on Sports sees it as a possibility.
“Nobody believes in the run game more than head coach Jim Harbaugh. Omarion Hampton is the future of this running game, but Najee Harris might be a one-time, one-year done deal before he becomes a free agent next offseason, even though he just got here. If that happens, they could trade for Estime to continue building homegrown talent around quarterback Justin Herbert”, wrote Palacios.
It’s true that Jim Harbaugh is always looking to strengthen the running back and he prefers those that pound the rock the way Estime can. But the Broncos aren’t likely to give up on last year’s fifth-round pick that easily.
Though it wouldn’t net much in return, the team would likely opt to move Jaleel McLaughlin, Tyler Badie or Blake Watson before Estime. And even if the Broncos did move Estime, it likely wouldn’t be to help the Chargers, a team they lost to twice last season.
Behind Harris and Hampton, the Chargers have Kimani Vidal, Hassan Haskins, Jaret Patterson and undrafted free agent Raheim Sanders. Any of those players could conceivably be the team’s No. 3 option this season, with Vidal being the favorite to land the position.
Harbaugh and Joe Hortiz will still scour the waiver wire as soon as final cuts are made as well as entertain any potential trade ideas to add to the running back position, but it seems a long shot that they would be in any position to get a 21-year old running back with upside from one of their top rivals.
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