Renck: Saquon Barkley’s season, Terrell Davis’ record and why Sean Payton must improve Broncos run game

NEW ORLEANS – During the week of the biggest game of his life, Saquon Barkley reflected on a moment of inspiration.

As a freshman at Penn State, Barkley, eager to climb the depth chart, watched intently as his position coach Charles Huff pushed play on the remote before practice.

“That is the first time I saw Terrell Davis. Coach Huff showed us a video, and it wasn’t him running the ball, but how he made his first team in Denver. The clip was him racing down the field and making a big tackle on special teams,” Barkley told The Denver Post.

“That gave me the understanding of how you have to capitalize on every opportunity you get. So every time I took the ball, I tried to remember that, tried to make my presence felt.”

Barkley remains connected to the Hall of Famer all these years later. He needs 30 yards in Super Bowl LIX to break Davis’ single-season rushing record of 2,476, combining the regular season and playoffs.

“He will break it,” Davis said of his mark set in 1998. “It’s pretty cool. I can live with that.”

The fact that Barkley ties back to the Broncos remains as interesting as it is incongruous. This season eight of the 12 best rushing teams reached the postseason, including the top six.

The running back revival is real. Except in Denver.

Sean Payton has changed the culture and the results, but one thing remains the same: his wandering eye with running backs, which reveals his whims about the position and where his priorities should be this offseason.

Inside the Broncos building, they talk about the climb. The 10-8 record and playoff berth represented a critical first step. But to make a giant leap in 2025, they don’t need Neil Armstrong. They need a stronger run game, a better lead back, and carries spread across fewer players.

Want to beat good teams? Beat them up, impose your will on occasion.

“Unless Tom Brady or Patrick Mahomes is your quarterback, you need a good running back,” said former Saints and Ravens bruiser Mark Ingram. “It’s that simple.”

The focus on Barkley this week helps shed light on a Broncos issue that has frustrated fans for the past two seasons: What is Payton’s fascination with using a battery of backs?

It has not worked in Denver. And it must be tweaked if the Broncos want quarterback Bo Nix to reach his potential.

Last season the Broncos ranked 16th in rushing yards per game (112.2) and 21st in yards per carry (4.1). And they haven’t had a player reach 100 rush yards in a single game in Payton’s two seasons, a streak spanning 35 games.

A strong case can be made that Javonte Williams was the league’s most ineffective starter, a fact that seemed obvious to everyone but Payton who valued his experience and pass protection. Williams, who likely won’t return as a free agent, ranked 42nd in the league with 513 yards, behind five quarterbacks (Lamar Jackson, Jayden Daniels, Jalen Hurts, Kyler Murray and Josh Allen). It represents the lowest total ever for Payton’s leading rusher in his 17 seasons.

The Broncos fashion themselves as a threat to the Chiefs. Spoiler alert: They won’t be without a more effective lead back and an improved running attack. Part of the solution is calling more designed runs for Nix now that Payton knows what he has in the kid’s legs. But the Broncos are not winning the AFC West without a rusher flirting with 1,000 yards.

It only takes 58.8 yards per game. Not exactly a triumph worthy of trumpets blaring.

Williams isn’t the answer. Neither is Jaleel McLaughlin. Would Audric Estime be? Hard to feel great about his future after he was a healthy scratch against Buffalo. What about Tyler Badie? Maybe? Probably not.

When the Bills stomped the Broncos in the playoffs, it drove home a revealing trend. Many of the best offenses and top contenders employ dynamic backs of all flavors. Buffalo’s James Cook ran around the Broncos. The Ravens featured Derrick Henry, a human diesel who racked up 1,921 yards and 16 touchdowns. The Packers leaned into the power of Josh Jacobs, Minnesota exploited Aaron Jones’ versatility and the Lions (Jahmyr Gibbs) and Rams (Kyren Williams) relied on pop and patience.

And, of course, there was Barkley and his 2,005 yards.

“Running backs never left,” said LenDale White, a former NFL standout and one of the greatest prep backs in Colorado history. “We get devalued. I mean what the ‘F’ were the Giants doing letting Saquon walk out the building? You see how important running the ball is.”

If Broncos Country wanted to see a big play the last two years, they might as well have recorded Macbeth. The Broncos had one run of over 40 yards last season. Six times Nix led the team in rushing, and he tied Williams for the most touchdowns with four.

This says a lot about Nix’s athleticism and even more about the need to help him. But it will require Payton to deny his own DNA. It is not uncommon for him to use three backs, so it should come as no surprise only two players have eclipsed the century mark on the ground under Payton – Deuce McAllister (1,057 in 2006) and Ingram (1,043 in 2016 and 1,124 in 2017).

He is working with a young franchise quarterback, not Drew Brees. Balance is required. Payton knows the team must upgrade at running back and tight end. Those are the two positions where he seeks hybrid players who can be effective in the run and pass game.

It made sense when he had Reggie Bush, Darren Sproles, Jeremy Shockey and Jimmy Graham. They were some of the most athletic and gifted players in the league. The current Broncos offense has nobody like them.

Payton needs to trust his instincts on the basics and nail another draft. Find a sturdy back with explosiveness and vision. Get a tight end who can turn the middle of the field into an advantage, not a soul-sucking vacuum.

The next Barkley in the backfield would be nice. But he’s not available (sorry Ashton Jeanty stans).

“It is difficult to find someone with Saquon’s skillset,” Hall of Famer Barry Sanders said. “But the way he performed this season, he made a big statement for running backs.”

In 1998, Davis joined Emmitt Smith as the only player to lead the league in rushing and win a Super Bowl. Barkley could soon join him.

“To be able to be here now and have a year where I am mentioned with a Hall of Famer like him is special,” Barkley said.

Kansas City has not allowed a 100-yard rusher in 18 straight games or in the playoffs since 2019. Watch Barkley give them fits. Then you’ll understand why the Broncos need to follow in his footsteps.

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