The Melvin Gordon signing was easily one of Elway’s most divisive moves of the offseason, but if Gordon gives the Broncos’ offense a dominant run game like Bleacher Report’s Matt Miller thinks he will, it will quickly become one of Elway’s most widely-praised.
In his most recent article, Miller scored and ranked the NFL’s backfield duos based on film study, Pro Football Focus grades, Football Outsiders’ analytics and opinions he’s gathered from league scouts. Denver’s newly-constructed tandem of Melvin Gordon and Phillip Lindsay earned individual scores of 85 and 82 (on a 1-100 scale) respectively, giving the Broncos a combined score of 167, good for sixth-best in the league.
That score also puts Denver atop the AFC West, and third in the AFC behind the Browns (Nick Chubb, 94; Kareem Hunt, 89) and Jets (Le’Veon Bell, 89; Frank Gore, 80).
“The addition of Melvin Gordon III is a huge boost to the Denver Broncos offense and will make the backfield a bit of a thunder (Gordon) and lightning (Lindsay) situation,” Miller wrote. “The bouncy, outside running skills of Lindsay with the interior power and vision of Gordon are both perfect for helping second-year quarterback Drew Lock and all his shiny toys at wide receiver and tight end. The Broncos offense could low-key be one of the NFL’s most explosive in 2020.”
The Broncos aren’t just one of the most talented backfields in the league, but one of the most balanced as well. To that point, the Chiefs (Clyde Edwards-Helaire, 81; Damien Williams 83) were the only other team in Miller’s top 10 with less separation between their duo than the Broncos’ had.