Denver Broncos rookie running back Audric Estime set to miss a minimum of four weeks with ankle injury.
Broncos rookie running back Audric Estime is not eligible to return until week six after suffering an ankle injury in his week one debut against the Seattle Seahawks but the actual length of time set to miss is unknown. He had a rough start to his NFL career after undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery, forcing him to miss OTAs and mandatory minicamp and it has taken a turn for the worse after a disastrous week one. He took two carries for 14 yards including losing a fumble on his first career carry and also sustaining an ankle injury.
Estime always had a tough path to relevancy his rookie season and that path just became incredibly more difficult. If everything fell the right way for Estime, he could’ve shown flashes early on and hopefully taken over the starting job for the fantasy playoff push. However, time and opportunity is what he needed to prove himself and this injury takes both of those away. If you have an open IR spot go ahead and stash Estime to see what happens down the road but if not feel safe dropping him in redraft leagues. Estime’s injury opens the door for Javonte Williams to receive the bulk of the carries as the Broncos don’t have another running back currently on the roster who profiles as a between the tackles runner like Williams and Estime. It may provide a small uptick in the usage of Jaleel McLaughlin and Blake Watson but expect Javonte Williams to be the primary beneficiary of the Estime injury.
The Broncos announced they’re cutting Tim Patrick and Samaje Perine while keeping undrafted free agent Blake Watson on the 53-man roster.
Tim Patrick was quickly signed to the Lions practice squad with the intention to elevate him to the 53-man roster and give him an opportunity to play on Sundays. While Patrick was getting hyped up as a potential starter for the Broncos, his situation ends as a wash with him landing on a better offense but having a harder path to contribute.
Samaje Perine figures to find work as a depth player in another offense, and a potential return to the Bengals playing behind Zack Moss and Chase Brown shouldn’t be ruled out. While we’ll ned to figure out where Perine will land, it’s safe to assume he won’t be a relevant fantasy contributor in 2024. No running back was targeted in the two-minute offense more than Perine last year, so look for Jaleel McLaughlin and rookie Blake Watson to soak up those targets as the change-of-pace backs on the Broncos roster.
Blake Watson is a deep fantasy sleeper who went to Memphis and displayed tremendous explosiveness and pass catching ability. At one point in the offseason, Head Coach Sean Payton said the vision was similar to what he had with Alvin Kamara when they signed Blake Watson. While he’ll be the clear RB4 behind Javonte Williams, Jaleel McLaughlin and Audric Estime, Watson could see more opportunity throughout the season as injuries occur.
