Summer Sleeper: Denver Broncos
We begin our annual 32-part Summer Sleeper series where DLF scribes identify a lightly-touted player on each NFL roster who may be worthy of your consideration. Our subjects all have varying levels of “sleeperness,” but each merits a bit of in-depth discussion here in the Premium Content section.
To help everybody along, we are going to be categorizing our sleepers under one of three headings:
- Super Deep Sleepers – Players who aren’t roster-worthy in 12-team leagues, but are still worth keeping an eye on.
- Deep Sleepers – An end of the roster player who is more often than not on the waiver wire in 12-team leagues.
- Sleeper – A likely rostered player who makes for a good trade target. Their startup ADP puts them out of the top-175 or so.
Because we aren’t going give you the likes of mainstream sleepers, most of these players will undoubtedly fizzle. All we are asking is for you to keep an open mind and perhaps be willing to make room for one of these players on your bench. You never know when the next Willie Snead is going to spring up. Feel free to add your own thoughts about our choice for the designated sleeper, or nominate one of your own in the comments below.
The Denver Broncos finished the 2016 season with a 9-7 record while placing third in the AFC West Division. The offense took a step back last year, ranking 27th in the league in rushing yardage and 21st in passing yards. The inefficient play from both of their young quarterbacks, Trevor Siemian and Paxton Lynch, was one of the main reasons why the offensive production declined last year. The run game was also stagnant as the team netted just 3.6 yards per rush attempt. The offensive line gave up 40 sacks last season and was considered one of the worst units in the league. Since then, they’ve made some improvements to the offensive line by adding Donald Stephenson and Ronald Leary through free agency and by drafting Garett Bolles in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft.
[am4show have=’g1;’ guest_error=’sub_message’ user_error=’sub_message’ ]
Category: Super Deep Sleeper
The Broncos drafted Henderson in the sixth round of this year’s draft, and since he is a late-round small school prospect drafted by a team who has multiple talented running backs on the roster, he is going unnoticed in a lot of dynasty leagues. Just by examining the surface of his player profile, it’s easy to see why he becomes an afterthought in most rookie drafts.
Henderson went to college at Coastal Carolina where he was very productive, rushing for 4,635 yards and 58 touchdowns during his four-year collegiate career. During his senior season, he managed to surpass the 100-yard mark in seven of his nine games while averaging 6.3 yards per carry. With a 28.93 percent market share of the team’s offensive production, Henderson proved to be a key asset for the offense. He was also very productive as a receiver out of the backfield, making 97 receptions for 921 yards and six touchdowns.
His athletic profile is also very impressive. He stands at 5’7’’ and weighs 208 pounds, giving him a very low center of gravity. This makes it very easy for him to maintain balance while bouncing off defenders. His 4.48 40-yard dash lends the notion that he has enough speed to pull away from defensive backs in the open field. Henderson isn’t the most athletic prospect to ever grace an NFL field, but he does have enough athleticism to get the job done and potentially become an impact player for an NFL franchise.
With C.J. Anderson, Devontae Booker and Jamaal Charles on the roster, opportunities seem to be slim for the small school prospect. Most deep sleepers usually have a few veteran players in their way before they’re able to sniff a considerable workload within their offense.
Henderson needs a bevy of injuries to occur in order for him to receive a considerable amount of playing time early in his career. This is certainly in the realm of possibilities, considering both Anderson and Booker have experienced injuries in recent years. Charles is looking to make his comeback after enduring a magnitude of knee injuries in the last couple years, causing him to suit up in just eight games in the last two seasons. Rooting for injuries is never good practice, but there’s a small chance that all three of these backs could land on the injury report at some point in the season, allowing Henderson to get a crack at handling a large market share of the workload.
With just a 3.6 yards per carry average as a team last season (28th in NFL), it’s quite apparent that the Broncos desperately want to improve their run game. If last year’s production starts to trickle into the 2017 season, then there’s a very good chance that the coaching staff will try to shake things up, and this means Henderson could potentially get an opportunity to carve out a role within the offense. If this happens and he can fully take advantage of the opportunities that are bestowed upon him, then he could become a viable option in fantasy. The main thing to note here, is that he has enough athleticism and talent to unexpectedly breakout.
He is not currently listed in DLF’s current ADP which means he’s going undrafted in a lot of startup drafts. He’s also falling out of the draft in most rookie drafts, causing him to hit the waiver wire in the majority of leagues as an undrafted free agent. Henderson is worth the add if there’s additional space on your roster. If anything, he should be one of the top prospects on your watch list, because he has the talent to breakout if given the opportunity.
The odds are highly likely that he begins the season stashed away on the team’s practice squad. The stars would have to perfectly align for him to receive a large amount of touches this year. With the injury history of the running backs that are in front of him on the depth chart, it’s quite possible that he could receive some playing time if the injury bug rears its ugly head. He will also have to outplay Juwan Thompson and Bernard Pierce for the final spot on the depth chart. This camp battle could limit his opportunities in the near future if Pierce or Thompson performs well in training camp.
He’s a super deep sleeper for a reason, and like I stated previously, he shouldn’t be added to your roster unless you have room for him. Once the season starts, anything can happen. Monitor his status if one of the Broncos’ main running backs were to go down with an injury. Henderson isn’t an elite level prospect but he does have enough “juice” to get the job done if granted the opportunity. He’s a solid football player who just needs a chance to display what he can do.
[/am4show]
- Dynasty Film Review: Michael Penix and Spencer Rattler - January 4, 2025
- Dynasty Film Review: Kimani Vidal, Audric Estime and Kenny McIntosh - December 28, 2024
- Dynasty Film Review: Jalen Coker, Jalen McMillan and Malik Washington - December 21, 2024
