ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Jonah Coleman, the Broncos’ fourth-round pick, arrives in Denver with a reputation as a reliable pass protector and a proven college rusher. Former Broncos running backs coach Eric Studesville has long said the biggest hurdle for a rookie back is ‘third down,’ a situation coaches trust only when a back can handle protection duties.
The 22-year-old Coleman measured 5-foot-8 and 220 pounds and averaged 5.5 yards per carry across four college seasons split between Arizona and Washington. He scored a combined 25 rushing touchdowns for Washington over the past two years, numbers that drew Denver’s attention during predraft evaluations.
The Broncos concluded Coleman was the most proficient pass protector among the running back class, a trait coach Sean Payton highlighted at the team’s rookie minicamp. Payton said pass protection is typically a learning curve for college backs but called that area a ‘strong suit’ on Coleman’s tape and noted Coleman ‘can play on third down.’ Denver also values Coleman’s physical running style, a comparison Payton linked to veteran back J.K. Dobbins.
Denver re-signed Dobbins in free agency and also carries second-round pick RJ Harvey. The team emphasized run-game consistency after Dobbins suffered a season-ending foot injury in a Week 10 win over the Las Vegas Raiders. Before that injury, the Broncos ranked ninth in rushing yards per game, tied for fifth in runs of 10 or more yards and fourth in average yards per carry over expected; in the seven games following the injury, Denver fell to 23rd, 24th and 31st in those same categories.
Coleman made the most of 156 carries last season, with 35 percent resulting in a first down or touchdown and 71 percent of his rushing yardage (538 of 758) coming after first contact. At rookie minicamp, Coleman said he had done extensive pass protection work in college, wants to ‘take coaching’ and aims to move through the Broncos’ offseason program into training camp while showing his conditioning to coaches and teammates.
