The NFL season hasn’t ended yet, as everyone awaits the Super Bowl. Still, each team not in the big game on Sunday, including the Denver Broncos, already plans its next moves before free agency begins. The Broncos have a promising running back core, but plan to add another impactful back to their roster, whether it’s through free agency or the draft. Here are five running backs who will be free agents in March and should be priorities for Denver. Each can bring value to Denver, whether J.K. Dobbins decides to stay or sign elsewhere.
Travis Etienne Jr. — Jacksonville Jaguars
Travis Etienne Jr. just posted the best season of his NFL career, carrying the ball 220 times for 1,125 rushing yards and 5 touchdowns. Like Dobbins, Etienne brings explosiveness, averaging 5.1 yards per carry.
The Broncos stand to gain if Etienne Jr. fails to reach an agreement with the Jacksonville Jaguars, as he gives Bo Nix another reliable outlet out of the backfield. He caught 35 receptions for 316 yards and a career-high 6 receiving touchdowns in 2025. He has averaged 8 yards per catch over the span of the four seasons he’s been in the NFL.
Another reason Denver should go all out for Etienne Jr. in free agency is his durability, unlike Dobbins, who hasn’t been able to stay fully healthy for any team he’s played for professionally. Etienne Jr. missed a full 17-game season only once, in 2024.
In three of his four seasons with the Jaguars, Etienne Jr. cleared the 1,000-yard rushing benchmark. That dip came only in the season he missed time.
Adding a running back like Etienne Jr. puts Denver on track to become one of the league’s most dangerous rushing teams next season as he thrives as a workhorse back. At the same time, Nix also stresses defenses when he chooses to utilize his running abilities as a dual-threat quarterback.
Rico Dowdle — Carolina Panthers
Rico Dowdle just completed his first season with the Carolina Panthers and his second consecutive season rushing for 1,000+ yards, something he also accomplished in 2024 with the Dallas Cowboys. Dowdle didn’t have more rushing yards in 2025, but was just three yards short of tying his rushing record as he carried the ball 236 times for 1,076 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns.
Dowdle averaged 4.6 yards per carry in 2025, which wasn’t more than Dobbins or Etienne Jr., but one area where he thrives is scoring touchdowns. The Broncos need a running back like Dowdle, who’s hungry to score, while he could help the team fix the red zone woes they constantly struggled with last season.
The Cowboys failed to reach an agreement with Dowdle in free agency in 2025, which also seems to be the case with the Panthers, as they will most likely let him walk, while Denver should offer him more than a one-year deal if they pursue him, as he can be effective with multiple teams.
The Panthers’ running back showed he can help his quarterbacks in the passing game, as he caught 39 receptions for 297 yards and a receiving touchdown. At the same time, he carried the ball more times than Etienne Jr., which would be great for the Broncos, as he can also take some of the workload off of Dobbins and increase the chances he stays healthy, especially if Dobbins decides to re-sign in Denver.
Breece Hall — New York Jets
Breece Hall proved he can be successful on any NFL team, having not only his best season but doing so while on one of the worst teams in the NFL in 2025, the New York Jets.
Despite the Jets’ atrocious record of 3-14, Hall carried the ball 243 times for 1,065 rushing yards and 4 touchdowns. Hall joins the list of running backs who haven’t averaged over 5 yards per carry in their career, but is close at 4.5, which is ironically the same average Dowdle has had.
Just like the other running backs previously mentioned, Hall can also do some damage to defenses in the passing game, as he caught 36 receptions for 350 yards and a touchdown while averaging 8.7 yards per catch in his career.
Hall can bring the assertiveness the Broncos need on offense, especially in efficiently getting first downs. Denver can use him to wear down defenses to inch closer to the first down marker, while he can still be one of Nix’s top targets.
Even in times where the run game isn’t effective, he can be a quick option to dump the ball to, even when wide receivers are struggling to get open, given his ability to make big plays when catching passes out of the backfield.
Many fans pushed for the Broncos to trade for Hall, especially after Dobbins got injured, but that dream could come true if Hall decides to leave New York and reaches an agreement with Denver. Hall fits perfectly into an organization with a winning culture.
Kenneth Walker III — Seattle Seahawks
Kenneth Walker III produced the second-best season of his NFL career and served as one of the main reasons the Seattle Seahawks reached Super Bowl LX. In 2025, Walker III had 221 carries for 1,027 rushing yards and 5 touchdowns.
He’s also been impactful in the postseason, with 38 carries for 138 yards, which isn’t the most when considering postseason rushing records. Still, he’s scored 4 touchdowns in the span of the two playoff games the Seahawks have had, which is close to how many he had in the regular season.
Walker III hasn’t caught any receiving touchdowns this season, but still had 31 receptions for 282 yards while also having 7 receptions for 78 yards in the postseason. Like Etienne Jr. and Hall, Walker III can also gain a lot of yards out of short receptions.
The Seahawks haven’t relied on Walker III heavily for receiving in the postseason, but he’s averaging 11.1 yards per catch this postseason. In comparison, his career average in four seasons has been 7.6 yards.
If Denver does pursue Walker III, he could be another great option if they are looking for a running back who can be a scoring machine. Walker III is more familiar with scoring a lot of rushing touchdowns, and the Broncos’ offensive line would put Walker III in position to succeed.
Every team has important players leave in free agency, including those that end up being Super Bowl contenders. It would be extremely exciting to see what Sean Payton and new offensive coordinator Davis Webb could do if Denver could get its hands on Walker III.
Tyler Allgeier — Atlanta Falcons
Tyler Allgeier stands alone on this list as a non-starter in 2025. That role makes sense, as he sat second on the Atlanta Falcons’ depth chart, only behind Bijan Robinson. Allgeier still gets a good amount of carries and yards.
This past season, Allgeier had 143 carries for 514 yards and 8 rushing touchdowns, which is amazing for a backup running back, as some of the other running backs on this list weren’t able to score that many touchdowns this season.
Labeling Allgeier ineffective in the pass game misses the mark. Since he wasn’t the Falcons’ number one option at running back, he naturally won’t get many targets or be involved in receiving. One positive: he hauled in the majority of his targets.
The Falcons’ backup, who will soon be a free agent, compiled an impressive resume over four seasons, such as having 1,035 rushing yards as a rookie in 2022, playing in the majority of games, scoring touchdowns, averaging 4.3 yards in his career, and most importantly, not having a single fumble since he’s been in the NFL.
The Broncos can add Allgeier as a red zone option to take the load off Dobbins. Allgeier is also a veteran who can help out RJ Harvey. If Dobbins ends up re-signing, but gets injured once again, Allgeier would have an opportunity to become Denver’s starter long-term if he’s effective.
If Allgeier isn’t already on the Broncos’ radar, the team should add him immediately. The last time Allgeier started in the NFL, he had 1,000+ rushing yards, while Denver won’t have to offer him as much money as the other running backs who are considered more valuable.
Main Image: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images
