The Denver Broncos have made their first major decision in the running back room for the 2024 season.
And the experienced Samaje Perine will not be in the team.
Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network says the Broncos do not have Perine in their plans going forward and will try to trade him in the next 24 hours. If that doesn’t work, they will release Perine.
The #Broncos According to sources, they are expected to part ways with respected 8-year veteran RB Samaje Perine. The team is having multiple trade discussions regarding Perine and it could be more of a trade than a release.
There is a shortage of numbers in the RB area, so he is available in exchange. pic.twitter.com/hvFFHaQ2Ui
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) 26 August 2024
The numbers essentially show that head coach Sean Payton really likes Javonte Williams and Jaleel McLaughlin, and also spent a fifth-round pick on rookie running back Audric Estime. Perine just isn’t in Payton’s plans after he had a decent season in 2023, mostly as a safety net for Russell Wilson.
Perine ran the ball 53 times for 238 yards and scored one touchdown, but also caught 50 passes for 455 yards, both of which were career highs.
Instead, Williams will likely be the lead running back after losing 10 pounds this summer and hoping to return to the form that has Broncos fans so excited in 2021. Williams shattered his knee in 2022 and didn’t look like himself a season ago.
McLaughlin and Estime are both young and relatively cheap, and so are most running back teams in the NFL right now. If the Broncos can’t trade and release Perine, they’ll save $3 million against the salary cap. If they trade him, there’s hope for a late-round draft pick next year.
Unfortunately, it didn’t make sense for Denver to keep Perine. However, he should find a new team fairly quickly.
