RJHarvey

News: 6 days agoHarvey has drawn praise early in camp, impressing Denver's coaching staff with his explosiveness and speed, according to Nick Kosmider of The Athletic.

Spin: With padded practices underway, Harvey has turned heads with his ability to maintain speed while making quick cuts to avoid defenders. After Tuesday's practice, head coach Sean Payton highlighted a play the rookie running back made during the session, saying Harvey "had a run today that was something, and we kind of turned and looked at each other." The UCF product demonstrated great decision-making on his way to multiple big gains. Harvey has even showed a willingness to step up into oncoming pressure in protection, though Payton noted that this will be an area of his game that needs growth. "For him, specifically, the protections, the speed of the game...there's that learning curve for all young players. Some of it happens a little quicker than others, but he's doing exceptional," Payton said. According to Kosmider, the 24-year-old Harvey and veteran J.K. Dobbins have routinely taken the bulk of snaps with the Broncos' first-team offense. Though the presence of Dobbins likely caps Harvey's potential as a true workhorse back, his continued development could lead to a bigger share of the backfield workload based on Denver's need for explosiveness in the ground game.

ESPN Fantasy Projection: Harvey was selected by Denver in the second round of April's draft. He is on the small side (5-foot-8, 205 pounds), but he plays tough and is productive, having run for 10-plus yards on a class-best 23% of his carries last season. Size and age (24) concerns aside, he showed well at the combine, including a 4.40 40, 38-inch vertical and 127-inch broad jump. Harvey's landing spot is very good, as fellow newcomer J.K. Dobbins is his primary competition for work. The duo may split carries, but Harvey is a good bet to emerge as the primary receiving back, which is notable in a Sean Payton offense that often leans heavily on RBs in the passing game. Harvey is a fringe RB2 target, but there's upside for even more.