The Broncos have Melvin Gordon and Phillip Lindsay listed as co-starters on their depth chart, leaving fantasy football owners befuddled about the team’s backfield situation. Who’s the starter? Who will get more touches? Will they get an equal amount of work?
Pat Shurmur, Denver’s offensive coordinator, indicated Friday that the Broncos aim to rotate the two backs essentially evenly.
“They are two outstanding runners that both deserve to be starters,” Shurmur said. “That’s what I think of them. Who plays the first snap really doesn’t matter. I’ve got a feeling that they’re both going to be in there hopefully an equal amount of time having an impact as runners and certainly in pass protection as well as catching the ball.
“Really, they displayed in camp sort of what I knew about them on tape, and they’re multi-dimensional backs. We’re going to try and use them both. In my mind, it’s a good problem to have.”
So, what does that mean for fantasy football owners?
Both players are probably worth flex consideration. Gordon seems more likely to get goal-line carries and he has caught more catches per season than Lindsay, making him the favorite to get more receiving work, too.
Lindsay has value, though, especially if anything happens to Gordon. Even if Gordon remains healthy, Lindsay could start as a flex because — according to Shurmur — he could get amount an equal amount of work as Gordon.
We’ll know more about the Broncos’ backfield rotation after Denver takes on the Titans on “Monday Night Football” in Week 1.
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