RJ Harvey — Broncos Running Back, 2025 Season Breakdown, and What Comes Next
From Quarterback to NFL Starter: How Harvey Got Here
Robert Harvey Jr. — everybody calls him RJ — was not recruited to play running back. Virginia signed him in 2019 as a dual-threat quarterback, ranked the 39th-best at that position in his class nationally. He redshirted, never saw the field, and then transferred to UCF, where coaches told him he had a better future carrying the ball than throwing it.
That transition nearly ended before it started. Harvey tore his ACL in 2021 training camp and missed the entire year. Came back in 2022, ran for 796 yards, got stronger, and then exploded in 2023 with 1,416 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns. In 2024, he led the entire Big 12 Conference with 1,577 rushing yards and scored 22 rushing touchdowns, finishing with 25 total scores on the season.
He also happens to be a cousin of Roy Jones Jr., the former world heavyweight champion. That detail gets mentioned in most profiles. It’s worth knowing.
The quarterback background is not just biographical trivia. Denver’s coaching staff specifically credited it for the thing they liked most about Harvey: his ability to read defensive fronts before the snap. George Paton, the Broncos’ general manager, called him their “pet cat” throughout the 2025 draft process and said he might have had the best vision of any back in the class.
Four Seasons at UCF Built the Case for a Second-Round Pick
Harvey’s college numbers hold up under scrutiny. He averaged 6.5 yards per carry across his time at UCF, finished his career with 43 rushing touchdowns (two short of the program record), and became only the second Knight ever to rush for 1,000-plus yards in back-to-back seasons. The other was Marquette Smith, back in 1994 and 1995.
His explosiveness was real, not a product of weak competition. In 2024 he finished second in the entire FBS — behind Ashton Jeanty and no one else — in carries of 10 or more yards, with 54 of them. He had 32 runs of at least 15 yards. His 92-yard touchdown against Oklahoma State that year was the second-longest run in UCF history.
Pro Football Focus rated him the top running back in the country for Week 10 of the 2024 season at 91.6, edging Washington’s Dillon Johnson by less than a point. He was named Big 12 Co-Offensive Player of the Week twice.
The receiving numbers were modest in college — a combined 61 receptions across his final three seasons — but Denver watched the route running at his pro day and decided the projection was there. Paton specifically mentioned his ability to get in and out of breaks and his instincts in space.
How Denver Selected Harvey at Pick 60 in the 2025 NFL Draft
The Broncos acquired the 60th overall pick from Detroit as part of a larger trade that also involved a fourth-round selection. When they got to Day 2 and Harvey was still on the board, they did not hesitate.
Sean Payton compared Harvey to Darren Sproles the same week he was drafted. That comparison is not just complimentary — it’s a description of a specific offensive role. Payton built much of his Saints offense around a space player who could align wide, run from shotgun, catch checkdowns, and create mismatches on linebackers. He called it the Joker role in press conference language. Sproles held it in New Orleans. Alvin Kamara expanded it. Payton wanted Harvey to grow into something similar in Denver.
He also had to replace Javonte Williams, who left for Dallas, and the Broncos entered the draft with Jaleel McLaughlin and Audric Estime as the listed starters. Neither was the solution Payton had in mind. Harvey was.
RJ Harvey’s 2025 Rookie Season — the Full Picture
Harvey spent the first ten weeks of the season in JK Dobbins’s shadow. That context matters for reading his numbers. When Dobbins was active through Week 10, Harvey handled 50 carries (a 20% team share) and 29 targets (9%), while Dobbins took 153 carries (60%) and 15 targets. Harvey was a change-of-pace back, a third-down weapon, a player they kept warm.
He flashed often enough to keep attention. In Week 1 against Tennessee he ran for 70 yards on his NFL debut. Week 4 against Cincinnati he scored his first career touchdown and finished with 98 total yards from scrimmage. Week 8 was the signature game: three touchdowns, including a 40-yard run against Dallas that was the longest rushing score by any Bronco since 2021. He was named NFL Rookie of the Week for that performance.
Then Dobbins suffered a lisfranc injury in Week 10. Harvey became the starter. From Week 11 through the end of the regular season he scored six touchdowns in seven games, racked up 507 yards from scrimmage in that stretch, and had back-to-back career-high games in Weeks 13 and 14. His game-winning overtime touchdown against Washington in Week 13 and a 121-yard day against Jacksonville in Week 16 were the high points.
The Broncos finished the regular season as the AFC’s number-one seed. In the divisional round against Buffalo, Harvey came up with a clutch 24-yard reception in overtime. The AFC Championship against New England was a different story. With Bo Nix sidelined, Jarrett Stidham started, the offense stalled, and Harvey managed just 57 rushing yards across the entire postseason on 19 carries. Denver lost 10-7.
Full regular-season numbers: 146 carries, 540 rushing yards, 7 rushing touchdowns, 47 receptions on 57 targets, 356 receiving yards, 5 receiving touchdowns. Twelve total scores, which led the entire Broncos roster and tied for 12th among all rookie running backs this century. Clinton Portis had 17 in 2002, for reference. Mike Anderson is also near the top of that list as a former Bronco.
PFF gave him a 68.3 overall grade for the season, 41st among 55 qualified backs. His rushing grade of 69.2 ranked 49th. He forced 25 missed tackles as a runner and averaged 2.7 yards after contact per attempt.
What He Does Well
The receiving ability is genuine. Harvey ran real routes, not just swing passes and screens. He caught 47 of 57 targets for 356 yards and five touchdowns, and FTN Fantasy’s Bryan Knowles, who publishes an all-rookie team each year, flagged Harvey as the only rookie back who showed real understanding of pass protection. That is notable because most young backs take two or three years to grasp it.
His vision as a runner is the thing coaches kept coming back to. Payton said it publicly; Paton said it before the draft; offensive lineman Mike McGlinchey said something similar after a preseason practice. The quarterback background translates to recognizing what a defense is doing before the ball is snapped, which means Harvey hits the right gap more often than his raw yards-per-carry number suggests.
He also scores. Twelve touchdowns on 193 touches as a rookie, playing 42% of offensive snaps, is a real production rate. He scored in 11 of 17 regular-season games, including five consecutive games in one stretch late in the year.
Where He Struggles
His yards-per-carry average of 3.7 for the full season is the number that appears in every critical analysis, and it deserves honest examination. Among rookie running backs this century with at least 30 carries, Harvey’s 3.7 YPC ranked 256th out of 361. His 45.2% rushing success rate ranked 199th. After Dobbins went down, his per-carry average in the final seven games without the veteran starter was under 3.0 in three of them.
NFL Next Gen Stats placed his yards over expectation per attempt at 48th in the league, nearly two full yards behind Dobbins for the season.
Some of this is scheme and blocking. Denver’s offensive line led the league in run block win rate in 2024 at 74.9%, and Javonte Williams averaged a similarly poor 3.7 YPC behind it before leaving. The blocking concepts and play-calling share responsibility. New OC Davis Webb and run-game coordinator Zach Strief have to clean this up in 2026.
The pass protection problem is real and harder to assign to someone else. Harvey lost snaps to Tyler Badie specifically because of it in the AFC Championship. At 5’8″ and 205 pounds, he’s not built to anchor against blitzing linebackers, and he was not yet reliable enough in that area to stay on the field in high-leverage situations.
How He Fits Sean Payton’s Offense
The Joker role Payton described before the draft is a real thing, not a press conference platitude. In New Orleans, Darren Sproles lined up in the slot, aligned in the backfield, motioned to multiple spots on the same play, and gave defenses genuine conflicts between covering him in space or treating him as a traditional runner. Alvin Kamara took that template and added power and broken-tackle ability to it.
Harvey fits physically — 5’8″, 205 lbs, good contact balance — and fits schematically, since his receiving ability and motion usage create exactly the kind of pre-snap conflict Payton wants. In 2025, Denver’s offense was already running at a 58.8% passing rate, which is historically high for a Payton team. The intent was to get the run game working efficiently enough to bring that number down. It didn’t fully happen, partly because of Harvey’s YPC limitations, partly because of blocking concepts that need adjusting.
The version of this offense that works looks something like Kamara’s second year in New Orleans. Harvey is not Kamara. But the framework exists, the coach knows how to build it, and Harvey has more of the raw ingredients than most backs Payton has worked with.
2026 Fantasy Football Value — the Case For and Against
The Broncos re-signed JK Dobbins to a two-year deal worth up to $20 million with $8 million guaranteed. That is the main variable controlling Harvey’s 2026 fantasy outlook. Dobbins, when healthy, is a different order of runner: his yards over expectation per attempt during Weeks 1 through 10 in 2025 was nearly two full yards better than Harvey’s, and he handled 60% of the team’s carries during that stretch.
Then Denver drafted Jonah Coleman in the fourth round of the 2026 draft, adding a third back to the room. Coleman could take early-down work if Dobbins misses time, and the Broncos also spent big on wide receiver Jaylen Waddle, which brings real competition for passing-game targets that Harvey relied on for his fantasy scoring in 2025.
With Dobbins healthy and active, Harvey opens 2026 as the clear 1B. That is probably 10-14 touches per week, concentrated in passing situations and red-zone packages. ESPN’s Mike Clay tracked the split: with Dobbins active in Weeks 1-10 of 2025, Harvey averaged roughly 5 carries and 3 targets per game. That is a flex option at best in standard formats.
The bull case requires Dobbins to miss time — plausible, since he has missed significant stretches in each of his last three seasons — or Harvey to show enough improvement in his second year to force his way into a larger early-down role. CBS Sports dropped Harvey outside their top 24 at running back for 2026 projections after the Coleman pick. TWSN put out an analysis in May 2026 arguing he could be a top-20 back if the workload falls his way.
Dynasty leagues are the format where Harvey makes the most sense as a real investment. He’s 25, in a good offense, with a coach who has a track record of developing receiver-backs, and a four-year rookie contract that keeps him in Denver through 2028. His best football is almost certainly ahead of him.
RJ Harvey Career Stats
College career at UCF (2020-2024): 505 rushing attempts, 3,328 rushing yards, 6.6 average, 43 rushing touchdowns. 61 career receptions. Led the Big 12 in rushing yards in 2024 with 1,577.
2025 NFL regular season: 146 carries, 540 rushing yards, 3.7 average, 7 rushing touchdowns. 47 receptions on 57 targets, 356 receiving yards, 5 receiving touchdowns. 12 total touchdowns, 896 yards from scrimmage, 17 games played.
2025 playoffs (3 games): 19 carries, 57 rushing yards, 9 receptions on 12 targets, 68 receiving yards, 0 touchdowns. The numbers were disappointing, particularly in the AFC Championship, where the Broncos scored 10 points in total.
PFF season grade: 68.3 overall (41st of 55 qualified backs), 69.2 rushing (49th of 55).
Frequently Asked Questions
What team does RJ Harvey play for?
Harvey is a running back for the Denver Broncos. He wears number 12.
How old is RJ Harvey?
He was born February 4, 2001. He is 25 years old.
What college did RJ Harvey attend?
He played four seasons at the University of Central Florida (UCF) after transferring from Virginia, where he enrolled in 2019 as a quarterback and redshirted.
What round was RJ Harvey drafted?
Second round of the 2025 NFL Draft, 60th overall, by the Denver Broncos.
Is RJ Harvey related to Roy Jones Jr.?
Yes. Harvey is a cousin of the former world heavyweight boxing champion.
How many touchdowns did RJ Harvey score in 2025?
Twelve total — seven rushing and five receiving — across 17 regular-season games. He led the entire Denver Broncos roster in scoring.
What is RJ Harvey’s yards per carry in the NFL?
3.7 in the 2025 regular season. Below average by most metrics, though his receiving production and touchdown rate compensated in fantasy and real-game contexts.
Does RJ Harvey have dynasty value in fantasy football?
Most analysts say yes. His age (25), skill set in the passing game, and placement in Sean Payton’s offense give him a reasonable path to becoming a primary back by 2027 or sooner if Dobbins misses extended time again.
Comments