Mr. Versatility: Broncos' Hillis

[Denver Native (Carol)]

http://www.denverpost.com/sports/ci_12549606

Fullback catching coach's eye as runner, blocker, receiver

What, you think Waldo is hard to find? Try tracking down Peyton Hillis at the Broncos' offseason passing camp.

One minute, he's split wide, a la Dallas Clark. The next minute, he's tangling with linebackers as a fullback in two-back formations. And when he finishes that drill, he swings over to tailback in single-back sets.

Oh, and did we mention he's all the rage on special teams? Or that he believes, in his heart of hearts, that he could play linebacker on Sunday afternoons?

Hillis isn't the Broncos' most valuable player, but, with apologies to fullback/linebacker Spencer Larsen, he may well be their most versatile.

So, Peyton, are you a fullback, a tailback or a receiver? Or are you a man for all seasons?

"I don't really know what I am at this point," Hillis said. "I think they're just filling me into different roles to see what I can do. They really haven't come up to me and said, 'You're this or you're that.' They're just kind of putting me in as a piece to the puzzle and seeing what happens."

Most running backs who spent time in the Broncos' backfield, circa 2008, have moved on — Selvin Young, Andre Hall, Tatum Bell and Michael Pittman among them. But Hillis remains, and new coach Josh McDaniels likes what he sees. The challenge is to figure out where to use him.

"We're going to use every skill he has," McDaniels said. "He does a lot of things well. He can run the ball as a single back or he can catch the ball out of the backfield. He can block in two-back sets or he can split out wide. He's got great hands and he's a very tough runner to bring down when you give him the ball. So he'll do a lot of different things for us.

"As we tell our players, they all create their own roles. And he's certainly done a good job of taking what we're giving him and doing it very well."

For all the new faces and endless possibilities in the Broncos' backfield, this much is certain: McDaniels didn't use the 12th pick in the draft on Know-shon Moreno so Moreno could be a backup. He figures to emerge as the starting tailback, with Hillis joining him at fullback in two-back sets.

But what if Moreno gets hurt? Given what happened last season, it's a question that has to be asked.

You remember last season. Hillis began the year as the starting fullback, but, after an injury epidemic in the backfield, he wound up the No. 1 tailback. He led the team with 343 yards rushing, including 129 against the Jets, before a torn hamstring ended his season after 13 games.

By that point, Hillis had become something of a cult hero in Denver. Talk about your unlikely success stories. Who knew a 255-pound fullback drafted in the seventh round would average 5 yards a carry as the Broncos' starting tailback?

"It was exciting," Hillis said. "Last year proved that anything can happen in this league. I had a tough career in college. When I came to the NFL, I was just trying to make the team. If it never happens again, at least I proved that I can run with the best, that I can play ball. That's what means the most to me."

Hillis has dropped down to a chiseled 245 pounds, but it doesn't figure to get him a lot of playing time at tailback — not with Moreno and two other newcomers, Correll Buckhalter and LaMont Jordan, on the roster. Doesn't matter, says Hillis. He has come to enjoy this multitasking thing.

"It's all about how I can help the team," he said. "I want people to see I can do a variety of roles, not just tailback. Slot me out, dot me in the I (formation), put me on special teams. . . . Wherever they put me, I'll be happy. As far as my athletic ability, I can pretty much do it all. You can put me at linebacker and I'll do a good job."

Jim Armstrong: 303-954-1269 or jmarmstrong@denverpost.com

[LRtagger]

Stud

[NightTrainLayne]

I think I'm going to have to get a Hillis Jersey. Hopefully, he spends his career here. . ..but he's the kind of guy that even if he ends up on a different team, you'd still cheer for him.

[Timmy!]

Give the guy the rock. Seriously. Hand it to him. Throw it to him. Just do it.

[G_Money]

Who knew a 255-pound fullback drafted in the seventh round would average 5 yards a carry as the Broncos' starting tailback?

Me. :D

But I have to agree - I don't care how they get him the ball, just get it to him. A few passes, some runs, a pitch or two...he can do whatever you want, so let him help Orton out and keep the rook's legs fresh during a longer season than Moreno's ever experienced.

He's dangerous. Nobody wants to tackle him. He's a mismatch and I like using those in our favor. He doesn't have to be our feature back but I would Alstott the crap outta him - and he's a better reciever than Alstott ever was.

~G

[Timmy!]

Me. :D

But I have to agree - I don't care how they get him the ball, just get it to him. A few passes, some runs, a pitch or two...he can do whatever you want, so let him help Orton out and keep the rook's legs fresh during a longer season than Moreno's ever experienced.

He's dangerous. Nobody wants to tackle him. He's a mismatch and I like using those in our favor. He doesn't have to be our feature back but I would Alstott the crap outta him - and he's a better reciever than Alstott ever was.

~G

Exactly. IMO, I'd like to see the carries go something like this: Buck/Jordan(whoever makes the team, right?) 15%, Hillis 25%, Moreno 60%. Nice thing is, Hillis and Buck (and Moreno too, from what I've seen it GA) have good hands, so any of our backs can play on 3rd down in regards as far as a pass catching back goes. The beauty of Hillis is we can line him up at FB in several situations and either have him pass block, take a quick FB dive right up the gut, do the true FB thing and run into a LB at full speed (ahh, the memories), or run a pass route, while still leaving the "feature" back to do whatever he needs to do.

Hillis: Maximum versatility. If I'm McD I'm grinning like a fool over this kid.

[G_Money]

My comp for him when he came out was a redneck Keith Byars, actually, not Mike Alstott.

Byars was big, mean, hit hard, ran hard, blocked hard, played TE/RB/FB...

And he played forever.

I would love for Hillis to be our Byars for a long time to come.

Byars lighting up Pepper Johnson:

http://vodpod.com/watch/279146-best-block-ever-ever-ever-by-keith-byars

And in case anyone forgot, here's Hillis looking like the Hulk in a helmet and making defenders look like bowling pins.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cSjDe0WDuCg

:salute:

Bring on the season.

~G

[Timmy!]

My comp for him when he came out was a redneck Keith Byars, actually, not Mike Alstott.

Byars was big, mean, hit hard, ran hard, blocked hard, played TE/RB/FB...

And he played forever.

I would love for Hillis to be our Byars for a long time to come.

Byars lighting up Pepper Johnson:

http://vodpod.com/watch/279146-best-block-ever-ever-ever-by-keith-byars

And in case anyone forgot, here's Hillis looking like the Hulk in a helmet and making defenders look like bowling pins.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cSjDe0WDuCg

:salute:

Bring on the season.

~G

Another thing about Hillis, he take such beautiful angles. There is no wasted effort. Whether it's a straight ahead run, a swing route, or something down the field, the guy just flat out goes downhill the best way possible.

[broncofaninfla]

Where is the best place to get a Hillis jersey, fakes ok

[Requiem / The Dagda]

Good to see Hillis being utilized in multiple roles, but I'll disagree with the aforementioned statement that he is a better receiver than Mike Alstott ever was. He has to prove that first. When he gets 65 catches in a season, let me know.

[Thnikkaman]

G, watching those vids reminds me of how heads up he played as well. There was that catch against the Falcons where it looked like he was going to go out of bounds, but the man regained his balance and got 4 more yards for the 1st.

[Requiem / The Dagda]

G, watching those vids reminds me of how heads up he played as well. There was that catch against the Falcons where it looked like he was going to go out of bounds, but the man regained his balance and got 4 more yards for the 1st.

He could be the next Larry Csonka!

[LoyalSoldier]

I thought our offense was much more dynamic when Hillis was giving us the threat of the run. Just look at Cutler's numbers in the games that Hillis was doing the job. Which is why I said all the trade talk at the start of the season was crazy. The kid is a football player.

[Lonestar]

how could they not have seen the potential in this kid last year and not played him before they ran out of RB's..

A crying shame IMHO..

There were two great plays the very first one where he caught eh ball and went up the sideline for 15 or more yards after first contact and then the other one where he caught it on the side line looked down saw both feet where in bounds by a Milli inch and kept going getting 4 more yards barely stung in bounds..


does anyone think having mc fadden and the other guy at ARK during college helped us to get this great kid.. had they not been there he would have put up insane numbers..

[nevcraw]

how could they not have seen the potential in this kid last year and not played him before they ran out of RB's..

A crying shame IMHO..

There were two great plays the very first one where he caught eh ball and went up the sideline for 15 or more yards after first contact and then the other one where he caught it on the side line looked down saw both feet where in bounds by a Milli inch and kept going getting 4 more yards barely stung in bounds..


does anyone think having mc fadden and the other guy at ARK during college helped us to get this great kid.. had they not been there he would have put up insane numbers..


They did see it. But Mikey hated you and never wanted to see you happy..

[Simple Jaded]

Why would Mike Shanahan hate Jr? That's pure nonsense. :D

Btw, just in case Doogie hates me and doesn't want to see me happy, he should know that I love Kyle Orton, he's the best I've ever seen.......

[Lonestar]

Why would Mike Shanahan hate Jr? That's pure nonsense. :D

BTW, just in case Doogie hates me and doesn't want to see me happy, he should know that I love Kyle Orton, he's the best I've ever seen.......



good try but I can assure you that mikey did not hate me nor Josh you.. they had their minds elsewhere.. you can fill in the blanks..

[rcsodak]

Me. :D

But I have to agree - I don't care how they get him the ball, just get it to him. A few passes, some runs, a pitch or two...he can do whatever you want, so let him help Orton out and keep the rook's legs fresh during a longer season than Moreno's ever experienced.

He's dangerous. Nobody wants to tackle him. He's a mismatch and I like using those in our favor. He doesn't have to be our feature back but I would Alstott the crap outta him - and he's a better reciever than Alstott ever was.

~G

Get inline, G.....

I brought up his name loong before the draft.

I had people from Arkansas telling me about him the previous fall.

But I'll share the glory, if you want. :D

[rcsodak]

Good to see Hillis being utilized in multiple roles, but I'll disagree with the aforementioned statement that he is a better receiver than Mike Alstott ever was. He has to prove that first. When he gets 65 catches in a season, let me know.

When Alstott becomes the 'ring-bearer' for good-hands FB's, let ME know.

But I'll listen to the actual players, and their comparisons of him.....

...when it comes to his 'having better feet than Alstott', and 'having better

hands than Larry Centers'.

[horsepig]

He reminds me of Riggins. Just frickin run hard and good things happen.

[rcsodak]

He reminds me of Riggins. Just frickin run hard and good things happen.

Riggins was asked about him on Sirius...


...he LOVES HIM!

[Requiem / The Dagda]

When Alstott becomes the 'ring-bearer' for good-hands FB's, let ME know.

But I'll listen to the actual players, and their comparisons of him.....

...when it comes to his 'having better feet than Alstott', and 'having better

hands than Larry Centers'.

Go right ahead, that is your prerogative. I was just givin' my thoughts, but you can indulge with G to the glory about mentioning Peyton Hillis in regards to the draft. I mean, talk about a guy nobody heard of at all in college football. Who would have thought the #1 ranked FB in the nation would turn out to be a good player? :shocked:

[Simple Jaded]

I knew Peyton Manning would be good, I just have an eye for that sort of thing.......It's a gift.......

[Requiem / The Dagda]

I knew Peyton Manning would be good, I just have an eye for that sort of thing.......It's a gift.......

You must be related to Doogie, aka McDaniels. He has an eye for quarterbacks too. If not relatives, you could become good friends!

[Simple Jaded]

You must be related to Doogie, aka McDaniels. He has an eye for quarterbacks too. If not relatives, you could become good friends!

He definitely has an eye for System QuarterBacks, no doubt about it.......

[G_Money]

Good to see Hillis being utilized in multiple roles, but I'll disagree with the aforementioned statement that he is a better receiver than Mike Alstott ever was. He has to prove that first. When he gets 65 catches in a season, let me know.

Depends if they let him. If they don't throw him the ball, he can't invent catches. But he made some ridiculous catches last year. Also, 65 receptions was in Alstott's rookie year. No year after that did he catch more than 35 - or about 2 passes a game. Didn't make him half the receiving talent that he was as a rook, just half as utilized in that capacity.

And Alstott never had a 100 yard receiving game, even in that 65 catch season. Hillis already does, making catches that would be tough for any non-WR.

Hillis has a lot to prove as far as durability, ball security, etc. Talent? The talent's there to pull off an Alstott/Byars career. And yeah, I do think he has better hands than Mike.

~G

[Buff]

And in case anyone forgot, here's Hillis looking like the Hulk in a helmet and making defenders look like bowling pins.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cSjDe0WDuCg

:salute:

Bring on the season.

~G

That video got me amped. I particularly like the part at 2:17 when he ran over Cameron Wimbley for another 7 yards. That's the football equivalent of being posterized in basketball.

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[rcsodak]

Go right ahead, that is your prerogative. I was just givin' my thoughts, but you can indulge with G to the glory about mentioning Peyton Hillis in regards to the draft. I mean, talk about a guy nobody heard of at all in college football. Who would have thought the #1 ranked FB in the nation would turn out to be a good player? :shocked:

Poopoo all you want, dream. Sooo sorry he's turning out better than YOUR pick, Chowder. :tsk:

As far as being ranked #1, it was by no means, a consensus.....

.....Rivals had him #3, behind Schmitt and Hester.

[Requiem / The Dagda]

Poopoo all you want, dream. Sooo sorry he's turning out better than YOUR pick, Chowder. :tsk:

I like Hillis, so I'm not sure what your point is -- that Crowder is doing bad? Aw. How about Quentin Griffin?


As far as being ranked #1, it was by no means, a consensus.....

.....Rivals had him #3, behind Schmitt and Hester.

Most people had Peyton Hillis ranked as the best FB in the draft. Regardless the point stands, you'd have to be brain dead to not see that Hillis was going to do well in the NFL -- so stating that he was going to be good is no real feat at all.

[SoCalImport]

That video got me amped. I particularly like the part at 2:17 when he ran over Cameron Wimbley for another 7 yards. That's the football equivalent of being posterized in basketball.

[


MAN! I love watching Hillis play.:elefant:
(excuse the non-post)

btw. on the play just after that, notice Marshals complete whiff on the block? Maybe something to work on.

[Benetto]

6'1'' 255 ?? WOW!


I am 6'2'' 215, and pretty muscular/athletic at that...6'1'' and 255 with the amount of athleticism Hillis has, is just freakish. Glad to have him on OUR team.

I Expect Moreno to carry the bulk of the load, and see Jordan and Buckhalter share some in certain situations...Hillis will be our everydown FB, and will see some carries and catches as well. Very excited. Just a quarter of a year left.

[GEM]

MAN! I love watching Hillis play.:elefant:
(excuse the non-post)

btw. on the play just after that, notice Marshals complete whiff on the block? Maybe something to work on.

:lol: I noticed that. First thing I thought was hell, you want more money, you gotta make some holes for the running game when called on.

Hillis is fun to watch!

[Lonestar]

6'1'' 255 ?? WOW!


I am 6'2'' 215, and pretty muscular/athletic at that...6'1'' and 255 with the amount of athleticism Hillis has, is just freakish. Glad to have him on OUR team.

I Expect Moreno to carry the bulk of the load, and see Jordan and Buckhalter share some in certain situations...Hillis will be our everydown FB, and will see some carries and catches as well. Very excited. Just a quarter of a year left.



he does not look 6'1" on any of the films I have seen of him.. more like 5/10-11 compared the the guys around him.. short and squat.. but I have always like RB over 225. they seems to have the strength and stamina it takes to pound the rock....

[SoCalImport]

he does not look 6'1" on any of the films I have seen of him.. more like 5/10-11 compared the the guys around him.. short and squat.. but I have always like RB over 225. they seems to have the strength and stamina it takes to pound the rock....

It an illusion caused my his being as wide as he is tall:eek:

[WARHORSE]

6'1'' 255 ?? WOW!


I am 6'2'' 215, and pretty muscular/athletic at that...6'1'' and 255 with the amount of athleticism Hillis has, is just freakish. Glad to have him on OUR team.

I Expect Moreno to carry the bulk of the load, and see Jordan and Buckhalter share some in certain situations...Hillis will be our everydown FB, and will see some carries and catches as well. Very excited. Just a quarter of a year left.

For you Benetto


http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y152/warhorse001/hillis_ks_090612.jpg

See that little bit of quad poking out on his right knee? Yep.......monsta.

[GEM]

For you Benetto


http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y152/warhorse001/hillis_ks_090612.jpg

See that little bit of quad poking out on his right knee? Yep.......monsta.

He can officially take over the name Guns from Pittman. :lol: :D

[atwater27]

After giving it a little thought, I can see where the offense is going. McD likes to throw to the runners. Moreno IMO is a much better Kevin Faulk and should have 1000 or more catching/receiving yards and 10 TD's. But McD has never had a Hillis type threat, and I can see him with damn near 1000 all purpose yards and be the goalline runner as well, with 10 total TD's. Marshall is gonna be pissed when his catch totals go down from 100 to 60 or 70. You simply have to involve both of these RB's in the passing game. We should have a pretty solid offense as long as Orton doesn't make mistakes, and he isn't the type to do that so it should be a pretty productive offense.

[Tned]

After giving it a little thought, I can see where the offense is going. McD likes to throw to the runners. Moreno IMO is a much better Kevin Faulk and should have 1000 or more catching/receiving yards and 10 TD's. But McD has never had a Hillis type threat, and I can see him with damn near 1000 all purpose yards and be the goalline runner as well, with 10 total TD's. Marshall is gonna be pissed when his catch totals go down from 100 to 60 or 70. You simply have to involve both of these RB's in the passing game. We should have a pretty solid offense as long as Orton doesn't make mistakes, and he isn't the type to do that so it should be a pretty productive offense.

While it's way to early to know how the pieces will fit together, how Orton will play, or even what 'version' of the NE offense McD will run.

However, I wouldn't assume that Marshall or other WR's would fall off too far. A lot of those all purpose yards that Moreno and Hillis 'might' get, would likely come at the expense of traditional runs, then WR plays.

[rcsodak]

I like Hillis, so I'm not sure what your point is -- that Crowder is doing bad? Aw. How about Quentin Griffin?



Most people had Peyton Hillis ranked as the best FB in the draft. Regardless the point stands, you'd have to be brain dead to not see that Hillis was going to do well in the NFL -- so stating that he was going to be good is no real feat at all.

How's that bi-polar thing working out for you? :rolleyes:

You poo-poo him, then, when called on it, you pull a 180.

Typical dream.

I won't even bring up the "brain dead" comment. lol

I seem to recall you saying Chowder would be better than Carrington.

At least Carrington gets on the field...... :lol:

[rcsodak]

He can officially take over the name Guns from Pittman. :lol: :D

:coldwater:

[Chris90210]

:beer::D:D:D:D