Running backs are chic again and the Broncos are looking to join the party.

The Broncos haven’t selected a running back in the first round of the NFL draft since they took Knowshon Moreno at No. 12 in 2009. But that could change at the April 24-26 event in Green Bay, Wis.

Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty probably won’t be available at No. 20, but he is expect Denver to pounce on him. If he’s gone, North Carolina’s Omarion Hampton could be an option.

Talk in recent years had been about running backs being devalued. But Philadelphia boldly handed out a three-year, $37.5 million contract to Saquon Barkley in free agency last March and he responded by leading the NFL in rushing with 2,005 yards, being named NFL Offensive Player of the Year and helping the Eagles win the Super Bowl.

“NFL trends are like fashion,’’ said ESPN draft analyst Jordan Reid. “They eventually circle back. So now it’s the running back’s turn. The running back is back in style. Not just Saquon, but Derrick Henry and Josh Jacobs. Those guys helped the value of the running back go back up.”

Henry signed a two-year, $16 million deal with Baltimore last March and had 1,921 yards rushing and 16 touchdowns. Jacobs signed a four-year, $48 million contract with Green Bay and had 1,329 yards rushing and 15 touchdowns.

With all of this in mind, there could be a run on running backs in the draft.

“It’s loaded,’’ Reid said. “I think this is the best class since 2017. There were (26) drafted that year. I think we could get more than 30 drafted this year, so it’s an absolutely stacked class.”

In last year’s draft, there were no running backs taken in the first round, with the highest one selected being Jonathon Brooks at No. 46 in the second round to Carolina. There were two selected in the first round in 2023 and none in 2022.

“There’s probably three, four, five running backs that some people might consider taking in the first round,’’ said NFL Network draft analyst and CBS game analyst Charles Davis. “It’s highly doubtful we get that many. If we get three, it’s going to be a big number. One is usually kind of the number, but we got guys who can play. … I think our eyes are open again for the runner and for a while we really weren’t.”

Jeanty and Hampton are clearly the top two prospects available. Jeanty rushed for 2,601 yards and 29 touchdowns in 2024 and finished second to University of Colorado cornerback-receiver Travis Hunter in voting for the Heisman Trophy. Hampton rushed for 1,660 yards and 15 touchdowns.

“Obviously, there’s a need for a lot of teams at running back and wherever they feel necessary to draft,’’ Jeanty said. “But I think it’s been shown this year by the Eagles’ Saquon Barkley that a great running back can help your team a lot.”

Hampton agreed that running backs are hot again.

“Most of the teams in the playoffs had a good running back, so most of the teams will now see that and value the position more,’’ Hampton said. “So, I’m just excited for it, and we (this year’s rookie class) just have to add on to that.”

The Broncos, though, were a playoff team that didn’t have an elite running back. Javonte Williams, who rushed for 903 yards as a rookie in 2021 and hasn’t been the same since suffering a serious knee injury in October 2022, led Denver with 513 yards while averaging just 3.7 per carry. Overall, Broncos backs ran for 1,423 yards while averaging 4.1 per attempt.

So, the Broncos could take a running back at No. 20. If not, they will make sure they are not too late to the party and grab one in a later round.

What I’m hearing

–The Broncos also will look for a tight end in the draft, and it’s also a good year at that position. “It’s a great year for tight ends,’’ Reid said. “Even if they don’t take one at 20, they’re going to have an opportunity to take on day two or three.” The Broncos at the combine had formal interviews with all the top tight ends, notably Penn State’s Tyler Warren, Michigan’s Colston Loveland, Miami’s Elijah Arroyo, Englewood native Gunnar Helm of Texas and Littleton native Terrance Ferguson of Oregon. “There’s a bunch of them,’’ Davis said.

–Utah linebacker Kerine Reid faced star quarterback Shedeur Sanders last November and came away very impressed after the Utes’ 49-24 loss at Colorado. “Very composed quarterback,’’ Reid said. “That was the one part that stood out to me. We drove up a lot of different pressures to try to confuse and rattle him, but he kept his poise.”  Sanders, who will be picked high in the draft, completed 30 of 41 passes for 340 yards and three touchdowns. But it wasn’t all bad for Reid, who had a sack in the game.

What I’m seeing

–The Sean Payton-Pete Carroll rivalry is back. The Broncos coach commended the hiring Carroll to lead Las Vegas but knows it will make matters even more difficult in the AFC West.

“I’d rather be looking at someone else than Pete right now but that’s a credit to what he’s accomplished, and I think a good hire obviously,’’ Payton said.

Carroll won a Super Bowl during 14 years of coaching Seattle while Payton also won one in 15 seasons with New Orleans. With all their matchups being between the Saints and the Seahawks between 2007 and 2021, Payton has a 5-1 career record over Carroll in the regular season. But Carroll has won both his playoff games against Payton, 41-36 in the wild-card round in 2010 and 23-15 in the divisional round in 2013.

–UCLA’s Kain Medrano, a graduate of Pueblo East High School, helped himself at the combine by having the fastest time in the 40-yard dash among linebackers at 4.46 seconds. Medrano, expected to be a late-round draft pick, has drawn comparisons to Broncos linebacker Justin Strnad in part due to his ability to play on special teams.

Broncos backs

Running backs taken in the first round by the Broncos since the first common NFL draft in 1967:

Year Name School Pick

1967 Floyd Little Syracuse 6

1970 Bobby Anderson Colorado 11

1973 Otis Armstrong Purdue 9

1982 Gerald Willhite San Jose State 21

1985 Steve Sewell Oklahoma 26

2009 Knowshon Moreno Georgia 12