ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — About a week before the 2025 NFL Draft, an article caught Head Coach Sean Payton's and General Manager George Paton's attention.
University of Central Florida running back RJ Harvey was on a list of rising players, and the Broncos weren't thrilled.
"It was like, 'Ugh,'" Payton said Friday after Denver selected Harvey in the second round. "You don't want to read that."
The Broncos had previously identified Harvey as a target, and they didn't want other teams to stand between them and the explosive back they aimed to add to their offense. Payton acknowledged Harvey was "the last one we would've wanted to have a private workout with," as it would have alerted teams to their interest.
After a pair of carefully weighed trades down the board, the Broncos ultimately snagged Harvey at No. 60 to fill a need and provide a home-run threat to their run game.
"This was kind of our pet cat throughout the process," Paton said. "His running style — we feel he's dynamic. He has really good vision, really good instincts, really good contact balance. Highly explosive. We thought maybe he had the best vision in the draft."
Paton pointed to Harvey's high number of chunk-yardage carries, as the UCF rusher had an FBS-high 23.3 percent of his carries go for at least 10 yards.
And while Harvey caught just 20 passes a year ago, the Broncos observed traits that suggest he can be similarly productive in the passing game.
"[We] watched every carry, every catch," Payton said. "Some offenses in college don't necessarily feature the halfback a lot in the passing game. It's oftentimes when they get to the NFL they're used maybe a little differently. And it might just be style of play. When you look at the running skill set, it was, 'Wow.' Explosive runs, all of those things. So then you begin to study the passing game stuff. He's got soft hands. He does a lot of those things well. You get to see that maybe more in the pro day than you do on the film, just because of the offense."
Added Paton: "His ability to get in and out [of his breaks], his ability to catch [stood out]. You can see he has instincts in the pass game. Man, he had a lot of big plays in the pass game. You just don't see all the routes, and you can see those at the pro day. And we think he can keep going [upward]."
So while the nation — and NFL teams including Denver — were impressed by the potential of eventual No. 6 overall pick Ashton Jeanty, the Broncos searched for options that were more realistic based on their draft position. The more film they watched, the more Harvey became a desirable option.
From the impressive 1,577 yards and 22 touchdowns on the ground in 2024 to the potential in the passing game, Harvey distinguished himself as a strong option to help bolster the Broncos' running back group.
"[He has] home-run ability," Paton said. "We really like this back."
