With the departure of Travis Henry from Denver, Mike Shanahan will look to Selvin Young to carry more of a load on offense this season. Young was impressive in his 140 carries last season: the undrafted rookie averaged 5.2 yards per carry in 2007. Look for Shanahan to rely on Young to carry the ball more—but don't expect Young to be a touchdown machine. Shanahan has been reluctant to use the former Texas Longhorn in the red-zone since Young is a shifty back not known for grinding out yardage.

Selvin Young on the Rise

Shanahan would like a stronger runner that he could use between the tackles for goal line purposes. Ryan Torain, a fifth-round draft pick out of Arizona State, is a guy that will be given an opportunity to be the goal line back, as well as a platoon partner with Young. Torain is a big back (6'1, 222) and he isn't easy to bring down. He is the "one-cut"-type of runner that Shanahan loves, and fits so well in the Broncos' zone blocking scheme. With Henry out of the picture, expect Torain to get a long, hard look in training camp. He is the logical choice to become Shanahan's short yardage, between-the-tackles, runner.

Young has added muscle in hopes of becoming more durable. Still, do not expect Shanahan to hand Young all of the 167 carries that Travis Henry vacated. Young may be more effective when the Broncos mix in a power rusher like Torain. Young's value is certainly on the rise, though, and Torain should now be on the radar as a guy who can score some touchdowns, and has the opportunity to do bigger things because he fits in Denver's offense so well. After all, Shanahan did invest a fifth-round pick in Torain, and cut a powerful runner in Henry—so he has confidence in the rookie.