Peyton Hillis can carry the payload

Pop quiz! Peyton Hillis is:

1. A 7th round draft pick out of Arkansas.
2. A running back pushed into the role of a fullback by being on the same team as first rounder Darren McFadden and first rounder Felix Jones.
3. Officially listed at 6’2″ and 250 pounds.
4. Being considered as a hybrid H-back, meaning he could line up as a tight end in the slot.
5. Compared to Dallas Clark.
6. The first Broncos’ rookie to have a hundred yard receiving game AND a hundred yard rushing game in the same season.
7. A pure down-home country boy.
8. Up for Rookie of the Week.
9. Up for FedEx Ground Player of the Week.
10. THE TRUCK.
11. All of the above.

Fortunately, there really are no wrong answers to this quiz. Since he first saw serious action with the rock in November against Miami, Hillis has been tearing up the field. And though it required four injuries a position shift and a full solar eclipse (oh wait that’s a different show), Hillis is slowly emerging as a solid, bruising running back that can be favorably compared to the likes of Brandon Jacobs. Oh, and The Bus, who is a smidge under six feet and played at around 255.

It has taken Hillis a couple of games to really step into the role of a full time tailback, which isn’t at all shocking since he hasn’t had to do that since high school. One might say that he had a little rust to shake off. But even while rusty, and having to make things up on the fly, one thing really stood out about Hillis. He got the tough, tough yards.

Hillis has a way of hitting the pile and then the pile moves. He squeezes in, he pushes, he spins and he turns no gain into a small gain and a small gain into a large gain. On a critical fourth and one, on a play that the O-line got no push and he was stopped, he managed to twist and got that yard anyway. From that play alone, the hearts of many Broncos fans were sold. No matter how much you liked Michael Pittman, you knew he wasn’t able to do that, and none of the other speed backs the Broncos have or had could accomplish that one little thing: getting one yard when it was needed the most.

This season, Denver has gone very pass heavy. In fact, for the season they are currently at 60.4% pass to just 39.6% run. In part, it would seem that it’s because the run game simply has not been effective. The running backs the team has had have worn down quickly. They’re good, fast, agile and crafty, but none of them had the real stamina. In theory, Ryan Torain was going to come in and save the team from being unable to field a good 25 rush game, but his time lasted roughly 6 quarters before he went back out. With three major injuries in a row, there’s some question about whether Torain will ever be healthy enough to play.

But Hillis, now this guy has taken a beating. He isn’t just hard to tackle, he makes the defenders afraid to hit him. Really, does a 210 pound cornerback want to hit the 250 pound Hillis straight on? No way, Hillis will just lower his shoulder, pick the guy up and keep going, and the defensive back will have bruised ribs and bruised pride as a thanks.

And, as the hundred yard game against Miami can attest, he’s got hands. He can play any position in the backfield, motion into the slot, play in a two back set and you can’t tell if he’ll block or run. The only problem with his ability to do everything is that it’s a lot of work and while you want to get him as many touches as possible, you also don’t want to break him down out there. The kind of running Hillis does is hard on the body.

But that’s exactly what we need him to do. We need him to go out there and hit those defenders and make them hurt. The Denver one-cut downhill power running game has a chance. It keeps the defense off the field, it weakens the opposing defense, and it takes pressure off the passing game. The Broncos defense won’t wear down as badly in the fourth quarter, Cutler gets to make flashier plays, Marshall or Royal lose a double team, and the running game? It can just keep on truckin’.

After his 129 yard rushing game against the New York Jets, a team that has allowed only one other 100 yard rusher this season, Peyton Hillis made a statement: that he is going to hit the line and push through it. When I see him I can’t help but think of the truck commercials voiced by the gravelly Sam Elliot, giving you the image of strength and unstoppable power.

And that’s what Hillis is for the Broncos, and that’s exactly what they need. Mark my words, a game where Peyton Hillis carries the load for a hundred yards is a game where the Broncos win. The Pittsburgh Steelers had The Bus. The Denver Broncos have The Truck.