Coach John Fox's actions belie his words on the Denver Broncos' backfield picture.
After watching starter Ronnie Hillman fumble for the third time in three preseason games in Saturday's 27-26 victory over the St. Louis Rams, Fox insisted he had not lost confidence in Hillman "whatsoever."
Two days later, rookie Montee Ball was running with the first-team offense while Hillman was given the Darnell Jefferson treatment, carrying a football wherever he roamed.
While it appears on the surface to be an opportunity for Ball to claim a bigger slice of the backfield pie, Fox cautioned against viewing Monday's practice as a demotion for Hillman.
"It's just practice, I wouldn't read too much into anything," Fox explained, via The Denver Post. "We're evaluating everybody regardless of who gets what reps at what number. So, he's a guy that we want to get some touches and we'll go from there."
A running back's most important assignments in Denver are protecting Peyton Manning from getting clobbered and ensuring that the high-scoring offense doesn't lose a possession due to ball-security issues.
Hillman has struggled with the latter while Ball is a work in progress with the former. Don't be surprised if old reliable Knowshon Moreno once again is broken out of the moth balls for the Week 1 starting gig.
"Whoever we keep," Fox promised, via ESPN.com, "we're going to lean on."
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