Broncos sign Latavius Murray off of the Saints practice squad

Exit Javonte Williams, enter Latavius Murray. The Denver Broncos are signing Murray off of the New Orleans Saints practice squad just a day after Murray scored a touchdown run with the team in London against the Minnesota Vikings, ironically the same team he once played for when Broncos general manager George Paton worked in their front office.

It’s hard not to look at this as a mistake — Murray brought more life to the Saints running game than we’ve seen all season, and he graded out as the best player on offense for New Orleans in Week 4. He had 11 carries for 57 yards against his old team, catching his only target to gain another 8 yards.

But the decision is easy to understand from Murray’s perspective. Once Alvin Kamara and Mark Ingram II are fully healthy, he’ll be third at best on the depth chart. In Denver he shouldn’t need much time to assert himself with a backfield missing its leading rusher for the rest of the season. There will be greater opportunities for him to get on the field and make more money with the Broncos than with the Saints.

Still, it’s a tough break for New Orleans. They’ve been without Kamara for two of their first four games while he’s dealing with a rib injury and Ingram has struggled with ball security while running in Kamara’s place. Dwayne Washington has been limited to special teams and Tony Jones Jr. has been a healthy scratch on gamedays. Look for the Saints to scour the free agent market yet again searching for Murray’s replacement.

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Story originally appeared on Saints Wire