Denver Broncos: 4 Players Ready for Breakout Seasons in 2012

Every year, players break out.

Rookies dazzle scouts and show everyone their talent. Struggling veterans revamp their game and start to play well. Young players who haven't received an opportunity to shine show their stuff.

Every year on every team, players break out and have great seasons. In Denver, it is no different.

The Broncos struggled at some places last year and they have a lot of young players. The team has a lot of great, young players, but they also have some veterans looking to make one final splash.

Who will break out in Denver? Read on to find out.

Ronnie Hillman, Running Back

Ronnie Hillman played very well at San Diego State, and he showed us why he is ready for the NFL.

Hillman is a fast running back with incredible vision, and even though he is small (5'9", 196 pounds) he can break tackles. If a hole opens up for Hillman, he will burst through it.

Touchdown Broncos.

Even though center J.D. Walton is probably the worst run-blocker in the NFL, a lot of holes were opened up by the other offensive lineman. Willis McGahee usually ran through them, but sometimes, he just got stuffed in the backfield.

With Hillman, that won't happen.

As long as John Fox gives Hillman an opportunity, he will shine. Hillman can catch passes, as he can use his speed to create space. He doesn't have spectacular hands, but he can definitely get open and make a catch.

Overall, Hillman is a great player. As long as he gets an opportunity to dazzle, he will.

Eric Decker, Wide Receiver

Eric Decker played well in 2011, although he didn't get many opportunities to make big catches.

With Peyton Manning at the helm, expect that to change.

Decker is a great receiver and return man. He runs crisp routes and has good hands, and he can run short routes and long routes. He is best at running deeper routes over the middle, but he can run short routes very well.

Since Manning picks apart defenses with short routes, Decker will be targeted a lot.

When Tim Tebow played quarterback, Denver ran the ball a lot and rarely threw. When they did throw the ball, Decker wasn't targeted much, so he only caught 44 passes (and 21 of those were from Kyle Orton in 4.5 games).

With Peyton Manning, Denver will call a lot of short passes. When they call a lot of short passes, Eric Decker is targeted. When Eric Decker is targeted, he breaks out.

And when he breaks out, Decker blossoms into the next star receiver in Denver.

Tracy Porter, Cornerback

Some of you may remember Tracy Porter from Super Bowl XLIV.

With the Colts trailing the Saints 24-17, Peyton Manning (hm, sounds familiar) was leading the Colts on a drive that could've tied the game. On third and five, Manning dropped back to pass and targeted Reggie Wayne on a slant route.

Porter read the throw and jumped the route, getting to the ball before it got to Wayne. Porter took the ball 74 yards for a touchdown, and he pretty much sealed the Saints' first championship.

In 14 regular season games last year, Porter intercepted just one pass and recorded just 52 tackles. Porter did record 11 tackles in two postseason games, but overall, he didn't have a great year. In Denver, expect that to change.

Porter will get a lot more playing time in Denver, as the Broncos struggled with pass coverage last year. However, with Champ Bailey manning one side, a lot of passes should come Porter's way.

Luckily for Denver, Porter will be able to handle it.

Porter can stay with the best receivers and is very fast (he ran a 4.37 40-yard dash). He makes great reads, so he can break away from his receiver to get an interception (much like he did in Super Bowl XLIV).

With a great opportunity, expect the speedy Porter to shine. If Porter does break out (which he will), he'll take Denver's secondary from near-worst to near-first.

Omar Bolden, Cornerback

Omar Bolden may not be well-known, but he could break out in Denver.

As I mentioned, Denver's pass defense wasn't great last year. Tom Brady, Matthew Stafford and Aaron Rodgers picked apart the defense, and Denver allowed 40-plus points five times last year (most in the NFL).

Tracy Porter was signed to help the pass defense, and he and Champ Bailey will start at cornerback. However, Omar Bolden should also see some action.

Bolden can stay with a receiver and he can continue to cover a receiver well on deep routes. He is fast, but he has had injury problems. As long as Bolden can stay healthy, he should make an impact in Denver.

Denver is desperate for cornerbacks, and Bolden could fill their needs. He is fast, so he can stay with receivers who blow by slow cornerbacks. He can read the quarterback well and he can make adjustments to different routes well (by turning his hips, which he does very well).

Bolden tore his ACL in 2011, but he dominated when he played. If he gets a chance to play in 2012, he could make an impact and even start at cornerback.