Ronnie Hillman entered his fourth season third on the depth chart. He reached the crossroads learning a new offense suited for a three-down, yoke-wearing tailback.

Hillman has shown a very particular set of skills over his career, and they didn’t seem like an ideal fit. He provided burst, a change of pace.

With two preseason games remaining, everything has changed.

Hillman leads the NFL with 120 yards on 16 carries this preseason, moving ahead of Montee Ball on the depth chart. Hillman is not the starter — C.J. Anderson looked strong against Houston, his statistics crippled by penalties — but he is starting to command more attention.

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“In this offense, they want you to stretch and then go downfield as fast as possible,” Hillman said. “I think that ties in when you’re kind of fast and everybody thinks you are going to the edge, then you just go right up the field.”

Broncos coach Gary Kubiak changed Hillman’s course a few days into camp. He met with the former San Diego State star, and told him he needed to finish plays more effectively. During Hillman’s first few years, the advice might not have stuck. He entered the draft at age 20, a kid in a league with grown men.

This talk, this month, resonated.

“He felt like he could get a lot more out of me,” said Hillman of Kubiak, who began his coaching career in charge of running backs at Texas A&M. “I went back and thought about it. Now, I just go all-out. Whatever I can do, I do it. That’s how I applied it. And it’s definitely paying off so far.”

Anderson earned Pro Bowl honors last season with a remarkable seven-game finish. Hillman, though, didn’t lose the job. He lost his footing when he suffered a Lisfranc injury on Nov. 10 at Oakland. His two 100-yard games faded away, and seemed forgotten when Kubiak took over in January.

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Anderson embraced the challenge of keeping his spot. But Hillman, whose left foot finally healed in April, has answered with his best summer, supplanting the slumping Ball, who also is being pushed by Juwan Thompson.

“(Hillman) has had a really good camp. He’s the guy in the group that is a little bit different — (he has) the gear to get the ball to the edge,” Kubiak said. “He’s responded. He deserves more reps.”

Hillman’s performance — “He looks stronger and quicker, which is scary,” teammate Sylvester Williams said — provides optimism at both the micro and macro levels. He creates an intriguing option behind Anderson, and it shows the painfully young offensive line is adapting to the zone blocking even as it must improve in short yardage situations.

Denver is expected to continue monitoring trades and the waiver wire for help, most likely at guard. However, the inexperienced trio of Matt Paradis, Max Garcia and Ty Sambrailo is making progress. Paradis continues to draw praise for his leadership, and blocks at the point of attack. The Broncos have rushed 55 times for 234 yards, a 4.3 average. They ran for 4 yards a clip last season, which ranked 20th overall.

“We are getting there. I think I can make the right cuts. If we start fast, and start early, we will be fine,” Anderson said. “We will get a lot more reps in practice against the 49ers (on Tuesday and Wednesday) and in the game to show what this offense can do.”

For Hillman, a new offense has allowed a fresh start. Now, he must continue to finish.

“You put your head down and work,” Hillman said. “Like one of my teammates said, ‘just focus on what’s in front of you.’^”

Troy E. Renck: trenck@denverpost.com or twitter.com/troyrenck