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The Broncos essentially admitted to making a mistake by matching the offer sheet C.J. Anderson signed with Miami last week. As a result, Anderson won’t go to the Dolphins and fantasy football owners will have to decide whether continuity trumps new opportunity when assessing his value going forward.

All this seemed unlikely when Anderson signed the Dolphins' four-year, $18 million offer sheet.

The Broncos could have kept Anderson for $2.553 million this season simply by tendering him at a higher level as a restricted free agent. As Profootballtalk.com asked: "If the Broncos like Anderson enough to sign him to a four-year, $18 million contract, why didn’t they sign him to a one-year, $2.553 million contract when they had the chance?"

That question is moot now. And general manager John Elway didn't sound to upset about the outcome when he hit Twitter to announce the decision.

"Just got off the phone w/CJ & let him know we're excited to match the offer sheet," Elway tweeted. "We have high expectations for CJ and are glad he's back!"

Miami will be less excited.

The Dolphins were in the market for a running back after losing Lamar Miller to the Texans in free agency. Denver, meanwhile, had already lost numerous members of their Super Bowl-winning team, including Peyton Manning, Brock Osweiler, Danny Trevathan and Malik Jackson.

In 35 career games, Anderson has 338 carries for 1,607 yards and 13 scores. Anderson played in 15 games last season, running the ball 152 times for 720 yards and five touchdowns.

Despite a strong finish in 2015 -- at least the last two games of the season, Anderson fell far short of overall expectations. There will be owners who won't forget that -- which could be good news for owner who can.

Worth noting: Ronnie Hillman had flashes of brilliance last year, but his return as an unrestricted free agent could depend on how long he sits on the market. At some point, the Broncos could move to retain him and maintain the status quo in their backfield.

As for Miami. ... The fact they made a substantial offer to Anderson suggests that Jay Ajayi doesn't have the full confidence of the incoming coaching staff. It seems likely more moves will be coming in Miami's backfield.