ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- It’s kind of fitting that Champ Bailey was roaming the hallways of the Denver Broncos' complex last week.

Bailey, he of the 12 career Pro Bowl selections, understands how things work, even when you have a Hall of Fame resume. One of the many things Bailey often said was “the only guarantee is they’re always looking for guys to come in, so if that bothers you, you aren’t going to last very long."

It is a fact of football life. And the Broncos have done some things in recent days to make that abundantly clear at some specific spots on the roster, particularly at running back and tight end.

C.J. Anderson has been characterized by the team’s decision-makers as the No. 1 back as he continues to work his way back from last season’s knee surgery. But the Broncos now have surrounded him with other options who could get plenty of carries. And coach Vance Joseph has basically said to get used to it, there and everywhere else.

“It’s for every player on our football team," Joseph said. “Every job is always open. Between OTAs and training camp, it’s a competition. Everyone is fighting for their jobs. It’s the NFL. It’s our sign over here: Iron sharpens iron. It’s all about competition here.

"Every year, we’re going to acquire players to make our team better. If they can’t make our team better, that means the guys we have already are good enough. It’s important to bring in guys every year to make guys compete for their jobs every year. That’s important."

At running back, the Broncos’ first move was to quietly sign Bernard Pierce. Pierce was a "futures" player -- a veteran player who was unattached as the 2016 season drew to a close -- so his arrival had plenty of camouflage as the Broncos changed coaches and went about the business of explaining how they missed the playoffs.

And while the Broncos are just a few weeks into their offseason program, Pierce has shown enough that the Broncos dealt Kapri Bibbs during draft weekend. They were going to draft a running back whether or not Bibbs was still on the roster -- and they did pick one in De'Angelo Henderson -- but it's pretty clear the Broncos like what they’ve seen from Pierce. However, he will have to continue to show he can stop the career trend of his yards per carry dipping, from 4.9 as a rookie to 1.8 on just six carries in 2015.

On Tuesday, the Broncos also agreed to terms with Jamaal Charles after a check-the-knees visit. The team's medical staff and the Broncos' decision-makers were convinced Charles’ knees can hold up to some situational work in the Denver offense, so he, too, was added to the roster.

Henderson is now the speed option at running back -- he ran in the 4.4's in the 40-yard dash in his pre-draft work -- having arrived as the Broncos’ sixth-round pick Saturday. Toss in the fact that Devontae Booker is a player Joseph has already said should be in line for plenty of work in the coming season and it may well be a crowded backfield with one football to go around.

Tight end could also look different. The Broncos hoped 2015 third-round pick Jeff Heuerman would be a key contributor last season, but that never really materialized. They took a swing at Michigan tight end Jake Butt, who suffered a torn ACL in the Wolverines’ bowl game this past January, in this year's draft. Taken in the fifth round, Butt would have been a first- or second-round pick had it not been for the injury. The Broncos believe he could be ready to play by the start of the regular season.

Virgil Green was a pick from John Elway’s first draft class as the team’s executive vice president of football operations/general manager in 2011 and has consistently turned away challengers because he either blocks better than the guys who catch better than he can or catches better than the guys who have blocked well.

If Butt gets healthy and the knee cooperates -- it was his second ACL tear -- he’s playing, to be sure. Asked this past weekend what Butt’s selection meant for Heuerman, Elway dropped some straight talk.

“It means, he's going to have to compete," Elway said. “All of those tight ends, again, as Vance has reiterated several times, it's about the competition. You know what, everyone who's going to make the team, they make the team. No one else makes it for them. They've got to go make the team themselves, so that's why it's up to them."

That ain’t exactly a don’t-worry-about-it. Training camp is still over two months away, but quarterback isn't the only place where players are going to have to really battle -- maybe more than they expected -- to get the ball.