One of the most surprising outcomes of the offseason for me personally has been how RB J.K. Dobbins has remained unsigned for so long despite coming off of a career season. Injuries derailed the first four years of Dobbins’ career, including multiple knee surgeries and a torn Achilles in 2023. He fought through all of that and seized the opportunity with the Chargers last year, rushing for 905 yards in 13 games with nine touchdowns at 4.6 yards a pop.
Perhaps the league is spooked by the injury history. Dobbins did miss time last year with a knee injury and even though he’s just 26 years old he has the injury history of a much older player. There also just wasn’t much excitement about most of the free agent backs this year, though I think Dobbins would have been an upgrade over some players who have already signed.
Ultimately, Dobbins is accustomed to fighting through adversity at this point, and last year proved he’s too talented not to find a job. The Chargers agreed, using the obscure unrestricted free agent tender to potentially keep him in the fold.
The UFA tender is actually worth digging into a little more, because it was used twice this year after not being used since 2022 on Melvin Ingram and Justin Houston. The way it works is a team can use it once on an unrestricted free agent who remains unsigned in May when the qualifying period for compensatory free agents ends. The tender is worth 110 percent of the player’s salary the year before. It does not prevent a player from continuing to explore his options until July 22 — the Browns used the tender on WR Elijah Moore this year and he went on to sign a deal with the Bills — but it provides a floor for the player’s market and allows him to continue to count in the compensatory formula for his former team.
In Dobbins’ case, the UFA tender is worth $1.644 million. If no other team is willing to pay more than that, Dobbins will most likely remain with the Chargers as the No. 3 back behind first-rounder Omarion Hampton and free agent addition Najee Harris. It’s a quality stable of runners for Los Angeles, which ideally wants to be one of the run-heaviest offenses in football. It’s less ideal for anyone invested in Dobbins getting a shot to shine and prove he’s worth a bigger contract.
The timing of the tender also means it’s far less likely an injury to another backfield opens up a spot for Dobbins, as training camps won’t begin until after July 22. Dobbins will have to find a place in the current landscape, and unfortunately, the supply of running backs continues to outweigh the demand. Still, there are a few interesting landing spots that could be better fits than the Chargers.
Dobbins, 26, was drafted in the second round out of Ohio State by the Ravens in 2020. He finished the final year of a four-year, $5,729,436 rookie contract that included a $1,726,862 signing bonus.
He was testing the market as an unrestricted free agent for the first time in his career when he signed a one-year deal with the Chargers.
In 2024, Dobbins appeared in 13 games for the Chargers and rushed 195 times for 905 yards (4.6 YPC) and nine touchdowns to go along with 32 catches on 38 targets for 153 yards.
We have him included in our Top 100 Available NFL Free Agents list.
Chicago Bears
The Bears surprisingly weren’t able to materially address the running back room in the draft. They have D’Andre Swift still on the roster but new HC Ben Johnson always had at least two backs he leaned on in Detroit, and it’s fair to question whether Roschon Johnson is up for being the thunder to Swift’s lightning.
Dobbins brings both to the table. Drafted in the same year as Swift, he still has some explosiveness to his game to rip chunk gains even if the injuries have sapped his ability to be an elite home run threat. At 5-9 and 215 pounds, he’s also capable of bringing the boom and was a big part of a physical Chargers offense last year.
Chicago doesn’t have a lot of cap space right now but Dobbins won’t cost much and is a perfect finishing piece to what could be the league’s top breakout offense next year. This might also be Dobbins’ only real chance to land a major role, so if I was his agent, I would be doing everything I could to get him to Chicago.
Baltimore Ravens
If the Bears don’t sign Dobbins, he’s likely looking at a backup role given how the chips have fallen this offseason. At that point, the goal should be to find a better role than what the Chargers can give, either higher than third on the depth chart or with the potential for more carries.
Baltimore could make some sense. Derrick Henry has an iron grip on the lead role after signing a new extension with two more years of guaranteed money. He’s been remarkably durable his entire career but if that changes, there’s not really a good option to replace him on the roster. The Ravens have Justice Hill and Keaton Mitchell but both are passing down backs who aren’t necessarily built to carry the ball a bunch. Dobbins would give the Ravens a legitimate handcuff to Henry and a familiar landing spot after he started his career in Baltimore.
Denver Broncos
Denver believes second-round RB RJ Harvey will help solve the backfield problems that plagued the Broncos last year. They also still have Jaleel McLaughlin and Audric Estime, who could take a step forward from last season. But if Harvey is injured or has a steep rookie learning curve, the Broncos could be right back where they were last season from a running game perspective. In a year that the team hopes will be a big leap forward, that would be a concerning step back.
Adding Dobbins would give the Broncos insurance against that happening, and a chance to add a nice complement for Harvey at a cheap cost while upgrading the rest of the backfield. Dobbins is more explosive than Estime and sturdier than McLaughlin. Denver got a good look at him when it played the Chargers last year, too. Dobbins ground out 96 yards and a touchdown on 25 carries in a win.
Cincinnati Bengals
While the Bengals did some work on this running back class, they ultimately elected not to add significant competition for starting RB Chase Brown, who broke out down the stretch last year. Cincinnati has indicated it doesn’t want Brown playing nearly 100 percent of the snaps like he was last year, though, and brought back Samaje Perine and Zack Moss to play complementary roles, along with sixth-rounder Tahj Brooks. All three are pretty similar backs who are versatile runners, receivers and blockers, but lack explosiveness.
Dobbins would be a physical complement to Brown who doesn’t sacrifice as much in the speed category as the other backs on the roster. He’d also get the chance to return to Ohio where he played college ball, as well as a return to the AFC North.
Las Vegas Raiders
The bellcow runner in Las Vegas is obviously going to be first-round RB Ashton Jeanty, who has the makings of a Day 1 star. Given how HC Pete Carroll and OC Chip Kelly like to establish the run, Jeanty is a solid bet for 300 carries. But behind him, the depth is arguably shaky. The Raiders added 33-year-old Raheem Mostert and the last spot or two will be a competition between Zamir White, Dylan Laube and Sincere McCormick.
If Jeanty stays healthy, those guys can all slot into roles to spell the rookie or play special teams. If Jeanty were to be injured, however, the Raiders’ run game would be in trouble. In that sense, Dobbins would be an upgrade, and like the Broncos, the Raiders should be familiar with Dobbins from last year in the AFC West. He had 10 carries for 135 yards and a touchdown in Week 1 against the Raiders last year.
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