For the second straight day, a veteran running back signs with a contending NFL squad to bolster its backfield.
After mutual interest was reported between the Denver Broncos and J.K Dobbins last week, the two sides agreed to a one-year, $5.25 million deal on Tuesday, per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
With new blood in the running back room, how does the Dobbins signing impact RJ Harvey and the Broncos’ backfield for fantasy football?
Washed or not?
Dobbins is one of the NFL’s most interesting cases of what could have been. A second-round pick by the Baltimore Ravens in the 2020 NFL Draft, the halfback showed plenty of promise during his first season with over 900 scrimmage yards and nine total touchdowns. However, his career was quickly derailed in 2021 when he suffered an ACL and LCL tear during the preseason, causing him to miss the entire campaign. He appeared in just nine contests over the following two seasons due to a knee issue and a torn Achilles, leaving a return to full-time pro football in doubt.
However, Dobbins fought hard in rehab and was able to earn a prove-it deal with the Los Angeles Chargers in 2024. As the team’s featured back in 13 games last season, he rushed for 905 yards and nine scores on 195 attempts. Dobbins also caught 32 passes, bringing his scrimmage total to 1,058 yards. He was a Comeback Player of the Year candidate and a central cog in the Chargers’ resurgence to playoff status; however, the team opted to move on in favor of Najee Harris and first-round rookie Omarion Hampton.
Dobbins was the biggest name available at running back following the Houston Texans’ signing of Nick Chubb on Monday, another runner who’s worked to battle back from injury lately. Much like Chubb, some questions regarding Dobbins’ health and efficiency have kept him on the free agent market. It’s hard not to raise an eyebrow at a 26-year-old halfback with a lengthy injury history coming off a 4.6 YPC season, but the Broncos seem to believe the former second-rounder still has production left in him.
Expected usage
Dobbins enters a Broncos backfield with relatively little high-end competition. While Javonte Williams departed to sign with the Dallas Cowboys over the offseason, Jaleel McLaughlin and Audric Estime remain on the roster. At just 5-foot-7, McLaughlin doesn’t have the build to compete for significant touches. As for Estime, the fifth-round pick from last year’s draft hasn’t shown much in his career so far.
On the other hand, Denver did use a second-round pick on RJ Harvey during April’s draft. The competition between the two should be one to keep an eye on.
Harvey, a converted quarterback out of UCF, posted over 4,500 scrimmage yards and 47 total touchdowns over his three years with the Golden Knights. He’s just 5-foot-8 but is solidly built for a workhorse role, handling at least 226 rush attempts in each of his last two seasons. Just last year, he rushed for 1,577 yards and a conference-best 22 scores, also hauling in a handful of passes to tally a grand total of 1,844 yards from scrimmage and 25 touchdowns. His production at UCF was among the best in the NCAA, so when the run-heavy Broncos selected him late in the second round, he skyrocketed up fantasy football rankings.
Here’s the deal, though. Denver needed proven depth for their running back room, so the Dobbins signing makes a lot of sense on the real-world NFL side. He’s more of a bruising back than a speed threat at this point of his career, so he should be able to handle a good deal of the early-down work, as well as short-yardage and goal-line situations.
Fantasy impact
While fantasy managers eyeing down RJ Harvey may be nervous at the moment, there’s not reason to totally panic yet.
Dobbins is what he is at this point in his career, and with middling efficiency and lack of breakaway speed, it feels unlikely that the Broncos make him a workhorse back. Harvey is much faster with his 4.40 40-yard split and looks much more agile than Dobbins, too. Harvey should still put up numbers in a run-heavy offense, and if anything, head coach Sean Payton can find creative ways to scheme up success for the dynamic playmaker.
With that in mind, Harvey remains the running back to roster in this backfield. While he won’t serve as a bell-cow back like many people hoped, there should be plenty of opportunities for him to put up numbers — even with Dobbins eating into the workload some. It’s a bit early to predict things before training camp, but expecting him to settle into upper-end RB2 production with some spike weeks feels about right. Of course, there’s also no reason for dynasty managers to worry about his long-term value since Dobbins’ deal is only for one season.
As for Dobbins, his fantasy outlook depends on how many touches and how much goal-line work he actually sees. Scoring chances won’t be hard to come by for an offense on the upswing, and with 10-plus carries per game, Dobbins could flirt with low-end RB2 numbers but should serve as a steady RB3 and spot starter in a pinch.
