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Sean Payton and the Denver Broncos are banking on J.K. Dobbins, but have also planned accordingly.

The Denver Broncos are hoping their decision to re-sign J.K. Dobbins this offseason pays off during the 2026 campaign.

Dobbins had his first season with the Broncos cut short due to injury, which has been a theme of his career so far. He hoped to return for a potential Super Bowl berth, but the Broncos were unable to advance to the AFC Championship Game to see if he could.

Now, Dobbins is back in the fold and looking to pick back up where he left off before suffering his injury last season.

J.K. Dobbins Deal Draws Praise for Broncos

ESPN’s Bill Barnwell selected the Broncos’ decision to re-up Dobbins (on a two-year, $16 million contract) as their “best” deal of the offseason.

“Re-signing J.K. Dobbins. Since 2020, 51 running backs have racked up 500 or more rush attempts,” Barnwell wrote on May 21. “Dobbins also hasn’t fumbled since 2020. He’s not a great receiver, but Dobbins might be the most efficient back in the league with the ball in his hands. If you needed any healthy running back to take 15 handoffs in a game, Dobbins wouldn’t be anybody’s first pick, but he shouldn’t be far off.”

Barnwell noted that Dobbins led the aforementioned group in EPA per rush attention and rush yards over expectation per carry, was second in explosive play rate, third in yards per carry, and ninth in success rate.

He has also been consistently productive when on the field.

“Of course, the key word there is healthy. Dobbins has racked up only [582] carries across those six seasons as a product of dealing with ACL and Achilles injuries,” Barnwell wrote.

“Even if you project Dobbins to play only half the year, Denver is getting a player who produces like one of the league’s best backs for that stretch of time, which would make this a very palatable contract.”

Dobbins has 3,024 yards and 25 TDs on 582 carries

J.K. Dobbins Gets Reality Check

Dobbins suffered a Lisfranc injury last season that cut his first Broncos campaign short. He finished with 772 yards and 4 touchdowns on 153 carries. Jaleel McLaughlin was the only other Broncos back to surpass 4.0 yards per carry (5.1 YPC) and finish ahead of Dobbins’ 5.0 YPC.

He had 37 carries all season.

Barnwell noted that Dobbins’ injury history “is what it is,” and is the reason “he’ll struggle to ever land a significant guarantee in terms of money or role.”

His current pact, which included $8 million guaranteed in 2026, is “third wide receiver money.”

Dobbins was a second-round pick of the Baltimore Ravens in 2020. He spent four years there before signing with the Los Angeles Chargers in free agency for the 2024 season. The Broncos signed Dobbins late in free agency in 2025.

Broncos Hedge Against RB Injuries

The Broncos return 2025 second-round pick RJ Harvey, as well as McLaughlin and fellow backup Tyler Badie, another former draft pick of the Ravens (2022) and Dobbins’ former teammate.

Not satisfied with what they got from the group on the ground after Dobbins’ injury, though, the Broncos also drafted Jonah Coleman in the fourth round this year. Broncos head coach Sean Payton, about whom Dobbins has raved, compared Coleman’s running style to the veteran’s.

The Broncos ranked 16th on the ground last season, but they were in the top 10 before Dobbins got hurt. They will need Coleman to step up if Dobbins gets injured again, and history suggests that he will.