J.K. Dobbins Joins Denver Broncos: Fantasy Football Impact

Free agent running back J.K. Dobbins agreed to a one-year, $5.25 million contract with the Broncos on Monday, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero.

Dobbins' arrival is a major talent boost to a Denver backfield that already looked promising with second-round rookie selection RJ Harvey (58.27 NFFC ADP) and 2024 fifth-round pick Audric Estime (246.56 ADP), making it a properly crowded running back room going into training camp. Jaleel McLaughlin (250.98 ADP) also arguably remains a notable presence in Denver.

Dobbins has been one of the most talented running backs in the NFL since the Ravens selected him in the second round (55th overall) in 2020, but an improbable slew of leg injuries limited Dobbins to just 24 active games in his first four seasons. The 2024 season was a triumphant breakout for the former Ohio State star, yet even last year Dobbins missed four games with an MCL sprain.

Even with the four games missed, 2024 was easily the best injury luck Dobbins has had in the NFL. In 2021 he tore not just his ACL, but also the LCL, meniscus and hamstring in the same leg. The injury likely would have ended the careers of many lesser running backs, and if it didn't then the Achilles' tendon tear suffered by Dobbins in Week 1 of 2023 would have finished the job. Despite his durability challenges, there's simply no questioning Dobbins' talent or fire – he's as ferociously determined as any player in the league and he's proven that multiple times now.

Dobbins' 905 yards and nine touchdowns (4.6 YPC) in just 13 games last year was impressive in general, but it should be more specifically noted that he pretty much carried the Chargers offense on his own, because the Chargers didn't get reliable pass-catching returns out of anyone but Ladd McConkey in 2024. Although his durability will never be trustworthy – it's best to assume Dobbins will miss games this year – there's still no doubt that he can change the entire complexion of an NFL offense.

Fantasy impact for Harvey, Estime and McLaughlin

Nobody saw their ADP rise faster after the 2025 draft than Harvey, who was incorrectly projected by most (not us) to fall to Day 3 of the NFL draft. Once the Broncos selected him in the second round (60th overall), Harvey's NFFC ADP shot up to 58.34, but before the draft Harvey's ADP was all the way back at 237.53.

Dobbins' arrival doesn't nuke Harvey's fantasy utility – Harvey himself projects to be a game-changing running back at the NFL level – but just the same, when healthy Dobbins is a player who compels the offense to give him some amount of usage. No NFL offense is so good that it couldn't use a healthy Dobbins.

Harvey should still remain the ADP leader of the group, if only because of Dobbins' unnerving injury history, but the days of Harvey going in the late fifth round are probably over. If Dobbins is unavailable at some point then Harvey can absolutely take over the Denver offense, but if Dobbins is healthy then coach Sean Payton no doubt would consider it a Good Problem to have to split up the playing time between Harvey and Dobbins.

Dobbins' signing probably hits Estime and McLaughlin a little harder – especially McLaughlin. As a 5-foot-7, 190-pound back McLaughlin can only thrive on in-space functions in an off-the-bench role. Harvey is simply a much better version of whatever premise McLaughlin offers. Harvey was outrageously productive at UCF in college, and even as a 'small' running back Harvey is nearly 15 pounds heavier than McLaughlin. Not just that, but with a 4.40 combine 40 it's clear that Harvey is significantly faster than McLaughlin (4.46 pro day 40).

Estime, by contrast, is a pure power specialist. Given that Payton loves to create a division of labor between multiple running backs, there's a chance Estime remains somewhat regularly involved in the Denver offense even if both of Harvey and Dobbins stay healthy. With that said, Dobbins is a power back himself, and Estime won't necessarily prove better than Dobbins on power concepts just because Estime is bigger. Dobbins' ferocity applies to his on-field motor, too – Dobbins can win with power just as easily as he can win with burst and speed.

Check out RotoWire's 2025 fantasy football rankings to see where all the Broncos running backs stand.

CONCLUSION

Injuries happen in football, and they especially happen to running backs. Dobbins sadly knows that better than anyone, but Payton knows it too.

As annoying as it can be for fantasy investors, Payton can earnestly love all three of Dobbins, Harvey and Estime yet still tinker with the playing time of all three from week to week, perhaps depending on the situation or game plan. But perhaps not, too – Payton has never been easy to figure out when it comes to projecting backfield usage, and he might continue to rotate players in a way that seems fickle to the fantasy world.

What's clear is that Dobbins and Harvey are the top two talents in this backfield. If they're both healthy, they'll likely both get usage while splitting upwards of 80 to 90 percent of the Denver running back snaps. Dobbins is too good for Harvey to send to the bench, and Harvey is too good for Dobbins to send to the bench.

It's probable that Harvey's ADP will cool somewhat, but he should still rank first over Dobbins because Harvey is Denver's best combination of talent and durability. Even at his small build, Harvey was an elite workhorse running back at the college level and might soon prove himself the same in the NFL.

Meanwhile, Dobbins' ADP is likely to rise significantly from his humble June NFFC ADP of 172.43. Given his in-game injury risk it might be easier to utilize Dobbins in best ball formats, where an early exit doesn't sting as much as when you start him in a season-long format. The volatility of the Denver backfield might be another reason to prefer Dobbins (and Harvey) in best ball.

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