J.K. Dobbins was ruled out for Sunday’s game against the Kansas City Chiefs, but now his season is in jeopardy. Ronald Martinez / Getty Images
The Broncos were already preparing to play without leading rusher J.K. Dobbins on Sunday against the Kansas City Chiefs. Now, they’ll have to build a long-term plan without him.
Denver on Saturday placed the veteran running back on injured reserve with a foot injury he suffered in a Nov. 6 win against the Las Vegas Raiders, a league source confirmed. The injury will require surgery, putting Dobbins’ status for the rest of the season in doubt.
“God’s plans are always greater,” Dobbins wrote in a caption on his Instagram on Saturday night. “I’ll be back.”
Dobbins entered this week fifth in the NFL with 772 yards rushing and was on pace to produce the highest single-season rushing total for a Broncos running back since 2003. The injury came in the third quarter of last week’s game against the Raiders, when he was tackled by Las Vegas defensive end Tyree Wilson.
Dobbins said after the game that he was “hip-dropped” by Wilson, though no flag was called on the play. Dobbins the next day made an expletive-laden post on X, calling on the NFL to “ban or at least call” those tackles.
Without Dobbins, the Broncos will have to lean heavily on rookie RJ Harvey, whom Denver selected in the second round of April’s draft out of Central Florida. Harvey has 50 rushes for 214 yards and two touchdowns through 10 games this season. He also has 25 receptions for 175 yards and four scores.
The Broncos also have running backs Jaleel McLaughlin and Tyler Badie on their active roster.
Denver signed Dobbins to a one-year contract in June, and he rushed for at least 61 yards in all but one of the team’s first 10 games. He said earlier this month that he hoped to play in Denver for the remainder of his career. Dobbins has struggled with injuries throughout his career. He suffered a major knee injury in 2021 and suffered an Achilles tear upon his return. He rushed for 905 yards with the Chargers in 2024, but also missed four games with a knee injury.
Nov 16, 2025
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