{"id":380699,"date":"2025-09-19T16:35:11","date_gmt":"2025-09-19T16:35:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/380699\/"},"modified":"2025-09-19T16:35:11","modified_gmt":"2025-09-19T16:35:11","slug":"broncos-j-k-dobbins-carries-chip-on-shoulder-to-chargers-reunion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/380699\/","title":{"rendered":"Broncos’ J.K. Dobbins carries chip on shoulder to Chargers reunion"},"content":{"rendered":"

The dream glowed, even in the dead of night. There were no field lights out at Hollywood Park in Fort Lauderdale, where J.K. Dobbins met Nick Hicks at 9:30 p.m. to take himself to task. So Hicks would hop in his truck and turn the ignition, coating Dobbins\u2019 cuts in the soft glow of purring Ford F-150 headlights.<\/p>\n

It was the only way for Dobbins to see what was in front of him. He always wanted to see what was in front of him.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s up, I\u2019m J.K. \u2014 what are we doing? Dobbins introduced himself, the first time he worked with Hicks.\u00a0What\u2019s our plan like? Let\u2019s go.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was just like, \u2018Alright, man, hold on one second,’\u201d Hicks remembered, a longtime trainer in Florida. \u201c\u2018Let me get the cones out of my truck.’\u201d<\/p>\n

They did pre-draft training six days a week for three hours a day back in 2020, Dobbins trying to work himself into form after an injury. Soon, Hicks came to realize this then-22-year-old was the most intense athlete he\u2019d ever worked with. Soon, Hicks came to realize why, too.<\/p>\n

Dobbins ran for 2,740 yards and 35 touchdowns as a junior in high school, trying to outrun his father Lawrence Dobbins\u2019 legendary status in La Grange, Texas<\/a>. He wanted to break Ezekiel Elliott\u2019s marks at Ohio State, and wound up breaking the Buckeyes\u2019 single-season rushing record in 2019. He wanted to turn Ray Rice\u2019s No. 27 into his own in Baltimore, and ran for nine touchdowns and six yards a carry as a rookie Raven.<\/p>\n

Dobbins told Hicks, on the offseason grass in Fort Lauderdale, that he wanted to topple records. And win Super Bowls.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe wants to be remembered,\u201d Hicks said. \u201cTo be this guy that \u2013 people sit back and say, \u2018Damn. I remember that J.K. Dobbins.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Eventually, the headlights shut off. Dobbins, a Bronco five years later, knows darkness, and his legs know pain. This is not the same J.K. Dobbins who could fly and vaporize anyone in an opposing jersey through whatever hole he chose. He can never be 22 again, as surgeon Dr. Neal ElAttrache said this offseason<\/a>, the man who stitched Dobbins back together after a blown knee in 2021 and a blown Achilles in 2023.<\/p>\n

\u201cAthletically,\u201d Dobbins reflected, \u201cI would probably be nuts, if I didn\u2019t get those injuries.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now 26 years old and the head of a revamped Broncos backfield, though, Dobbins feels he\u2019s a better football player for the pain of the last few years. A better man, too. He smiles with his eyes when he says it.<\/p>\n

He was not the rare running back who\u2019s immortal. He is the rare back who\u2019s survived.<\/p>\n

\"DenverDenver Broncos running back J.K. Dobbins (27) finds a hole against Indianapolis Colts safety Cam Bynum (0) and safety Nick Cross (20) in the first quarter at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana, on Sunday, Sept. 14, 2025. (Photo by Andy Cross\/The Denver Post)<\/p>\n

Two games into 2025, Dobbins has cemented himself as the opener and closer in the Denver backfield. He has run for two touchdowns, ranks 11th in the NFL in rushing yards, and has brought a veteran\u2019s savvy to Sean Payton\u2019s offense. He\u2019s set for a head-on collision Sunday with his former Los Angeles Chargers, who helped resuscitate his career last year and then left him dangling in free agency.<\/p>\n

The matchup is \u201c100%\u201d in the back of Dobbins\u2019 mind, as Hicks said. The intensity hasn\u2019t changed, even if the path has.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou blow your knee out, you blow your Achilles, it\u2019s almost like a death sentence,\u201d Broncos running backs coach Lou Ayeni told The Denver Post. \u201cBut for this kid, it\u2019s just a start. Like, it\u2019s just part of his story.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd he\u2019s motivated to show people \u2014 he\u2019s back to being one of those top-end backs in the NFL.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2022\u2022\u2022<\/p>\n

The Broncos needed a running back this offseason. Jonathan Cooper knew a guy.<\/p>\n

Dobbins was hitting the open market after a 905-yard, nine-touchdown season with the Chargers, and his former Ohio State teammate wasted no time playing recruiter. The Broncos OLB hit Dobbins up. Dobbins hit him up. Interest was mutual through March\u2019s free-agent frenzy.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was trying to get him out here,\u201d Cooper grinned, \u201cthe whole entire time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dobbins told Cooper that he wanted to be a Bronco. The process wouldn\u2019t be that easy.<\/p>\n

Denver reached out to Dobbins on Day 1 of free agency<\/a>, and the two sides slow-played it, a source told The Post back in June. Dobbins wanted a certain price point and was in no rush, figuring he could dictate his market based on teams\u2019 running back needs come training camp. The Chargers, meanwhile, signed longtime Steelers starter Najee Harris on the first day of free agency<\/a>, and took North Carolina star back Omarion Hampton with their first-round pick in April\u2019s draft. Dobbins seemed pointed for Denver.<\/p>\n

Then, in late April, the Chargers slapped Dobbins with a rare unrestricted free-agent tag<\/a>, meaning he\u2019d have to sign with another team before July 22 or be forced to accept a year\u2019s salary slightly over $1 million to stay in Los Angeles.<\/p>\n

It blew up Dobbins\u2019 plan. And accelerated his timeline. And left a bad taste.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was a little weird,\u201d Dobbins said in June.<\/p>\n

The Broncos, meanwhile, took stock of their RB room after taking UCF\u2019s RJ Harvey in the second round in April. They knew Dobbins\u2019 talent. The back went for 96 yards on 25 carries in the Chargers\u2019 win over Denver last October. They evaluated his injury history. And, eventually \u2014 with a one-year deal worth up to $5.25 million in incentives if Dobbins topped 1,200 yards, a source said \u2014 they welcomed him.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe knew if there\u2019s a chance to get this guy at some point,\u201d Ayeni said, \u201cwe want him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dobbins officially arrived as a Bronco June 11, the second-to-last day of the team\u2019s minicamp. He made the public rounds. And in between, he spent an entire day locked in a meeting room with Ayeni, poring over the Broncos\u2019 playbook.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe wore me out,\u201d Ayeni smiled. \u201cI think we were up here forever.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"J.K.J.K. Dobbins (27) of the Denver Broncos stretches during training camp at Broncos Park in Centennial, Colorado on Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2025. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz\/The Denver Post)<\/p>\n

In his first public comments in Denver<\/a>, Dobbins established himself as a resource for Harvey. And he took quickly to Denver\u2019s outside-zone emphasis in camp, a scheme that lends itself well to Dobbins\u2019 natural vision for between-the-tackles cutbacks. Dobbins missed the entirety of OTAs and most of minicamp. And yet it didn\u2019t feel like the veteran actually missed a beat, as reserve offensive lineman Frank Crum said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHis playstyle, and what he brings to the table, meshes real well with our O-line play,\u201d Crum told The Post. \u201cSo, I dunno \u2014 he\u2019s a special back. And it felt like he didn\u2019t come later in the year, you know what I mean?\u201d<\/p>\n

He is not a home run hitter by nature anymore. Not quite the same back who averaged 5.8 yards a carry across four injury-plagued years with the Baltimore Ravens. Dobbins is simply a \u201csmart football player,\u201d as Ayeni put it. Efficient with his runs. Avoids big hits. Plays with leverage, and plays behind his blocks.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s a natural complement to Harvey, whose potential burns within every twitch of his massive quads but who sometimes seeks to turn corners that aren\u2019t there. Dobbins was the closer for Denver in Week 1, running for 37 yards and a touchdown in the fourth quarter of a win over the Titans. He was the opener in Week 2, running for 28 yards on three straight carries to start the game.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen he\u2019s healthy, he\u2019s top-three running backs in the league,\u201d Cooper told The Post. \u201cAnd I don\u2019t even want to give him that, because I feel like that\u2019s low. But, nah, seriously. I think he\u2019s the best \u2013 he\u2019s one of the best in the league when he\u2019s healthy. And that\u2019s the main thing for him.<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause, I mean, when he\u2019s on, you can see he\u2019s almost impossible to stop,\u201d Cooper continued. \u201cAnd his career\u2019s only getting started.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2022\u2022\u2022<\/p>\n

In summer 2021, Hicks hosted a workout with Dobbins and a group of NFL backs, the trainer carrying a pad for contact drills. Former Minnesota Viking Jerick McKinnon came up and threw Hicks a little shiver. Former Giants back Matt Breida came up and gave Hicks an elbow.<\/p>\n

Waiting, Dobbins turned to one of Hicks\u2019 media guys with the training facility Per4orm Sports.<\/p>\n

\u201cWatch this,\u201d Dobbins said, as Hicks remembers.<\/p>\n

The then-Ravens back hit a jump-cut, lowered his shoulder, and bowled Hicks up to heaven and down to earth in a video that\u2019s now been circulated to every corner of the internet<\/a>.<\/p>\n

This was not the first time this happened. Dobbins once ran over Hicks so brutally in an open-field drill that he split the trainer\u2019s lip open.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s probably the most freak athlete that I\u2019ve worked with,\u201d Hicks said, \u201cin my 15 years of training athletes.\u201d<\/p>\n

When the 5-foot-10 Dobbins first arrived at Ohio State, they called him \u201cMeatball,\u201d as former La Grange High offensive coordinator Will Kates remembered. This was the first chip placed on Dobbins\u2019 shoulders, long before life threw him plenty more. He wasn\u2019t very big.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I always felt like there was a 6-foot-7 guy,\u201d Kates joked, \u201ctrapped inside of him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"CourtlandCourtland Sutton (14) and J.K. Dobbins (27) of the Denver Broncos walk off the field before the first quarter against the San Francisco 49ers at Levi\u2019s Stadium in Santa Clara, California on Saturday, Aug. 9, 2025. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz\/The Denver Post)<\/p>\n

Dobbins made one thing clear from the minute he arrived in Denver: He would not back down. In one simple pass-pro drill during training camp, he nearly sent an assistant flying by smacking\u00a0his protection pad.<\/p>\n

In late July, on the seventh day of camp, boisterous defensive tackle Malcolm Roach stuffed Dobbins on a particularly-intense day of camp and let him know about it. Two periods later, Dobbins read Denver\u2019s front perfectly on a carry and jump-cut through a wide-open hole. And the running back circled right back to Roach and the rest of the Broncos\u2019 defensive linemen.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t start overplaying it, \u2018cause that\u2019s what\u2019s gonna happen!\u201d Dobbins barked at them.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like that\u2019s what we needed,\u201d Cooper reflected, months later. \u201cSomebody who can talk with us, and bring that kinda edge to the offense.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou want your back to be a little mean,\u201d offensive lineman Crum smiled, \u201cand have a little fight in him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dobbins has more than a little. And more than a little, perhaps, will be directed back at the Chargers on Sunday.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, yeah,\u201d Dobbins nodded, asked if there was a chip on his shoulder against Los Angeles. \u201cThere\u2019s always a chip on my shoulder, though, whenever I play.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut this week, yeah. I want to go out with a win.\u201d<\/p>\n

Father Time rarely loses. The list of productive running backs who\u2019ve returned from an Achilles tear \u2014 much less torn every lateral ligament in their knees multiple times \u2014 is miniscule. Dobbins recognizes he\u2019s not quite the type anymore, as Hicks said, to stretch every play to the sideline.<\/p>\n

But he\u2019s determined to return to the dominance he once planned for.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy legacy \u2014 everything\u2019s still in front of me,\u201d Dobbins told The Post in the locker room Thursday. \u201cLike, last year, I had a thousand total yards, right? And that was the first year off my Achilles.\u201d<\/p>\n

From a nearby trash can, cleaning out his shoes, stalwart left tackle Garett Bolles overheard. And chimed in.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis year,\u201d Bolles cracked, \u201che\u2019s trying to go for 1,500.\u201d<\/p>\n

Are you?\u00a0Dobbins was asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah,\u201d Dobbins affirmed, smiling. \u201cYeah, of course. Like, I ain\u2019t out here to go for 800 yards.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"DenverDenver Broncos J.K. Dobbins (27) celebrates his touchdown in the 4th quarter of the game against Tennessee Titans at Empower Field at Mile High in Denver on Sunday, Sept. 7, 2025. Denver won 20-12. (Photo by Hyoung Chang\/The Denver Post)<\/p>\n

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