Bear Digest

Potential Bears backfield target slapped with rare free agency tag

The Chargers were one of two teams to use a rare unrestricted free agency tag as they sought to retain some control over running back J.K. Dobbins in the marketplace.
Gene Chamberlain|
Chargers running back J.K. Dobbins breaks through the line against the Houston Texans. Dobbins remains unsigned.
Chargers running back J.K. Dobbins breaks through the line against the Houston Texans. Dobbins remains unsigned. | Thomas Shea-Imagn Images

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Chicago Bears

It might not seem like an issue for the Bears unless they have designs on Chargers free agent running back J.K. Dobbins, but if they do then they better act on a contract before training camp.

He's currently the subject of an odd contract twist.

The Chargers applied the rare undrafted free agent tender to Dobbins. Cleveland has also done this with wide receiver Elijah Moore.

It's a move rarely used but what it does is guarantee a minimum contract for the player, and if either of those players are unsigned on the first day of NFL training camp then the Chargers and/or Browns would retain exclusive negotiating rights with them.

Also, if no one else signs them both players would receive $3.43 million if they play out the full season. That's important because the amount could scare off some other teams.

There is no actual compensation to be paid if either of these players do sign elsewhere but it could affect possible compensatory draft picks awarded by the league for the Chargers and the team signing them.

It's almost unfathomable that the players union ever agreed to a contract with this clause as part of it. Basically, in this case it takes completely unrestricted free agency away from two players who should be qualified for it.

Regardless, it means the Bears could need to pay more for Dobbins if they wanted to sign him.

The amount doesn't really seem a problem, though. The tender made by the Chargers was for $1.1 million or 110% of the player's previous years salary. Because Dobbins was a bargain-basement signing for the Chargers last year, 110% of his salary is only $1.1 million.

But because Dobbins would get $3.43 million by playing out the season with the Chargers, he wouldn't want to pursue a contract elsewhere unless it's going to guarantee him more than the tender amount and the $3.43 million he would receive at season's end. That is, unless he just doesn't like money.

This entire tactic simply looks like a way to maintain control while they try to buy more time to negotiate a contract with him. The Chargers have about $26 million in cap space available for this year according to Overthecap.com and should be able to sign Dobbins without an issue.

Although Overthecap.com has the Bears listed at only about $4 million of effective cap space, they could probably afford any of the running backs in the marketplace because they have the ability to restructure contracts for several highly paid veteran players and gain back salary cap space.

They don't like doing this, but it would beat playing without enough experienced running backs.

Dobbins is a 5-foot-10, 215-pound, 26-year-old back, played at Ohio State and had a successful rookie season in 2020 with 804 yards on only 134 carries, a 6.0-yard average per attempt. He scored nine rushing TDs and also caught 18 of his 24 targets for 120 yards in a shared backfield situation.

Dobbins went through a terrible injury in preseason of 2021 and missed all of the regular season. He had a torn ACL, LCL, meniscus and hamstring in the preseason finale with Washington.

He bounced back after these injuries in 2022 to average 5.7 yards a carry with 520 yards on 92 attempts in eight games. A clean-up procedure on the knee helped limit his carries.


Just when it seemed Dobbins' career had taken a turn for the better, he suffered an Achilles tear in the first game of the 2023 season and then was signed by the Chargers as a free agent after his recovery.


He was able to play 13 games for the Chargers in 2024 and ran for 905 yards on 195 carries, averaging 4.6 yards an attempt with nine touchdowns for Jim Harbaugh's offense.

The Bears seem to be a team with a running back need, although they ignored the position until the seventh round of last week's draft.



Considering Dobbins' skill level, it seems unlikely he'd be left unsigned until training camp unless he had suffered another injury. He did have a reported knee sprain last year in Week 12 last year, but it was never reported as anything worse.

Dobbins is only 26 and the designation the Chargers have given him is not going to limit him the way Elijah Moore's might because the tender for Moore was $3.4 million.

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.