The Free Agent Broncos Can’t Afford to Lose — But They Might

The Broncos can't let this happen. The longer it goes without re-signing him, the less likely it becomes.

Dec 2, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Broncos general manager George Paton before the game against the Cleveland Browns at Empower Field at Mile High. | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

The Denver Broncos believe RJ Harvey can be a three-down back. After watching him take the RB1 mantle from Week 11 on last year, fans have their doubts.

Harvey might eventually get there, but in the meantime, the Broncos have fish to fry. Bo Nix will only be inexpensive for two more seasons.

Facing the facts: when J.K. Dobbins went down with his season-ending foot injury in Week 10, the Broncos' ground game declined precipitously. The truth hurts. But it will also set you free.

Now, Dobbins is poised to hit the free-agent market on the heels of one of his most impressive NFL showings. As has been the theme of his pro career, his impressive 2025 body of work was cut short and marred by injuries.

One of the Best *When Healthy*

However, when Dobbins was on the field, he was one of the NFL's best running backs, producing 772 rushing yards in 10 games and four touchdowns, averaging 5.0 yards per carry. Beyond the production on the field, he also provided team-captain-level leadership and really helped cultivate the right attitude and mindset on offense.

S-W-A-G.

Broncos GM George Paton said that Dobbins "was a hit around here" when the season ended. At the NFL Combine several weeks later, Paton said that the Broncos would like to bring Dobbins back.

But that hasn't happened yet. Meanwhile, more running backs are hitting the free-agent market as teams around the NFL make tough roster decisions ahead of the new league year. Guys like Joe Mixon weren't even in the conversation until this week, when the Houston Texans released him.

The more big names that get tossed onto an already pretty strong free-agent running back market, the less likely it is that Dobbins will be re-signed by Denver. But make no mistake: I know he has the injury history, but the Broncos would be making a huge mistake by not bringing him back.

Just as one example, Mixon has been to the Pro Bowl several times and has multiple 1,000-yard seasons, but he's 30. And he's coming off a season lost to injury.

Dobbins just turned 27. He's had some bad injury luck basically throughout his entire playing career, dating back to before he arrived in the NFL. But he always gets back up, keeps trucking, and has yet to lose a step.

Such resilience is inspiring, but there's no doubt that Dobbins's injury history affects his value. Dobbins will never be able to earn as much as Mixon has because of it, but he's just as good, if not better *when healthy.*

When the Broncos signed Dobbins last June, only one running back had a higher career yards-per-carry average in the NFL since 2020. In other words, when Dobbins is on the field, there's only one running back in the NFL that's been more productive than him on a down-to-down basis since he arrived as a 2020 Baltimore Ravens second-round pick.

The Injury Problem

September 7, 2025: Denver Broncos running back J.K. Dobbins (27) shows off the ball as he scampers in to the end zone in the second half of the football game between the Denver Broncos and Tennessee Titans. | Derek Regensburger / IMAGO / Zuma Press Wire

The old adage goes, 'You can't make the club from the tub.' And it's said for a reason. If you can't be available to play the games, then you're not valuable.

The issue is that Dobbins will be available for a good chunk of the games. You just can't count on him to be there for the whole enchilada like Harvey was as a rookie last year.

Part of the reason for that is how hard Dobbins plays, how hard he runs. The other aspect is the nature of the running back position. The wear-and-tear is intense.

The Flawed Approach

Last offseason, Dobbins languished on the free-agent market until mid-June when the Broncos signed him. Maybe Paton and company feel they can afford to wait on Dobbins just like last year because he missed even more games in 2025 than he did the season prior in L.A.

That would be a flawed approach, though. The Broncos should make short work of re-signing Dobbins now, which would check a needs box and give them better clarity and less desperation going into free agency and the draft.

If I've written it once, I've written it 12 times: the ideal running back solution for the Broncos would be to re-sign Dobbins and sign an outside free agent like Tyler Allgeier, Travis Etienne, Rico Dowdle, or Mixon. Imagine such a running back room, especially juxtaposed against the room that entered the AFC championship game in January.

Harvey, Dobbins, and Allgeier. Or Dobbins, Etienne, and Harvey. I'm getting excited just thinking about it.

What's the Hold-Up?

The Broncos want to bring Dobbins back. Dobbins wants to be a "Bronco for life." So why hasn't anything happened?

Money, sure. But I doubt Dobbins is asking for the world. He's smart enough to know that his injury history puts a cap on his value. But he's still got to ask for more than the $2 million he earned last year — he was one of the NFL's most efficient running backs, after all.

If the Broncos wait too long to act on Dobbins, another team might swoop in and offer him an extra $500K and that could be all the difference for a running back who's had to make one monetary concession after another since he hit free agency in 2024.

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