Shocking J.K. Dobbins return would give Chargers NFL's best RB depth chart

The Los Angeles Chargers shocked onlookers after the NFL draft by hitting running back J.K. Dobbins with the semi-rare unrestricted free agent tender.

Meaning, the Chargers will have exclusive negotiating rights with Dobbins at the start of training camp if he hasn’t signed with another team. And if he does sign elsewhere, that move will play into the compensatory pick process.

It’s a shrewd move by the Chargers—and it would also likely give Justin Herbert’s offense the deepest running back room in the NFL.

Think about it. Dobbins, still just 26 years old, rushed for 905 yards and nine scores last year on a 4.6 per-carry average. That’s with missing four games due to injury, too.

Free-agent arrival Najee Harris, mired in bad Pittsburgh offenses, rushed for 1,000-plus yards in each of his four seasons there, albeit on a 3.9 per-carry average.

And first-round pick Omarion Hampton? He projects as a three-down back on his lonesome if necessary a year removed from rushing for 1,660 yards and 15 scores on a 5.9 average.

Granted, the Chargers putting the tender on Dobbins doesn’t guarantee he returns. But if he continues to have a quiet market in free agency, that $3.428 million sum on the tender, plus already knowing Jim Harbaugh’s program, will start to look better and better.

Dobbins might hope for a bigger role after last year’s Comeback Player of the Year effort. But there’s something to be said for remaining effective in a rotation for a running back who has struggled with staying healthy throughout his career, too.

All things considered, while it was surprising, it’s not exactly hard to see why the Chargers went with the tender.

Los Angeles Chargers running back J.K. Dobbins — Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

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