Broncos had eyes for J.K. Dobbins since March. Veteran RB says signing with Denver was ‘no-brainer’

The newest infusion of Bronco horsepower was easy to pick out, beyond his 5-foot-10 stature, because he rarely stopped moving. Or talking.

J.K. Dobbins carries a crinkle in his eyes, a set of immaculately polished choppers, and a complete lack of timidity. A “big personality,” as the running back said himself. It took all of an hour to show up at minicamp Wednesday, as Denver’s newest running back showed up in a gleaming No. 27 — he struck “something” of a deal with cornerback Damari Matthis to get it — not a day after the ink dried on his free-agent deal.

Dobbins spent a few minutes gabbing with Greg Penner, who was out and mingling as the Broncos owner has been across most OTA and minicamp sessions this offseason. He spent even longer chatting with Broncos running backs coach Lou Ayeni, his new guru after coming over from the Chargers. And he stood side-by-side in the ear of RJ Harvey, the rookie who could partner for a dynamic backfield tandem in Denver.

“Hello, my new family!” Dobbins declared as he strolled up for his first availability with reporters after minicamp on Wednesday.

The truth: He’d wanted to be a part of that family since free-agency began. Dobbins had seen coordinator Vance Joseph’s defense up close and personal as a Los Angeles Charger in October 2024, labored for 96 yards on 25 carries, and came away impressed. He called Bo Nix “amazing,” and said the same of Denver’s offensive line.

“It was a no-brainer,” Dobbins said.

And quietly — even as the Broncos targeted Harvey in the second round in April — Denver wanted him all along, too.

A source with knowledge of the situation told The Denver Post that the Broncos had reached out to Dobbins when free agency opened in March, and stayed in contact over the following months, even as the running back dangled without a contract. The plan, after a 905-yard, nine-touchdown season for Dobbins in 2024, was to test the market until a team came calling with the value his camp desired.

He and the Broncos reached stable ground this week, as Dobbins inked a one-year deal with a base value of $2.75 million and up to $2.5 million in performance-based incentives. But it was a “little stressful,” as Dobbins said Wednesday, after the Chargers threw a wrench in his plans by slapping him with an undrafted free-agent tender.

“That was a little weird,” Dobbins said.

Indeed, the Chargers had already signed workhorse back Najee Harris in March and drafted Omarion Hampton in the first round in April. The tender meant Dobbins had to sign with a new organization by July 22 or be forced to negotiate only with Los Angeles.

That turned up the heat, as a source put it, on Dobbins’ free-agency search. A month and change later, he was flying to Denver for a visit, the city he wanted to land in all along.

And, yes, the running back is well aware he’ll see his former boys in blue a heavy amount in the AFC West.

“Good luck to them,” Dobbins said of the Chargers. “I’m a Bronco now. They gotta see me twice a year. That’s my thoughts on it. I’m gonna have that chip on my shoulder.”

His long-awaited arrival slots the final piece into the offensive puzzle that head coach Sean Payton and company envisioned since the Broncos finished 21st in the NFL in rushing yards per carry in 2024. Through a six-year NFL career, Dobbins has never been able to escape the bites of a nagging injury bug. He had a torn ACL in 2021, another knee injury in 2022, a torn Achilles in 2023 and another nagging knee injury in a strong comeback year in 2024.

When healthy, he’s averaged 5.2 yards per carry in 37 games, an explosive consistency that Payton said was no accident.

“The good runners, they have a little spaghetti sauce in the recipe that’s important,” Payton said.

Dobbins is a complicated recipe. But he’s got sauce. After the Broncos beat the Chargers in Week 6 in 2024, players remarked postgame that he was a “tough tackle in space,” as defensive coordinator Vance Joseph said Tuesday.

The 26-year-old Dobbins established himself publicly as a mentor Wednesday as well, calling himself a “natural-born leader.” Payton and the Broncos have waxed poetic on Harvey since he was drafted in April, the back they’d fallen in love with beyond Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty. And as Harvey’s continued to take pass-catching reps in minicamp, it’s a potential one-two punch that could add a new gear to Denver’s offense.

“I see a special player in him,” Dobbins said. “And he’s gonna help me out, I’m gonna help him out. It’s gonna be great.”

It’s a prove-it year for Dobbins in many ways. That he can lead. That he can stay healthy. That he deserves a longer-term deal. That he can enact a measure of divisional vengeance on the Chargers.

But he’s looking well beyond Los Angeles.

“I don’t want to just beat the Chargers,” Dobbins smiled. “I want to go on, and I want to get a ring.”

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