Dynasty Football Watch: J.K Dobbins
Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton stepped to the microphone at the NFL Annual Meeting in Phoenix this week and didn’t bury the lead.
When the subject turned to the offseason running back decisions, Payton was direct. Re-signing J.K. Dobbins, he said, was the organization’s first order of business, full stop.
“George and I, we’re sitting in there going through the puzzle,” Payton told reporters Tuesday. “Dobbins was a priority ahead of all others.”
He knew not everyone would welcome that framing. “And that’ll anger people,” he added.
The comment carries weight because of its timing. Payton made it weeks after the deal was done, at a league-wide gathering where coaches typically stay guarded. Going out of his way to single out Dobbins and to acknowledge the potential backlash signals something beyond a routine roster move.
Payton framed it partly as a production decision and partly as something harder to quantify. “He’s one of those compound multipliers,” Payton said. “He brings 10 others along with him in a positive light. Our success last year, he’s got some fingerprints on that.”
The Broncos finished the 2025 regular season 14-3 and earned the AFC’s top seed before falling to the New England Patriots 10–7 in the AFC Championship Game. Dobbins was not available for that game, still recovering from a Lisfranc injury suffered in Week 10 against the Las Vegas Raiders, an injury the source text incorrectly described as a generic foot injury.
Before going down, Dobbins had led Denver in carries (153), rushing yards (772), and explosive runs of 10 or more yards (21) across 10 games.
RJ Harvey Wake Up Call?
The Broncos have confirmed Dobbins is expected to be fully healthy in time for the 2026 season. He enters the year as the team’s RB1, ahead of second-year back RJ Harvey, who filled in capably after the injury and finished 2025 with 540 rushing yards and 12 total touchdowns.
Whether Denver adds depth at the position in the upcoming draft remains open. But Payton’s message in Phoenix was clear: the backfield conversation in Denver starts, and for now, ends, with Dobbins.
Coaches sometimes do this; they use the media to send messages to their players. I’m not a fan of it, but maybe it’s the only way to get through to someone.
Despite all this, I could still see the Broncos adding an RB in the 4th or 5th round to add to the mix. The college football lines at Bovada feature some future props for this month’s NFL draft. Currently, the focus is on QB and WR props, but as we get close to the NFL draft, there should be running back landing spot odds.
If I have to make a guess, knowing the type of running back Sean Payton likes with his coaching background in Denver and New Orleans, and considering what they have on the roster. I could see him falling in love with a guy like Nicholas Singleton from Penn State. He is 6-0 and 219 pounds, with reported 40-yard dash speed in the 4.35-second range, a size-speed combination that projects well at the next level and could still be available when Denver picks at No. 111 in the fourth round.
Singleton’s four-year career at Penn State was a study in peaks and valleys. He arrived as a five-star recruit and immediately justified the hype, leading the Nittany Lions in rushing as a freshman and winning Big Ten Freshman of the Year honors. His numbers dipped in his sophomore year before he rebounded with a strong junior campaign, one that had draft analysts projecting him as a potential Day 2 pick had he declared early. He returned for his senior season instead, and the results were disappointing. His role was reduced as Kaytron Allen took over as the team’s primary early-down back, and Singleton’s efficiency never fully recovered. He closed out his Penn State career with 123 carries for 549 yards, a 4.5-yard average, 13 rushing touchdowns, and 24 receptions for 219 yards.
Then came the Senior Bowl. Singleton suffered a Jones fracture in his foot during practice, wiping out what would have been one of his most valuable pre-draft selling points, his speed on the track at the combine. His draft stock dropped accordingly.
Still, what he accomplished at Penn State is hard to ignore. Over four seasons, Singleton carried the ball 622 times for 3,461 yards, averaged 5.6 yards per carry, and scored 45 rushing touchdowns — breaking the Penn State all-time career rushing TD record previously held by Saquon Barkley. He also caught 102 passes out of the backfield.
The questions are real. The talent, when it has shown up, is equally real. For a team like Denver that needs a reliable second option behind J.K. Dobbins, a healthy Singleton on a late Day 3 value could be worth the calculated risk.