The Denver Broncos redid their running back room this past offseason, and a key former player is enjoying a career year in 2025 thus far. Denver had to get better out of the backfield, and they seemed to do that this offseason.
Both Javonte Williams and Audric Estime are no longer in the picture. Williams signed with the Dallas Cowboys and has since been their RB1, and Estime is currently on the Philadelphia Eagles. Denver decided to replace them with JK Dobbins and RJ Harvey in free agency and in the 2025 NFL Draft.
And on paper, while JK Dobbins has been good for the Broncos, Javonte Williams might be making Denver regret their decision to move on...
Javonte Williams has looked great for the Dallas Cowboys in the 2025 season
Javonte Williams has rushed for 227 yards on 43 carries. He's averaging 5.3 yards per tote and has also added three rushing scores and another 59 receiving yards. JK Dobbins has rushed for 222 yards on 41 carries. He's on a slight better 5.4 yards per carry and also has three rushing scores.
However, Dobbins has just 14 receiving yards. Williams has a success rate of 67.4%, which would be nearly 20 points better than any year he had in Denver. Pro Football Reference defines success rate as gaining at least 40% of the required yards on first down 60% on second down, and 100% on third or fourth down.
In essence, Williams has been a consistent, efficient rusher for Dallas on each down. On the other hand, JK Dobbins' success rate is 53.7%. This is still a solid number and above his average, but he's about 14 points lower than Williams.
The season is still long, but the early returns actually indicate that the Dallas Cowboys are getting a more efficient running back in Williams than the Broncos are from Dobbins. I would still argue that Dobbins is the better player and would not be shocked if he finished the year as the more efficient runner, but these first three weeks aren't painting a great picture.