The Denver Broncos waited until the middle of the Summer to do it, but they ended up making one of the best free agent signings of the entire offseason.
And it barely cost them $2 million.
What if I told you that the Denver Broncos not only beat the Los Angeles Chargers for tight end Evan Engram, but they also made them look bad with the signing of running back JK Dobbins? If only the result of that Week 3 game had flipped the other direction...
Broncos make Chargers look foolish with JK Dobbins signing in 2025
The signing of running back JK Dobbins for $2.065 million is looking like one of the most ridiculous bargains of the entire offseason so far. Dobbins has been everything the Denver Broncos have lacked the past couple of seasons at the running back position, quite literally.
The Broncos went two full seasons without a 100-yard rusher. It's been one of the most significant talking points during the Sean Payton era as the Broncos tried desperately to get former 2nd-round pick Javonte Williams back to the form we saw from him as a rookie.
It didn't happen, at least not in Denver.
While Williams is now running well for the Dallas Cowboys, JK Dobbins is running better than ever as a member of the Broncos. And that is coming right on the heels of him having over 1,000 yards from scrimmage and nine touchdowns for the Chargers last year.
So why did the Chargers go into NFL free agency and spend over $5 million (fully guaranteed) on Najee Harris (who is now out for the year) as well as a 1st-round pick on Omarion Hampton (another $10.4 million in 2025 cash) when they could have just re-signed Dobbins for a fraction of the cost.
Seeing the way Hampton has played lately, the Chargers probably aren't regretting it all that much, but they spent $16 million this year on Harris and Hampton combined and Harris won't contribute anything other than a wacky offseason story involving fireworks on the 4th of July.
For the Broncos, Dobbins already ended a 34-game streak without a 100-yard rusher in just his fourth game with the team. He's got 323 yards rushing in four games, is averaging 5.7 yards per carry, and has three rushing touchdowns. He's been a force so far this season, and with the Broncos' recent performance against the Cincinnati Bengals, there's significant hope for the duo of Dobbins and RJ Harvey becoming as dynamic as hoped for this offense yet.