The reunions continued Wednesday. Running back J.K. Dobbins plans to sign with the Chargers on a one-season deal, according to multiple reports, another former Baltimore Ravens player reuniting with offensive coordinator Greg Roman and Gus Edwards in Los Angeles.
Dobbins and Edwards, who left the Ravens and signed a two-year contract with the Chargers last month, will be tasked with establishing a consistent ground game for Roman and head coach Jim Harbaugh. In addition, they will team up to replace Austin Ekeler, who signed with the Washington Commanders.
Dobbins, 25, battled injuries during the past three years with the Ravens, suffering a season-ending Achilles tendon injury in Week 1 this past season. Overall, he has been sidelined by injuries for 42 of 51 games over the past three seasons, after the Ravens drafted him in the second round from Ohio State in 2020.
After rushing for 805 yards and nine touchdowns in 15 games as a rookie in 2020, Dobbins injured his left knee in the exhibition finale in 2021 and sat out the entire season. He played only eight games in 2022 because his knee wasn’t sound and then hurt his Achilles in the season-opening game in 2023.
When healthy, Dobbins has been quite effective running and catching the football. He gained 1,347 yards and scored 12 touchdowns in 24 career games with Baltimore, averaging 5.8 yards per attempt. He also had 27 receptions for 177 yards and one touchdown, averaging 6.6 yards per catch.
The Chargers’ plan, under Roman and Harbaugh, is to pair a more effective running game with quarterback Justin Herbert’s excellent passing skills. Ekeler was a versatile back during his seven seasons, leading the NFL with 38 total TDs over the 2021 and ’22 seasons, but he wasn’t a punishing runner.
Roman and Harbaugh plan to install a far more physical, Ravens-style running game than the Chargers deployed under former head coach Brandon Staley. The Chargers under Staley were committed to the pass with the run game something of an afterthought in his three-plus seasons.
“I think every great quarterback when surrounded by a quality run game has the opportunity to have plays that are a little bit of a breather play,” Andy Bischoff, the Chargers’ new running game coordinator, said recently. “Not everyone needs to function like (Hall of Fame quarterback) Peyton Manning did to win football games.
“Can (Herbert) do that? The guy is brilliant. However, in our system of football, do we really need to put him under that much stress on every single down? The answer is no. How do you do that? You have a balanced offense that brings out the greatest strengths in everyone on the unit.”