It feels like Baltimore Ravens RB J.K. Dobbins hasn’t been healthy his entire NFL career, but could 2023 finally be the season where he finishes as a top-20 fantasy football RB? Let’s take a closer look.
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J.K. Dobbins’ Fantasy Outlook for the 2023 NFL Season
On paper, Dobbins is slated to be the lead RB in one of the most intriguing offenses in the NFL heading into 2023, but the durability track isn’t exactly encouraging through his first three seasons.
Dobbins missed the entire 2021 season with a torn ACL and missed some of 2022 recovering from that injury, costing him time at the start and middle of the season.
And while Dobbin’s efficiency in 2022 was encouraging — averaging 5.65 yards per carry — his contract holdout heading into camp felt like weird timing.
Nonetheless, it is a positive sign to see Dobbins back on the practice field this August.
A look at J.K. Dobbins’ first practice of the year for the Ravens pic.twitter.com/oXwNL8CMTx
— Jamison Hensley (@jamisonhensley) August 14, 2023
After receiving a midseason cleanup procedure on his knee, Dobbins appeared to be back to his usual form. In Weeks 14-17, he saw a minimum of 12 carries, averaging 99 yards rushing per game. Keep in mind, he did this without seeing more than 50% of the offensive snaps, and the offense was without QB Lamar Jackson at that point of the season.
The competition behind Dobbins isn’t exactly significant either. Sure, Gus Edwards is a quality complementary option, and Melvin Gordon is on the roster for the time being, but Dobbins easily represents the most fantasy upside out of this backfield.
Is Dobbins a Good Fantasy Pick?
The Ravens offense is expected to look a bit different than the run-heavy scheme we saw over the last four seasons under former offensive coordinator Greg Roman.
And while Todd Monken does have a track record of throwing the ball all over the yard when he was the offensive coordinator in Tampa Bay, Dobbins is still the best bet to lead the team in carries, which is evident by the fact he saw more carries than Edwards in Weeks 14-17 last season.
MORE: 2023 Fantasy Football RB Rankings
If Dobbins is healthy, he will be running behind an offensive line that was a very effective run-blocking unit last season.
Dobbins’ efficiency has been encouraging when he has been on the field, which makes him a middle-round RB with some intriguing upside but comes with durability concerns in an offense where his involvement in the passing game isn’t guaranteed.
- PFN Consensus: 47th overall
- ADP: 52nd overall