Broncos running back J.K. Dobbins took to social media Friday to decry what he called an illegal hip drop tackle against him in the third quarter of Thursday’s win against Las Vegas.
Dobbins sustained a foot injury on the play, a source confirmed to The Denver Post, and though the severity was not immediately known, the veteran back had further testing and opinion-gathering scheduled for Friday.
The play happened with 4 minutes, 34 seconds remaining in the third quarter. He took a handoff on a draw play from quarterback Bo Nix and prodded the middle of the field. Raiders defensive end Tyree Wilson grabbed him and tackled him, but in the process lifted his own feet off the ground and fell on Dobbins’ leg, bending him backward.
Dobbins’ foot stuck in the ground while Wilson made the tackle.
He limped off the field and the training staff looked at his knee and also taped his ankle, but Dobbins never went to the medical tent, nor was an injury announced during the game. NFL Network first reported Friday that Dobbins had sustained a foot injury.
“BAN OR AT LEAST CALL THE (EXPLETIVE) HIP DROP TACKLE!” Dobbins posted on X early Friday afternoon.
Still, after that tackle, he finished the game in style, carrying the ball six times on a closeout drive in the fourth quarter. He was all smiles after the game, even while acknowledging Denver’s offense needed to play better overall.
“We’re all on the same page,” Dobbins said. “I don’t gotta say anything, because we’re all on the same page. I’m not the only one feeling like this, and I know — we’re gonna get it together. We’re gonna figure it out. Yeah, cool, we’re 8-2, but we want bigger things. And, we’re gonna do it. We’re gonna get it together. The guys in this room, or in this locker room, and on the team — winners. So we’re gonna get it together.”
The veteran running back also mentioned the hip-drop tackle after the game and told reporters in the locker room that he was OK physically.
At some point, though, the foot injury became enough of an issue to schedule further testing on Friday.
The Broncos, of course, have 10 days from Thursday’s win to a Nov. 16 home game against Kansas City.
Dobbins has been one of Denver’s most consistent offensive performers this year after signing a one-year free-agent deal this summer. He’s rushed for 772 yards, is sixth in the NFL at 77.2 per game and tied for sixth at 5.0 per carry. He has rushed for at least 61 yards in all but one game this season.
If Dobbins had to miss time, it would almost certainly mean an uptick in workload for rookie RJ Harvey.
The No. 60 overall pick in the draft scored five total touchdowns between Weeks 7-9, including a three-touchdown breakout against Dallas.
Harvey, though, has only played more than 33% of the offensive snaps in a game once. Against Las Vegas, he logged 17 (27.9%).
The Broncos would also have to decide whether to bump third-down back Tyler Badie up to the No. 2 role or, perhaps more likely, keep him in his present role due to his pass-protecting ability and put Jaleel McLaughlin into No. 2 mixed-down work behind Harvey.
McLaughlin played in 16 games last year and was second on the team in rushing yards at 496, but has been a healthy scratch in nine of Denver’s 10 games this season.
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