Chargers RB Gus Edwards (ankle) missed practice all week and is out for Sunday’s game vs. the Broncos. That should mean RB Kimani Vidal’s regular-season debut. The rookie is not a Week 6 fantasy option but might be worth stashing now in deep fantasy leagues. A strong performance this weekend could make Vidal the Chargers’ No. 2 RB – and the J.K. Dobbins handcuff – going forward.
Chargers RB Gus Edwards (ankle) did not practice on Wednesday. It could be an early-week rest day for the veteran, but the Chargers are coming off their bye week. We'll see if Edwards gets back on the field tomorrow. If he misses Sunday's game vs. the Broncos, we could see rookie RB Kimani Vidal make his regular-season debut.
Chargers RB J.K. Dobbins came back to earth in Sunday’s loss to Pittsburgh, rushing 15 times for 44 yards.
Chargers RB J.K. Dobbins delivered for fantasy managers in a Week 2 win over Carolina. Seeing 17 carries, the former Raven busted off 131 yards and 1 TD. He tallied a run of 40+ yards for the second straight week.
Chargers RB J.K. Dobbins took 10 carries for 135 yards and a TD while adding three receptions for four yards in the game against the Raiders. Most of Dobbins damage happened in the second half where he racked up 131 yards on eight carries, including a big 61-yard run in the fourth quarter.
Chargers RB Kimani Vidal is a healthy scratch for today's opener vs. the Raiders. RBs Gus Edwards and J.K. Dobbins will operate as the top two RBs. Vidal is worth keeping stashed in deeper fantasy leagues but isn't particularly close to fantasy relevance right now.
Chargers RBs Gus Edwards and J.K. Dobbins are both going to get work, according to OC Greg Roman, but he plans to ride the hot hand if one of the RBs gets hot. With the Chargers running a more run-focused offense, whichever RB receives a majority of the carries could be in line for a solid day against the Raiders.
The Athletic's Daniel Popper left Chargers RB Kimani Vidal off his latest 53-man roster projection. Popper has RBs Gus Edwards, J.K. Dobbins, Jaret Patterson, and Isaiah Spiller making the team over Vidal, the sixth-round rookie.
The Athletic's Daniel Popper says RB Jaret Patterson "got a notable amount of work with the first team" in Thursday's full-team drills. Rookie RB Kimani Vidal, meanwhile, rotated with Isaiah Spiller and Elijah Dotson with the second team. Patterson spent most of last season on the Chargers' practice squad but finished the year back on the Washington practice squad. He then signed a futures contract with the Chargers this offseason.
Chargers RB J.K. Dobbins has participated fully in the first two days of training camp, according to ESPN's Kris Rhim. Dobbins is returning from last September's torn Achilles but is seemingly on track for the start of the 2024 campaign.
Asked about the current depth chart in the Chargers backfield, Daniel Popper of The Athletic this week listed Gus Edwards up top, J.K. Dobbins second, rookie Kimani Vidal third, and incumbent Isaiah Spiller fourth.
Chargers RB Gus Edwards is sidelined with an undisclosed injury but is expected to be ready for the start of training camp, HC Jim Harbaugh said on Thursday.
Chargers RB J.K. Dobbins said Monday that he's 100% recovered from the torn Achilles he suffered last September. "It was like a walk in the park, it was like a sprained ankle," Dobbins said. "It was very easy, because I had the knee [injury] -- the knee was pretty hard. The Achilles was, I would say, easy, just because that's my mentality. It was pretty easy to me." We'll file this under "believe-it-when-we-see-it." Full health is not the same as full effectiveness. RB Cam Akers quickly made it back from an Achilles injury but hasn't been the same runner since. Dobbins still isn't a player to invest heavily in at this point. But we'll be keeping a close eye on him this spring and summer. The Chargers' backfield will be a key situation for fantasy owners to monitor, with Dobbins, Gus Edwards, and rookie Kimani Vidal duking it out for touches.
The Chargers added Troy RB Kimani Vidal in Round 6 of the NFL Draft. Despite offers from LSU and South Carolina, the Georgia native took his talents to the Sun Belt Conference. Vidal averaged 11.2 carries per game as a true freshman and led the team in rushing – something he’d do in all four seasons. But his workloads really picked up from 2022-2023 for the run-heavy Trojans. In fact, Vidal was among the busiest college RBs with 526 carries (plus 44 catches) over that stretch. He held up well, too, missing only one game due to injury in his career. At nearly 5’8, 213 pounds, Vidal has bowling ball size and runs with matching intensity. Per The Athletic’s Dane Brugler, the 22-year-old’s 94 missed tackles forced ranked second in the FBS last season. He’s not special out of the backfield, but Vidal’s tape shows a capable receiver with more pass protection refinement than the average rookie. He lands in a nice spot under run-loving HC Jim Harbaugh in a relatively wide-open backfield alongside J.K. Dobbins and Gus Edwards. It shouldn’t be considered a surprise if Vidal pushes for snaps in 2024.
Former Ravens RB J.K. Dobbins plans to sign a one-year contract with the Chargers, according to multiple reports. This comes after Dobbins visited several teams. He lands with the franchise that already signed his former teammate Gus Edwards. We'll see about the specific terms of Dobbins' deal, but Edwards landed a two-year pact worth $6.5 million total, with $3.375 million in guarantees. We'll bet that Dobbins gets significantly less coming off his September Achilles' tear (and checkered injury history). The former second-round pick will be interesting to watch this summer, especially in a backfield that could present open competition for touches. But Edwards stands as the better bet for work right now. And we'd bet on the Chargers adding a RB in the draft. For now, don't let Chargers RBs factor heavily into your draft plans -- despite their modest best ball ADP numbers.
RB J.K. Dobbins (Achilles) has been cleared for football activities, his surgeon wrote in a letter to teams on Tuesday. Dobbins looks “outstanding” after his rehab from September Achilles surgery, Dr. Neal ElAttrache said. Dobbins is expected to begin taking free-agent visits soon, according to NFL Network's Pelissero. A torn ACL and torn Achilles have limited Dobbins to just nine games over the past three seasons, and it's fair to wonder if the 25-year-old can regain pre-injury form. He's no more than a late-round flier in early fantasy drafts. We'll see where he lands in free agency.
As many expected, the Ravens have agreed to terms with former Titans RB Derrick Henry. ESPN's Adam Schefter reports that Henry will get a two-year, $16 million deal -- with a $20 million max value and $9 million guaranteed for 2024. That means Henry will take over the backfield for at least the coming season. Despite last offseason's OC switch and other investments in the passing game, Baltimore finished 2023 as the league's most run-heavy offense (50.3% of plays). QB Lamar Jackson skews that rate with his scrambling, but it's clearly a good situation for Henry. His Underdog Fantasy ADP sits at RB15 as of this writing, at the end of Round 5. If Henry stays in that range, he'll be smash pick for best ball. Check our best ball rankings to compare our outlook for Henry with the market's. J.K. Dobbins, meanwhile, just got easier to drop in dynasty formats -- in case you were on the fence. Keaton Mitchell? We'll have to watch his progress throughout the summer as he returns from a December ACL tear.
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