What to expect from the return of Ravens RB J.K. Dobbins in Week 14
By Justin Fried
The Baltimore Ravens are set to see the return of running back J.K. Dobbins in Week 14. Dobbins has been sidelined with a knee injury since the team’s Week 6 loss to the New York Giants nearly two months ago, but on Saturday, the team officially activated him from the injured reserve.
The Ravens released veteran Mike Davis in a corresponding move as it’ll be Dobbins, Gus Edwards, Kenyan Drake, and Justice Hill on Sunday. Don’t be surprised if Drake is a healthy scratch if the Ravens feel comfortable with three running backs.
Edwards and Drake have handled the majority of running back snaps in recent weeks, but with Dobbins back, expect Drake’s role to shrink if not disappear altogether.
The real question is how many snaps and touches Dobbins will get this week.
Will J.K. Dobbins be the Ravens’ RB1 again in Week 14?
It’s impossible to predict exactly how the Ravens will divide their running back snaps, but it’s fair to expect a bit of a ramp-up period for Dobbins in his first game back.
The Ravens handed Dobbins just 45 percent of offensive snaps in his first game back from injury in Week 3 and the last thing they want to do is aggravate his injury again.
It’s safe to assume the Ravens will deploy a similar game plan with Dobbins on Sunday, perhaps even limiting him to under 40 percent of snaps.
The presence of Edwards affords them the opportunity to do that, although the Ravens could certainly use Dobbins’ explosiveness in their offense, assuming he’s healthy.
With Tyler Huntley starting at quarterback, having an explosive home-run threat like Dobbins in the backfield is even more important. That said, it’s unreasonable to expect him to be 100 percent just yet.
Ultimately, I’d expect a heavy dosage of Edwards with Dobbins serving as the primary change-of-pace back, but that very well could change as the game goes along.
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If the Ravens feel comfortable with Dobbins and believe he’s healthy, he’s going to play. For now, all we can do is wait and see what the approach is come Sunday.