JK Dobbins is a prime candidate for being a league winner for the 2022 season. Obviously there is risk in the selection, as we haven’t really seen it. But currently in redraft leagues (on Sleeper) he is being selected as the RB23 at the end of the 4th round.
Taking a look at his situation on the team, and personally, he feels like a clear breakout candidate.
Injury Issues
Dobbins was set to be a breakout last season, but tore his ACL in the last preseason game going into 2021. Not a huge deal, with the way that players have been able to return from that injury in recent years.
One concern is that the normal recovery would have put him into action already, and we haven’t yet seen that. There have been some rumours of increased injury, and doubts over his status to start the season.
For the purposes of this, I’ll assume that he is available to start the season. What I would recommend is a late-round selection to draft his backup incase there is a delay.
Ability
College Performances
Dobbins is a fantastic talent out of college, clear from his stats below:
To take you back to the selection, the Ravens had Mark Ingram, Gus Edwards and Justice Hill on the roster at the time. While they might not have a blockbuster talent there, Ingram was still more than capable of shouldering the workload.
NFL Career
Dobbins continued his performances on the NFL field too, getting the majority of touches after Week 7, along with Gus Edwards. Even with missing some time, and not having the clear majority of touches, he finished as an RB2 in half-PPR scoring.
The performances were incredible, with a massive part coming from his efficiency with the ball in his hands. That ability to make any play into a big one is great for fantasy. He doesn’t need a large amount of touches, and has the ability to put up big numbers.
Offense
Baltimore are one of the more run-heavy offenses in the league. Even their QB puts up decent rushing numbers! The team have finished 3rd of higher in rushing attempts since 2019, so there is no shortage of volume for Dobbins.
Something that might stop people coming straight for Dobbins is that he hasn’t really shown, or the Ravens have shown a workload, for a pass-catcher out of the backfield. Dobbins has the ability to catch passes, shown from his time in college.
With the team allowing Marquise Brown to leave the team, his targets have to go somewhere. While Rashod Bateman and Mark Andrews are likely to get a bump in targets, Dobbins should also get some too.
Overall
Winning fantasy leagues is done by finding those selections that outperform or meet their ADP. It’s really that simple, so to answer the question can JK Dobbins be a league winner in 2022?
Yes, Dobbins has risk associated with his health, but that’s why you can get him where you can. I’m more than happy to take a chance on a player in an effective offense, that will hand a talented player volume. At that point of the draft, you could be winning your league with a potential top-10 finisher.
