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Kris Rhim, ESPN
LOS ANGELES — Chargers running back JK Dobbins suffered a sprained MCL and is expected to be out Sunday against the Atlanta Falcons, a source told ESPN’s Adam Schefter on Wednesday.
Dobbins will move forward week by week, the source told Schefter.
Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh declined to go into specific details of the injury Wednesday, other than to confirm that Dobbins is “working on something with his knee,” he said.
Dobbins suffered his injury in the first half of the Chargers’ 30-23 loss Monday night to the Baltimore Ravens and did not play in the second half. He had 40 yards on six carries before the injury.
The injury occurred in perhaps the most important game of the year for Dobbins, who was playing against his former team. The Ravens let Dobbins, 25, walk last offseason after he played in just 24 of 73 potential games since the Ravens drafted him in 2020.
Instead, Baltimore signed former All-Pro running back Derrick Henry, who ranks second in the NFL this season with 1,325 rushing yards. Dobbins signed with the Chargers for one year and $1.61 million with only $50,000 guaranteed, a deal that reflected how much his league stock had fallen due to injuries.
But Dobbins was in the midst of a career renaissance in Los Angeles, with Harbaugh campaigning for him to be Comeback Player of the Year. Dobbins’ 2023 season ended early after suffering a torn Achilles tendon in the Ravens’ season opener.
“To see him come back even stronger, faster and quicker than before the injury, it’s a testament to his will,” Harbaugh said earlier this year. “It’s just amazing.”
Dobbins ranks fourth in the AFC in rushing (12th in the NFL) with 766 yards, an average of 4.8 yards per carry, and has scored eight touchdowns on the ground.
With Dobbins sidelined, running back Gus Edwards will likely get the bulk of the carries against the Falcons.
The Chargers (7-4) are in second place in the AFC West.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
