Fourth-year Baltimore Ravens running back J.K. Dobbins is set to earn $1,391,000 for the 2023 season, the final year of his rookie contract, coming off of two years of dealing with injuries. He missed the entirety of the 2021 season due to a torn ACL, and still grappled with its complications for much of last season as well.
The veteran back, who has missed more games due to injury than he has played in since being drafted in 2020, was a non-participant during the team’s mandatory minicamp this week, as confirmed by a disappointed John Harbaugh, who told reporters that “It just wasn’t in the cards, apparently”.
Dobbins spoke to Mark Viviano for WJZ-TV in Baltimore about his situation, however, and declined to make any confirmation about a possible injury. Instead, he discussed his contract and how he would like to stay in Baltimore, a theme for him lately.
“The business side is very hard. It’s very different”, he told Viviano, via Jamison Hensley for ESPN. He drew reference to the Ravens’ protracted contract negotiations with quarterback Lamar Jackson, concluding, “It’s never just roses and daisies. It can be hard at times, and it’s a business”.
Presumably hoping to secure a contract extension, Dobbins is not negotiating from the strongest possible position given that he has missed 27 games over the past two years. While the ACL injury was nobody’s fault, the reality is that it is part of the evaluation when determining his worth.
He has been a productive contributor when he has been on the field, to his credit. To date, he owns a career 5.9-yard rushing average, totaling 1,325 rushing yards on only 226 attempts. He’s also found the end zone 12 times, including one receiving touchdown.
But it’s chancy to give a player with an injury history a lucrative extension without more time to evaluate it. The Ravens got bit on their extension with Ronnie Stanley a few years back. He promptly tore his ACL soon after and has not quite been the same player since, having played in only 12 games over the past two years because of it. He seems to be ready to get back to his old self now, but that’s a big chunk of his contract.
What type of deal could Dobbins really be after? What would he accept? He would be in a much better negotiating position if he has a strong season this year and shows that he can put the knee issues behind him.
Then again, perhaps the knee issues are exactly why he wants to lock in something now. He is, as mentioned above, “only” due to earn under $1.5 million this year. He has earned a little over $4.3 million up to this point in his career, going into year four. That’s not exactly the type of windfall players who enter the league today envision for themselves.
