Sean Payton left the door open just enough for J.K. Dobbins to return for the Broncos’ preseason finale, even after the veteran running back sat out Friday’s game against Green Bay.
Dobbins missed his second exhibition game of the summer after suffering a soft-tissue injury in training camp earlier this month. Payton described the issue as minor and said Denver is taking a cautious approach.
“We’re just being smart with it.”
Asked directly whether he expects Dobbins to play next Friday against Minnesota, Payton didn’t shut it down.
“We’ll see. Yes," Payton said when asked if he expects Dobbins to suit up.
For now, the Broncos are treating the situation like a bigger picture decision than a one-game one. The preseason finale would give Dobbins a chance to get on the field before the games start counting, but Denver also has every reason to protect him and keep him pointed toward Week 1 against Kansas City, where his role will matter much more.
With Dobbins out, second-year back RJ Harvey got the start in Denver’s 33-13 loss to the Packers. Harvey didn’t get much work as a runner, finishing with just one carry, but he made an impact as a receiver with two catches for 25 yards. One of them was a 21-yard touchdown from Bo Nix.
“Well honestly, he was like that last year, so the growth I haven’t seen much because he started so far out in front as a pass catcher," Nix said of Harvey after the game. "I knew when he came in last year, seeing him for the first time at practice that that was going to be his strongest ability.
The catch he made wasn’t necessarily easy. He’s just done that his career here so far, just over a year and some change.
I’m excited to see him continue to develop. He’s a special football player.”
Denver also mixed in Jonah Coleman, Jaleel McLaughlin, Tyler Badie, and Cody Schrader at running back. McLaughlin and Schrader shared the team lead with four carries apiece and 15 rushing yards each, finishing at 3.8 yards per carry.
Payton wasn’t pleased with what he saw from the ground game overall.
“Yes, it wasn’t good. It wasn’t good," Payton said of the rushing offense.
"We’ll look at the tape, but we had too many minus plays, too many penalties offensively. I don’t know how many third-and-10 or more we had, but quite a bit, right?”
If Dobbins stays sidelined for the finale, it would fit Denver’s broader logic: keep the running back healthy for the real thing, and use the last preseason game to keep sorting through the options behind him.
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