Charger Report

Jim Harbaugh's Dad Believes Chargers' J.K. Dobbins Can Be Better Than He Was Before His Injury

Dobbins rushed for over 100 yards on Sunday.

Eva Geitheim

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
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In his Chargers debut and first game back from a torn Achilles, J.K. Dobbins carried the Chargers' offense to two touchdowns as they earned a 22-10 win over the Las Vegas Raiders.

Dobbins, who signed with the Chargers in April after spending four seasons with the Ravens, carried the ball 10 times for 135 yards and one touchdown in the victory. He averaged 13.5 yards per carry, and recorded the majority of his yards in the second half, helping Los Angeles secure a lead over Las Vegas.

Dobbins' first major play came on a 46-yard carry during the Chargers' opening second-half drive, setting up a successful field goal. Dobbins later scored the Chargers' first touchdown of the day on a 12-yard scamper into the end zone. On the Chargers' second touchdown drive, Dobbins brought the team into the red zone with a 61-yard run to the Raiders' 14-yard line.

The run should have gone for a touchdown, but Dobbins admitted he has to get in better shape to close out those runs.

"The first 40 yards I was like, 'Oh, bye bye.' Because I was pulling away from them," Dobbins said after the game, via Chargers.com's Omar Navorro. "Then after that, I was like, 'Oh [snap].' I got heavy. I was like alright let me just cover the ball then I got tackled."

Harbaugh beamed to Colin Cowherd as he spoke about Dobbins' performance Sunday on The Herd, and even recounted that his dad, Jack, predicted Dobbins' success during camp.

"J.K. played for more my brother," Harbaugh told Cowherd. "He's like family. My dad said it. He watched J.K. through training camp and said, 'J.K.'s back. He's back to where he was and maybe even a little better than before the injury.' Major admiration for what J.K. has been able to do and come back from that serious injury and even be stronger, faster, quicker, and have a great day like he did yesterday."

In true Harbaugh fashion, the coach did not go without also recognizing Dobbins' impact in pass protection, crediting Dobbins for 'doing the blue-collar, dirty work' in the passing game.

Dobbins' performance helped the Chargers stick to their plan of running the ball more under Harbaugh and offensive coordinator Greg Roman.

Dobbins is finally healthy once again after he has been limited in each of the last three seasons due to injury. He missed the entire 2021 season because of a torn ACL, and part of the 2022 season with a knee injury. He had his best year as a rookie in 2020 with 805 yards and nine touchdowns.

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J.K. Dobbins Has Electrifying Performance In Chargers Debut to Help Defeat Raiders

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Eva Geitheim

EVA GEITHEIM

Eva graduated from UCLA in 2023 with a bachelor's degree in Communication. She has been covering college and professional sports since 2022.

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