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Will the Broncos Trade J.K. Dobbins? It Depends on Whether Denver Lands Another Back
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- Will the Broncos Trade J.K. Dobbins? It Depends on Whether Denver Lands Another Back
J.K. Dobbins' future with the Denver Broncos may hinge on a trade that doesn't involve him directly. The Athletic's Jonathan Jones wrote in his weekly column Friday night that if Denver lands a new running back before the Nov. 10 deadline, Dobbins would become expendable. If it doesn't, Jones finds it hard to see him leaving.
The back Denver has been tied to most is Jonathan Taylor. ESPN named the Broncos one of the five best fits for the Indianapolis Colts star, and Taylor has led our Broncos trade rumors tracker since Adam Schefter and Ian Rapoport reported on Oct. 25 that Denver weighed a deal.
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Where J.K. Dobbins fits in the Broncos backfield
Sep 20, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) hands off to running back Jonah Coleman (20) during the fourth quarter against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Empower Field at Mile High.Ron Chenoy - Imagn Images
His role is already shrinking. Rookie Jonah Coleman came back from an ankle injury and took over the backfield in the 30-16 win at Arizona, playing 30 of 61 offensive snaps to Dobbins' 14, according to PFF. Coleman ran nine times for 54 yards, and Sean Payton said afterward that the team has to get him more touches.
Dobbins has stayed useful near the goal line, scoring from a yard out for the third straight week against the Cardinals. The rest of his season has been harder to defend. He has 293 yards on 87 carries, and his 58.6 PFF rushing grade ranks 37th among 42 qualified backs, on a team that entered Week 7 at 84.2 rushing yards per game, 26th in the league.
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Taylor would change all of that. He has 587 yards and eight rushing touchdowns on 140 carries, and his contract runs through 2028, with his 2027 base salary becoming fully guaranteed in February, as we laid out in our look at whether the Colts will trade him . Denver has about $4.7 million in cap space, according to Over the Cap , and we broke down how the Broncos could make the Taylor money work .
Indianapolis is now willing to listen. ESPN's Adam Schefter and NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported Saturday morning that the Colts are in active talks on Taylor , and the Broncos are one of five teams to show interest, along with the Packers, Vikings, Giants and Seahawks. The Colts want something close to what San Francisco sent Carolina for Christian McCaffrey in 2022, a second-, third-, fourth- and fifth-round pick, per ESPN. Jones had named the Vikings and Giants the favorites in his column the night before, and every development is in our Colts trade rumors tracker .
So the Dobbins answer runs through Indianapolis. If the 5-2 Broncos come away with Taylor or another back, Dobbins becomes a trade chip. If they don't, he likely stays on as a short-yardage option behind Coleman.
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This story was originally published by Athlon on Oct 31, 2026, where it first appeared in the NFL section. Add Athlon as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
