J.K. Dobbins is expected to miss “some time” with a knee injury suffered on Monday night versus Baltimore, and fantasy football managers are left in a tough spot in Week 13. While the exact length of time Dobbins could miss is unknown at this stage, the Falcons are preparing for a Chargers run game without him, so fantasy players need to adjust accordingly.
3 streamer RB replacements for J.K. Dobbins
#1, Jaylen Warren (@ Bengals) – 52.6% rostered
Jaylen Warren has been putting in some decent displays and looks to be back to full health following an injury-hit start to the 2024 season. Warren got his first TD of the campaign in the snow versus Cleveland and is the passing RB in the Steelers backfield.
Warren has flirted with fantasy relevance and could be your answer in Week 12. He narrowly missed out on a TD vs. Washington as the ball was wrenched from his arms near the goalline. It would be a surprise if Warren doesn’t break 8 points against a Bengals D that has shown vulnerabilities this season, especially as he tallied only 5 fewer rushing attempts than Najee Harris last week.
Jaylen Warren’s prediction: 10.5 points
#2, Gus Edwards (@ Falcons) – 34.9% rostered
Edwards is the obvious replacement for J.K. Dobbins owners, and as he is rostered in 34.9% of leagues, you have a decent shot at plugging him into your lineups. However, it seems likely the Chargers won’t pile the entire workload onto Edwards, and we may see some carries for Hassan Haskins and Kimani Vidal, the latter of which has been a healthy scratch for two games.
That said, Edwards looks to have a decent floor against the Falcons. Their defense is conceding an average of 21.77 fantasy points per game, and you’d expect him to have a good shot at breaking 10 points.
Gus Edwards’ prediction: 10.5 points (HPPR)
#3, Jonathon Brooks (vs. Buccaneers) – 51.5% rostered
Jonathon Brooks made his NFL debut in Week 12, making his return from a long-term ACL injury. Given he only ran the ball twice for 7 yards, he certainly comes with some risk, but last week saw Carolina playing a top defense in the Kansas City Chiefs. The Panthers are likely to give him a bit more of the ball this week, but how much is the question.
Against a Buccaneers D that ranks 26th against RBs in fantasy this season, Brooks might get that TD Dobbins owners are chasing. You can certainly envision a situation where the Panthers see an opportunity to put their rookie in the endzone and take it, giving him and the team a morale boost. Brooks is available in 48.5% of leagues, but temper expectations as Carolina has been very cautious with him thus far.
Jonathon Brooks’ prediction: 5.5 points (HPPR)
The Raiders RB room could be worth a gamble
If none of these are available in your league, the Las Vegas Raiders have an RB room that has not shone in 2024. The Raiders have a tough matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs to look forward to on Friday and their RB room is dealing with some injuries. While that is not encouraging, whichever RB gets the nod will potentially be available to you and could be worth a gamble if you’re really short at RB.
- Alexander Mattison (Q) – 39.7% rostered
- Zamir White (Q) – 26.2% rostered
- Ameer Abdullah @ Chiefs – 9.5% rostered