Baltimore Ravens update JK Dobbins status following torn ACL diagnosis

The Baltimore Ravens have updated running back J.K. Dobbins’ status on their roster following his recently-diagnosed torn ACL suffered in their final preseason game. Dobbins has been placed on injured reserve and will be officially unavailable to play for the entire 2021 NFL season, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

J.K. Dobbins out for season with ACL tear

After Dobbins’ injury was revealed on Sunday, the general consensus around the league was that he would miss the entire 2021 NFL season. The consensus opinion was confirmed Monday as the Ravens placed him on injured reserve before the final day of the preseason.

By placing Dobbins on the injured reserve list before the regular season starts, he will be ineligible to return to the Ravens had he recovered quicker than expected. The new NFL rules regarding injured reserve went into effect for the 2020 NFL season and were renewed for the 2021 season again earlier this month.

Unlike in previous years, players are now eligible to return from the injured reserve list after three weeks instead of the previous eight weeks. The rule change was put into effect in order to help teams navigate the difficulties of COVID-19.

One caveat to the rule — it only applies to players on the 53-man roster finalized by the teams on Sep. 1, in order to prevent teams from stashing players they wanted to keep for later.

Dobbins’ missed chance

Losing Dobbins before the season begins was a major blow to the Ravens. Even more upsetting for Dobbins and fans is wondering what he could have done in his second NFL season following a great rookie effort.

The Ravens selected Dobbins with the 55th-overall pick in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft. As a rookie, Dobbins played in 15 games, running for 805 yards and nine touchdowns on 134 carries. He had a solid six yards per carry.

Without Dobbins, the Ravens must now replace their expected starting running back. Former starter Mark Ingram is now with the Houston Texans. Fourth-year running back Gus Edwards is poised for a major increase in volume with Dobbins now out. In each of his three NFL seasons, Edwards has run for at least 711 yards. Last year, he set career highs with 144 carries for 723 yards and six touchdowns along with nine receptions on 13 targets for 129 receiving yards.

At Ohio State, Dobbins starred on the Buckeyes offense. As a freshman in 2017, Dobbins ran for 1,403 yards and seven touchdowns on 194 carries, an impressive 7.2 yards per carry. In 2018, Dobbins ran for just over 1,000 yards with 12 total touchdowns. Dobbins led the Big Ten in rushing during his junior season in 2019. His impressive 2,003 yards and 23 total touchdowns resulted in a major leap in his NFL Draft stock.

On3’s Jonathan Wagner contributed to this article.