Whether the Chicago Bears feel they have enough firepower in their backfield remains one of the team’s biggest questions following the 2025 NFL draft, but there is one veteran free agent who could make a lot of sense for them.
The Bears disappointed expectations about how they would address the running back position in the draft. They missed out on top-rated Ashton Jeanty in the first round. They also saw backs taken off the board just before their selections in the second and fourth rounds, with the latter instance prompting them to trade back from No. 109.
Ultimately, the Bears did find a running back in the seventh round, selecting Rutgers’ Kyle Monangai at No. 233 overall, but their inability to secure one of the top backs in the class has cast more uncertainty on the formidability of their backfield for 2025.
With that in mind, NFL.com’s Jeffri Chadiha connected the dots between the Bears and former second-round running back J.K. Dobbins, who had 905 rushing yards and nine touchdowns in a bounce-back season with the Los Angeles Chargers in 2024.
“The Bears already have rebuilt their interior offensive line and loaded up on pass catchers in the draft (tight end Colston Loveland and wide receiver Luther Burden III were their first two picks),” Chadiha wrote Tuesday. “It’s time to solidify the backfield and think about all the ways their offense might explode this fall.”
J.K. Dobbins Offers Affordable, Somewhat Risky Option
If the Bears want to add another running back with a similar skill set to Swift to their rotation, Dobbins might be their best option remaining on the 2025 free-agent market.
Dobbins has many of the desirable traits of an elusive back, including good breakaway speed (less so after his injuries, though), ball-carrier vision and quickness in his cuts. He has also caught more than 80% of his career targets in the passing game, finishing with 32 catches for 153 yards and six first-downs on 38 targets for the Chargers in 2024.
Additionally, Dobbins has some power-back traits blended into his game that could set him up as a short-yardage/change-of-pace option for the Bears in the running game. A duo consisting of Swift and Dobbins would not equate perfectly to what Ben Johnson had in Detroit with Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery, but it would be a start.
Dobbins, however, is an injury risk at this point in his career.
While he had an impressive comeback season with the Chargers in 2024, he still wound up missing four games with an injury. He also experienced injury problems before his season-ender in 2023, missing nine games in 2022 and the entire 2021 season.
Maybe the Bears are comfortable taking a risk on his shaky injury history with Roschon Johnson, Travis Homer, Ian Wheeler and Monangai in the rotation. He is not expected to cost much on the market with Spotrac projecting him to sign for just $4.1 million, so the risk would be relatively low. Even still, the Bears aren’t sure he can be relied on.
Could Bears Bolster Backfield With Different RB?
Dobbins is one of the top free agents on the market for any teams looking to add more depth at running back, but the presence of Nick Chubb gives the Bears some choices.
Chubb, a 30-year-old bruising power back, has achieved far more career success than Dobbins during his time with the Cleveland Browns. He combined for 6,341 rushing yards and 48 touchdowns over his first five seasons, hitting a career-high 1,525 yards in 2022. Unfortunately, things went downhill for him when he seriously injured his knee in Week 2 of the 2023 season — an injury that sidelined him until Week 7 in 2024.
While Chubb took more than 100 carries upon his return last season, he averaged just 3.3 yards per carry and finished with 332 total rushing yards and three touchdowns in eight games. He also seemed to lack his explosiveness upon returning from his injury.
In both cases, the Bears would be taking a chance on a running back with recent injury history for relatively low cost, but Chubb’s longer-reaching experience might appeal to them more if they feel he is now closer to his former self after taking more time to heal.
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