Fantasy Football Player Notes

R.J. Harvey's rookie season was a tale of two seasons centered around J.K. Dobbins being in the lineup and out of it. In Weeks 1-10, Harvey was the RB29 in fantasy points per game, averaging 29.1% of the snaps played with 7.5 touches and 38.9 total yards per game. In Weeks 11-18, with Dobbins out, he was the RB13 in fantasy points per game with 16.8 touches and 72.5 total yards per game while averaging 60.7% of the snaps played. With Dobbins back and Denver drafting Jonah Coleman, Harvey's role is up in the air. He could easily fall back into last year's early-season role as passing down partner with Dobbins, or this backfield could get messy with all three backs playing and the production getting divided up. Harvey was awesome overall last season as a receiving option, but he struggled on early downs. As a pass catcher, he ranked sixth in target per route run rate and first downs per route run and tenth in yards per route run (per Fantasy Points Data). As a rusher, among 49 qualifying backs, he was 21st in missed tackle rate but 42nd in explosive run rate and 44th in yards after contact per attempt. Harvey is a decent selection in fantasy drafts this season, but in 2026, I won't go out of my way to get him on all my teams like last year.

J.K. Dobbins returns to Denver this season as their early down hammer. It's tough to count on him for a full season at this point, but while he's out there, he should be a nice RB2/flex play this season. Last year, Dobbins did see his season cut short with a foot injury. In Weeks 1-10, he was the RB24 in fantasy points per game, averaging 16.4 touches and 80.6 total yards. The bulk of that work was in the rushing department as he averaged only 1.4 targets and 3.7 receiving yards per game. He had only four games in which he saw more than one target, and he never saw more than two targets in any game. Dobbins was on pace for 260 carries and 1,313 rushing yards before his injury, so his value on early downs is quite nice. Among 49 qualifying backs, he ranked third in explosive run rate and eighth in missed tackle rate (per Fantasy Points Data). Dobbins should return RB2/touchdown-dependent flex value this season.

Jonah Coleman walks into the Denver depth chart as the RB3 with the ability to climb the depth chart. If J.K. Dobbins is unable to stay healthy this year, Coleman could assume the early down duties opposite R.J. Harvey. If Harvey can't continue to grow and improve after his rookie season, it wouldn't be shocking to see Coleman hop Harvey on the depth chart and become the passing-down option for Denver. Over his last three collegiate seasons, Coleman ranked 54th, 13th, and 1st in yards after contact per attempt and 61st, sixth, and fourth in elusive rating (per PFF). In two of those three seasons, he was also top 24 in yards per route run. Coleman is a wonderful late-round dart to toss in fantasy drafts in 2026.