Chargers activate running back J.K. Dobbins off injured reserve before Saturday's game at Patriots

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. (AP) — Running back J.K. Dobbins could return for the Los Angeles Chargers this weekend after being activated off injured reserve on Friday.

Dobbins missed four games after suffering a knee injury late in the first half of the Chargers’ 30-23 loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Nov. 25. Los Angeles (9-6) can clinch its second AFC playoff berth in three years with a win at New England on Saturday.

Dobbins was fourth in the AFC in rushing with 766 yards at the time of his injury. He is averaging 4.8 yards per carry, seventh highest among NFL backs with at least 150 carries. He has been considered among the candidates for AP Comeback Player of the Year after suffering a torn Achilles tendon in last season’s opener.

After injuries derailed Dobbins’ four years with the Ravens, the 2020 second-round pick decided to bet on himself by signing only a one-year deal with the Chargers.

Dobbins' return should help bolster a running game that has struggled in his absence. The Chargers have averaged only 74.8 rushing yards in the past four games, a drop from the 118.1 they were generating before Dobbins’ injury.

The Chargers also elevated safeties Eddie Jackson and Kendall Williamson from the practice squad for Saturday's game.

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FILE -Los Angeles Chargers running back J.K. Dobbins (27) reacts after gaining a first down during an NFL football game against the Cleveland Browns, Sunday, Nov. 3, 2024, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Kirk Irwin, File)

MOSCOW (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday apologized to his Azerbaijani counterpart for what he called a “tragic incident” following the crash of an Azerbaijani airliner in Kazakhstan that killed 38 people.

The plane was flying on Wednesday from Azerbaijan’s capital of Baku to Grozny, the regional capital of the Russian republic of Chechnya, when it turned toward Kazakhstan and crashed while making an attempt to land. There were 29 survivors.

In an official statement Saturday, the Kremlin said air defense systems were firing near Grozny on Wednesday due to a Ukrainian drone strike, but stopped short of saying one of these hit the plane.

On Friday, a U.S. official and an Azerbaijani minister made separate statements blaming the crash on an external weapon.

In this photo taken from a video released by the administration of Mangystau region, a part of Azerbaijan Airlines' Embraer 190 lies on the ground near the airport of Aktau, Kazakhstan, on Thursday, Dec. 26, 2024. (The Administration of Mangystau Region via AP)