Can Gus Edwards be the workhorse the Baltimore Ravens need?

Can Gus Edwards be the workhorse the Baltimore Ravens need? Well he’s running back 1 heading into the offseason:

In a press conference at the NFL Scouting Combine John Harbaugh referred to Gus Edwards as the number one running back. Much of the offseason talk has shifted towards the wide receiver position because of the move to cut Michael Crabtree. Before all of that the Le’Veon Bell debate was going back and forth among members of the Ravens Flock. So this is interesting.

To be clear, Harbaugh was talking about the situation as the team heads into the offseason and that the Ravens will probably add to the backfield group this offseason. Declaring Edwards the number one back at the moment  was a fairly big declaration of confidence for a running back with 11 games under his belt. Does Edwards have what it takes to be the leading star in a run based offense?

Edwards was the running back that did the best last year, but Kenneth Dixon was a close second. Dixon’s injury history prevents any reasonable conversation about making him the workhorse of the backfield. He should be able to chip in and be a nice change of pace. If the dynamic doesn’t change Baltimore has a decent one two punch, at least in theory.

Edwards got off to a really good start. He proved himself to be a tough running back, something that seems to mean more in Baltimore than almost anywhere else. Edwards is a tackle breaking back much in the line of Jamal Lewis and Willis McGahee. There is reason for optimism. but there was also reason to believe Alex Collins would have a good 2019 season. Collins is probably on his way out.

Edwards benefited from the fact that Lamar Jackson gave defenses a lot to worry about. The whose got the rock game kept defenses off balance and they couldn’t let Jackson out of their sight. In the playoff game against the Chargers the run game was bottled up completely. Edwards success needs to stem from more than just the new attack the Ravens employed.

https://twitter.com/Ravens/status/1100830297258635265

The Ravens rushing attack will be fairly similar to last year. The difference will be more of a focus on Jackson throwing the football. With a less predictable offense and a dual threat quarterback, the style of runner that the Ravens need isn’t changing. The urgent rushing style of Edwards meshes with what new offensive coordinator, Greg Roman, wants to do.

Edwards does look the part. He’s a great athlete, he runs angry and he can’t be fun to tackle. He had several big runs down the stretch and he was one of the most important aspects of the Ravens 6-1 finish to the regular season. Edwards also showed good vision breaking runs for over 20 yards in each of the last three weeks of the Ravens bid to win the AFC North.

The Ravens have bigger fish to fry, they shouldn’t be overly focused on the running back spot. Adding another running back to the puzzle would be a good idea but it shouldn’t be the main priority. They need another back, they don’t need a superstar to fix everything though. The fact that the Ravens could reasonably go into the season with Edwards as their main running back is a pretty big deal for a ground and pound styled team.