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Baltimore Ravens: Is adding a running back this offseason foolish?

By Richard Bradshaw

ATLANTA, GEORGIA - DECEMBER 07: D'Andre Swift #7 of the Georgia Bulldogs runs with the ball in the first half against the LSU Tigers during the SEC Championship game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on December 07, 2019 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - DECEMBER 07: D'Andre Swift #7 of the Georgia Bulldogs runs with the ball in the first half against the LSU Tigers during the SEC Championship game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on December 07, 2019 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /
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BALTIMORE, MARYLAND – JANUARY 11: Gus Edwards #35 of the Baltimore Ravens carries the ball against the defense of the Tennessee Titans during the AFC Divisional Playoff game at M&T Bank Stadium on January 11, 2020, in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Todd Olszewski/Getty Images)
BALTIMORE, MARYLAND – JANUARY 11: Gus Edwards #35 of the Baltimore Ravens carries the ball against the defense of the Tennessee Titans during the AFC Divisional Playoff game at M&T Bank Stadium on January 11, 2020, in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Todd Olszewski/Getty Images) /

The case against adding more running backs:

Why ruin a good thing?

The Baltimore Ravens backfield consists of Mark Ingram, Gus Edwards, and Justice Hill. The three combined for 1,954-yards on the ground and 14 rushing touchdowns. Ingram and Edwards both averaged 5.0+ YPC as arguably the NFL’s best one-two punch at running back. We don’t even need to mention that these three combined with Lamar Jackson gives Baltimore a rushing attack worthy of historic praise.

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The best part of this backfield is how little the Ravens are spending on it. Ingram and Hill are costing Baltimore just over ~$6 million while Edwards will be tendered soon, as he is an Exclusive Rights Free Agent. Three great running back options for close to ~$7 million… that’s as good as it gets.

The Ravens don’t exactly have a ton of cap space, either. Baltimore is currently projected with ~$32.9 million in cap space (via spotrac.com) and has some key free agents to resign in guys like Matt Judon and others. The team would no doubt be better off rolling with the three guys they have and using that cap space to either resign guys or make a splash signing in the upcoming 2020 Free Agency period.

The same can be said for using any draft picks at the position when the team could instead use their picks to continue upgrading a championship-caliber roster.

Too many chefs spoil the broth, and the Baltimore Ravens already have a top-tier running back core in place. Those three plus Jackson gives the team a running game that will be unrivaled for the foreseeable future.

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