Baltimore Ravens 2020 season outlook: Gus Edwards
The Baltimore Ravens running back room is loaded, making it easy to forget about Gus Edwards. Still, don’t be shocked when he remains consistent in 2020.
Throughout its history, the Baltimore Ravens have had plenty of stud running backs tote the ball for the franchise. It makes it easy to forget about some of the quality players the team has had throughout the years, such as Justin Forsett and Bam Morris. For today’s Ravens, it’s Gus Edwards that carries that mantle.
Edwards is a former UDFA from the 2018 NFL Draft out of Rutgers who has become one of the Ravens most important rushers. When Lamar Jackson took the reigns of starting quarterback for the last seven games of the 2018 season, Edwards came to life. Edwards rushed for 654-yards (718-yards total) and averaged 5.4 YPC over that span and never had fewer than 67-yards in that stretch. He was remarkable and was expected to be an important member of the rushing attack in 2019. While he did take a backseat to Mark Ingram, he was nonetheless a key factor like we expected.
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Gus Edwards finished as Baltimore’s third-leading rusher with 711-yards and averaged over 5.0 YPC again. Edwards proved himself to be a reliable and consistent ball carrier who, while not the flashiest, did the dirty, gritty running that has made the Ravens such a great running team.
Now headed into 2020, Edwards faces steep competition for touches out of the backfield. Ingram remains the top-dog on the depth chart, but incoming rookie J.K. Dobbins will likely play second-fiddle to Ingram. We can’t forget about the shifty Justice Hill, either.
It’ll be tough to get a fair share of carries in this backfield, but it won’t be impossibly or improbable. When you have someone as proven as Gus Edwards, you find ways to get him the ball.
Admittedly, Edwards isn’t the most versatile runner in the world. He’s practically a non-factor in the passing game and has scored just four touchdowns in two seasons. This will limit Edwards to a reserve role, which he could absolutely thrive in. The Ravens offense will once again be one of the NFL’s best and will be leading games consistently. This will mean Edwards will get clean-up carries to close games out. With his bruising run style, Edwards will break the will of exhausted opposing defenses.
No, it’s unlikely Gus Edwards will be a do-it-all runner for Baltimore in 2020, but you can bet your bottom dollar he’ll have an important role to the offense.
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Gus Edwards is as steady as they come and there’s little reason to believe he won’t once again be a reliable player in 2020. While his role has yet to be defined in terms of how many touches he’ll receive a game, five or seven carries is more than reasonable and responsible to give him. Those carries will add up and he will be one of the league’s best change-of-pace backs.
Gus Edwards 2020 projected stats: 100 carries, 550 rushing yards, two touchdowns