Las Vegas Raiders: 10 free agent running backs and their fit
26. . RB. Baltimore Ravens. Gus Edwards. 4. player
Gus Edwards has been a model of consistency since joining the Baltimore Ravens in 2018 as an undrafted free agent out of Rutgers. Edwards has carried the ball around 140 times and 700 yards in each of his first three seasons in the NFL and has been one of the better power backs in the league.
His career yards per carry average of 5.2 is stellar, and he presents defenses with a different look than most of the running backs in the NFL. Edwards, listed at 6’1″ and 240lbs, he is a consummate power back that has the ability to punish tired defenses late in games but has plenty of burst, as shown with his 4.53 40-time at his Rutgers pro day.
Edwards is likely to return to Baltimore, especially with their release of veteran Mark Ingram, but he is a hot commodity on the free-agent market for teams looking for some size in their backfield. The Las Vegas Raiders are one of those teams and he would be an excellent fit as the thunder to Josh Jacobs’ lightning behind Derek Carr.
The only downside for Edwards is his lack of versatility, as he has never caught more than ten passes in a season so far. It is not to say that he can’t expand his game to become a receiving back as well, but he has yet to display that ability at the pro or college levels.
The Raiders and Jon Gruden love to throw the ball underneath to their backs, so if he was to come to Las Vegas, he would have to work on that aspect of his game. Even without that receiving ability, Edwards would be an excellent backup to Jacobs and would give the Raiders run game plenty of pop with his combo of size and speed.