OWINGS MILLS, Md. — Baltimore Ravens running back Gus Edwards has generated a lot of buzz in this week’s fantasy football drafts, although he admittedly doesn’t understand it.
“I know nothing about fantasy football, but I hear about it all the time,” Edwards said recently. “I guess I’m doing good with it. I don’t know.”
Edwards piqued the interest of fantasy managers since he replaced J.K. Dobbins (season-ending knee injury) as the Ravens’ featured back. He’s never gained more than 723 yards rushing in a season, but he takes over the lead role in the NFL’s most dominant rushing attack.
How good will Edwards be in 2021?
Edwards is projected to gain 1,041 yards and score eight touchdowns this season, according to ESPN NFL prognosticator Mike Clay.
He could reach over 1,200 yards rushing, given that featured running backs have averaged 72 yards rushing per game when playing alongside Lamar Jackson, who draws a lot of attention from defenses as a runner himself.
Edwards possibly could surpass all expectations because of Baltimore's schedule. The Ravens play 12 games against run defenses that ranked in the bottom half of the NFL.
"I’m ready for it,” Edwards said about becoming Baltimore’s No. 1 running back. "I never considered myself a backup. I know [offensive coordinator Greg Roman] does a great job at using what we have and putting that to work. I’ve been ready.”
Even though Edwards doesn’t like the term, Edwards has a great shot at going from a backup to a breakout star. For a player nicknamed “Gus the Bus,” it’s fitting that it’s been a long road to get here.
An undrafted rookie out of Rutgers, Edwards was cut at this time three years ago. Signed to the practice squad, he was Baltimore’s No. 5 running back on the depth chart at the start of the 2018 season behind Alex Collins, Javorius Allen, Kenneth Dixon and De'Lance Turner.
It took injuries to Dixon and Turner for Edwards to get promoted to the active roster. When Jackson became the starting quarterback midway through the 2018 season, Edwards moved into the starting lineup as well, averaging 93.4 yards rushing over the final seven games.
Despite that success, Edwards became Baltimore’s complementary back. The Ravens signed Mark Ingram II in 2019 and then drafted Dobbins in the second round in 2020. Edwards quietly bided his time, signing a two-year, $10 million extension this offseason.
But an injury once again has provided an opening for Edwards. With Dobbins on injured reserve, Edwards is set to start a season as a team’s top running back for the first time since 2017, when he was at Rutgers.
“It’s a great opportunity,” Edwards said. “It’s really unfortunate what happened. My feelings go out to J.K. I know how hard he worked this season. Just to see how hard he’s been practicing, it’s real unfortunate. I’m ready to do whatever’s asked of me. I’m ready to step up.”
One of the biggest differences between Edwards and Dobbins is their running styles. Dobbins is known for breaking long runs by hitting the perimeter. Edwards does his damage on the inside.
Since 2018, Edwards has the league’s 11th-most rushing yards (1,227) in between the tackles. The most impressive stat: Edwards’ average speed in 2020 when crossing the line inside is 9.83 miles per hour, according to Next Gen Stats. Only one player was faster when reaching the line — Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray (10.9 mph).
Edwards is a no-nonsense, punishing downhill runner who found his niche as Roman’s “closer” to finish off games. Now, he will be lining up next to Jackson to open games.
“He’s our kind of guy,” Roman said. "He’s really built for what we do. He’s going to get more of a workload now. Not to say it won’t still be a committee, but Gus is definitely going to get a lot of work, and we feel great about that.”