Rise to Prominence

Over the last 2 weeks, Keaton Mitchell has burst onto the scene and emerged has a dangerous weapon in the Baltimore Raven’s backfield. In those 2 games, he has amassed 12 rushing attempts for 172 yards and 2 touchdowns. Mitchell has also shown ability as a pass catcher, which has only cemented his multi-dimensional value. The Ravens are already a threat to run the ball with Lamar Jackson. Adding Mitchell to the equation on top of that is bound to create even more problems for opposing defenses. Is Mitchell the missing piece to the Raven’s offensive attack? The early signs so far, are promising. Now it’s up to the Raven’s to unleash him.

Seizing the Opportunity

Justice Hill has been primarily serving as the Ravens number 2 running back behind Gus Edwards. Hill is decent in his role, is a solid contributor however the truth of the matter is that Hill doesn’t possess the skillset that Mitchell does. Mitchell’s elite speed and vision make it so he is a threat to take it the distance on any given play. Naturally, this will lead to more opportunities for Mitchell, and overtaking Justice Hill’s role as the no.2 RB will be a formality. Mitchell is so special and gifted, it won’t be long until he’s the starter at RB for the Ravens. Whether that happens this year or next year is difficult to say-but its evident that Mitchell definitely has the skill set to be a starting running back.

Earning More Looks

The Ravens faced criticism after a tough loss to the Browns this past Sunday. When head coach John Harbaugh was confronted about Mitchell’s usage, Harbaugh’s response was very telling about what to expect about Mitchell’s usage going forward:

^{“As you look back on it, [it’s] part of the process of getting a young guy in there and working him into the game plan as part of the process as we go. I don’t think we felt probably as an offensive coaching staff we were going to throw the whole game plan on him,” Harbaugh told reporters on Monday, via the team’s official website. “Those are the plays that get called from the groupings that were called in the second half. Looking back on it, would we have wanted him out there more? Yes. I think that’ll factor into this game plan.”}

Patra, Kevin. “Ravens HC John Harbaugh: Keaton Mitchell in line for more reps Thursday night vs. Bengals ” Around the NFL, 14 November 2023.

We only have a small sample size- but what Keaton Mitchell brings to the Ravens is invaluable. Vision. Speed. Agility. What really stands out about Mitchell the most however, is how efficient he is as a player. He boast an impressive 10.4 true yards per carry average, as well as almost 14 yards-per touch.

Mitchell truly brings it all to the table. The scary part? This is only the beginning for the talented rookie running back out of East Carolina- and he still has room to grow.

-By Eric Clark

*Photo courtesy of Michael Owen’s/Getty Images