Baltimore Ravens Season Preview: Offensive Breakdown
Running Backs: Bernard Pierce, Lorenzo Taliaferro, Justin Forsett, Kyle Juszczyk, Ray Rice (Reserved-Suspended)
Nov 17, 2013; Chicago, IL, USA; Baltimore Ravens running back Bernard Pierce (30) runs the ball against the Chicago Bears during the second half at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Rob Grabowski-USA TODAY Sports
On the surface, this group of running backs is nothing to get excited. The Ravens return their top two backs from a year ago, when both Bernard Pierce and Ray Rice failed to exceed 3.5 yards per carry. Pierce couldn’t even get past three yards per carry.
At fullback, meanwhile, the Ravens will start a guy who was so bad in training camp last year that the Ravens were forced to re-sign an aged Vonta Leach.
They may be the same guys in name, but in performance, expect an entirely different group.
Rice is in great shape, having lost weight to regain his explosion. He looked solid in very limited reps in the preseason.
Pierce, meanwhile, was more spry than Rice, but looked overwhelmed by the remarkably poor blocking. He was indecisive, which hurt his rushing average. That shouldn’t be a problem with another year of experience and better blocking.
Finally, Juszczyk has improved as a blocker thanks to increased strength and experience. Plus, he may be the best receiver the Ravens have out of the backfield. That’s saying something considering the Ravens feature Rice so heavily in the passing game. He excels at attacking the flat.
The depth here is also much improved from last year. The Ravens did not really have a viable third back in 2013. Now, they have two.
Lorenzo Taliaferro, a rookie from Coastal Carolina, led the NFL in rushing in the preseason with 243 yards. He looked decisive and powerful.
As for Justin Forsett, the versatile back will help fill Rice’s role for the first two weeks of the season. He is a quality receiver and has good vision, but struggled with ball security in the preseason.
Despite all the struggles last year, there is reason for optimism here. With better blocking and coaching, the Ravens should have a much better ground game, and there is an intriguing mixture of experience and youth here.