Baltimore Ravens Running Backs: Who Takes the Lead Role?

Sep 11, 2014; Baltimore, MD, USA; Baltimore Ravens running back Bernard Pierce (30) runs with the ball against the Pittsburgh Steelers at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Evan Habeeb-USA TODAY Sports

Bernard Pierce

We’ll start with Bernard Pierce, since that seems to be what the Ravens intend to do.

Pierce has perhaps the best physical skill set out of all the Ravens’ backs, with burst, good (not great) speed and strength. Unfortunately, the mental side of the game too often fails Pierce. He lacks natural vision and has a tendency to bounce runs outside too frequently.

Perhaps more importantly, Pierce is regularly dinged up. He rarely misses games, but the Ravens can’t rely on Pierce to be 100 percent consistently.

His vision issues may improve, but I would be shocked if he magically becomes a more durable player.

For now, Pierce is the starter and the presumed lead back, but his grasp on that role is tenuous. Still, expecting Pierce to get somewhere between 40 and 50 percent of the carries is a pretty safe guess.