The Baltimore Ravens will see several of their former players when they face the Los Angeles Chargers on Monday, and while most of them are excited to face their old team, there are definitely some with revenge on their mind.
It’s a natural reaction for any player facing their former team: they want to prove that the club made a mistake by letting them go. Not all players feel this way, but there’s undeniably a good portion that do.
Included in that group is Chargers running back Gus Edwards, who spent the past six years in Baltimore. When asked if there’s a revenge factor to this game, Edwards gave quite the definitive answer.
“A ton of respect for them, but there’s a little bit in me that wants to get back for them. … We just gotta punch them in the mouth and keep our foot on the ground,” Edwards said, per the Baltimore Banner’s Kyle Goon.
Edwards joined the Ravens as an undrafted free agent from Rutgers in 2018, and emerged as a very solid back. In 69 games with Baltimore, including 26 starts, the 29-year-old rushed for 3,365 yards and 26 touchdowns while averaging 4.9 yards per carry. Even while dealing with injuries, most notably a torn ACL that held him out all of 2021 and half of 2022, Edwards was a consistently strong piece in the backfield.
In Los Angeles, though, he hasn’t been quite as productive with just 195 yards in six games, including two starts. He’s actually been overshadowed by another former Raven in J.K. Dobbins, who’s rushed for 726 yards and eight touchdowns this season.
No matter what feelings Edwards or Dobbins have, the Ravens are happy to see them healthy and succeeding.
“I mean both of those guys [are] real talented,” defensive coordinator Zach Orr said Friday. “J.K. and Gus – [I] got a chance to know those guys really well [and] watched them grow up here in Baltimore. Anything that they’re doing right now is no surprise at all. J.K. – he’s been a top [running] back; Gus has been a top back. They’ve helped us win many games here, so we knew once they signed [with the Chargers] that they were going [to] help those guys out. What we’re seeing on film are two explosive [and] physical backs, and I’m happy that those guys are finally healthy.”
