Is Gus Edwards playing this week? Ravens RB’s status explored vs Steelers

Gus Edwards has been a vital part of the Baltimore Ravens offense since joining in 2019 as an undrafted free agent.

Over his career, he has amassed 3,347 yards as the team's bruiser on the ground, but he did not establish himself as a prolific scorer until 2023, This season, he has a career-high 13 touchdowns in 16 games (including nine starts), usually in goal-line situations.

That stat has been a key factor in the Ravens' dominance, as they have romped to a conference 13-3 record and first round-bye. As a result, head coach John Harbaugh can afford to rest the likes of Lamar Jackson and Odell Beckham Jr.

However, Edwards is not one of those players. He was absent from the team's Thursday injury report, so barring a late development on Friday, he will be playing against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Saturday. The game will kick off at 4:30 p.m. ET on ESPN/ABC.

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Gus Edwards, Ravens get rushing help in Dalvin Cook

On Thursday, the NFL received a massive update: Four-time Pro Bowler Dalvin Cook was joining Gus Edwards and Justice Hill to form a three-headed rushing monster.

The ground game has always been the Baltimore Ravens' offensive forte, but 2023 has not been very kind to them when it comes to injuries. In their season opener against the Houston Texans, J.K. Dobbins suffered a season-ending Achilles injury. Then Justice Hill and rookie Keaton Mitchell ended up in consecutive injury reports in Weeks 4 and 5, respectively.

For the next eight games, the team appeared to have found reprieve, but it was not to last. During their 23-7 win at the Jacksonville Jaguars, Mitchell tore his AFC after being tackled by safety Andrew Wingard.

This leaves the Ravens with only two active running backs in Hill and Edwards, and they themselves have not been fully healthy at certain points. This is where Dalvin Cook comes in as insurance for either of them.

When the former Minnesota Viking joined the New York Jets during the offseason, he was expected to give Aaron Rodgers a star rushing option, but that notion collapsed when the quarterback tore his Achilles four snaps into his team debut. Then Cook was thoroughly outperformed by Breece Hall, who was making his comeback from a torn ACL, and subsequently de-emphasized and released.

But in Baltimore, he gets to join another contending squad and possibly snag that elusive Super Bowl ring.