What Kenyan Drake Signing Means For Dobbins, Ravens' Rushing Group

The Baltimore Ravens have Super Bowl aspirations on their minds ahead of the start of the 2022 NFL season thanks to a healthy roster that now features running back Kenyan Drake.

SportsTrust Advisors, the high-profile agency representing Drake, officially announced that he was going to be a Raven after the player hinted of his offseason activity in Baltimore.

It all started with a seemingly harmless airplane emoji then dropped further breadcrumbs as to which part of the US he was flying to before dropping the final hint of a purple smiling face with horns–a telltale hint that most Ravens players in the past have used.

The 73rd overall pick of the 2016 NFL draft, Drake spent his first four seasons with the Miami Dolphins as a bench-deepening running back, playing second fiddle to Jay Ajayi and Damien Williams in his rookie year.

The Ajayi trade and Williams injury opened up the door for Drake to have a starting role in Week 12, putting up impressive numbers that also featured an upset victory against the New England Patriots two weeks later.

Drake would later be traded by the Dolphins to the Arizona Cardinals in 2019 before ending up with the Las Vegas Raiders in 2021.

The running back suffered a broken right ankle in the second quarter of their Week 13 matchup with the Washington Football Team and was subsequently released by the team on August 23 as part of their round of roster cuts.

Now in Baltimore, Drake has the opportunity to bring veteran leadership to a relatively young group that is still dealing with the injuries of J.K. Dobbins and Gus Edwards.

Edwards was placed on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list and is expected to miss at least four games while there are doubts within the organization of Dobbins being ready for Week 1 against the New York Jets.

The Alabama product slots in nicely with the Ravens' rush-heavy offense since he can make cuts through the block and make defensive backs miss thanks to his agility while also being a capable pass-catcher.

There are legitimate concerns as to whether he will be the same player that he was after dealing with injuries to both of his ankles--the left one which he broke back in college.

Despite that though, his contributions as a depth piece may surpass his contributions on the field later in the season.

Being with the Ravens does put little pressure on him to put up big numbers though as they still have veteran Mike Davis and second-year Justice Hill to carry the run game alongside rookie Tyler Badie who was re-signed to the practice squad.

Drake could play lesser snaps when both Edwards and Dobbins return, but it will not likely affect the impact that he will have within the group in the locker room.

All in all, both Drake and the Ravens are in for an interesting season together as they look ahead towards a hopeful Super Bowl run.