Fantasy Football: 5 Bold Predictions For Week 7

Gus Edwards Becomes the Workhorse in Baltimore

Gus Edwards was Mr. Preseason this year. The undrafted free agent crushed it for the Baltimore Ravens in the weeks leading up to the season, handling 53 carries and finishing with the fifth-most yards among all running backs in the preseason. Perhaps even more importantly to head coach Jon Harbaugh, the rookie didn't fumble once in four games.

Fumbling matters to Harbaugh and is likely the primary reason why they haven't promoted Alex Collins to workhorse status despite his play eclipsing teammate Javorius Allen's in most other metrics. Collins' fumbles have kept "Buck" Allen relevant in fantasy for two years, but there could be a new thorn in Collins' fantasy owners' sides.

Just one day after promoting him from the practice squad, the Ravens trusted Edwards enough to let him handle 10 rushes in their 21-0 win over the Titans. But these weren't solely garbage-time touches in a blowout. Edwards saw his first touch come in the second quarter when the Ravens were only up 7-0 and on just their second possession of the game.

It was a weird game for sure, but Edwards' early involvement -- and Allen's disappearance from that game -- could be a signal of things to come. In Edwards' 10 carries, he notched 5 successes -- or carries that added points to his team's expected points total -- for a Success Rate of 50%. That 50% success rate tops both Collins (36.84) and Allen (31.43). Furthermore, he has a higher Rush Net Expected Points per rush -- the total number of expected points he adds to his team's expected total with each rush -- than either of the other backs. This can probably be tied to the fact that he hasn't fumbled once in his now 63 NFL carries (including preseason).

Collins is always one fumble away from riding the pine, and Edwards showed up better than Allen in his work last week. Don't be surprised if Edwards leads the team in touches this week -- and going forward.