Who Should I Start? Keaton Mitchell or Ray Davis

Monday, August 18, 10:11 PM

Baltimore Ravens running back Keaton Mitchell (hamstring) returned to practice on Monday, according to Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic. Ravens head coach John Harbaugh said recently that Mitchell has a chance to return in time for the team's final preseason game on Saturday. The third-year running back rushed for 68 yards and a touchdown in Baltimore's preseason opener, but was held out of their second game due to a hamstring injury. Mitchell is competing with Justice Hill and Rasheen Ali for RB2 snaps in Baltimore behind Derrick Henry. If Henry were to go down with an injury, Mitchell might have the highest upside of the remaining Ravens running backs.

Saturday, August 9, 7:07 PM

With Buffalo Bills star running back James Cook staging a hold-in and unwilling to play Saturday, Ray Davis earned the start in the team's 34-25 preseason-opening loss to the New York Giants. Davis rushed for just seven yards on four attempts and caught one of two targets for another seven yards. As the Bills' emergency kicker, his most memorable highlight came on a successful extra-point attempt in the second quarter. The 5-foot-8, 220-pound Davis joined the Bills as a fourth-round pick from Kentucky in 2024 and was a capable reserve behind Cook as a rookie. Davis appeared in all 17 of the Bills' regular-season games and totaled 442 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 113 rushing attempts. He also caught three TDs and pulled in 17 of his 19 targets for 189 yards. With third-down back Ty Johnson also in the fold, Davis took around 25% of offensive snaps last season. That should be the case again in 2025, but Davis might have an expanded role early on if Cook is unavailable. While Cook seems unlikely to sit out into Week 1 over dissatisfaction with his contract, Davis figures to be the main beneficiary if he does. Cook missed one game last season, a 23-20 win over the New York Jets in Week 6, and Davis accrued 152 total yards (97 rushing, 55 receiving) on 23 touches as Buffalo's go-to back.