Justin Forsett Proves He's Worthy to Get a Chance to Start for Ravens

The box score and the coaches film will tell a different story about the Baltimore Ravens' rushing offense Thursday night against the Pittsburgh Steelers. The numbers alone show that Bernard Pierce, who got the starting nod, had a solid night for the Ravens, with 22 carries for 96 yards, while Justin Forsett had eight attempts for 56.  

But don't be fooled. While Pierce did total nearly 100 yards, 20 of them came in the last two minutes of the game when Baltimore was up 26-6. With increased carries, Forsett likely could have totaled more. 

Forget the box score and rewatch the film. It proves that Forsett is the higher-upside back who deserves to start for this offense. 

Heading into Thursday night's game, coach John Harbaugh indicated that he would use a running back committee with Pierce, Forsett and rookie Lorenzo Taliaferro. 

When the Ravens signed Forsett to a one-year deal this offseason, no one expected him to be competing for the starting job. But the release of Ray Rice created an opportunity that Pierce's fumble in Week 1 against the Cincinnati Bengals only widened. 

Cincinnati was already up 12-0 when Pierce fumbled in the second quarter, and his previous play had resulted in a loss of four yards. Harbaugh benched him, ending his night with six carries for just 17 yards, and Forsett maximized his opportunity with 11 carries for 70 yards and a touchdown. 

Forsett also caught five passes out of the backfield for almost as many yards as Pierce gained on the ground, with 14. 

	Att.	Tot. Yards	Avg.	LG	Negative/No-Gain Plays
Bernard Pierce	22	96	4.4	17	6
Justin Forsett	8	56	7.0	41	2

After he stepped up in Week 1, many thought that Harbaugh would name Forsett the starter for Thursday's game against Pittsburgh. Instead, Harbaugh elected not to name a starter but announced that the Ravens would use a committee approach.

"Bernard Pierce, Justin Forsett—they’ll both play a lot," he said, per Ryan Mink of BaltimoreRavens.com. "Lorenzo Taliaferro will be a big part of it, too," he added, but in fact the rookie hasn't had a carry yet this season.

Pierce played 39 snaps against Pittsburgh, while Forsett had 29, which in part explains why Pierce ended the night with 96 yards compared to Forsett's 56. Baltimore may have been able to improve its ground game even more, however, had it given Forsett the starting nod. 

After getting the start, Pierce played seven snaps before Forsett came in on the end of the first drive. Neither Pierce nor Forsett rushed for more than six yards on the first drive, though Pierce did have a reception of seven yards up the middle. 

By the end of the first half, Pierce had eight carries for 23 yards, averaging just 2.8 yards per carry. On two of those rushes, he gained nothing. Forsett had four rushes for 14 yards, including one through the right B gap for a nice pickup of 13 yards, for an average of 3.5 yards per carry. 

Pierce had 14 carries in the second half and Forsett, only four. However, Forsett's 41-yard breakaway was one of the highlights of the night, shooting his final yards per carry on the night up to 7.0 compared to 4.4 for Pierce.

Pierce has never averaged more than 4.9 yards per attempt in his career. Forsett has been over 5.0 in four seasons. 

And while Pierce had no gain on both of his receptions in the second half, Forsett demonstrated a better ability to make plays as a pass-catcher, which adds a necessary dimension to this Ravens run game. 

It's no secret that Pierce has never demonstrated a nose for the end zone during his career in Baltimore, even in limited carries behind Rice. 

In Gary Kubiak's offense, tight ends get a lot of red-zone looks. However, defenses will catch onto that quickly, and the Ravens need to have a complete scoring threat through both the air and the ground. If they can't prove that one of their running backs is capable of breaking the plane, defenses will ensure that Flacco can't find an open target. 

In that regard, Forsett is the option with more potential. 

On his 13-yard touchdown run in Week 1, Forsett displayed excellent burst and great vision on the sweep, making a cut upfield while his line helped him out with some solid blocking. 

He remains the only Baltimore running back to have found the end zone through two games so far this season.

NFL Game Rewind

These qualities—vision, burst—aren't always quantifiable in a box score. But they're game-changers, and Forsett has proven that he excels in those areas over his teammate Pierce.

Luckily for Baltimore, coaches don't review box scores; they review game film and they contextualize it with situational awareness. Kubiak will realize that 20 of Pierce's 96 yards came in garbage time in the final two minutes of the game.

Though Harbaugh has the call on whom to start, Forsett knows Kubiak's offense. When he played in Houston in the 2012-13 season, he set a career high in yards per attempt (5.9) and ran for 374 yards and a touchdown. 

"I've been in this offense for a while now," Forsett told Mink prior to Thursday's game. "I'm very comfortable with it. I feel like it can really help my versatility, going out wide and catching passes and running the ball. I love it."

Even if coach Harbaugh still elects to run by committee, Forsett's skill set and demonstrated versatility prove he's earned strong consideration for the starting job by running the ball better when he's had his opportunities.