Keaton Mitchell might have a hard time getting regular work in a Ravens backfield that features Derrick Henry and Justice Hill, but the third-year back says he is fully recovered from his 2023 torn ACL and has his eye on the team’s kick-return job.
Mitchell still could find a way onto the field on offense, especially since the scatback said he is every bit as fast as he was before the injury. But his role could be bigger as a kick returner, and he didn’t hesitate when asked whether he’d like to be in the running for that job this season.
“Oh yes, for sure,” Mitchell said after an OTA practice last week. He added that he would love to envision himself as a “Devin Hester, like a don’t-kick-it-at-[him] type of guy.”
The NFL has kept in place its so-called dynamic kickoff play that debuted last season, with one notable tweak that could benefit Mitchell.
Like last year, the kicking team’s 10 players other than the kicker will line up at the opposing 40-yard line and cannot move until the ball is fielded by a returner, hits the ground or flies into the end zone for a touchback.
This year, though, after a touchback the ball will be spotted at the 35-yard line instead of the 30, as was the case in 2024. The belief is that teams will be less inclined to give up those 5 extra yards, leading to more returns.
Mitchell didn’t have much kick return experience in college. He was busy rushing for more than 3,000 yards in three seasons at East Carolina, so coaches left the return game to others. He had just 12 returns for a 19.5-yard average in his college career.
After he returned from his knee injury late last season, Mitchell jumped into the role and averaged 31.2 yards on five kick returns, including a 47-yarder against Cleveland. He also handled returns in the postseason, averaging 26.8 yards on five returns at Buffalo.
Mitchell said returning kicks is “like a natural instinct. It’s like an outside zone play for a running back, so it’s kind of natural.”
And Mitchell said he’s as fast as ever.
Last month, he posted on social media a simple message: “22.4.” Mitchell was pointing out that the Ravens’ tracking devices clocked him at 22.4 mph, his fastest yet with the team. He said he had previously been clocked at 22.2 mph, and NFL’s NextGen Stats had clocked him at 20.99 on a 40-yard run against Seattle in his rookie year.
Mitchell has been a fan favorite since his rookie year. Not only did he open eyes with his burst on the practice fields in training camp as an undrafted player, but he also was a second-generation Raven, the son of Ravens Super Bowl champion special teamer and defensive back Anthony Mitchell.
Keaton Mitchell missed the first part of his rookie season dealing with a shoulder injury, but when he finally got on the field, he showed why he had made the initial 53-man roster. He finished the season with 47 carries for 396 yards and two touchdowns. He averaged 8.4 yards a carry, nearly 4 yards per carry better than any other running back.
But that season ended when Mitchell suffered a torn ACL in Week 15. He rehabbed aggressively in time to return late last season but totaled just 30 yards on 15 carries. He also caught one pass for 28 yards. Mitchell acknowledged being tentative at times, not sure he could trust his surgically repaired knee, and said that took a toll mentally.
If Mitchell is back to 100 percent and as fast as ever, the Ravens will find ways to get him on the field.
The Ravens last season averaged 27.0 yards per kickoff return — 20th best in the league — and no one decisively claimed the job.
Deonte Harty was the presumptive return specialist last year but spent most of the season injured. Chris Collier led the team with 10 returns for a 22.1-yard average but was off the roster by mid-November. Mitchell, Justice Hill, Rasheen Ali and departed John Kelly also cycled through the job.
The Ravens drafted speeder LeJohntay Wester out of Colorado, and he projects most prominently as a punt returner. Mitchell should get every chance to win the kick return job.
“He looks way better than he did at the end of last season, I think, just as far as movement,” head coach John Harbaugh said. “I have high hopes for him. I expect him to be really good.”
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