The Chargers have been one of the least active teams in the first wave of free agency, choosing mainly to re-sign their in-house targets through Tuesday and Wednesday. But on Thursday morning, several NFL insiders reported that former Ravens running back Keaton Mitchell was signing with the Chargers on a two-year, $9.25 million deal with $5 million guaranteed.
Mitchell is a speedster with a 4.37 40-yard dash time and a career yards-per-carry average of 6.3. When taking into consideration McDaniel’s bias towards speed on offense, it should be surprising that the Bolts went after Mitchell who also has ties to Joe Hortiz from their time together in Baltimore.
As a rookie in 2023, Mitchell played in eight games with two starts. He rushed for a career-high 396 yards and two touchdowns while averaging a robust 8.4 yards per tote. In 2025, Mitchell single-season high of 59 carries for 341 yards (5.8 YPC) and a lone touchdown.
At this price tag, I believe this tells us that Mitchell is being brought in as the backup to Omarion Hampton. At least that seems to be the intention. Kimani Vidal had his flashes in 2025 but it remains to be seen if McDaniel believes his skillset will transfer over to the new offense.
Mitchell also provides value as an option at kick returner, averaging 1.1 yards more than Derius Davis this past season.
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