Running Backs: Five Card Studs
July 9, 2019
By Jay Evans
The NFL has embraced the pass. Teams are throwing more than ever and passing records are rewritten every season. The highest paid professionals in the game are players who throw the ball, catch the passes, cover the receivers, or chase the throwers. The league has philosophically changed from the last time the Redskins were consistent winners, but having a dominating backfield is the Redskins’ best hope at returning to glory in 2019.
Time for bold predictions: the Redskins have the best collection of running backs in the NFL and are going to feature them like it’s 1984. In classic Orwellian doublethink, the Redskins and Jay Gruden believe they can operate an offense in the modern game while relying heavily on a ground attack that would excite “Big Brother.”
When the Redskins drafted Derrius Guice in the second round of the 2018 draft, he was expected to be a focal point of the offense. Guice was considered to be a feature back with round one talent, but fell into the second round due to a myriad of innuendos and rumors. His running style is a combination of speed and power that hasn’t been seen in one player since Clinton Portis’ early years in Washington.
Regardless of the league’s perception, his mega-watt smile has been infectious among the fans, and Guice looks to be a potential star. At LSU, Guice backed up 2017 fourth overall pick Leonard Fournette, but starred in his sophomore season with Fournette sidelined by injuries. Over his final two seasons, Guice ran for 2,638 yards and 26 touchdowns and became the first player in SEC history to rush for more than 250 yards in a game three separate times.
As the preseason approached, Guice was going to lead the Redskins’ attack on the early downs and veteran Chris ‘Swiss Army Knife’ Thompson was going to operate as the ultra-weapon on late downs and in the passing game. The one-two combo was never meant to be in 2018 as Guice tore his ACL in the first preseason game and Thompson battled injuries throughout the season.
After Guice was lost for the season and backup Samaje Perine suffered an injury, Adrian Peterson was signed on August 20, 2018 to a one-year contract. One of the few bright spots from last season, Peterson proved to be the statistical and inspirational leader of the 2018 team. He became the oldest player ever to rush for 1000 yards in a season and was a priority in the offseason to retain for his passion and leadership.
Chris Thompson enters his seventh season with the Redskins and when healthy is a premiere third down back. The caveat with Thompson has always been his health. The diminutive speedster fell to the fifth round because he suffered a broken back and torn ACL while in college at FSU, and has missed twelve games the past two seasons due to injuries.
In 2017, Thompson was carving defenses with his speed and pass catching ability before his season was cut short by a broken leg. He was hampered by shoulder and rib injuries in 2018 which stymied his availability and explosiveness.
After Peterson re-signed prior to the NFL draft in April, the Redskins were not expected to target a running back in the draft, but the team was in awe of the talent and value offered by Stanford Cardinal Bryce Love. He was the 2017 runner up for the Heisman trophy after a 2000 yard campaign, and was likely a first-round draft pick until the pre-med student opted to return for a senior season and graduate.
The 2018 season didn’t bring the same level of production as both Love and the Stanford team struggled. His collegiate career came to an unfortunate end as Love tore his ACL in the final game of the season back in December. With a deep squad, the Redskins shouldn’t need to hurry Love into action. He could open the season on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list.
The selection of Love did come with some ire in the draft community, as he was viewed as luxury pick for a team that could have better spent the pick elsewhere. Love looks like a natural replacement for Thompson, if or when he becomes injured. which is an option the Skins lacked in past seasons. Love could be a steal in the draft.
Perine, the 2017 fourth round pick, is on the roster bubble. The Oklahoma product was expected to make an impact on short yardage plays and grow into a starting running back, but has yet to develop the consistency expected. Entering his fourth season, Gruden has praised the veteran’s work ethic and improvements in the passing game. Prime offseason trope material.
Byron Marshall and Craig Reynolds are also competing for roster spots. Marshall has spent time on the practice squad and saw some game action last season, and most notably was on the field and missed a block when quarterback Alex Smith was broken in half. Gruden has praised the Oregon Duck, but his chance at the 53-man roster is slim without significant injuries and is likely a practice squad candidate.
Reynolds is a camp body who could work his way onto the practice squad with a strong preseason, but the Kutztown product has a steep climb to make from division II football to NFL roster with the group ahead of him.
The skillsets of the running backs are complementary and their abilities are enticing. Even in the twilight of his hall of fame career, Peterson remains a physical phenomenon. Anyone who doubts his excellence is foolish. He is no longer the 2000 yard back, even though he believes he is, but a reduction in carries due to the return of Guice should help keep the thirteen-year veteran from wearing down.
The Redskins have two imposing rushers at the opposite bookends of their respective careers. As long as Guice returns to full health, he is the future lead back and is primed for an impressive “debut” season. The Redskins would like to see a 50-50 or 60-40 time share between the two backs. Guice could see a slight majority of the carries, but the hot hand will likely dictate who gets the ball between A.P. and Guice.
Thompson commands eight to ten touches a game because of his unique skillset. His ability to catch coming out of the backfield is an exploitable mismatch against linebackers and his vision on draw plays is among the best in the league. Gruden would be wise to keep Thompson in his comfort zone because Thompson’s trips to the training table surge with increases in his usage.
Love is the only back on the roster who has a skill set that resembles Thompson and is a favorable insurance policy. Without Thompson, the offense lacked a change of pace back that keeps defenses from keying on certain plays, but the addition of Love adds another shifty runner/receiver capable of scoring in a multitude of ways.
Perine is a stout built runner that has found himself in the doghouse and received a total of eight carries last season. One of the most productive in Oklahoma history, Perine is on an inexpensive rookie contract and offers a supplemental option to Guice or AP should they get injured and could possibly step in as a lead blocker on two back sets.
There are better backs in the NFL than anyone on Washington’s roster. Two of those running backs (Ezekiel Elliott and Saquon Barkley) reside in the NFC East, but overall there isn’t another running back room in the NFL as deep and talented as the Redskins. There are cases to made for one-two combos, but those arguments get weaker once you add the third player on the depth chart, and even weaker with the fourth and fifth.
Christian D’Andrea of SB Nation opined as to the best running back groups in the NFL, yet failed to mention the Redskins. The 49ers are number one on his list with four players, Matt Breida, Tevin Coleman, Jerick McKinnon, and fullback Kyle Juszczyk, who could all play a significant role in Kyle Shanahan’s offense solely because they are “deployed correctly” and the lead back in a “Shanahan offense” is never certain.
New England at number two has a stable of flexible running backs, but they have a serious issue with Sony Michel’s knee and the rest of the room is redundant in their skill and shouldn’t be relied on in an athletic relay race.
Somehow, the Denver Broncos ranked third with “four draft picks on running backs between 2016 and 2018, only to have an undrafted rookie emerge as platoon leader last fall” while the undrafted Lindsey is coming off a wrist injury that has needed months of recovery.
Cleveland, ranked fourth, has a strong, three man deep depth chart. Nick Chubb leads the group while Kareem Hunt is suspended for the first eight games of the season, but Duke Johnson has already requested a trade and the depth is shallow.
There isn’t another group that possess the overall talent and diversity that the Redskins have. A precedent may have been established last season when the Redskins decided to keep five running backs on the 53-man roster. The league is dominated by explosive passing concepts and there’s a contingent of critics who will contend the Redskins are guilty of misappropriations.
Running back careers are notoriously some of the shortest in all of professional sports. The position is littered with players who have come from relative obscurity and gone on to success. The league has evolved away from a feature back to spread offenses and dual roles in the attempt to expose mismatches.
The one reason a team invests in the running back position is to protect an inferior or inexperienced quarterback. Controlling the game on both offense and defense is going to be imperative to the successful production of newcomer Case Keenum or the development of rookie quarterback Dwayne Haskins.
The Redskins have a group of running backs that is deeper than any other in the league. Gruden’s ability to utilize their abilities to exploit mismatches on the field while his quarterbacks acclimate to the offense is going to drive this team and the season. The only debate is whether the game is going to look like 1984 or 2019.