Coach Jay Gruden has a very interesting task ahead of him this season. With two new quarterbacks, and essentially a brand new wide receiver group, Gruden is tasked with scheming up plays to move the football and obviously winning games. One aspect of the offense that is rather solid would be the running backs. Currently comprised of Adrian Peterson, Derrius Guice, and Chris Thompson; the running back group is locked and loaded. Despite the tight-lipped nature of the Redskins organization, Jay Gruden dropped a bit of a nugget on the offensive plans. “I think the offense, carries wise, will probably go through him, pretty much,” said Gruden. This poses a very interesting situation for the future Hall of Famer. As of now, Guice was named starter for week 1.
Adrian Peterson is widely known as a rhythm running back; he needs a decent amount of before the wheels get going. During time with the New Orleans Saints, Peterson had a bit of a falling out with the coaching staff in 2017 when Alvin Kamara got the majority of touches. In 2018, he signed a 1 year deal with the Redskins. It was almost perfect timing too. The Redskins draftee Guice was injured during the preseason leaving a gaping hole in the running game with Thompson and Perine left with no first down back. ‘All-Day’ lived up to his name as he torched the Cardinals in his Redskins debut. He would go on to finish the season with 1042 yards and 7 touchdowns.
The saying goes “On any given Sunday…” There would be some games where he would average between 5 or 6 yards per carry. Other games he would average close to 2. In any case, Peterson started and played every game as the first, second, and in some cases the third down running back. AP was essentially the face of the offense especially after Alex Smith went down with a gruesome leg injury. In some games, he put the team on his shoulders and ran them to victory. However, with the new season looming, how will ‘All-Day’ handle this new day?
Derrius Guice is healthy and ready to go now. The LSU product looked spectacular against the Falcons in the third preseason game. Jay and his staff believe that the offense can run through Guice provided he stays healthy. Gruden even went on to say, “We feel like he can be a first, second and even a third down back”. That is huge considering the needs of Peterson.
With Guice at the helm, and the dynamic third down back in Thompson, there is seemingly no room for Peterson in the spotlight. Perhaps Peterson will be brought on to start the 2nd quarters to give Guice a break. It Would be beneficial because teams typically bring out their 2nd string guys in then. AP has shown that he is still a very capable running back. Though it might take a little bit of time, he could shred the defense, making everyone’s loves a little bit easier.
There are also morale issues to consider. It was reported that Peterson was a bit difficult to handle in New Orleans when he was not getting the touches. Peterson is significantly older than Guice, which means at some point, Peterson served as a bit of a model for the young running back. Could there possibly be a situation whereby Peterson goes from model to nightmare and creates chaos in the locker room? No one seems to have that fear. If that were the case, Peterson would’ve never been brought back (and Perine would still be on the roster).
In any case, the running back trio provides a major threat. If Gruden can use the 1-2 punch of Guice and Peterson with a sneaky hook of Thompson out of the backfield effectively, the offense will be rolling. If nothing else, it will give the likes of Trey Quinn and Terry McLaurin a chance to shine as defenses will collapse on the running game and sleep on the pass options. In a very odd year for a lot of people, the Redskins definitely have some upside going into this season.
