It was less than a week ago when Mr. Florio suggested that Clinton Portis was becoming a major problem for coach Jim Zorn. Reaction to the post depended on who read it.
Long-time observers of Portis’ complicated relationship with Zorn and the franchise were not surprised.
Portis heard about it, though, and denied there was any issue. It will be interesting to see if Portis stays on “good terms at the present moment” if his workload begins to decrease.
The Washington Post expects backup running back Ladell Betts to get more carries this season and potentially be “much more involved” offensively in an effort to preserve Portis. After struggling with injuries last year, Betts has impressed offensive coordinator Sherman Smith this offseason.
“The guy that’s been standing out to me is Ladell Betts,” Smith said. “To me, he’s stepped his game up. He’s preparing like he’s a starter. He’s taken a leadership role . . . he’s jumped out to me.”
A larger role for Betts makes football sense. After a huge workload early last season, Portis sputtered to the finish line.
The former Sheriff Gonna Getcha averaged 2.87 yards per carry in his last five games and topped 80 rushing yards once after Week Eight. It was the second straight year he declined in effectiveness down the stretch.
It remains to be seen if Portis agrees that less work is a good idea for the long run. After all, his lack of usage was precisely the issue that caused Portis to call Zorn a “genius” last December.
Portis Could See Workload Drop
Posted by NBC Sports on June 25, 2009, 7:04 PM EDT
11 Responses to “Portis Could See Workload Drop”
Um, Florio. The guy played with a torn MCL. Maybe that had something to do with his “effectiveness.” He gutted it out though, because the Redskins couldn’t pass-block at all, Betts also had a knee sprain earlier and Shawn Alexander was a has-been.
Give the guy some credit with playing with something most skill players don’t. You may not like him, but he’s tough and one of the brighter spots on our offense.
nice, except he shouldnt have been bitching about fewer touches since he was hurt.
In my view talk of a significantly increased workload for Betts over Portis is rubbish — possibly a smokescreen by the team to get more leverage if an issue occurs. Portis is a marquee top RB while Betts is a utility RB who can fill-in but nothing close to the value of Portis.
Forget Betts and give Marcus Mason a shot. The kid from Georgetown Prep is a stud, he showed it last preseason. Betts had one good season and since signing an 11 million dollar deal he has under preformed.
You are absoluetly joking if you think Ladell Betts is going to take carries away from Portis. He is fumble prone beyond belief.
He does catch extremely well coming out of the backfield though.
Marcus Mason would be an Improvement over Betts as Portis’ backup.
We need Ladell to have a really good year…as long as he can hang on to the ball in critical situations. He’s a good back and has a burst to em’. I’ve watched him turn into a better back since he came into the league. I actually think he hits the hole a little too fast at times, sometimes you have to wait for the gate to open before you run through it. We should use him early and often this year. Hail!
We should at least be a team that uses the 2 back system, Betts should get some more carries (no more than 5 more) & Mason should get a few, who knows it might work, i would love to see Portis healthy at the end of the season (around playoff time), our O line is another question. HAIL!
jesus christ, is PFT just trying to upset clinton portis and redskins nation by drawing inflammatory opinions from a non-inflammatory puff piece written to kill time in the offseason.
ladell betts has always been a good solid RB,he’s just been stuck behind CP.
and while PFT cites portis’s declining yard tallies down the stretch they should also point out the redskins OL was playing like trash down the stretch as well. a RB will only get as far as his OL will take him.
“It was less than a week ago when Mr. Florio suggested . . . ”
Oh, watch out for this one, Mike; he’s good.
Just when i was about to announce my fourth annual retirement from PFT planet, you bring in this guy.
Rosenthal is my new favorite on this site… more personality than the oft black and white aaron wilson, but not so much as to seem pretentious a la ‘Mr.’ Florio…
great writer.
My opinion (for what it’s worth…probably nothing)…
The offensive philosophy changed after week 8. Zorn went from a running team to a pass-fist team.
I challenge someone (cuz I’m too lazy) to take a look at teams with a crappy pass offense that chose to go “Pass First”, and the correlation of their RB not doing so well.
Portis does get nicked up, so I’m not making an excuse for that. But, there were many times in the 2nd half of the season, where Portis was phased out of the offense (mainly because the Skins were playing catch up).