Green Bay running back Cedric Benson is only averaging 3.6 yards a carry this season, but that doesn’t make the Packers’ coaches think they should give him the ball less. If anything, they think they should give him the ball more.
Packers offensive coordinator Tom Clements said he thinks Benson will play better with more opportunities, and more opportunities are what the Packers want to give him.
“He’s a workhorse and when he touches the ball, the more he touches it, the better he gets,” Clements said of Benson, via the Green Bay Press-Gazette.
Behind Benson on the Packers’ running back depth chart are Alex Green, who has two carries this season, and James Starks and Brandon Saine, who have zero carries. Clements made clear that giving the backups more opportunities is a lower priority than feeding Benson.
“We’d like to work those other guys in there if the opportunity presents itself but you try to get [Benson] the ball to get him going,” Clements said.
The Packers aren’t running the ball quite as much this season as they did last season, mostly because they aren’t protecting leads as much this season as they were last season. But as long as Benson is healthy, he’ll be the one carrying the ball in Green Bay.