Washington has Derrius Guice, Adrian Peterson and Chris Thompson at running back. They also have Samaje Perine, a fourth-round pick in 2017, who became forgotten last season when he played only five games.
Washington coach Jay Gruden has not forgotten Perine, though.
“The guy I want to see, who everyone thinks is in my doghouse, is Samaje,” Gruden said, via the team website. “Samaje has not gotten the opportunities, I’m upset about that; that’s my fault. But I have not given up on Samaje. He’s young; he’s strong; he’s physical. And I need to see him take that next step, and I have to give him that opportunity to do that, and it’s going to be hard with Guice and AP in there to get him the ball. That’ll be a tough dynamic, but I have to get that done.”
Perine had eight carries for 32 yards and three catches for 5 yards in 2018 a year after gaining 785 yards from scrimmage on 197 touches.
“Competition is competition you know?” Perine said. “If you don’t like competition, if you don’t grind with the competition, then I hate to tell you, but it’s probably the wrong business for you. At the end of the day, you know the coaches are going to do what they want to do, but you know I’m going to put my best foot forward, just like they’re going to put their best foot forward, and you know whatever happens after that happens, but I’m sure we are all going to compete.”