Is Alex Smith’s supporting cast better in D.C. than it was in K.C.?
By Ian Cummings
Running Back
Until proven otherwise, Kareem Hunt has the edge on Derrius Guice. That’s not a slight to Guice. Guice deserves all the hype he’s getting as the Washington Redskins’ next lead back. Guice has the perfect combination of quickness and physicality as a running back. His angry mentality will only help him get an early jump against NFL competition, and his traits suggest that he can excel as a pass catcher as well.
In a head to head against Kareem Hunt, however, Guice’s traits don’t matter, because Hunt has a year on the rookie out of LSU, and a productive year at that. Hunt was the NFL’s leading rusher in his first year, and his positive impact on Alex Smith’s game was easily noticeable. In weeks in which Hunt had over 100 total yards from scrimmage (11 games), Smith’s touchdown-to-interception ratio was 22 to 1. In weeks in which Hunt accrued less than 100 yards from scrimmage (five games), Smith’s ratio was 4 to 5.
Smith benefits when he’s part of a well-rounded offensive attack, and when Hunt, his go-to multipurpose threat, was on, Smith was utterly unstoppable. Having that kind of weapon at one’s disposal makes it harder for defenses to account for every single threat on the offense. Guice has the potential to have that kind of impact in his rookie year, and he can arguably be more productive on the ground than Hunt was.
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Nevertheless, Hunt, on an individual basis, edges out Guice as the more effective cast member, but when evaluating the position as a whole, Chris Thompson gives the Washington Redskins an easy advantage over the Kansas City Chiefs. Last season, Kareem Hunt was the Chiefs’ running back stable, after the injury sustained by Spencer Ware. Players such as Tyreek Hill and Akeem Hunt occasionally picked up the load, but Hunt was *the* guy. He didn’t have much help in that rotation.
In Washington, Alex Smith has not one, but two quality, explosive threats at running back. Derrius Guice, mentioned above, has all the traits to be successful early, in the same sense as Hunt was in 2017, and Chris Thompson is not only the perfect compliment to Guice’s style, but also the perfect receiving back for Alex Smith. Smith should feel comfortable taking deep shots in the Washington Redskins offense, as we’ll discuss later, but he also loves the middle of the field, and that’s where Chris Thompson can use his innate quickness to gain separation and enter open space.
Chris Thompson in open space is essentially a death knell for opposing defenses. Assuming that Thompson returns to full health with the time allotted to him this offseason, the Washington Redskins will not only be able to sub in and out the two backs, keeping them fresh and at full speed, but Jay Gruden can also get creative with the talent he has, and put both backs on the field, scheming around a combination of talent that he hasn’t had in his entire tenure with the Redskins.
Smith was lucky to have Kareem Hunt in Kansas City last year, but he’s clearly in an even better situation in Washington. Derrius Guice is shaping up to have a similar impact as Hunt; He’s just as, if not more talented. And Chris Thompson is a type of weapon that Smith has never had. And he fits Smith’s game perfectly.