Redskins Mailbag: Cornerback battle, RB room, Payne or Vea, and more
Running Back Room
Three O: Who do you think makes the 53 at RB? Would it shock you if Perine is traded?
The running back battle is going to be a fierce one, and I think that the team will end up keeping four at the end of the day. Derrius Guice and Chris Thompson are locks while there will be four other legitimate candidates for the roster.
It seems that the Redskins want to keep a backup receiving back this year, which makes sense given that Thompson may not be at 100 percent to start the season. The top dogs at that position are Byron Marshall, a Gruden favorite, and Kapri Bibbs, who flashed as a late-season acquisition last year. Marshall has the edge right now, but this should be a close battle that will be decided during the preseason.
The other backup position will go to a power running, either Samaje Perine or Rob Kelley. Like Bibbs and Marshall, they are both similar players and will have a chance to make the roster. However, Perine is three years younger than Kelley and doesn’t come with the same injury concerns (Kelley missed a good chunk of last year with various ailments) so I would prefer that they keep Perine.
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Speaking of Perine, I would be somewhat surprised if they traded him, but I wouldn’t be shocked. I think that he has more upside than people realize after a rookie season that saw him put up multiple 100-yard games behind a makeshift offensive line. But if Kelley beats him out for that final spot, they certainly could try to find a suitor for Perine, and there should be at least one team interested in getting him on the cheap.
I would be far less surprised if the team tried to trade Kelley and was able to get a conditional seventh-round pick for him from the Rams or the Bills, both of who need backup running backs. Either way, both Kelley and Perine seem likely to land on a roster somewhere, whether that’s in Washington or somewhere else.