Derrius Guice getting hurt is a big blow to the Redskins running game. Still, there’s a chance that the team could still be effective, and Samaje Perine might be able to step into a bigger role to help ease the effects of the loss.
Despair. That was the first emotion that many felt after learning that Derrius Guice had torn his ACL and would miss his rookie season. The fan-favorite rookie suffered the injury in the team’s preseason Week 1 loss to the New England Patriots after looking good in limited action. And just like that, his rookie campaign was over.
It’s logical to be concerned about the Redskins running back corps. They had solid depth at the position behind Guice, but that’s all it realistically projected to be. Depth. There isn’t a proven starter waiting in the wings. What awaits is more uncertainty, and that has to be concerning for the Redskins offense.
That said, the run game is still going to be better than it was last year by default. The Redskins have a close to fully healthy offensive line, and they aren’t using literal ninth-string running backs as a big part of their offense. They will still have a chance to build a solid committee, and some of that hope should rest on the shoulders of their former fourth-round pick, Samaje Perine.
Perine was drafted in 2017, but took a backseat to Guice this offseason, and rightfully so. Still, too many have been quick to write Perine off the roster as a potential cut or trade candidate. Now, he might be the team’s best chance to find success. To do that, he’s going to have to make a big leap between his rookie season and second year. Comparable to that of Devonta Freeman.
I’m not throwing that name around lightly, and it’s going to take a lot for Perine to become a strong starter like Freeman. And, of course, Freeman is a very different player than Perine and has a much different skill set. But the point is, the two are coming from similar situations following their rookie seasons, so comparing them from that perspective is fair game.
Freeman’s career to date
Freeman was a fourth-round pick by the Atlanta Falcons out of Florida State. In his first season in the league, Freeman was stuck behind some talented running backs in Atlanta, including Steven Jackson and Jacquizz Rodgers, and because of this, he struggled to earn playing time. When on the field, Freeman wasn’t able to showcase much and didn’t show the ability that many had expected him to. As a result, he stayed buried on the depth chart and was a forgotten man.
By the end of his rookie season, Freeman only totaled 248 yards and a touchdown, averaging 3.8 yards per carry. He added 30 catches for 225 receiving yards and a score, but it wasn’t enough to give anyone confidence that he could become a solid playmaker.
Going into his second season, Freeman was essentially written off by fans and analysts alike. Following the selection of Tevin Coleman in the third round of the 2015 draft, many expected that Coleman would become the lead back and that Freeman would be, at most, a backup. Perhaps he would take the receiving back role from the departed Rodgers.
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Instead, Freeman became the unquestioned starter for the Falcons and put up a 1,000-yard season, scored a league-leading 11 times, and caught 73 passes. He was one of the better backs in the league and did all of this despite averaging just 4.0 yards per carry, which is a fairly average mark for a starter.
After that season, Freeman continued to improve, using his mix of agility and balance to beat opposing teams. Despite lacking size, he found a way to become a between-the-tackles runner and has become an important part of the Falcons offense. Now, he is perennially considered to be among the top 15 running backs in the league, if not, the top 10.
Freeman’s tale demonstrates something important that many forget. Rookie seasons aren’t always indicative of future success. Freeman looked like a bust in his first year, and because he didn’t have good speed or size, he was at a disadvantage. But, he found a running style that worked for him and gradually improved over the course of three years. Sometimes, development can occur slowly at the NFL level, and Freeman is a good example of that.
Perine’s career to date
Like Freeman, Perine was a fourth-round pick and started out his career a bit slowly. In his first season, Perine served as the backup to Rob Kelley and Chris Thompson. There had been some hope that he would be able to take over for Kelley as the starter early on, but he didn’t show enough to achieve that. When Kelley got hurt, Perine was thrown into the fire, and that provided Perine with his first big test as an NFL back.
However, Perine didn’t have a lot going for him when he took over as a starter. The Redskins offensive line was banged up and though Trent Williams and Morgan Moses were on the field, they were clearly not 100 percent. Add in the mess that was the interior line (which also had injury concerns) and Perine had a lot working against him.
Still, as the lead back, Perine was able to post a couple of 100-yard games. These performances came against the Giants and the Saints. Given how strong the Saints defense was and is, that’s a fairly impressive performance. Even though he didn’t make a lot of big, breakaway plays, Perine was steady and showed solid ability with upside. And that’s all that could be asked of him in that situation.
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Perine’s numbers to end the year weren’t pretty. He had 175 carries, 603 yards, and just one touchdown. His yards per carry of 3.4 was bad. But given the situation that he was in and that Kelley averaged 3.1 yards per carry, the number actually isn’t quite as bad as it looks. Perhaps in his second season, he will be able to get it to the 4.0 mark, much like Freeman did in his sophomore campaign.
While Perine showed some good skills as a rookie, it’s still clear that he has some work to do. He has to run with better pad level to fully utilize his power. Perine doesn’t have great speed or burst, so he’ll need to rely on vision and power to generate yardage. That will make it hard for him to be a game-breaking threat like Guice would have been for the Redskins. And, of course, he has to avoid fumbling, as that is one of Jay Gruden’s biggest pet peeves. That said, I believe that issue is overblown, as Perine averaged a solid 99.5 touches per fumble last year which was better than Freeman, Todd Gurley, Jay Ajayi, and Joe Mixon.
If Perine can figure out the running style that best suits his skill set, as Freeman did, he will have a chance to be a very good player at the NFL level. It’s unlikely that he’ll be as good as Freeman, or Guice for that matter, but if he could just be a solid starter, that would be enough to tide the Redskins over until Guice’s 2019 return.
The Point
Perine has some similarities to Freeman. They were both fourth-round picks. They both didn’t have the requisite speed that teams look for in lead backs. And, they had underwhelming rookie seasons. That shouldn’t discourage any from thinking that Perine can’t develop into a fine starting running back this season.
There’s no doubting that Guice was a better prospect that Perine. Guice already had a stranglehold on the starting running back job, and it seemed that Perine was ready to be pushed off the roster bubble by Kelley. But things change rapidly in the NFL, and the Redskins are going to have to adjust on the fly. With Kelley and Perine now seeming likely to make the roster, they will have a chance to compete for the job. Still, Perine should win it, especially if he can improve over the course of the preseason after a solid performance in the first week.
This is Perine’s defining moment. He wasn’t supposed to have a chance to win the starting job. He was supposed to be fighting for a backup role. Now, things have changed. He demonstrated good vision in the first preseason game and with a few minor tweaks, he could be a vastly improved player. He could be trusted as the lead back this year, and that could end up paying off for the Redskins. Of course, all of this is hypothetical, but we will have answers in the near future.
Perine doesn’t have to look hard to find a similar situation to his. If he can make a Freeman-like jump in his second year and become a steady threat for the Redskins offense, the team should be improved all-around. It’s questionable whether or not that will happen, but Perine will have to step up now. It’s his time. If he misses out on this opportunity, he may not get another chance in the NFL.