Redskins RB Samaje Perine can’t afford a bad game in preseason Week 2

With the Redskins first preseason game against the Browns in the rear view mirror, the team will now turn their attention to Andy Dalton and the Cincinnati Bengals in preseason Week 2.  Running back Samaje Perine cannot afford a bad outing if he hopes to stick on the roster for the long haul.

While the Washington Redskins had a sluggish performance on both sides of the ball against the Cleveland Browns, they hope to move forward and impress the hometown fans at FedEx Field in preseason Week 2 against the Bengals.  Several players on the current roster will either be attempting to rebound from a poor performance in the first game, or will be getting their first chance to impress the coaching staff.

Many of the Redskins projected Week 1 starters didn’t see a single snap of game action versus the Browns.  As the preseason goes on, more players will surely start to be integrated into the lineup.  This will be a necessity in order to build cohesion on the offense and defense with Week 1 of the regular season against the Philadelphia Eagles less than a month away.

Running back Samaje Perine is one of those players who is looking to impress against the Bengals, after a sub par outing against the Browns.  He finished the contest totaling a meager 13 yards on six carries, with his longest carry being only seven yards.  This was not the start the third-year player out of Oklahoma was looking to have after only being active in five games for the Redskins in 2018.  He cannot afford a bad game against the Bengals if he has hopes of sticking on the roster long-term.

Known for his toughness and physicality coming out of the University of Oklahoma, Perine was uber successful in terms of production throughout his three-year career a Sooner.  He finished his time with the team tallying 4,122 rushing yards and 49 touchdowns.  Included in his career was a performance for the ages in his freshman season against the University of Kansas. He finished the game with a staggering 427 yards and 5 touchdowns, which at the time broke the FBS record for most rushing yards in a single game.  In the game specifically, he had touchdown runs of 66, 49, 34, 33, and 27 yards.

Drafted by the Redskins in the fourth round of the 2017 NFL draft, Perine came into a running back room that was mediocre at best.  Included on the roster in his rookie campaign was Kapri Bibbs, Mack Brown, LeShun Daniels, Rob Kelley, Byron Marshall, and Chris Thompson.  Perine led this stable of backs with 603 out of the team’s 1,448 yards total rushing yards.  His competition for carries in that season was not an issue, as the only running backs remaining on the current roster are Marshall and Thompson.  Fast track to the current season, and the talent level in the running back room is leaps and bounds ahead of the one from his rookie season.  Carries will be at a premium in the upcoming regular season.

Going into the game against the Bengals, Perine should see his share of carries as the Redskins will most assuredly be careful with Derrius Guice, Adrian Peterson, and Chris Thompson.  Peterson is in the back end of a Hall of Fame career, and Guice is trying to avoid another setback after coming off last year’s ACL tear in the preseason against the Patriots.   It is also expected that the coaching staff will begin to add in projected starting offensive linemen into the mix, which will give Perine a prime opportunity to produce. The line struggled against the Browns, as it mostly consisted of depth players.

At the end of the day, Perine cannot afford to be ineffective when given carries against the Bengals.  He must start to display some of the traits that got him drafted by the team in the first place.  As a favorite of head coach Jay Gruden, he may make the final 53-man roster as the 2019 season kicks off.  However, one would have to think that his time with the team may be limited if Gruden sees that he’s not an asset to the team anymore.  Perine has the potential to be a solid running back for the Redskins, but his opportunities in the regular season have been few and far in between, because of perceived fumbling issues and lack of production.

His recent resume is a far cry from the one that he demonstrated in college, and if it continues, he may be the next veteran player to be called to the coach’s office to hand in his playbook.