Portis' average

Today's Washington Times carries an article on the holes in the Redskins' offense with the following quote:

"His average gain, a gaudy 5.1 yards, was just 3.0 if you toss out the opening burst."

Although I agree that the passing game still looks a bit lame and Brunell's arm seems to be on par with the Gator QBs we had the last couple years, I'm sick and tired of hearing about how Portis' average wasn't that great - if you take away his long run.

I just think it's a stupid statement. Basically, they are saying, "If you take away the run where Portis made a great read on a play and then outran the entire Tampa defense to the end zone, he had a pretty mediocre day."

How about, "If you take away the fact that the 'Skins scored 35 points in the second quarter of Super Bowl XXII, then we wouldn't have won the game."

Guess what asshole? The Skins DID score 35 points in the second quarter and Portis DID break a 64-yarder. Would it have been better if he had split that run into 2-32 yarders? How about 4-16 yarders? Would that have shut everyone up. Maybe Gibbs should tell Portis to pace himself better and not try to score on such long runs.

Yup. I agree. And, with or without the run, when the game was on the line at the end, Portis ran effectively enough to keep the chains moving. This was Gibbs football.

Didn't he run some little back from Michigan 40 times once (I think it was Joe Morris's little brother).

Joe don't care about the average/carry - Just move them chains.

I agree that Portis had a very good game. But, it is nonetheless noteworthy that he averaged 3/ypc without the 64-yard scamper. I do not believe that the run blocking was that good in the preseason and I don't think that it was that good against the Bucs.

So, noting 3/ypc is meaningful IMHO. It is one thing to break off one 95-yard run for one touchdown and have 5-yards on nine other carries, it is another to consistently gain 5 yards on each carry. The running game is important because: (1) it takes time of the clock if you are in the lead, (2) it keeps your defense resting on the sidelines, (3) it keeps the opposing defense working hard, and (4) it keeps the opposing offense off the field. Therefore, it is essential to be able to gain yardage, and first downs, on a consistent basis. You can't get #1-4 above if you are averaging 2.5/ypc and are going 3-and-out as a result; a long run which only takes 10 ticks off of the clock doesn't compensate for a bunch of 4th downs.

That said, I'm sure Bugel will get the run-blocking sorted out; he's certainly got the pass-protection at its best since the Hogs left.

jamie morris (#22) if im not mistaken

I'm also tired of hearing about it. The bottom line is what's important, and the bottom line is we won.

It's also worth noting the Bucs aren't exactly a pushover on D and they have one of the best D coordinators in the game. Did anyone really think that running on them was going to be easy??

jamie morris (#22) if im not mistaken


Yup. That was him.

How about, "If you take away the fact that the 'Skins scored 35 points in the second quarter of Super Bowl XXII, then we wouldn't have won the game."

I love it! Nice job Drift

I agree with RamseyFan. Sure, I'll take the win and the big play, but kudos to the coaching staff and players for recognizing that the run-blocking must get better. Gotta have stuff to work on during practice other than Special Teams.

The important thing to remember is that you cant take away that 64 yd carry. How many times last year did we have big play potential? Portis gives us that big plya potential and is a new aspect that is great to have. The other thing is portis carried teh ball 29 times, thats a ton. He ran out the clock for us. Had betts run the clock out he would have ended up average around 7 a carry. They showed it during the game. How many carries did he have on the last drive or two that were meatn to run out the clock? When the season is over you dont see any of those things. Last year portis might have only average 3 a carry but broke atleast one big on a game, but no one complained that it averaged ou tto 5.5.

Undoubtedly the blocking can be improved. But -- PORTIS RAN THE BALL 29 TIMES.

Looks like the line is going to get ALOT of in game practice on how to block - at the other team's expense.