Rich Tandler's Real Redskins

Helu takes team rushing lead from Hightower

By Rich Tandler

Roy Helu has finally passed Tim Hightower in rushing yardage to become the team’s leader.

Hightower had 321 yards on the ground when he went down with a knee injury in the team’s sixth game against Carolina. He remained team’s leading rusher from then until Sunday.

Helu went into the Seattle game with 248 yards rushing and he gained 108 yards to push his total up to 356 for the year, finally moving past Hightower into the team lead.

The rookie is on a pace to gain about 520 yards this year, although his total will almost certainly go higher than that since Mike Shanahan has named him as the starter. Prior to last Sunday, Helu averaged about five rushing attempts per game. He should tote to rock 15-20 times per game from here on out.

If he maintains his average of 4.8 yards per carry he could gain about 400 more yards in the remaining five games. That would give him about 750 for the year. Ryan Torain led the Redskins in rushing last year with 742 yards.

If Helu does end up leading the Redskins in rushing for the season he would be the first rookie to do so since Reggie Brooks in 1993.

 

Helu enjoyed is own highlight

By Rich Tandler

Running back Roy Helu’s 28-yard touchdown run in Seattle on Sunday, when he hurdled over cornerback Roy Lewis, was still a topic of conversation in the locker room today. Helu said that he had jumped over a player “a couple of times” while he was at Nebraska. The rookie said that he wasn’t really thinking about

“I looked at the chains for the third down on my left, got the pitch and he [Lewis] was around where I thought the first down was so I just had to get it,” he said.

The players had a light day on Monday and were off on Tuesday so Helu found something to do to fill the time.

“I did watch it again,” the always-humble Helu said. “Yeah, I admit that. I didn’t have much to do the last couple of days so I watched it again.”

 

Helu shows he's a keeper

By Rich Tandler

Although I’m not much at dispensing fantasy advice, I get a lot of questions about it anyway. And most of them revolve around the Redskins’ running backs.

I’m happy to be able to say now that all of the questions now have an answer.

Roy Helu.

After 10 games of giving Helu workloads varying from moderate to very light, Mike Shanahan decided that his fourth-round draft pick in last April’s draft was ready.

Not only did Helu get 23 of the 24 carries by running backs (fellow rookie Evan Royster got the other) but he played all but a handful of the 65 offensive snaps. He was the team’s leading receiver with seven catches (54 yards).

And he played well. He showed a knack for being able to find a few extra yards, consistently turning one-yard gains into four yards. That’s what all good running backs do.

But not all good running backs can do what he did in the fourth quarter. On third and three from the Seattle 28, Helu took a quick pitch from Rex Grossman. As he headed towards the left side, cornerback Roy Lewis drew a bead on him and dove for his legs to make the tackle. Helu hurdled the hapless defender, kept his balance, bounced off of an attempted tackle by safety Kam Chancellor and was off to the end zone.

A lot of backs can hurdle over a tackler but not many can maintain their balance enough to keep from getting knocked over by a safety.

The run finished off a 70-yard touchdown drive that got Washington back into the game after Seattle had take a 17-7 lead. It gave the team a needed jolt on both sides of the ball. Seattle did not get a first down the rest of the way and the Redskins scored on their next possession (on another spectacular play, a leaping Anthony Armstrong catch of a 50-yard Grossman bomb) to take the lead for good.

While this is by far his most highlight worthy run of the year, it isn’t the first time he displayed the ability to make jaws drop. Against the Colts in the preseason he appeared to be going out of bounds on a run when he made a sudden change of direction that left the defenders grasping at air as he took off on a 51-yard run. And against the Cardinals Helu eluded friendly fire when he hurdled over one of his own linemen while in the open field on a pass reception.

Certainly, it’s too early to put Helu in the Pro Bowl or talk about him as one of the better backs in the league. But it’s not too early to answer those fantasy questions.

--Roy Helu will start the remaining five games this season.

--He is probably worth keeping in dynasty leagues.

 

Building Blocks: Skins still lack a go-to back

By Rich Tandler

With the championship competition phase of Redskins’ 2011 season essentially over, let’s take a look at what really matters right now. What pieces of the puzzle for 2012 and beyond are in place? Where will the Redskins have to look for help in free agency and in the draft? Over the next two weeks we’ll put the roster under the microscope and see who might be key members of a playoff team and which ones need to be left on the side of the road.

Yesterday we looked at the offensive line. Today it’s the running backs We’ll work our way through the roster by position over the next couple of weeks.

Key starters: None
Marginal/depth players: Tim Hightower, Roy Helu, Darrel Young, Evan Royster
Out by 2013: Ryan Torain, Mike Sellers

This is a difficult position to figure. With the exception of Sellers, any of the players here could be a starter next year. And any of them could be gone by 2013.

After being a part-time player for most of his three season with the Cardinals, Hightower was “the guy” until he injured his knee. But even though he had most of his carries behind the pre-injury starting offensive line, he still averaged just 3.8 yards per carry. He may have improved as the year went on or he could have remained spinning his wheels. Hightower is a free agent next year and although he says he wants to stay in Washington nothing is done until a deal is signed. The contract status, the knee, and his production make him a question mark at this point in time.

Helu has the potential to be a home-run threat. He has the capability to make jaw-dropping athletic moves, something no one else on the team has. But the NFL roadside is littered with athletic running backs who couldn’t master the finer points of the game. He is the most likely to be a long-term keeper but he is not sure thing.

Torain has regressed from last year—or has he? He had 164 attempts in 10 games last year; this year he has just 50 in seven games. It is difficult for a slasher to get going while getting about half of the workload. Still, his 2011 average of 3.8 yards per carry is what it is after he posted 4.5 a pop last year. It seems likely that if the Redskins draft another young running back, or if 2011 draft pick and current practice squad back Evan Royster shows promise, Torain could be the odd man out.

Young is a solid fullback; there is no reason to think that the Redskins will actively seek an upgrade at the position but if one falls into their laps they would consider it. It seems unlikely that Sellers, who will be 37 next season, will be back but then again, few thought that he would still be on the roster this year. His ability to serve as an emergency tight end and his special teams prowess help keep him around so don’t completely count him out.

Royster just moved up from the practice squad, we'll have to see what he can do if he gets a few carries in a regular-season game.

Building Blocks: Skins still lack a go-to back

By Rich Tandler

With the championship competition phase of Redskins’ 2011 season essentially over, let’s take a look at what really matters right now. What pieces of the puzzle for 2012 and beyond are in place? Where will the Redskins have to look for help in free agency and in the draft? Over the next two weeks we’ll put the roster under the microscope and see who might be key members of a playoff team and which ones need to be left on the side of the road.

Yesterday we looked at the offensive line. Today it’s the running backs We’ll work our way through the roster by position over the next couple of weeks.

Key starters: None
Marginal/depth players: Tim Hightower, Roy Helu, Darrel Young, Evan Royster
Out by 2013: Ryan Torain, Mike Sellers

This is a difficult position to figure. With the exception of Sellers, any of the players here could be a starter next year. And any of them could be gone by 2013.

After being a part-time player for most of his three season with the Cardinals, Hightower was “the guy” until he injured his knee. But even though he had most of his carries behind the pre-injury starting offensive line, he still averaged just 3.8 yards per carry. He may have improved as the year went on or he could have remained spinning his wheels. Hightower is a free agent next year and although he says he wants to stay in Washington nothing is done until a deal is signed. The contract status, the knee, and his production make him a question mark at this point in time.

Helu has the potential to be a home-run threat. He has the capability to make jaw-dropping athletic moves, something no one else on the team has. But the NFL roadside is littered with athletic running backs who couldn’t master the finer points of the game. He is the most likely to be a long-term keeper but he is not sure thing.

Torain has regressed from last year—or has he? He had 164 attempts in 10 games last year; this year he has just 50 in seven games. It is difficult for a slasher to get going while getting about half of the workload. Still, his 2011 average of 3.8 yards per carry is what it is after he posted 4.5 a pop last year. It seems likely that if the Redskins draft another young running back, or if 2011 draft pick and current practice squad back Evan Royster shows promise, Torain could be the odd man out.

Young is a solid fullback; there is no reason to think that the Redskins will actively seek an upgrade at the position but if one falls into their laps they would consider it. It seems unlikely that Sellers, who will be 37 next season, will be back but then again, few thought that he would still be on the roster this year. His ability to serve as an emergency tight end and his special teams prowess help keep him around so don’t completely count him out.

Royster just moved up from the practice squad, we'll have to see what he can do if he gets a few carries in a regular-season game.

'Benched' Helu played majority snaps vs. Dolphins

By Rich Tandler

You always find out something interesting when you check out Redskins Rewind on CSN Washington. My man Ryan O’Halloran does a great job of breaking down what happened during the game.

The highlight of the article is the snap counts and I immediately check out how much the running backs played.

After the Dolphins game, I read a lot of tweets from people who were upset that Roy Helu was “benched” in favor of Ryan Torain. They felt that Helu deserved to start after producing 145 yards of offense against the 49ers a week earlier.

True, Torain did start. But he played 23 of the 54 offensive snaps while the “benched” Helu played 31.

To be sure, it may not have played out that way if, say, the Redskins had been able to punch the ball into the end zone to take the lead early in the fourth quarter. Had that happened, it probably would have been a heavy dose of Torain in the last few series.

As it was, Rex Grossman threw an interception, the Dolphins drove for a touchdown to take a two-score lead and the Redskins were in passing mode the rest of the way. Torain did not play in the final four offensive series. Helu played on third downs throughout the game and most of the third and fourth quarters.

We will see how the running back rotation shakes out with the addition of Tashard Choice, who should be healthy enough to play. It seems likely that Helu will see a lot of time in passing situations and will continue to get his share of rushing attempts as well.

 

If Hightower is out look for Royster

By Rich Tandler

Although Tim Hightower was optimistic that an injury to his knee won’t keep him out of the lineup for too long, the Redskins are expecting the worst. According to multiple reports, the team’s medical staff believes that an MRI this morning will show that Hightower has a torn ACL. If that is the case, Hightower will undergo season-ending surgery.

If that is the case and Hightower is put on injured reserve, look for rookie Evan Royster to be moved up from the practice squad to the 53-man roster. Mike Shanahan said that the rookie from Penn State nearly beat out Ryan Torain for the final running back spot in training camp.

The Redskins might make a move to bring up Royster even if Hightower’s injury is one that will keep him out for a few weeks or so rather than ending his season. Shanahan likes to have three functioning running backs on the roster. Last year, he signed James Davis, Chad Simpson, and Andre Brown at various times when Torain and Clinton Portis were sidelined with injuries.

Hightower’s absence would elevate Torain to the top running back position. He is a solid back but he has been prone to the injury bug. His rookie season was cut short, very short, after two games with a knee injury. He missed four games last year with a hamstring injury.

Rookie Roy Helu, who has played well in spots in the first six games this year, would be elevated to the No. 2 back position.

Royster showed that he might not quite be ready during training camp as he frequently seemed to be slow cutting to daylight and had issues in pass protection. But he likely is preferable to the options on the veteran free agent market, which has such names as former Redskins Ladell Betts and Portis plus others such as LenDale White and Julius Jones.

 

Torain: One great game doesn't always follow another

By Rich Tandler

I have been getting Twitter and Facebook comments all week lauding the performance of Ryan Torain against the Rams. Some are saying that Tim Hightower and even Roy Helu should get used to sitting on the bench as the “All-Torain Vehicle” is warmed up and ready to go.

To which I say, not so fast.

Yes, Torain did look great in racking up 135 yards in his season debut in St. Louis. He ran hard and showed some speed and elusiveness that we haven’t seen very often in the past.

However, Torain has not been one to consistently follow up one good performance with another. Let’s look at his top five rushing games last year and see what he did the following week.

Week 15, 65 yards vs. Jaguars—Rushed for 61 yards on 18 carries against the Giants, average of 3.4 yards a carry.

Week 4, 70 yards vs. Eagles—Rushed for 40 yards on 16 carries against the Packers, average of 2.5 yards per carry.

Week 6, 100 yards vs. Colts—Rushed for 125 yards on 21 carries against the Bears, average of 5.9 yards per carry.

Week 7, 125 yards vs. Bears—Rushed for 10 yards on nine carries against the Lions, average of 1.1 per carry. Note: Played only first half, sustained hamstring pull just before halftime.

Week 13, 172 yards vs. Bucs—Rushed for 53 yards on 11 carries against the Cowboys, average of 4.3 yards per carry.

So Torain did follow up the first 100-yard game of his career with another one. But the week after that he was struggling even before he got hurt the following week against Detroit.

His monster game, the 172-yard effort against the Bucs, was follow up with an OK performance in Dallas, although one could argue that Torain getting 11 carries while Rex Grossman dropped back to pass 48 times was not the most brilliant playcalling of Kyle Shanahan’s career.

Torain’s breakout game for the Redskins came in that game in Philadelphia where he mowed over Eagles left and right on the way to 70 solid yards on the ground. He followed that up with a so-so game against the Packers.

It is likely that Shanahan will call Torain’s number early and often on Sunday, given the state of the Eagles’ run defense. We will see how Torain responds.  

 

Torain rolls up yards after contact

By Rich Tandler

Since Ryan Torain came to the Redskins last year he had some good games. With the focus on Donovan McNabb in Week 4 in Philadelphia he set the tone by smashing over safety Quintin Mikell on the way to a touchdown. He posted 125 yards against the Bears, helping the Redskins hang on for a road win. Later last year he returned from a hamstring injury that cost him four games and rushed for 172 yards in a losing effort against the Bucs. 

But in none of those games did he run with the fury that he did on Sunday against the Rams. Rich Campbell of the Washington Times calculated that Torain gained 105 yards after contact. And that wasn’t after just bumping off of would-be tacklers. There were some violent collisions mixed in there.

Torain also displayed a shiftiness, an elusiveness that he didn’t seem to have last year. Maybe it was because he was fresh and fired up after spending the first three regular season games and all but part of one preseason game on the bench. Or it’s possible that he is in better condition than he was last year and perhaps his legs are healthier.

It will be interesting to see if Torain maintains his violent style through the season. If he does he will be a force to be reckoned with, both literally and figurately. 

 

Position Paper: Can Hightower be the workhorse?

By Rich Tandler

Over the next few days we are going to be looking at the 2011 Washington Redskins position by position and player by player. We start today with the running backs.

Tim Hightower

Can he be the No. 1 back? In his three years in Arizona he consistently averaged about nine carries per game, about half of the workload of a typical NFL workhorse back. If he can manage, say, 15 carries a game and maintain something close to the 4.8-yard average he had last year he will end up with about 1100 yards. Such productivity should make the Redskins very happy.

If he can run like that, it will be hard to keep him off of the field. Hightower is an excellent pass protector and with the Redskins’ offensive line improved but still suspect those skills will be needed in many third down situations.