Tag: Derrius Guice

NFC East takes the top spot in a ranking of NFL divisions by running backs

NFC East is No. 1 in a ranking of NFL divisions by running backs

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The NFL has some superior talent at running back but only one division reigns supreme when it comes to having the most versatile workhorses in the NFL.

With the role of the running back position changing and guys being asked to be pass catchers as well, it’s imperative to have guys who can play three downs and at different spots on the field.

CBSSports.com recently broke down all eight NFL divisions based on the running back position and thanks to some superior talent in all four cities, the NFC East came out on top.

CBS Sports placed high value in the running back’s ability to contribute supremely in the passing-game over rushing ability to break ties because “passing has a far greater effect than running on both offensive efficiency and a team’s ability to win.”

Ezekiel Elliott is still the best back in the division with Saquon Barkley chomping at his heels on a weekly basis. Miles Sanders is set to break out as a star in his second season, while Derrius Guice is just looking to be healthy.

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WATCH: Derrius Guice squats a massive amount of weight with complete ease

Though he’s struggled with knee injuries in his career, Derrius Guice is seemingly in great shape according to this latest workout video.

We all know that Washington Redskins running back Derrius Guice can be a game-changer when healthy and on the field. We also, unfortunately, are aware of how hard it’s been for him to stay healthy.

So we don’t blame you for cringing a little bit while watching the video of him squatting a massive amount of weight. If you covered your eyes at all, I’ll confirm to you that he was able to put up that bent barbell with ease five times. Hopefully, that strength that he showed will help stabilize his knees this season, and he’s able to stay away from the Injured Reserve List.

With Guice squatting almost 600 pounds, and rookie Chase Young bench pressing the world, it’s been an intriguing summer if you’re a Redskins fan who wishes to see young stars in the making this fall.

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Which Redskins player is most likely to score Madden Cover in next 5 years?

With the release of the Madden 21 gameplay trailer, we ranked the Redskins players most likely to grace the Madden cover in the future.

The gameplay trailer for EA Sports Madden 21 was released on Tuesday morning, showing a few new gameplay quirks such as an improved ball-carrier control stick, ‘clutch’ open-field tackling, and user-generated touchdown celebrations.

For brief moments, both Washington Redskins DE Chase Young, and RB Derrius Guice were featured in the 90-second clip, but any fan of the Burgundy & Gold couldn’t help but notice the absence of Terry McLaurin. While Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson graces the cover, which is set with an additional ‘MVP Edition’ available, it got us to thinking — who is the most likely player in Washington to be featured on the Madden cover one day? We decided to rank it out.

Before we get into the rankings, let’s look at which position players they normally give the covers to. Since the game started featuring NFL athletes on the front in 2000, these are the positions who have been put on the front:

Quarterback: 8

Running Back: 5

Wide Receiver: 4

Defensive Player: 3

Tight End: 1

With that being said, let’s get down to the rankings.

No. 1 — QB Dwayne Haskins

Shocker, right? He may not be the best player on the Redskins right now or even have the highest ceiling from skill-position players, but his path to a Madden cover is the most visible from here. All it would take for Haskins to become an NFL star and household name is to have a couple of great seasons, lead the Redskins on a deep playoff run, and be fun to watch while doing so. Those may seem like three big steps to take, but considering all of the buzz that we’ve heard from him this offseason, and the improvement we witnessed near the end of 2019, I don’t think Haskins becoming a legitimate NFL QB is as out of the question as you may think.

What if Haskins takes a step forward, Derrius Guice stays healthy, Terry McLaurin continues to thrive, and the defense is as dominant as expected? I’m not saying he’s going to be the cover athlete for Madden 22, but 23 or 24? I’d buy it. Haskins has the looks, he has the personality, and he has the style. Now he just needs the accolades to go along with it.

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Chase Young, Derrius Guice featured in Madden 21 gameplay trailer

Two redskins stars, Chase Young and Derrius Guice, were both featured in the new Madden 21 trailer, set to come out in August.

Along with being picked No. 2 overall in the NFL Draft and being the undisputed best player in your draft class comes some perks, and one of those is being heavily featured in the new Madden 21 Official Gameplay Trailer.

That’s where Washington Redskins DE Chase Young is this week, as EA Sports released a 90-second clip of their newest rendition of the beloved football video game, which will feature a few new gameplay quirks such as an improved ball-carrier control stick, ‘clutch’ open-field tackling, and user-generated touchdown celebrations.

Chase Young comes into the video at (0:48) when the game delves into the new edge-rushing improvements. Young is shown swimming around the right edge and sacking Dallas Cowboys QB Dak Prescott, then again a few seconds later gobbling up Philadelphia Eagles RB Miles Sanders in the backfield.

Redskins running back Derrius Guice was also featured hurdling a Carolina Panthers defender early in the video (0:17), but where is Terry McLaurin? As the Redskins hopeful success awaits, get used to seeing some of their players start to pop up on the national stage like this.

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Ranking the RB’s the Philadelphia Eagles defense will face during the 2020 NFL season

Ranking the RB’s the Eagles defense will face during the 2020 NFL season

The Philadelphia Eagles have one of the top young running backs in the NFL with Miles Sanders but during the 2020 season, they’ll face a gauntlet of ball carriers capable of winning a game all on their own.

In the NFC East alone, the Eagles will face Saquon Barkley, Ezekiel Elliott, Darius Guice, and Adrian Peterson. During their AFC North jaunt, the Birds will see Joe Mixon, James Conner, Mark Ingram, JK Dobbins, and Joe Mixon.

The opposing running backs are talented, dynamic, true playmakers and we ranked them below:

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Mandatory Credit: Paul Rutherford-USA TODAY Sports

13. Cam Akers/Darrell Henderson — LA Rams

Akers’ “upside is huge, and he could have been the starter for several other NFL teams entering the 2020 season. LA selected Akers at No. 52 overall in this year’s draft when many analysts and experts expected Darrell Henderson to take over as the lead back in Los Angeles. Henderson is a talented third-round pick from 2019, but Akers has the ability to remind fans of Gurley, especially in the passing game.

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Miles Sanders lands at No. 19 in ranking of the NFL’s most elusive running backs

Eagles Miles Sanders is No. 19 in ranking of NFL’s most elusive running backs

The Philadelphia Eagles have one of the top young running backs in the NFL and he should only get better as he sets to enter year two.

Sanders is an elite threat as a running back and proved his merit as a receiver during his rookie year also, proving to be the Eagles’ best deep threat as well. Sanders can do it all, but according to Pro Football Focus, he must get better at breaking tackles.

PFF recently ranked all 32 NFL running backs on their propensity to force missed tackles on both rushing attempts and receptions, while also diving into other metrics, such as how effective they were after contact and how well they performed after the catch.

In a ranking that should cause an uproar from Eagles fans, Sanders landed just inside the top-20 at No. 19 on the list.

19. MILES SANDERS, PHILADELPHIA EAGLES
Sanders undoubtedly had a productive rookie season. As sad as it is, he effectively served as the Eagles’ best deep receiver last year with the attrition they dealt with at the wide receiver position, and he should continue to have a positive impact in the passing game. His PFF rushing grade from this past season (58.5) doesn’t quite match the production he had on the ground, though. Part of that is the fact that he was running behind PFF’s highest-graded run-blocking offensive line in the NFL, but another consideration is that he didn’t make defenders miss at a high rate. There’s reason to believe he can improve in that area. Sanders just needs to show it in 2020.

The ranking was based on the running back’s ability to make tacklers miss and elusive abilities in the open field, but shouldn’t be an indication of where certain players are in overall rankings.

For some perspective, Ezekiel Elliott and Christian McCaffrey were extremely low on the list.

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Ranking the Redskins running backs by level of job security in 2020

With six viable candidates at running back, the Redskins will likely have to cut at least one or two players before the final roster is set.

One of the main questions surrounding the Washington Redskins offense is what they’re going to do when it comes to the running back personnel. Across the board, there are some concerns about depth at certain positions, with a hope that the players slotted on the depth chart at TE and WR can live up to the billing.

At the running back position, however, the Redskins have no shortage of bodies that they can throw in there, and a lot of the players should instill a good bit of confidence as well. So while Adrian Peterson and Derrius Guice are seemingly locked, alongside offseason additions like Antonio Gibson (Draft), Peyton Barber (FA), and J.D. McKissic (FA), who will still be standing by the time week 1 rolls around? There’s also Bryce Love, who was drafted in 2019, hoping to make a return before long as well. With six viable options at the RB spot and a reasonable expectation that Washington may only keep four or five on the roster, somebody is going to get the short end of the stick. But who? Let’s break it down.

Tier 3 — On the Cut Block

Players: Bryce Love, J.D. McKissic, Peyton Barber

Is it harsh to say that any one of these three players are on the chopping block without having had a chance to even prove themselves in Washington yet? Absolutely. Do you feel confident staking your life that any of these players will be on the roster in Week 1 of the 2020 season? Absolutely not.

Let’s start with Love. The Redskins drafted Love in the 2019 draft, and he was meant to be a play for the future, seeing as he was recovering from a torn ACL, and not expected to play for much of his rookie season. That recovery has unfortunately taken a bit longer than expected, and we are still without a clear idea of when he will return to the field. Assuming that he can come back and play this season, it will be extremely interesting to see what he can do on the field. Judging by his time at Stanford, where he was nominated for the Heisman Trophy in 2017, the talent is there. However, if he can’t get on the field, then it becomes no question.

As for McKissic and Barber, both are coming into a tough situation. Both have had decent careers in the NFL, though nothing spectacular, and now they are being asked to crack an RB rotation in Washington where they’re playing from behind right out of the gate. While the Redskins are likely to deploy offenses that match both of their skill-sets — Barber is a power-runner, and McKissic is a great pass-catching third-down back — it seems highly unlikely that both men will get the job come September if either does at all.

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The RB1 spot is AP’s to lose, but he welcomes the competition from teammates

AP has more experience than the rest of the Redskins RBs combined, and he wants to use that to help the unit get better as a whole.

Washington Redskins running back Adrian Peterson is in a unique position this offseason. As the resident senior of his team, many players in his same position take the time to transition into a new phase of their game where they step back and act as more of a mentor to younger players on the team, helping to build the franchise’s next great RB.

Most of those players don’t have the skill-set that AP still does, however.

While we enter each year of his career, the clock continues to tick for AP, but he remains defiant against Father Time, keeping those legs churning. The Redskins have a stacked stable of running backs set to compete for the top job this fall, but as of now, it is still Peterson’s spot to lose. That doesn’t mean he’s going to do everything in his power to keep the spot, to the detriment of his teammates. That’s not in his nature.

Peterson has more experience on the field than the rest of the running back room combined, as J.D. McKissic and Peyton Barber are next on that list, with short stints on different teams in their young careers. Down the line is Derrius Guice (5 games), Bryce Love (0), and Antonio Gibson (0).

It’s safe to say that they all have a lot to learn from Peterson, a future Hall of Famer who continues to stay on the field and awe people with his endless drive. It’s hard to think of a better mentor for a young group of RBs.

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Kelvin Harmon says Dwayne Haskins is ‘confident, comfortable, and hungry’

Dwayne Haskins has been putting in a lot of work with his young receivers, and the group has a high ceiling of success in front of them.

‘Confident, comfortable, and hungry.’

Those are definitely three words that you like to hear your young quarterback described as. While Washington Redskins QB Dwayne Haskins has been doing everything he can this offseason to remake his body and refine his skills, some of the people around him are starting to take notice.

Kelvin Harmon, a WR who was part of Haskins’ draft class, is one of the few people who have been getting a load of reps in with Haskins this offseason as the pair looks to strengthen their relationship on the field and perfect their connection in the passing game. Haskins has also spent a lot of time throwing with Terry McLaurin and Derrius Guice as well.

While the 2019 season may have been tough on anyone who affiliates with the Redskins at all, things are always hardest before they get easy. Harmon knows that Haskins went through the wringer in his rookie season, and he seems to believe that it’s made him stronger in the process. Expect big things from this duo in the coming years — they’re putting the work in that’s necessary to do great things.

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5 Redskins who can make life easier on Dwayne Haskins in 2020

The Redskins will likely only be as goods as Haskins allows them to be in 2020, so here are some players who can make the QB’s job easier.

The Washington Redskins had an unfortunate season in 2019, led by rookie quarterback Dwayne Haskins. While success eluded them, we can now put that season to bed and look forward. With a new coaching staff at the helm and a fresh culture in the locker room, the 2020 Redskins have higher hopes than they did a year ago, and a lot of their season will be determined by what Haskins can do in his second year.

While his own play in 2019 wasn’t up to par with the rest of the league, he was also not helped a great deal by the players around him. Whether it was having a defense who routinely gave up 30-plus points or the lack of a tight end safety outlet, Haskins was routinely put into a position where he couldn’t succeed. So, going into 2020, who are the biggest players who can step up to help around him? Here’s who we have an eye on:

Derrius Guice

A solid running game is a QB’s best friend, as it allows him to get the ball out of his hands quickly and let his weapons go to work. Likewise, if an RB is rolling, that single-handedly moves the offense forward and gets the defense to bite down to stop him, opening up passing lanes in the secondary. In 2019, we saw flashes of how great Guice can be, but it was always derailed by injuries and left us wanting for more. Should he be able to return to the field and stay healthy in 2020, there’s no telling what his production could mean for the Redskins offense. We don’t want to overlook Adrian Peterson and his production over the past two years, but there was something about watching Guice last season that made us think that he really has what it takes if he stays on the field.

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