Wendell Smallwood could see action on Sunday if J.D. McKissic is unable to play

Wendell Smallwood signed with Washington’s practice squad last month. Could he be on the active roster Sunday?

[mm-video type=playlist id=01eqbykgy681k112p8 player_id=none image=https://washingtonfootballwire.usatoday.com/wp-content/plugins/mm-video/images/playlist-icon.png]

Wendell Smallwood signed with the Washington Football Team’s practice squad on Nov. 2. With Antonio Gibson, J.D. McKissic and Jaret Patterson on the active roster, Washington signed Smallwood to provide an insurance policy if one of the WFT’s top three backs missed time with injury.

Well, that time could be in Week 13 against the Las Vegas Raiders.

J.D. McKissic missed practice Wednesday with a concussion, meaning he is now in the NFL’s concussion protocol. While that doesn’t mean he’ll be out Sunday, Washington must be prepared.

That leads to Smallwood.

This is Smallwood’s second tenure with Washington. He played 15 games for the WFT in 2019, when he carried the ball 22 times and finished with nine receptions.

If McKissic is unable to go Sunday, Washington would likely activate Smallwood to the active roster. While he’s obviously not as dynamic as McKissic, he is a capable receiver who could fill in for a week.

Gibson has been banged up this season but has seen an increase in carries the last few weeks and responded with his three best performances of the season.

If McKissic doesn’t play, Patterson will likely relieve Gibson. Smallwood is insurance.

Head coach Ron Rivera is confident in Smallwood.

“I like who he is,” Rivera said of Smallwood. “He is a guy who is kind of a tweener, in terms of he looks like a good-sized back that can come in and do some things, but then on the other side, he shows the nimbleness in terms of route running and catching the ball, so if we have to use him I have a lot of confidence in him. He was here when I first got here, so I got to know him a little bit before he left.”

Rivera also confirmed running backs coach Randy Jordan believed in Smallwood.

“Randy Jordan has a tremendous amount of confidence in him, and because of that, if we have to play him, I am not concerned,” Rivera said.