8/17 Bust of the Day: Clinton Portis

RB CLINTON PORTIS, Redskins



I’m sorry, but I’m not buying some of the hype surrounding Portis this offseason. I know he’s reunited with his old coach, Mike Shanahan, who coaxed two 1,500-yard seasons out of him at the start of his career back in Denver. I know Shanny’s worked wonders for running backs over the years. And I know Portis showed up to camp in shape and serious about football for a change (no Choo Choo sightings so far).

That’s all well and good, but the fact remains Portis is a 29-year-old back with more than 2,100 carries in his career, and he’s coming off a severe concussion problem that limited him to eight games last year. There’s a reason Denver brought in Larry Johnson, Willie Parker and former Shanahan draft pick Ryan Torain over the offseason, and it wasn’t simply to motivate Portis. Shanahan is a pioneer in the running-back-by-committee system that’s all the rage around the NFL these days, and I fully expect him to utilize a RB rotation in 2010. Portis may be No. 1 on Washington’s depth chart, but I think he’ll struggle to reach 1,000 yards this season with a limited workload. I’d cap his value at the RB3 level to begin the season.