The Redskins altered their blocking schemes to help tailback Clinton Portis snap out of his running slumber and churn out 171 of Washington's 218 rushing yards against the Chicago Bears. The output helped the Redskins snap a four-game losing streak and provided some self-assurance heading into Sunday's game against the Green Bay Packers.
"We're a real run-oriented football team so we spend a lot of time trying to create daylight for our running back," said offensive line coach Joe Bugel. In the week before the Bears game "the line, running backs and receivers had their most disciplined practices in the run game.
"But before Clinton was pressing at the line of scrimmage. When a running back makes up his mind that he's going to go to a certain spot, he brings everybody to that spot so we can get good blocking. Then he can find a cutback. If you pre-determine a cutback you get into problems. So he was real disciplined.
"He was very, very patient not only in practice but in the Chicago game. He went to the target and made a decision. He was magnificent. He was the guy who got us going."
Washington also used several multi-receiver sets to provide space for Portis and his backup Ladell Betts, who finished with six carries and 30 yards against Chicago. And H-back Mike Sellers often lined up wide as a receiver to keep defenses guessing whether the Redskins were going to a run or pass.
"Somebody has to cover him," Bugel explained. "We wanted to really spread the field and create some more running lanes."
The Redskins are expected to use a similar approach Sunday against the Packers, who have one of the league's best tailbacks in Ahman Green. When Portis struggled with the Redskins, one theory was that Gibbs's trademark counter trey -- a counter play in which one or two pulling linemen lead the back into the hole -- is archaic in the modern NFL. However, Green runs in a similar system. Last week, Green had 163 yards on 15 carries in a Green Bay victory against the Dallas Cowboys.
And now that Portis is back on track, the talk that he doesn't match in Gibbs's run schemes have vanished.
-- Nunyo Demasio.
