Portis, running game benefits from familiarity, veteran presence up front
The scene, repeated often vs. Cleveland, went something like this: Jon Jansen would latch onto his man, saving a piece for teammate Randy Thomas to handle. Then Thomas would break off, find the linebacker and clear a bigger lane. Other times, Pete Kendall and Chris Samuels did this on the left side.
And Clinton Portis would dash through, gaining six yards. Or 11. Or 14. Take your pick because those are the yards he kept getting vs. the Browns.
Those holes oftentimes occurred because of how the line works in concert. Which is a byproduct of four of the five having spent four years together. The newcomer, left guard Kendall, now has played 24 games alongside left tackle Samuels and center Casey Rabach. Thanks in part to the line’s blocking, Portis is leading the league in rushing.
“We’ve got a great chemistry,” Jansen, the right tackle, said. “Randy is understanding what we’re doing when Casey makes a call. I understand when Randy makes a call. There’s a good flow.”
The line has a combined 50 years experience; only Samuels has made the Pro Bowl. But their longevity comes with benefits, especially on combination blocks. It also makes it harder for defenses to stunt their linemen against them.
“When you have an old veteran [line], it limits the chance for surprise,” Redskins defensive coordinator Greg Blache said.
“It’s that continuity of Clinton knowing what we do well and how we set up blocks,” Rabach said. “We know what Clinton is going to do and where he’ll make his cuts. And knowing what the guy next to you will be doing helps tremendously.”
On combo blocks, two linemen attack one guy. For example, Jansen will attack the end, trying to take half his body and leave the other half for Thomas. Jansen must take the right amount of the defender or Thomas can’t get the proper push. When the defender is engaged, one of the two blockers will slip off and attack the linebacker.
“It’s just by feel who comes off,” Jansen said, “and that comes by having done it. I have to trust him and he has to trust me.”
