Ladell Betts takes the toss and heads left, slowly moving toward top speed. Instead, Betts displays the maturity gained in four NFL seasons. He allows his blockers to get ahead of him, staying a yard or two behind, lets them create an opening — and then bursts through.
It’s clear: Betts has become a polished runner.
Just in time for another team to benefit.
With four games left in the season, Betts has 643 yards rushing, which means he could enter free agency off a 1,000-yard season. Which also means it’s hard to imagine he’d want to return to Washington as a backup.
“It would be hard, but at the same time I’m a team guy,” Betts said. “Everyone has a role … Having the chance to compete with [original starter Clinton Portis] on a regular basis, I realized I could do this, too.”
The Redskins say they want to keep him — as they’ve said with others such as Antonio Pierce and Ryan Clark. When asked Monday if there’s room for two such backs, coach Joe Gibbs said, “There has been the past two years.”
But can the Redskins keep both running backs? Or should they consider resigning Betts and trading Portis?
“We’d be all for that,” one Redskin said. “Betts fits our style.”
“Betts is a better fit for the way Gibbs wants to run the offense,” saidone NFC scout who has watched the Redskins in person several times this season. “I don’t think you’d get a first-round pick [for Portis], but maybe a second.”
If cut or traded before June 1, Portis would count $8.192 million against the salary cap — or $1.16 more than he will count otherwise. Also, Portis will need six months to rehab his shoulder after having surgery Tuesday.
“Portis is a better back than Betts,” one NFL talent evaluator said. “And I don’t know what the market would be for a guy who makes a ton of money.”
But Betts, in the long run, could prove to be more cost-effective, allowing future money to be better spent, while getting needed draft picks in return.
More games like the past two — 259 combined yards rushing — will keep Betts’ price tag rising. By comparison, Chester Taylor entered free agency last offseason having rushed for 1,477 yards on 340 carries in his final three years in Baltimore. He received a four-year, $14.1 million contract with a $5.6 million bonus from Minnesota. Betts would command at least that much.
Said the scout, “You can’t pay two backs starters money.”
Week 14 Notes
» Running back Clinton Portis had arthroscopic surgery on his left shoulder at Reston Hospital Center on Tuesday. Dr. Ray Thal repaired Portis’ torn labrum.
Portis will require six months of rehabilitation. He was placed on injured reserve on Nov. 14, finishing his third Redskins season with a career-low 523 rushing yards.
» Defensive end Phillip Daniels (ankles) and right tackle Jon Jansen (calf) are both hurting. But neither wants to stop playing just because the season appears to be a lost.
“That’s not what I do,” said Jansen, who is listed as day-to-day. “I like playing football and my teammates count on me and I count on them. If there’s any way I can go, I’ll give it a shot.”
Said Daniels, “I’m the type of player who fights through injuries. I’m in pain but for my team, I want to help them win no matter the situation.”
» Statistically speaking: The Redskins have intercepted only five passes. Eleven players in the NFL have matched that total and five players have surpassed it, including ex-Redskin Walt Harris, now in San Francisco.
