The Washington Redskins fired head coach Jay Gruden after an 0-5 start to the 2019 season. In his place, Bill Callahan has taken over as the interim head coach.
One of the first things Callahan said he wanted to do was run the ball more, a lot more.
In Week 6 (his first week as the head coach) that appeared to be true. The Redskins ran the ball 33 times for 145 yards against the Miami Dolphins, both were highs for Washington this season.
In fact, this was the first time the Redskins even sniffed 30 rushing attempts. It was also only the second time they hit 100 yards rushing. The other time was Week 5 against the New England Patriots. Washington ran for 145 yards that week as well, but was boosted by a 65 yard rush from wide receiver Steven Sims Jr. to start the game.
Now Washington is committed to the run. Not only committed to the run but they seem to be focused on hard-nosed running. That's right up Adrian Peterson's alley.
In Week 6, Peterson had easily his best game of the season. He ran the ball 23 times for 118 yards and had two receptions for 18 yards.
Those are very solid numbers, and something that makes Peterson a reliable fantasy player once again. Especially considering two things in particular.
First, this is the Redskins game plan. This wasn't something they were doing just because they were facing the Dolphins. Yes, you could argue that it might not work nearly as well against other teams. However, that's something Washington will have to take in stride.
Something that likely won't waiver is the game plan. The Redskins will run early and often, and that's something Peterson is built for.
Another thing to look at is the touchdowns, or lack thereof. Peterson did not score in Week 6, although he got within feet of the end zone a few times. It shows the Redskins will give him a lot of looks in the red zone, and he'll likely convert a few times this year. That adds some more stock.
Besides the fact that this was against the Dolphins, the other issue could be Derrius Guice. Once he returns, the Redskins will definitely want to put him in the offense. Even if Peterson continues his strong success, it's logical to expect Guice to take some of his carries.
That's not an issue at the moment though. Guice will likely be out for at least the next few weeks, and even when he returns Washington will take it easy at first. Peterson should still get himself a solid number of carries each week.
It's hard to trust any Redskins player at this point besides maybe Terry McLaurin. Peterson in this system should find his way back to fantasy relevance though.
If you're looking for depth and he's available, scoop him up now before it's too late.
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