Barring a remarkable turnaround, the 2009 Washington Redskins season is basically over.

In a continuing series of articles, I look towards 2010, when the team is expected to have a new head coach, potentially a new general manager and a host of new players.

This week, I evaluate the Redskins’ running backs.

Coming into the 2009 season, the Redskins running back corps was considered one of the deepest in the NFL.

Though no one wanted to see the season-ending injury to Ladell Betts and the potential career-threatening injury to Clinton Portis, the unit has certainly distinguished itself in their absence.

Rock Cartwright made his first start since the end of the 2002 season last week and, despite a low average in the yards per carry department, ran reasonably well behind the Redskins porous offensive line.

Quinton Gaither, acquired in mid-season, and Marcus Mason also did well in reserve, each adding key carries and hard running.

However, this unit is something of an enigma going into 2010, with Betts and Cartwright over the age of 30 by season's end.

Despite only being 28 years old, Portis is the one with the most mileage, approaching the 10,000 rushing yard plateau at which many star running backs seem to level off their productivity.

Before suffering a vicious concussion against the Eagles in October, Portis was already battling a litany of injuries, and this wasn’t the first season.

Indeed, Portis has been a regular on the team’s injury report for the last several seasons, including injuries to his ankles, shoulder, knees, and other key joints.

Portis seemed to lack burst early in the season and his once-trademark open-field acceleration didn’t seem to be there. While it’s easy to put this down to age, consider that Portis was listed at 221 pounds in the team’s media guide this season.

When Portis came to the Redskins, he weighed a scant 192. He added 20 pounds of muscle to become the more complete back for the Joe Gibbs offense and became the versatile three-down back Redskins fans have come to know and appreciate.

Nine extra pounds doesn’t seem like much, but to an aging back like Portis, it may just be a bit more than his wheels can handle.

It also may be representative of the lack of detail by the Jim Zorn coaching staff; the team has been downright cursed with injuries this season, and if Portis was somewhat out of shape, perhaps many of the other players were as well.

Looking towards 2010, Portis should be placed on injured reserve this year. Too little is known about concussions, particularly the lingering type that Portis has, and it will also allow his body to heal fully. Bringing him back in this lost season is the height of folly, and may be risking his life.

No such conundrum existed with Ladell Betts, who was placed on injured reserve after shredding his ACL and MCL two weeks ago against Dallas.

Though he had only limited carries before-hand, Betts was running well this season. Unlike Portis, Betts is a heavier, up the middle back who is at his best when he takes four or more carries in a series.

Zorn did not understand this last season, leading to one of Betts’ least productive seasons in his career. Inserting Betts to give Portis one play off is the height of folly; he needs to be used for the entire series.

Betts isn’t as natural a rusher as Portis and is most comfortable between the tackles. He doesn’t have great hands, but is a solid blocker.

Betts is getting up there in terms of age, but doesn’t have the mileage that Portis has. He’s had work as a kick returner, though not much this season and doesn’t play any other special teams.

He’s also a poor change of pace back for Portis, since he needs to play an entire series to get warmed up.

Whether Betts returns for the 2010 season depends mostly on two things: his knee and the new coaching staff.

If his knee can recover enough for him to participate in OTAs, he may retain his value as a backup, but may also not fit into another coach’s offense.

Cartwright, who is a close friend of Betts, is the type of player whose roster spot is always on the line come training camp.

Unlike Betts, he’s quite versatile, serving as the team’s primary kickoff returner as well as on multiple special teams, and takes a share of the team’s carries as well.

A converted fullback despite his 5-foot-7 stature, Cartwright is best suited as a one-back runner, rather than in the lead-blocking style the Redskins generally use. His lack of size also makes him a poor target as a receiver in traffic and a below average blocker.

Though he does return kicks, he is not a natural with the ball in the open field and typically runs straight into coverage rather than attempting to cut to the outside for additional yardage.

Assuming the NFL, owners will wise up and somehow retain the cap for 2010, so Cartwright could be a cap casualty of the new staff.

Even at the league minimum, eight-year veterans make close to a million dollars a season, while rookies make roughly a third of that.

Gaither and Mason are two solid backups, but that’s pretty much all they are. Neither contribute much on special teams and while one might return, the fate of both of these players is largely dependent on the team’s new coaching staff.

The team may acquire more versatile backups, or could use a draft pick to shore up the position.

The Redskins have also lacked a backup who offered any sort of outside or open field threat since the team released Trung Canidate after the 2002 season.

While the team traditionally has had a power running style, Washington could use a slasher back who could return kicks and punts, and may look for one in the draft.

The team does not need to use a top pick, or even a second-rounder (these should be reserved for fixing the offensive line).

However, many good, versatile backs can be round in rounds four and five. Infusing the position with a bit of youth would be good, even if the team did bring back the trifecta of Portis, Betts, and Cartwright.

Finally at fullback, Mike Sellers has been manning the position for several seasons. His blocking has fallen off this season, to the point of being publicly questioned by Portis, who has asked for Sellers to be replaced at times.

Though he is one of the more punishing blockers in the league when he’s on his game, Sellers has indeed looked as if he has taken some plays off.

Age could be a factor; at 34, Sellers isn’t getting any younger. The team also hasn’t had any viable backups at the position for the last several years and, due to a dearth of players who play special teams, Sellers is on the field a fair amount.

Whether he returns in 2010 is, again, a matter for the new coaching staff. Some offenses regularly use fullbacks, others don’t.

Some may want a Larry Centers-style fullback who catches swing passes out of the backfield; others may want a Mike Alstott-style back who can carry the ball from a one-back set.

However, consider this: even if the team does bring back Sellers, Betts would make a good backup for him. Betts, who weighs close to 225, is significantly lighter than Sellers, but is a good enough blocker, can carry the ball up the gut on third and short, and would add some versatility to the position, as well as making Betts himself more useful.

Such a move might allow the team to keep a fourth back who could be a better returner than Cartwright, giving the team a more flexible corps of backs, even if four of the five are holdovers from 2009.