Washington Redskins: Full Breakdown, Depth Chart Analysis at Running Back

The decision to draft to a strength, as well as the proposed move to a different style of blocking, have made running back one of the most intriguing positions on the Washington Redskins' rebuilding roster this offseason.

The Burgundy and Gold currently carry six players at the position, with the group divided into two very distinct categories. On one side, there are as many as four smashmouth-style bruisers who could thrive thanks to the extra emphasis given to power-based blocking and concepts this season.

Then there are two pint-sized scatbacks who can add currently missing explosive qualities and versatility to the backfield and third-down offense.

Here's how things break down at this vital position, including an early indication of what the depth chart looks like.

Michael Hill

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The proverbial "camp body," Michael Hill rejoined the Redskins in late March, per Mike Jones of The Washington Post. Hill spent time on the team's practice squad last season.

Jones also noted how the 25-year-old has tried to make it on five other NFL teams during the last two years. History doesn't exactly augur well for Hill's chances of making the final roster in Washington.

Yet the fact he was brought in at all is proof of head coach Jay Gruden's desire to find something extra at the position. But if it's dynamism the young sideline general is looking for, Hill won't be the one to provide it.

Essentially, he's a north-south runner between the tackles without a lot of shiftiness thrown in. At 5'10" and 210 pounds, Hill does have a frame stout enough for Washington's move toward more power-style running.

Ultimately, though, he's about as long a shot as there is to upset the established order in this team's backfield.

Trey Williams

Taking a flier on Trey Williams as an undrafted free agent is one of the more interesting moves new general manager Scot McCloughan has made. He rolled the dice to acquire the type of speedy, mini-marvel who could be a matchup nightmare at several levels of a defense.

Williams boasts the game-breaking quickness, moves within moves and receiving chops to finally give this offense a true big-play threat out of the backfield. That's a fairly niche role, but one the Redskins have lacked to their cost in recent seasons, particularly on third downs.

Specializing in being a multipurpose weapon on football's money down seems like Williams' best bet to make a pro roster, as Sports Illustrated writer Ben Glicksman notes: "His ceiling is seen as a special teams playmaker, or perhaps a change-of-pace weapon in the Darren Sproles mold."

This type of backfield outlet can be invaluable for a trio of struggling quarterbacks. Screen passes can only work as one of the staples of the offense if they consistently yield positive gains. That means dumping the ball off to a runner who can regularly make people miss and accelerate past pursuit. Williams can certainly do both.

But he's also keen to stress he can be trusted lugging the rock. Williams may only be 5'7" and 195 pounds, but he doesn't see a slight frame as a hindrance to running inside.

Back in May, he told Turron Davenport of The Baltimore Times how he thrived running inside zone plays at Texas A&M: "I came out of an offense that ran that style. It’s not new to me at all. If I see a hole, I am going to hit it as fast as I can. There’s no fear in me hitting a hole."

Williams' comfort running inside zones could be a major asset in Washington this season. Gruden and new offensive line coach Bill Callahan are busy tweaking the ground scheme to include more inside plays and power principles.

Writing for the team's official site, Jake Kring-Schreifels noted how Williams "has a clear understanding of the power-zone blocking scheme." He also detailed how Williams "is confident that he can even play in the slot as a receiver."

This is a player with exactly the right blend of skills to add a real X-factor to Washington's backfield rotation. Now it's a question of proving those skills against pro players.

Unfortunately, an ankle injury has sidelined Williams during OTAs, according to Real Redskins blogger Rich Tandler. So, for now, he remains rooted near the bottom of the depth chart.

Silas Redd

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If Hill and Williams are looking for inspiration as they try to claim a final roster spot, they might consider the case of Silas Redd. An undrafted free agent in 2014, Redd made the team and featured in all but one of Washington's regular-season games.

During that time, the former USC man carried the ball 16 times for 75 yards and a touchdown. He also chipped in with eight catches for 107 yards.

Redd boasts a nice combination of power and moves. He also has quick instincts, a must in any scheme featuring zone principles.

There's also a welcome element of versatility in his game. As the statistics reveal, Redd is a genuine big-play threat as a pass-catcher. Gruden and offensive coordinator Sean McVay even felt confident enough in his ability as a receiver to move him around formations at times last season.

The major question marks surrounding Redd concern his often too-upright style of running. He doesn't keep a consistent pad level or square his shoulders enough when attacking holes. The result is an inability to make many yards after first contact. That's a problem for a back who doesn't possess the elite quickness to regularly outrun defenders on the edge.

Ultimately, the book on Redd tells you he can do a lot of things, but he doesn't excel at any of them. The increased competition McCloughan created during the draft puts his place in jeopardy.

Unless Redd starts to stand out in one area, he's in danger of becoming another Evan Royster.

Chris Thompson

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Chris Thompson is surely facing his last chance to show coaches he can make it as a pro back. So far, the ex-Florida State ace has offered only tantalizing glimpses of what he might bring to the offense.

Staying healthy has been his biggest problem. Thompson has missed 26 games in two years since coming off the board in the fifth round of the 2013 NFL draft.

His continued absence is a real shame because Thompson could be a major asset in an offense geared to maximize his talents. Those particular skills including legitimate game-changing speed and a flair for catching passes.

Those are exactly the qualities that have been missing from Washington's backfield during the last three seasons. If Thompson could only avoid injury, while also proving he can hang onto the ball consistently, he'd be a lock for third-down work.

It would also help if the current offensive scheme more closely resembled the one the Redskins were running when they drafted him. In many ways, runners like Thompson and Williams seem to have joined the team a little too late.

Both are natural fits for the read-option scheme that made dual-threat quarterback Robert Griffin III a league sensation as a rookie in 2012. Putting a pocket-edition speedster, one tough to see in a crowd, next to a running quarterback in a pistol look, where defenders rarely know who has the ball until it's too late, is a recipe for multiple big plays.

Sadly though, Griffin's injury woes have almost permanently consigned the read-option to history at Redskins Park. Yet even without an extra element of surprise, Thompson can still be a very useful weapon.

He just has to stay upright long enough to prove it.

Matt Jones

If Matt Jones really is as good as advertised, the Redskins will improve as many as three key areas of their offense. In the process, McCloughan will be made to look like a genius for using a third-round pick on a runner even with three-time 1,000-yard rusher Alfred Morris already on the roster.

The first thing this 6'2", 231-pound battering ram will do is add some genuine, straight-ahead power out of the backfield. While Morris is no lightweight, his best runs have come off the outside, zone-style stretch plays Gruden's predecessor, Mike Shanahan, made the foundation of the offense.

They called for runners to press the outside before cutting back against the grain and exploiting open lanes created by overpursuing defenses. There certainly isn't as much nuance in Jones' game. He's a classic bruiser who hits the inside gaps hard. His most common method for gaining extra yards is to run over would-be tacklers rather than away from them.

In this sense, Jones could be a vital change of pace. B/R analyst Matt Bowen sees him as a punishing, short-yardage specialist as a rookie. Short-yardage running has been something of an issue in Washington, although the strange reluctance to give fullback Darrel Young more carries has played its part.

If Jones uses his brawn to complement Morris' deceptive quickness, the Redskins will have a real thunder-and-lightning combination to keep bewildered defenses off balance.

But that's not the only way Jones could make this position group stronger. He also boasts underrated receiving skills, as well as the ability to block. Both qualities have already caught Gruden's eye during OTAs, per the team's official Twitter account.

If Washington can find its third-down back from the runner also expected to split carries with Morris, Jones will become a feature of this season's playbook. The lack of a competent backfield blocker really hurt the team a year ago, particularly in third-down situations, when defenses commonly love to target running backs in protection.

However Jones is used, he's a guarantee to add the greater physicality McCloughan wants at every level of the roster for 2015. An example from recent practices highlights the type of toughness and mindset Jones has already brought to the position, per Real Redskins blogger Rich Tandler:

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Jones is a very physical player. He caught a short pass and turned upfield with his shoulders lowered. The defensive backs who approached him didn’t want to have anything to do with him. After practice Jay Gruden said that he had to remind Jones on a few occasions that this was a non-contact practice and that he should take it easy.

"

The best-case scenario for this season is the competition between Jones and Morris becomes real and intense. Having two running backs bidding to outdo the other is a win for Washington's offense, with hapless would-be tacklers being the obvious losers.

Alfred Morris

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Jones may be breathing down his neck one year before he becomes a free agent, but Alfred Morris is still the man in Washington's backfield. What's going to be fascinating to see is how much fight a player who's already scrapped his way from overlooked sixth-rounder to potential fullback, to Pro Bowl runner, has left for the increased competition and pressure he faces this offseason.

Make no mistake, as good as he is, Morris will enter the 2015 season under the glare of a particularly unforgiving spotlight. Gruden has piled the pressure on his workhorse by altering the outside zone scheme that made him a star.

Now Gruden will encourage the Redskins to run both power and zone plays, according to Real Redskins blogger Rich Tandler.

To his credit, Morris is already relishing any challenges presented by the changes. While many backs may baulk at the idea of being taken out of their comfort zone, Morris is looking forward to getting back to basics.

He explained how power plays take him back to his days lugging the rock for Florida Atlantic, per Tom Schad of The Washington Times:

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It’s not new. I did all downhill in college with the Power I. Did a little inside zone, maybe a tad of outside zone, but mostly it was just downhill, so I feel like I’m better in downhill plays anyways. I’m excited for the new plays we put in, and some of the changes, slight changes, that we made, so I’m excited about it, but it’s nothing new.

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But it isn't just a few new doodles in the playbook that make this a very intriguing season for Morris. He'll be acutely aware of how keen McCloughan and Gruden have been to add new faces at his position.

The arrival of a third-round pick who's generated a ton of positive press since is ample proof of that. Once again though, Morris hasn't bristled.

Instead, the Pro Bowler is already looking leaner and more explosive than last season, per another report from Tandler:

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Alfred Morris looked about half a step faster than he has in the past. On one play on the far side of the field from where we were standing I thought for a moment that rookie scatback Trey Williams was carrying the ball. But it was Morris moving faster than I’ve ever seen him.

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A quicker, niftier Morris can only be a good thing for Washington and a nightmare for opposing defenses. It should also act as a gentle (maybe not so gentle) prod in Gruden's ribs, a reminder to give him more of the damn ball in 2015.

Morris endured career lows in yards and average yards per carry last season. Yet it was no coincidence he also carried the ball less than any other season since entering the pros.

Morris is too effective a weapon to be left gathering dust. It's time for him to reassume his role as the fulcrum of Washington's offense. Gruden need only look at the uncertainty at quarterback for a reason why a run-first attack is the way to go in the new season.

NFL.com writer Gregg Rosenthal believes that type of offense makes Morris a dark-horse contender for the league's rushing title in 2015. Rosenthal doesn't see the scheme changes as a problem, far from it.

Instead, he views Callahan's arrival as the perfect tonic for a running back needing to rediscover his best: "Morris has always been an underrated power runner. With Callahan around and the line improved, he could top 1,600 yards again, like in his rookie season."

Since Morris arrived in D.C., the Redskins have scrambled to try to find adequate support for him. The current depth chart at running back shows they're still looking.

If Jones makes the grade, Washington's one-two punch on the ground could be the most formidable in football. Thompson or Williams emerging as a genuine explosive speedster would complete a perfect rotation.

All statistics and player information via NFL.com.