Clinton Portis

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Clinton Portis
Date of birth September 1, 1981
Place of birth Laurel, Mississippi
Position(s) Running back
College University of Miami
NFL Draft 2002 / Round 2 / 51st Overall
Awards 2002 NFL Offensive ROY
Statistics
Team(s)
2002–2003
2004-Present		 Denver Broncos
Washington Redskins

Clinton Earl Portis (born September 1, 1981 in Laurel, Mississippi) is an American football player who currently plays running back for the Washington Redskins of the NFL.

Contents

[edit] University of Miami

Portis starred at the University of Miami, one of the premier collegiate football programs in the nation. He became just the second true freshman to start at running back since the 1975 season.

[edit] Drafted by Denver

He was drafted by the Denver Broncos with the 19th pick in the second round (51st overall) of the 2002 NFL Draft. After his first season with the Broncos, Portis was named The "NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year" by the Associated Press. He rushed for over 1,500 yards in each of his first two seasons with the Broncos. In his second season, he was voted for the 2004 Pro Bowl.

[edit] Traded to Washington

Prior to the 2004 season, the Broncos traded Portis to the Redskins for cornerback Champ Bailey and a second-round draft pick. The Redskins signed Portis to an eight-year contract worth $50.5 million. At that time, there were criticisms regarding the trade, namely that shut-down corners like Bailey were hard to come by and that adding a second-round pick for Portis was too much and one-sided. Critics also said that Portis benefitted largely from Denver's run blocking scheme and he was a product of a great offensive system, not necessarily a great running back. They added that, at 5'11", 212 pounds, he didn't fit the Redskins' type of running back, who historically were larger and more power runners (such as Stephen Davis or John Riggins).

[edit] 2004 season

In the 2004 season, he had to adjust to coach Joe Gibbs' style of running, which consists of mostly power running. Despite taking his first Redskins carry 64 yards for a TD in the season opener against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, it was a pretty rough adjustment for Portis because Denver's running style consisted of stretch runs and runs to the outside. The adjustment was made rougher by a depleted offensive line. He finished 2004 with 1,315 yards for a 3.8 yard rushing average. He had a tougher time finding the end zone, finishing with eight total touchdowns (5 rushing, 2 receiving, and one passing).

[edit] 2005 season

He bounced back in the 2005 season. Although Gibbs still ran a power style of football, he implemented more outside running plays into the Redskins rushing attack to better suit Portis' style of running. Portis had a much better season, proving that he can run inside as well as to the outside and was a better pass-blocker. Although he didn't get into the end zone until the fifth game of the season, he finished strong and had 12 total touchdowns (11 rushing and one passing). On a 14-yard run against the Philadelphia Eagles on January 1, 2006, he broke the Redskins' franchise record for the most rushing yards in a season with 1,516 yards and most 100+ yard games in a season (9). He ended the game with 112 rushing yards. By rushing for 1,516 yards, he became only the third runner in league history to reach 1,500 yards in three of his first four seasons.

[edit] 2006 season

Portis is one of the fastest running backs in the NFL, running a 4.26 second 40-yard dash in the 2006 Redskins training camp. Shortly following that, however, on August 13, 2006, Portis suffered a partially dislocated shoulder in the first quarter of a Week 1 pre-season game after tackling Cincinnati Bengals cornerback Keiwan Ratliff following a Bengals interception. After the injury, Portis said: "I don't know why myself or any other player of my caliber should be playing in the preseason." He added, "I think for the last four years I've done enough to show the world I'm going to be ready for the season."

There was no immediate indication from the Redskins as to when Portis might return to active playing status[1]. However, he returned early into the Redskins' Monday Night Football game against the Minnesota Vikings, where he gained 39 yards on 10 carries with one touchdown. The Redskins lost 19-16, the clock expiring as Redskins kicker John Hall missed wide left on a field goal. Portis has rebounded the last two weeks with 16 carries for 86 yards and 2 touchdowns against the Houston Texans, and 27 carries for 112 yards and a touchdown against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Nagged by injuries all season, Portis suffered another setback in the first quarter of the November 12 shellacking against the Philadelphia Eagles. Portis left the game with a hand injury and was replaced by backup Ladell Betts. His broken right hand was operated on and was placed on Washington's Injured Reserve list on 15th November[2]

[edit] Trivia

  • Portis is represented by fellow University of Miami alumnus Drew Rosenhaus, a member of the so-called Miami mafia and one of the NFL's most aggressive player agents.
  • Portis's cousin Josh was a top recruit as a quarterback for the University of Florida, but later transferred to the University of Maryland.
  • Portis appeared on the cover of the NCAA Gamebreaker 2003 game for PlayStation 2, while playing with the University of Miami Hurricanes.
  • Portis is known for often wearing various costumes at post-game press conferences that represent fictional characters he has developed.
  • When Portis joined the Redskins in 2004, his jersey number (26) was already taken by safety Ifeanyi Ohalete (now with the Cincinnati Bengals). Portis agreed to pay Ohalete $30,000 (in three installments) in order to get his number. When Ohalete was cut by the team during the summer, Portis thought that he didn't have to pay him the remaining installments. Ohalete felt otherwise, and eventually the dispute was settled with Portis paying him the rest of the money.
  • Portis and fellow University of Miami alumni Warren Sapp and Jeremy Shockey have done commercials for Swanson Hungry-Man microwave dinners.
  • Portis is a fan of Bang Cartoon.
  • Portis was largely ineffective in the Redskins' 2005 playoff games, rushing for only 94 yards in two playoff games[3].
  • Appeared in an episode of America's Next Top Model during season 1.


Preceded by:
Edgerrin James		 Miami Hurricanes' Starting Running Back
1999-2001 (shared with James Jackon in 1999-2000)		 Succeeded by:
Willis McGahee

[edit] External links

[edit] Career statistics

Rushing Receiving
Year Team G-S No.-Yds. Avg. Long TD No.-Yds. Avg. Long TD
2002 Denver 16-12 273-1,508 5.5 59 15 33-364 11.0 66 2
2003 Denver 13-13 290-1,591 5.5 65 14 38-314 8.3 72 0
2004 Washington 15-15 343-1,315 3.8 64 5 40-235 5.9 18 2
2005 Washington 16-16 352-1,516 4.3 47 11 30-216 7.2 23 0
Totals 60-56 1,258-5,930 4.7 65 45 141-1,129 8.0 72 4
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