Houston Texans: Five free agent RB options
By Randy Gurzi
Alfred Morris, Washington Redskins, 27 years old
What happened to Alfred Morris in 2015? It’s an absolute mystery as the former sixth round pick racked up 1,613 yards and 13 touchdowns as a rookie. He followed that up with 1,275 yards in 2013 and 1,074 more in 2014.
Then in 2015 Morris had just 751 yards as the team seemed to favor rookie Matt Jones over the 220 pound bruising style runner in Morris.
That could play into Houston’s advantage as Morris is now set to hit free agency in 2016 and could be a great fit for Bill O’Brien’s group. Despite his yardage dropping each season, Morris averages 4.4 yards per carry in his career and his dipping numbers were most likely due more to coaching changes and a shift in offensive styles.
In Houston, Morris could fit their zone running scheme great as he is a one-cut downhill runner that gets better the more he gets the ball. With 29 career touchdowns, he could help in their anemic goal line run game as well, which would eliminate the need for horrific trick run plays in the red zone.
There are two issues however with Morris, one being his lack of breakaway speed. His career high is just 48 yards, and in two of his NFL seasons he never had a long rush hit 40 yards. Also, he is seldom used as a pass catcher, as he has recorded just 47 career receptions, with his season high being 17 catches in 2014.
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Of course, the Texans could go into the draft planning to take a runner, but finding a gem in the free agent class could eliminate the desire to reach for a running back out of necessity.