Washington Redskins coach Jay Gruden recently assured Alfred Morris that the drafting of third-round bruiser Matt Joneswon't affect the veteran running back's role this season.
If general manager Scot McCloughan's assessment is correct, though, Jones could displace Morris as soon as 2016.
In separate interviews with Washington's WTEM and WJFK this week, McCloughan compared Jones' violent running style to Seahawks superstar Marshawn Lynch.
"Matt Jonesreminds me a lot -- a lot -- of Marshawn," McCloughan said, via CSN Washington, "from the standpoint that he's north-south, he's downhill and he's not afraid of contact."
McCloughan can speak with authority on the subject because he was in the Seahawks' front office when Seattle traded for Lynch back in 2010.
"You come downhill, and you know what? I was very lucky to be aroundMarshawn Lynch for the years I was in Seattle," McCloughan told WJFK's Grant Paulsen and Danny Rouhier. "And to see the violence he ran with, to see how guys got tired of tackling him; Matt Jones is similar."
McCloughan was careful to bolster Gruden's statement that Morris is the starter, but he expects Jones to increase his snaps and "impose his will" on tacklers when the sledding gets tougher in December and January.
If Jones impresses late in the season, the Redskins will have a tough decision to make when Morris' contract runs out at the end of the year.
- The latest Around The NFL Podcast reacts to the most recent "Deflategate" news and discusses the current state of all 16 NFC teams. Find more Around The NFL content on NFL NOW.*
