Through two NFL seasons, Washington Commanders running back Antonio Gibson has played in 30 games, rushing for 1,832 yards and scoring 18 touchdowns on the ground. The former college wide receiver also has 78 receptions with three receiving touchdowns.
Not bad for the former third-round pick from Memphis.
Washington’s selection of Gibson in 2020 was a mild surprise, as he played primarily wide receiver in college. However, offensive coordinator Scott Turner was enamored with Gibson’s skill set, making him the pick for Washington.
Last season started slowly for Gibson, who had fumbling issues. His best stretch of the 2021 season came during Washington’s four-game winning streak in November when he rushed for 358 yards. That stretch proved Gibson’s importance to Washington’s offense.
Football Outsiders, along with ESPN, recently named the most underrated player on every NFL team. Pro Football Focus recently named left tackle Charles Leno as Washington’s most underrated player. Football Outsiders believes Gibson is the most underrated.
Gibson finished sixth in rushing DVOA as a rookie in 2020, then rushed for 1,000 yards on a bad team with no passing game and while playing through multiple injuries. His reward was the team bringing back J.D. McKissic even though Gibson is more than qualified to be a good receiver. And then the Commanders drafted Brian Robinson Jr. in the third round. Gibson at 6-foot-2 and 220 pounds has feature-back size and has showed feature-back skills. But the Commanders’ moves might be preventing him from being one.
The presence of McKissic and Robinson will impact Gibson’s numbers in 2022. McKissic handles most of the passing downs, but it’s fair to wonder if the Commanders envision using Gibson more as a receiver after drafting the rugged Robinson.
Regardless, Gibson should again be a focal point in Washington’s offense because when he receives at least 20 touches per game, the Commanders are much more dangerous on offense.
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