Anthony

Alridge

Alridge is a smallish speed back that spent part of last season on the practice squad. The Redskins obviously didn’t see him as their third-down back answer. Clinton Portis and Ryan Torain are in-house options to fill that role.

This gets you cut quickly. Alridge, a scatback who missed 2008 with a Lisfranc sprain, has also battled a sprained toe. The Skins are old at tailback in front of Alridge and he had an opportunity, but doesn’t look to be seizing it.

It’s a little surprising, but Marcus Mason had such a good camp it would have been tough to keep Alridge. He’s really fast and could latch on as a scatback somewhere else.

Alridge, 25, was in camp with Washington and could potentially spark the stagnant running game later in the season, assuming he’s over his ball security issues. He has homerun speed and reliable pass-catching ability.

The scatback had yet to receive a carry since being signed off the practice squad a month ago.

Alridge has been fumble and injury prone in August, but the Skins want a change of pace back and are considering keeping him on their 53-man roster. Alridge has 4.2 wheels and can catch passes, and having Cerrato in his camp goes a long way, no matter how poor the GM is at evaluating talent.

Alridge might’ve made the Redskins out of training camp had ball security and injuries not been an issue. He’s now essentially Houston’s No. 5 back. The Texans also have undrafted free agent Arian Foster on the practice club.

Undrafted free agents (e.g. Selvin Young, Mike Bell) have made an impact in Denver before. Alridge will compete with Andre Hall to be Young’s primary backup in the preseason. He’s exhibited explosive ability in early practices, but probably couldn’t handle a big load at 175 pounds.

A bum hamstring could get Alridge cut, but Denver would try to get him through waivers to the practice squad. It’s not a lock he’d make it, though. The Browns, Bengals, and Ravens may be on the lookout for backfield speed.

He was replaced in one short-yardage situation by Andre Hall (9-46, 1-12), but was left in later on a third-and-one play and executed for the first down. Michael Pittman (10-36, 6-25-1) helped himself and saw the most carries, although he ran with clear backups. At this point, the depth chart appears to read 1) Young, 2) Hall, 3) Pittman, 4) Anthony Alridge.