After so much hype throughout the offseason, Washington Commanders running back Jacory Croskey-Merritt's inconsistent workload has been a bit confusing.
Bill tallied 10 carries in Week 1, but then saw just 19 over the next three games. Then, Croskey-Merritt saw a season-high 16 touches in Week 5, which he turned into a career-high 150 scrimmage yards that included 111 yards on the ground.
There has been zero question about which Commanders back has the most upside, yet that hasn't translated into a consistent, lead-back-type role for JCM, even in the wake of Austin Ekeler's season-ending injury.
Perhaps Week 5 is a sign of things to come, but Commanders offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury has indirectly pumped the brakes on that idea a bit.
During the week leading up to Monday's game against the Chicago Bears, Kingsbury noted Croskey-Merritt has a "ways to go" in his development when it comes to "pass pro, pass game, any sort of lead blocks," according to ESPN's John Keim.
"He has to keep working to become a complete back but since day one when he touches the ball he does good things with it," Kingsbury added.
Croskey-Merritt has yet to play more than 47.5% of the snaps in a game this season, and that percentage came last week.
It's pretty clear that the Commanders don't fully trust JCM in all the areas needed to be an every-down back, which will only hold him back from playing more.
That said, Croskey-Merritt has been hard at work in practice trying to improve in the areas Kingsbury mentioned, so it might not be long before he gets better and starts getting the consistent workload his talent deserves.
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