Could DeAndre Washington be the Odd Man Out of the Raiders Backfield?

The Oakland Raiders have added Marshawn Lynch and Elijah Hood to the backfield this offseason. There could be an odd man out as a result. Will it be DeAndre Washington?

Heading into the offseason, the Oakland Raiders were left with a decision to make on Latavius Murray — to either re-sign him or to let him walk. Reggie McKenzie and co. wisely elected for the latter, and it paid off. The Raiders convince Marshawn Lynch to come out of retirement, trading for him and agreeing to terms on a deal for less than what Murray got from Minnesota.

With the acquisition of Lynch, the easy assumption is that the Raiders would go with another three-headed trio at the running back position, with DeAndre Washington, Jalen Richard and Lynch. But that might not be the case.

In the 2017 NFL Draft, one of the nine players McKenzie selected is a running back by the name of Elijah Hood. Raider Nation wanted a young, power back, and the former North Carolina product is exactly that.

Listed at 5’11” and 232 lbs., Hood has reportedly slimmed down to 220 pounds. He’s certainly an intriguing back, and he might even have a little Beast Mode in him.

But at the end of the day, there is only one football. Which means that not every running back will get their desired amount of touches.

Lynch will surely be the starting running back, and Richard seems the most likely to be in on passing downs due to his pass-catching ability. Hood will have to impress to make the 53-man roster, but if he does, he’ll would be the back on the most limited amount of touches. DeAndre Washington and Richard have a similar skill-set, which could make Washington the odd man out.

The former Texas Tech back was deactivated for three games last season because the Raiders were in need of active players at other positions. That decision signals the team being comfortable enough to go with the duo of Latavius and Jalen. If that was the case, what would make the Lynch/Richard duo any different?

When you factor in Jamize Olawale, suddenly the Raiders backfield looks quite crowded. It’ll be up to new offensive coordinator Todd Downing to balance the workload of the backfield, but someone is going to be left on the outside looking in.

Washington offers a valuable skill-set to the offense, but again, it’s quite similar to that of Richard, who was the better of the two in their rookie seasons. So when you consider that as well as the backfield being crowded, the person on the outside looking in could be him.

Must Read: JBB Mailbag: Post-Draft Edition

Take note of this battle during training camp, as it will be one of the more intriguing story lines in the coming months.