AP

There were several points during the summer when it appeared the Redskins would make Tim Hightower their lead running back when he was healthy enough for the job.

Summer’s not quite over, but Hightower’s chances of grabbing that lead role took a serious blow on Friday when he got the news that he’ll be released by the Redskins. Grant Paulsen of 106.7 The Fan in Washington reports that Hightower will not be on the team’s 53-man roster while rookie Alfred Morris has grabbed a spot.

Hightower was coming back from a torn ACL and saw some action in the preseason, but the team obviously felt he had less to offer than Morris, Evan Royster and Roy Helu. It seems like Hightower would have been a strong candidate for the league’s new injured reserve rule that would have allowed him eight more weeks to get his knee right before the Redskins had to make any choice about his future, but he would have had to be on the 53-man roster at the end of Friday for that to happen.

Paulsen’s report indicates that option wasn’t of interest to Washington and that Hightower will have to look elsewhere if he wants to continue his NFL career.