Position: Running backs, fullback

Impending free agents: Three backs are due to become unrestricted free agents, most notably Alfred Morris, the two-time Pro Bowl running back, whose coming off the least productive season of his NFL career. Veteran Pierre Thomas, 31, who was signed as a stop-gap measure late in the regular season, is also a free agent. So too is fullback Darrel Young.

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Returning: Matt Jones, the imposing Florida running back whom the Redskins chose in the third round of the 2015 NFL draft, will be back. All others are a question mark.

Review: With an uncertain situation at quarterback, Redskins General Manager Scot McCloughan and Coach Jay Gruden planned on shifting to a run-first offense in 2015. The idea was to pound the ball behind a beefy offensive line like Redskins teams of old and, in doing so, relieve much of the pressure from the passing game.

To that end, McCloughan spent the team’s first overall pick on offensive lineman Brandon Scherff and invested the third-round pick on a burly Southeastern Conference running back, the 6-2, 213-pound Matt Jones, envisioned as a complement to fourth-year veteran Alfred Morris.

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The hard-nosed, run-first formula worked for only a handful of games, although the Redskins stuck with the approach until deep in the season, when it became clear that quarterback Kirk Cousins and his receiving corps were the offense’s true strong suit.

The running game was hampered before regular season started, hurt by the loss of the team’s best blocking tight ends, Niles Paul and Logan Paulsen, to season-ending injuries. The offensive line was also hurt by injuries, losing left guard Shawn Lauvao and, not long after, center Kory Lichtensteiger.

For the most part, the Redskins front office and coaching staff improvised ably. Offensive line coach Bill Callahan did well in getting second-year guard Spencer Long and former guard Josh LeRibeus into starting form. And McCloughan plucked eight-year unsigned veteran Pierre Thomas off the streets after a shoulder injury late in the season threatened to land third-down back Chris Thompson on injured reserve.

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But run-blocking remained a challenge for the offense as a whole. Meantime, Morris simply wasn’t as effective at spotting openings and punching holes as he’d been in the past, gaining just 751 yards, less than half the output of his rookie season (1,613), on a career-low 3.7 yards per carry.

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And Jones, whose upside had been easy to see during training camp, proved to have a downside. The rookie fumbled the ball away four times. While he broke some big runs, rolling up 123 rushing yards in the Week 2 victory over St. Louis, his final yards-per-carry was just 3.4, lower than Morris’s. His inexperience showed up in missed assignments, and he was sidelined the last three games, including the 35-18 first-round playoff loss to Green Bay, with a hip injury.

Thompson never went on injured reserve, as feared, but returned the lineup and proved the most dynamic of the bunch in his featured role. He gained 6.2 yards per carry while being as asset in the passing game and proving a willing, savvy blocker, too.

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Thomas, who proved his value down the stretch with Jones sidelined, showed the value of experience. Gruden inserted him in the lineup despite nominal preparation, and he made some key plays in the Week 16 victory at Philadelphia that clinched the NFC East.

And sixth-year fullback Darrel Young ended the year having played a minor, but meaningful role, called on to carry the ball just six times for 11 yards but contributing as a blocker and on special teams.

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The sum of all these efforts, however, fell well short of expectations. The Redskins’ running game averaged just 97.9 yards per game, 20th in the NFL. And they yards per carry — 3.65 — was cause for alarm, ranked 30th in the league.

Big questions: There are several in the running game. Chief among them is whether to bring back Morris, who was invaluable to the team’s 2012 playoff run but didn’t deliver as hoped in 2015. Durability and reliability are his strong suits. Morris led the team in carries (202) and total yards (751) while not once putting the ball on the ground. But the NFL’s top personnel executives know that in a game as punishing as pro football — particularly as running back, where careers are short — you can’t pay for past performance. You must pay for the performance you expect to get from a player going forward. And Morris didn’t make a compelling case that his best years are head of him.

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Thompson, 25, is an exclusive restricted free agent and the Redskins will likely bring him back. Gruden likes his versatility, as well as his toughness and smarts as a pass blocker.

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Regarding Jones, the only decision is how best to help him make strides in all areas — securing the football, nailing down his assignments in all facets of the game and taking care of his body. He’s an asset but one that remains rough around the edges.

Thomas, the late-season acquisition, has said he’s not ready to retire and would like to return. He might be worth keeping.