Clinton Portis has helped carry the Redskins' offense since early December, recording five 100-yard games in the team's six-game winning streak.
Portis accepts that he will have to play through the playoffs with various bumps and bruises. He has an aching shoulder, but he expects to be ready to play this Saturday in Seattle when the Redskins take on the Seahawks in a Divisional Playoff game.
In the Redskins' 17-10 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last Saturday, Portis found little running room against Tampa Bay's hard-hitting, No. 1-ranked defense.
The 5-10, 212-pound back rushed for 53 yards on 16 carries against the Buccaneers, but managed to score a touchdown on a 6-yard run in the first quarter.
In the second half, head coach Joe Gibbs elected to alternate Portis and Ladell Betts. The Redskins had a 17-3 lead heading into the second half.
"When we were up, there wasn't any use in continuing to take that pounding," Portis said on Monday. "Ladell and Rock Cartwright are capable backs. As long as we were in that position, it was going to be Ladell."
Said Gibbs: "Clinton had to come out because of his shoulder. It cost us for a while, but he came back, to his credit. He's a tough guy. He came back and slammed it up there for us."
With the lead, Portis said the offense played somewhat conservatively in the second half. That played a role in the Redskins' offense totaling just 120 yards of offense, the lowest ever for a winning playoff game participant.
Said Portis: "We got a lead early and I think that altered our game plan. We basically ran on first and second down and threw on third.
"Any time a defense figures out what you're doing, it's going to be pretty hard to move the ball. We just wanted to keep the lead and find a way to win--and that's what we did."
-- MOSS TO START IN PRO BOWL
Lost in the celebration of the Redskins' 17-10 win was an honor for wide receiver Santana Moss. The Redskins' single-season leader in receiving yards will start in the 2006 Pro Bowl, the league announced on Saturday.
Moss recorded 84 catches for 1,483 yards and nine touchdowns last season. He was held to just two catches for 18 yards in Saturday's playoff game.
