ASHBURN The face was familiar, but it seemed out of place.

Clinton Portis was on the scene regularly at Redskin Park in the offseason. He was not there to pick up a check nor to put on a wig and comically oversized glasses and entertain the media.

Portis was at Redskin Park for offseason workouts.

Really.

"Guys walked in and were shocked to see me here time after time," said Portis, one of the NFL's best running backs. During regular-season games, he slams into the line on running plays and throws his body recklessly at pass rushers.

But during past offseasons, Portis has avoided Redskin Park as if there were a "quarantine" notice on the door that only he could see.

This offseason, Portis spent a considerable amount of his time at Redskin Park, especially in the weight room.

"Pretty much they asked me to, and I was tired of fighting," Portis said.

And now, for the rest of the story.

"I think he had a financial motivation to stay here in the offseason," Redskins coach Jim Zorn said. "I think that was worked into his contract. That not only worked well for him, it worked very well for us. I think we're going to benefit from all the work he did in the weight room this offseason. I think he feels it too. He got better this offseason."

No one ever has questioned Portis' talent. He is a slashing runner, capable of turning every play into a touchdown. But some teammates questioned his dedication.

Portis, who will be 27 on Sept. 1, never has made a secret of his distaste for practice. He's still no fan of training camp, but he does have his pride.

Yesterday, during a pass-protection drill for the running backs, Portis was knocked on his rear end by linebacker Marcus Washington.

Washington has had the same impact on a number of NFL running backs.

Portis stood and immediately went to the front of the line. He wanted back in there. But his coaches made him wait his turn. The next time he faced Washington, Portis held his own.

In 2004, Portis came to the Redskins from the Denver Broncos in exchange for cornerback Champ Bailey and a second-round pick. In 2002 and 2003, Portis gained a total of 3,099 yards and averaged 5.5 yards per carry.

Joe Gibbs saw those numbers, and when the Broncos asked if the Redskins would be interested in trading for Portis, Gibbs' answer was an immediate "Yes."

Whether the 5-11, 223-pound Portis was the best fit for Gibbs' power running attack remains a question. Portis willingly slammed between the tackles, but 343 carries in 2004 and 352 in 2005 took their toll.

Portis lasted just eight games and 127 carries in 2006. Last year, he gained 1,262 yards on 325 carries, but his per-carry average was just 3.9.

"People were used to seeing me as a breakaway back," Portis said. "I wanted to break the big one, but at the same time there were few opportunities. I didn't take advantage of all those opportunities, so I can't say it was the system."

The Redskins have a new system now, the west coast offense Zorn brought with him from Seattle. Zorn wants to make use of all the Redskins' wide receivers and tight end Chris Cooley. That should create space for Portis and the running game.

"This is a great opportunity," Portis said. "You're not dodging people at the line. You're getting the opportunity to get 5 or 10 yards on the other side of the ball and go one on one with the defender instead of playing tough-man football and dodging and banging people at the line to break free.

"Playing tough-man football has knocked six years off my career. I planned to play 19 years, so now I'm down to 13."

That's a typical Portis line. He's always looking to enjoy life and say something funny.

"He kids around a lot," Zorn said. "He tries to get a rise out of you.

"But when he gets on the field, he's concentrating. He really understands the concepts that are out there. I really like his football awareness and his ability to see things. He's got great eyes and wonderful lateral movement."

Portis hopes there will be fewer impediments to his lateral movements this season.