The Washington Redskins are running a lot and getting nowhere fast.

After averaging 2.6 yards per carry in a 21-19 victory Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals, the Redskins fell to 25th in the NFL in average per carry at 3.5 yards.

It's the third time in four weeks the Redskins have failed to crack 100 yards rushing. After opening the season with 191 ground yards against Miami and 130 against Philadelphia, what was supposed to be the main strength of the Redskins' attack is missing in action.

"We didn't get it done," Redskins coach Joe Gibbs said Monday.

"It's something we put a big emphasis on, but we didn't rush the ball. We've got to do a much better job of rushing the ball from here on forward if we're going to be successful."

After the game Sunday, running back Clinton Portis blamed the offense's practice habits and said that unit -- coached by Gibbs and coordinator Al Saunders -- could take a page from its defensive counterparts.

"If you watch our defense at practice, they're quick, smooth, fly around," Portis told a Washington television station. "For us, the offense, we drop balls in practice, we turn it over in practice. What we do in practice we do in the game."

Gibbs didn't agree.

"When we turn over a ball in practice, we take a lap, and I take a lap with them," he said. "I know who's turning the ball over and how many penalties we have. What hurt us last week was the people we had to practice with. Todd [Wade] sat out a bunch of them. Jason [Fabini] was at a different position. We had [center Mike Pucillo]. For me last week, practice was a struggle."

Gibbs said at one point, he feared the line was so battered that the offense might be limited to walk-throughs instead of full-pad practices against the defense. Enough players returned that he was able to conduct one practice.

The loss of right-side linemen Jon Jansen and Randy Thomas set back the offense. The loss of center Casey Rabach against the Packers left a hole, as did leg injuries to Wade and Stephon Heyer.

The erosion of personnel on offense changed the way the game against the Cardinals was called. The coach said when he and Saunders saw how the defense was handling the Arizona offense early in the game, they made a decision to go ultra-conservative and lean on Gregg Williams' unit.

"It affected some of the things we did," Gibbs said .

Washington threw one deep ball all day. Quarterback Jason Campbell passed five times in the second half, completing all of them for 48 yards. The conservative play-calling led to three consecutive three-and-out series, enabling the Cardinals to establish a nine-minute advantage in time of possession.

"You definitely feel like there are things we could be better at, especially when closing out the game," Pucillo said. "We want to go out there and put destiny in our hands. It's a little frustrating."

Gibbs offered no answers or assurances that the problem can be fixed, other than to say he and the staff are "working our guts out" to find a solution. They've talked about changing the way they practice. They've analyzed their run-pass ratio.

"We've just got to keep working," Campbell said. "One day, the defense is going to count on us."

Notes

Gibbs and defensive tackle Cornelius Griffin received word at almost the same time during the game that Griffin's wife had given birth. Gibbs approached him on the bench and told him, "If it's any consolation for you, I wasn't there for [the birth of] my second one, either, and he turned out fine." . . . Without benefit of anything but a walk-through, cornerback Shawn Springs played 58 snaps against the Cardinals. . . . Of his team's chances Sunday against undefeated New England, Gibbs said: "We'll probably be the biggest underdog in the history of sports."