ASHBURN, Va. -- Earlier in the season, one play typified the challenge faced by Washington Redskins rookie running back Samaje Perine. It occurred against the Los Angeles Rams, with Perine running behind a pulling tight end. The problem: Perine ran ahead of one Niles Paul, a big no-no for a running back. He gained 3 yards. With more patience, he could have tripled that total.

Flash ahead to Sunday against Minnesota. Now the Redskins starting back, Perine once again ran a counter to the left with two linemen pulling that way. He let them do their job, then cut back for a 9-yard gain.

It's a sign of progress for a rookie still adjusting to running in the NFL. And it's what the Redskins hope they see more of moving forward. With Rob Kelley out for the season, Perine becomes the Redskins' starter. His season has been filled with lessons about being more patient.

"When I first got here, I was overrunning the pullers," he said. "Once I started to trust that they'll be there and trust that they'll make their blocks, it allows me to slow down and, not jog, but have more patience and wait for those guys to pull and get up on those guys."

Perine admits he's still learning how to be patient, but he's a lot better than he was earlier in the season. Part of the problem stems from only running out of shotgun formation at Oklahoma. When he runs with the quarterback under center, Perine must be more patient. That Rams game highlighted his struggles, though, because he was filling in for Kelley, he had a chance for more carries.

He finished with 67 yards on 21 carries. But he could have had more just by being a bit more slow. On another run earlier in that game, he was on the foot of pulling guard Shawn Lauvao when he hit the hole, preventing him from making a better cut. And a strong gain.

"It's just being more patient with everything," Perine said, "because everything is right there, extremely quick. In the gun, you have a chance to [read]."

In shotgun formation, Perine has rushed 18 times for 82 yards. When the quarterback is under center, Perine has rushed 48 times for 128 yards. But that patience has showed in the last two games: Perine has rushed nine times for 41 yards out of that look, according to ESPN Stats & Information.

"He's getting better looks," Redskins coach Jay Gruden said. "This is all new to him. He's good out of shotgun, but we've just got to keep giving him the ball. He's a guy that will get better with more carries. He's such a physical guy that the more carries he gets, he'll wear down a defense."

That's what the Redskins have hoped their rookie fourth-round pick would do for a while. Now, at 4-5, they need him to be that guy. It'll start with his patience.

"Once the reps build up, and once you get more comfortable in a situation things start to slow down for you," Perine said. "Then once you're comfortable in the offense and you know where everyone is going to be, then you can anticipate what the line is doing and what the defense is doing. Then you can go from there."