(photo by Brian Murphy)
Just got back from a highly-enjoyable weekend in Canton. Since “exhausted” is the word of the day, I will simply leave you with this photo of Darrell Green and Art Monk from the pre-game ceremony of the Redskins-Colts preseason opener and the memory of the four-minute standing ovation Monk received after finally being voted into the Hall of Fame.
(courtesy photo)
Someone in the Pentagon owes a thank you note to Ted Thompson and the Green Bay Packers.
That’s because, on the eve of training camp, the powers that be in the Department of the Army decided to call an audible and force rookie safety Caleb Campbell, who was drafted by the Detroit Lions in the seventh round of the NFL draft, to head for the showers so that his alter ego, 2nd Lt. Caleb Campbell, could returned back to West Point immediately for duty.
Surely, there was an explanation, right? No one would object if it turned out that Campbell was in a high-demand branch the Army was understaffed in and was needed immediately to deploy in support of the Global War on Terrorism. Football is supremely popular in our culture, but not to the point that anyone expects troops to be picked off the battle lines in favor of playing special teams and garbage time for a perennial loser in Detroit. All it would take is one high-ranking officer standing in front of a podium explaining that this was the case and no one would have thought twice about it.
But much like the Pat Tillman nightmare, the Army assessed the situation, figured out the worst possible way it could play out and then called that play.
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(photo by Brian Murphy)Unfortunately, these moments were few and far between last season. After a solid start, a strained groin slowed Moss for much of the rest of the 2007 season. We had a chance to catch up with Santana recently and chatted about everything from marriage to mixed martial arts. Oh, and we even found time to discuss a little football too.
How frustrating was last year, with all of the nagging injuries and everything?
“It was, but at the same time, when you overcome it, it builds you to be a stronger person,” Moss said. “One thing I take from every year, I look at what I go through and I say to myself ‘How did I finish?’ Or ‘What did I accomplish?’ If you can get something out of — because no one in the NFL is going to play with everything alright — but when I go through stuff like that it just builds me stronger and makes me understand that I’m doing things when I’m not at full speed. I’m just looking forward to having one of those years where, if nothing’s bothering me, I’ll just be able to dominate the whole time.”
So are you tired of training camp, or are you actually getting something out of this?
“I like to put in the work and really look forward to what we gonna be able to show after the whole thing is done,” he said. “Training camp is one of those experiences where there’s gonna be dog days and it’s gonna be hard, but as long as you put the work in you have something to look forward to when it comes to the season.”
Congrats on getting married this offseason. Has that changed anything between the two of you?
“Nah. I’ve been with her like 13 years already, so it just made an honest woman out of her. That’s all,” Moss said.
Naturally, the topic of marriage made me think of mixed martial arts, so I asked Santana about MMA and was surprised by his answer.
“I like that. I actually enjoy watching that. I actually trained — I did a little of that training-wise this year, and it’s some tough shit, man,” he said.
What did you do?
“All kinds of stuff,” he said. “The conditioning is crazy — the fighting, the punching and the kicking. You think you can do that for hours, and those guys can do it. But it’s not easy at all. So my first couple of months when I was home, instead of doing football stuff, just to keep my wind right. There wasn’t a day that I did it that I was in shape. I felt like it broke me down every day. There was something new that I experienced every day.”
What are you seeing from these rookie receivers?
“I see a lot of potential,” Moss said. “When you come into this league young, with so much going on, you’re trying to settle in and trying to do this and do that. What I see with these guys, they’re confident. They already know that they’ve got guys in front of them that’s gonna help them. There’s no envy. We all here together. We’ve all been in this situation, so I’m gonna let them know everything that I know, and the stuff that I don’t know we’ll learn together.”
What can Redskins fans expect from you guys this year?
“You know, it’s early,” he said. “All we can do is be the best that we can be. I don’t like to talk the talk. I like to go out there and show it. All they can know is that we’re gonna line up every week and be the best team.”
A healthy and motivated Santana Moss is just what this team, and especially Jason Campbell need for the 2008 season. With things looking up both on and off the field for Moss, Redskins fans can reasonably expect a return to the Pro Bowl level they’re used to seeing. And with some mixed martial arts under his belt, we can only hope that the first time Adam “Pacman” Jones or Asante Samuel attempt to jam him at the line of scrimmage, he breaks out a rear-naked choke and makes them tap.
And heaven help Roy Williams if he tries to horse collar anyone when the ‘Skins and Cowboys meet again.
(photo by Brian Murphy)
(photo by Brian Murphy)
“Momma never told me there’d be days like this.
If you could guess what is on the mind of rookie wide receiver Devin Thomas, who suffered a hamstring injury Thursday and will be out for at least the next 10-14 days. If that’s not enough, this is also the week we were finally able to track him down and give him that long-awaited father-son type talk. Some of you may remember that Thomas won the 2008 Rookie Madden Bowl back in May, but that win was clearly tainted because of questionable tactics used by the Michigan State Spartan — namely using the Dallas Cowboys to win the video game tournament. On Wednesday, just 24 hours before he suffered the first setback of his professional career, we tracked him down and set him straight on the one simple rule to survive in this town.
Tell me about this Madden tournament we heard about, I said.
“Oh yeah, it’s a little competition they have for the rookies and I won,” said Thomas, full of confidence. “I handled it pretty well. I took out some guys that were pretty good, and I’ll tell you, it’s fun, man. If anybody wants to challenge me in that Madden they can come get it.”
He had no clue, but someone was in fact about to challenge him. I paused for a second and then asked, “What team did you use?”
“I was using the Redskins at first,” said Thomas, realizing where this interview was heading.
That’s not the rumor, was my reply.
“At first. I said at first,” he said. “Then I had to go ahead and sneak in the Dallas Cowboys.”
He was already using words like “sneak.” Clearly the kid knew he did wrong.
Did no one pull you aside and tell you there’s one team you’re not allowed to use? You know, the arch rival of the team that gives you a paycheck now.
“Uh … I mean … it was just a situation where I had to use the guys I used to play with, so I had to bring out someone I was comfortable with,” Thomas said, backpeddling as fast as he could.
We continued to chat while he signed autographs for fans after practice. Once the interview was over and the recorder was off, Thomas promised me that he knows better now and will refrain from sullying the Redskins good name by using a team that would have sent George Allen over the top (well, if he knew what video games were).
All in all, he’s a good kid and he seems to have a decent head on his shoulders. Let’s chalk this up to a momentary lapse in judgment and never speak of it again.
(photo by Brian Murphy)I guess I should mention the newest addition to the Washington Redskins. You guys may not know this, but #55 is not Dallas Sartz. It’s actually a defensive lineman named Jason Taylor, who men know from his distinguished football career and women drool over because he tap danced his way into their collective hearts on a reality TV show. Seriously, ask any woman nearby what she thinks of Jason Taylor and watch her melt in front of you. It’s absurd.
So yesterday at practice a group of ‘Skins fans were calling Taylor “J.T.” every time they saw him. That, my friends, is a no go at this station. Those initials — much like L.T. is reserved for Lawrence Taylor and LaDainian Tomlinson has to settle for LDT — are taken. As everyone knows, J.T. is Justin Timberlake. And it’s okay to admit you know it, fellas. He was awesome in Black Snake Moan and even this past week at the ESPY awards. The guy is bringing sexy back, so show him some respect and don’t name new guy after him.
Instead, from this point on, we’ll be referring to Jason Taylor as “McDreamy.” Girls gets that retarded look in their eye when you mention his name, just like when they’re talking about Grey’s Anatomy, so it kind of works out. Plus, that means we can call Jason Fabini “McMuffin” and Chris Cooley “McLovin.” Seriously, it’s a win-win.
Oh, and before I forget, whoever first suggested that Taylor looks like King Xerxes from the movie 300 … well … let’s just say that I got a good chuckle out of that one. Thanks for making my day.
(AP photo)As we’ve previously established, I’ve officially given up on trying to bring any type of breaking news or in-depth training camp breakdowns. Smart Redskins fans have plenty of places to go for that kind of stuff. Instead, I’ll continue to focus on some of the important issues that may otherwise go unreported, like how many days into training camp does offensive tackle Jon Jansen anticipate it will take before he and defensive lineman Kedric Golston start throwing punches at each other yet again, or exactly what does it take to be able to enter the training camp mobile home?
So without further adieu, here’s a quick one-on-one chat between a Homer and a Dirtbag.
First things first, are the milkshakes here?
“They will be. They’re not here yet, but it’s once a week and they’ll be here later this week.”
And the RV?
“The RV is out there and ready to go.”
Is the access list full update with who is allowed in?
“I’ve got a committee and if somebody wants in I take down their name to the committee and we go from there.”
When can we expect Jansen-Golston III, since it’s become a training camp ritual?
“Ahhh … we’ve got to get the pads on and it’s gotta get just a little bit warmer. Maybe a couple more days into camp we’ll all start gettig grumpy and things will start getting good.”
What do you say to the folks who say that the offensive line is an area of concern because of the injuries to you and Randy Thomas?
“I can’t really say it on print or on the radio, but it shouldn’t be a concern. I had a fluke injury last year because somebody fell on me. It wasn’t a wear and tear issue. I’ll be fine this year and moving forward.”
What do you see from the rookie Chad Rinehart?
“I’ll have to wait until we see video from today, and then I’ll let you know once we strap on the pads. This is I call it our helmets and skirts, so once we put our pants on we’ll see what happens.”
Right about then, I thanked Mr. Jansen for his time and let him head off into the building for meetings. But I did stop his partner in crime, center Casey Rabach, long enough to follow up on the RV question.
I see an RV out there. What can you tell me about it?
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
I love that about you, that you’ll deny everything until the end. Jansen said that there’s a rigorious process that reviews individual applicants. Can you shed any light on that?
“Yeah. You definitely need to be a card-carrying member to enter, and there are very few cards that have been handed out so far. I’m willing to bet there are even fewer given out this year, so we’ll see what happens.”
So if you’re a kicker who happens to currently be in a feud with Rabach and Jansen, it’s probably pretty safe to say you’re not getting in the RV or getting any Michigan milkshakes. And if you’re Kedric Golston, I’d try to get the panel to approve your RV visitation rights now, because in a week or so you very well may find yourself on the business end of a left cross from the feisty veteran lineman. Consider yourself warned.
