August 31-- Redskins lose 17-10 to ravens, fall ot 0-4 in pre-season

Here’s who didn’t play: WR Santana Moss, T Chris Samuels, G Randy Thomas, all held out mainly for precautionary reasons.. Vets Phillip Daniels, Cornelious Griffin, Clinton Portis, Demetric Evans, Renaldo Wynn, Shawn Springs and Robert McCune were all held out due to injury..

The Redskins ended the pre-season 0-4 for the first time since 1982, they ended up being outscored 104-27.. The first team offense failed to score a point in any of the four games.. Mark Brunell told me on the field afterward that they will just have to see what happens when the opener comes.. Marcus Washington said that the team is not in any kind of panic mode or thinking about packing in the tents, “We haven’t even gotten started yet.” Joe Gibbs admitted that he believes that other teams are hiding their game plans as well, he called the pre-season an “even-up” game and he remains highly concerned that the Redskins have not played to his standard and he remains in a wait and see mode when the regular season begins.. he said however he never knows how a team is going to play regardless how good or bad a pre-season may be..
Washington offered a glimmer of hope saying he understands by playing here how much the mental part of the game plays into success.. he says that due to the team not preparing for the opposition has a lot to do with the ultimate final product.. he says he is going to learn how Minnesota, “eats” let alone their tendencies this week and promises, you’ll see the team that has been a top 10 D come Monday night..

Gibbs said he has made his mind up about who the back-up QB is but refused to disclose it until he tells the players.. The announcement is expected tomorrow afternoon.. He did praise Todd Collins play all be it with many of the 3rd teamers..

Gibbs essentially said that for now Derrick Frost will handle punts and kick-offs, the team may continue to look at potential punters..

Injuries: WR Jimmy Farris suffered a hamstring strain, RB Rock Cartwright suffered a hip injury, QB Jason Campbell has a mild hamstring injury..

The team has until Saturday afternoon to cut down from 75 to 53 players.. Players squarely on the bubble, Draft pick DT’s Kedric Golston and Anthony Montgomery (likely one makes the team), FB Nehemiah Broughton and Manuel White.. Back-up O-line is also very much in question… The leading candidates for interior back-ups are Ike Ndwuke and Mike Puccillo.. Jim Molinaro started at left tackle and played the bulk of the snaps with the first and second team.. Tyson Walter is likely right now the other back-up.. The team has promised to scan the waiver wires for potential depth help there..WR Mike Espy appears like a sure fire candidate for the practice squad with WR a difficult position to crack..

LB Warrick Holdman said he hasn’t played much MLB during the summer, but was familiar enough with the calls to fill in during the Ravens game.. He said it was done to see him at the position in a game situation and because of lingering injuries at the position..

S Adam Archuletta played the bulk of the first half, partially due to Vernon Fox being a back-up safety and signed two days before the game, potentially also because the team wants to see more of him in game action..

August 29-- Punter inked and cut in one day, Gregg says don't believe what you see

The Redskins signed punter Eddie Johnson and after one practice, they released him.. He said he had just moved to Arizona and had to turn down a job interview to be work with a personal training service.. Whoops..
The team also signed former Lions special teams standout Vernon Fox.. He's still on the team..
The team released corner Dimitri Patterson and RB Jesse Lumsden to make room on the roster.. The team will have an open roster spot as of tomorrow when the waiving of Jonnson officially goes through..
The team also worked out former Cowboys punter Toby Gowin but he was not signed..

WR Santana Moss missed practice because he had a "day off." The team was not any more specific..
Other injuries: DE Phillip Daniels (back), DT Cornelious Griffin (knee), DT Demetric Evans (wisdom teeth), LB Robert McCune (hamstring), DE renaldo Wynn (ankle), Rb Clinton Portis (shoulder), CB Shawn Springs (abdominal)

Gregg Williams said he had to physically retrain Marcus Washington from going back into the game against NE last weekend.. It was an exmaple he gave of the effort of his team during the blowout loss.,. He also said he had hoped to cut a player after the game, but when he watched the film he was assuming he'd find someone who wasn't giving the effort he demands at the end of the game, but that never materialized...
Williams said the coaching staff has spent no time game planning any opponent this pre-season.. He said, like Al Saunders has said, they have been mixing and matching personnel and keeping the schemes close to the vest...
On the NE game though as a whole, he said "you never think something like that is going to happen but do I have confidence in the plan? Yep. Do I have confidence in the players? Yep." He said he "brought the house in Cincinnati and we know we can do that, so we are working on other things." So add Williams among the coaches not saying what has happened is scripted, but he's not concerned about what this team will look like when the season starts.. He also said that his room has been quite attentive since the last two weeks..
Williams also said the 3rd pre-season game is over-hyped, saying "Why would I should what I am going to do?"

Jason Campbell would say whether he thinks he won the back-up quarterback job.. he said he would be dissapointed if he didn't get it but he still believes that at some point his number will be called and he's ready...

Jimmy Farris said last year when he scored 2 Touchdowns against the Ravens in the pre-season finale but got cut anyway, allowed him to "drive back to Atlanta in peace." He said that when you do everything you are asked to do and you perform, then you can leave with piece of mind that he did everything he could have.. Farris like rookie Mike Espy are longshots to make the team with all the receivers on the roster.. Espy said he would be happy if the team asked him to be part of the practice squad, but of course is holding out hope he can stick somehow on the roster...

August 28-- Everyone is remaining calm

No one is jumping off a bridge, yet.. Al Saunders defended his team saying that they use the pre-season to try out different players in different protection schemes to see how they will react.. They are not running very much of the offense that they are practicing and he said for those of us who have watched practice, you’ll see a different output from this group from what you have seen.. And he continued to use his resume for everyone to rely on.. when he says, “this system will work.”
Santana Moss said he recognizes that everyone on the outside wants to see a different production level to show that this thing can be what he and his teammates believe it will be.. He said, it’s kind of like when you are in college and you don’t have pre-season games and you just have to be ready for the regular season saying he thinks things will definitely be different when Monday night’s opener comes..
Mark Brunell said the issue isn’t about being vanilla, he believes the Redskins should have and should be more productive in the pre-season then they have been, but like his other teammates, pledged full support to what the offense is doing and that things will get right sooner rather then later.. Brunell said he has not been told how much the first team offense will play against the Ravens.. Typically, the starters make only a cursory appearance in the last pre-seaosn game but it is being bandied about if they will play a little longer due to the sluggishness of the first 3 pre-season games..
Essentially, the doom and gloom projected by everyone else is not in the front of the public mindset of those at the Park..

P Derrick Frost admits he has played poorly the last couple of weeks and he expects a new punter to come in and compete for his job later this week.. Team sources have told me that they are prepared to have a new punter come in when the coaching staff is ready.. Frost said he is not relieved by the release of David Lonie saying he knows the competition will continue..

Phillip Daniels and Cornelious Griffin both reiterated that nothing from last year carries over here and that each player must start by looking in the mirror as the defense has struggled…

Director of Pro scouting Louis Riddick joined Redskins Lunch and said the team has a list of 90 players who may be released next week, he thinks only half will be available so the Redskins are prepared to add some help at specific positions should the right guys be on the market.. This likely means an O-lineman and potentially more help in the secondary and of course a punter..

Injuries: DE Phillip Daniels said he will not play this week against Baltimore still dealing with a strained back but was back on the field doing some individual work today for the first time since the injury, he was still not in pads though.. DT Cornelious Griffin was also running with his teammates, but also not in pads and is unlikely to play vs. the Ravens.. he sprained a knee ligament against the Jets..
T Jim Molinaro was back at practice for the first time since a knee scope a few weeks ago, he was said to be tired by the end of practice..
FB Mike Sellars has a stomach virus and was held out of practice.. DT Demetric Evans missed practice because he has an infected wisdom tooth and is having it extracted..
DE Renaldo Wynn is said to be doing great, but missed practice after suffering a sprained ankle against NE, he is unlikely to play vs. the Ravens..
RB Clinton Portis did some running and strengthening of his shoulder but remains out of practice and will not play Thursday..
CB Shawn Springs was on the field, not in pads, did some very light work and is a ways away from actually practicing..
LB Khary Campbell missed practice, he has a swollen bursa sac on his knee..
LB Robert McCune was held out with a strained hamstring and is said not to be ready to return to practice…

August 27-- NE wrap, first round of cuts

Offensive players are saying that the offense the team is running in pre-season games is very different from the more motion filled thing they are running in practice.. Joe Gibbs doesn’t believe that this is anexcuse for the offensive woes of the pre-season saying the team is running some sound stuff, they need to execute it better.. Gibbs said he is looking at himself, as everyone should be doing in order to try to find a way to dig out of this summer hole…

Gibbs said he is not second guessing the shorter/lighter camp that the Redskins chose to run, but he could see where it could be perceived as a problem right now..

Gibbs did praise the play of Mark Brunell saying he did some good things on film.. He appeared indecisive at times, he was sacked three times in the first half alone and ended up with only 20 passing yards in the first half.. Gibbs did say the second team players missed blitz pick-ups which can’t happen.. he said the starters had problems with a couple of stunts the Patriots ran at them..



Gibbs said Derrick Frost has to be more consistent, but refused to speculate whether the Redskins will bring in a new punter to compete with him for the job.. Frost is currently the only punter on the roster after the team released David Lonie…



The only injury of note from the NE game was DE Renaldo Wynn who sprained his ankle.. He believed he was the victim of a horse collar play.. The rule doesn’t stipulate any penalty if this technique is used on a defensive player, it is designed to crack down on the dangerous tackles on runners..

There is no word whether Cornelious Griffin, Clinton Portis or Phillip Daniels will practice this week.. Portis won’t play in the pre-season finale, I’m unsure about the status of Daniels and Griffin.. Shawn Springs is not expected to play against the Ravens either..



Asked if he thinks the offensive players will know if the offense is fixed for the Minnesota game before the season opener, Ladell Betts responded by saying “That’s a good question.”



Gibbs continues to profess the “we are all in this together mantra” taking the blame himself for the overall effort.. he expected a better performance this week after the intensity was ratcheted up following the Jets loss.. He continues to believe the veteran leadership of this team will ultimately pull everyone through.. And of course, they may be 0-3, but after next weekend, they are 0-0..



Players who have been released: P David Lonie, K Tyler Jones, OL Jim Jones, OL John Alston, TE Robert Johnson, LB Kevin Simon, DT Chris Mineo, DE Karon Riley, CB Aric Williams, S Antuan Eduards, QB Casey Bramlett, TE Calen Powell..



Johnson is biggest surprise of the early cuts, he appeared like a probable third TE on the roster.. He sprained his ankle in the Jets game and was not able to get back on the field last week..

The release of Jones ensures John hall the kicking job.. Lonie’s release doesn’t mean Derrick Frost was won the punting job, the team can carry players through Tuesday at 4PM, meaning they can bring in another punter to compete if they choose..

Kevin Simon was a 7th round pick out of Tennessee, He did not play in any of the Redskins pre-season games dealing with an abdominal injury.. He is the first draft pick released… Antuan Edwards was an 8 year veteran brought in two weeks ago..



The Redskins have to get the roster down to 75 by Tuesday.. Currently they have 76 players on their roster unless they bring in some new players tomorrow.. If the roster stays the same, they will have to cut one more Tuesday..

August 24-- Duckett's First Day, The other backs will stay

QB Mark Brunell was held out of practice due to a sore groin that started bothering him on Wednesday.. The team says it is precautionary and that he is fine and will play in NE Saturday night..

TJ Duckett was on the field for his first practice with the team.. The coaches say he will get some carries Saturday night.. He admits the terminology here is very different then from Atlanta, but he hopes he can catch on quickly and for the time being his instincts might just have to take over.. Earnest Byner said he was happy about the reaction of his other backs to the trade saying if “they don’t care, then we don’t have the right people here.”
The team continues to contend that Rock Cartwright and Ladell Betts are not in danger of being released.. Vinny Cerrato went so far as to say that Betts’s agent praised the deal… Cerrato said that Duckett’s agent is not interested in discussing a long term extension right now and the team doesn’t seem to be in a rush to get something locked in stone.. If Duckett leaves, he could end up being a high priced rent a player..

The reason the Duckett deal took so long to be finalized was based partially on money the Broncos were trying to retrieve from WR Ashley Leile.. The rumor around here yesterday was that Leile had to fax a copy of a check he was sending to Denver before the Broncos would sign off on the deal..

RB Clinton Portis says it is too soon to tell when he will be able to return to practice, saying he is not close to being fully healed right now and that he’ll continue to rehab…

LB Robert McCune has a strained hamstring and is out for the NE game, he did not practice on Thursday..
Others who missed practice: Portis (shoulder), CB Shawn Springs (abdominal), LB Kevin Simon (abdominal), TE Robert Johnson (ankle), DT Cornelious Griffin (knee), DE Phillip Daniels (back), T Jim Molinaro (knee) None of these players are expected to play against the Patriots..

Cerrato also said the team as of right now is happy with the two punters and that they are not searching the marketplace for a replacement…

Duckett in DC

The Redskins completed the three way trade which brings TJ Duckett to Washington.. The draft pick dealt to Denver won’t be finalized until the season is over.. It’s convoluted but there has been a value assessed to the compensation that Denver will ultimately receive.. So the team’s could end up swapping spots in the first round to complete the deal, or Washington could end up owing Denver a pick if say both team end at different spectrums of the draft following the upcoming season.. It’s possible the Skins could deal a 3rd round pick.. Duckett is in the final year of his contract..

Ladell Betts is in the final year of his contract and there had been hints of a possible contract extension…



RB Rock Cartwright said he was shocked when he heard the news but that he received calls from Ladell Betts, Earnest Byner and Joe Gibbs who all told him about it before it became public.. He said he’ll continue to prove himself again and again, that hard work pays off and if he has to be the special teams standout as he’s been the last couple of years, he’ll continue doing so..



RB Clinton Portis said that also “can be a bruiser” like Duckett.. And that he is not in the business of questioning anything anymore.. He told me he is done ranting and raving about anything, that he understands his role, he’s the player and they are the coaches and whatever they decide is fine..



Gibbs says that the depth chart has not yet been determined outside of the fact that the team is expecting Clinton Portis to remain the starter, hopefully the first game.. The team has not begun discussions about potentially locking up Duckett long term.. Gibbs did say he can envision a roster that has Betts, Cartwright, Portis and Duckett on the roster, he called Cartwright and Betts and spoke to them separately last night and told them they remain important parts of the team and that they are expected to continue to have roles on the team..

Gibbs also said talks on this deal nearly broke down numerous times over the past couple of days without elaborating…

WR Atevius Cash was released to make room on the roster for Duckett..



Assistant coach Don Breaux has undergone hernia surgery today.. He will remain hospitalized for a couple of days and is expected to return home by the weekend.. The team hopes he will be able to rejoin them next week… Breaux likely will not make the trip to New England.. He’s been dealing with stomach pain for some time, Joe Gibbs said the surgery went well and that Breaux is doing OK..



Joe Gibbs was seen joining the D-linemen for their daily agility drills.. He did the walk kicking each leg up one by one as high as he could.. The linemen gave him pretty good grades for his effort.. Gibbs said he was just trying to lighten the mood a little bit..



WR David Patten returned to practice after missing yesterday with a bruised thigh..



Those who did not participate in practice: RB Clinton Portis (shoulder), CB Shawn Springs (abdominal), T Jim Molinaro (knee), LB Kevin Simon (abdominal), DE Phillip Daniels (back), DT Cornelious Griffin (knee), TE Robert Johnson (ankle)



Jon Jansen has passed a pre-season test coaches performed on him during the exhibition season.. Al Saunders wanted to see if Jansen was back to his old self by not adding any extra help in blocking schemes.. Saunders said he has passed with flying colors… Jansen told me he is very proud of the season he had a year ago saying he believes very few would have tried to play with two broken thumbs.. He also said he wants to assure coaches that not only are his hands healthy but he is ready to be put back on the island…

This was a similar test the team did with Mike Sellars who they handed the ball off to during the Jets games.. Saunders wanted to gauge Sellars running ability with the goal of splitting Clinton Portis wide during the season in order to spread the defense and give Portis a spell without taking him off the field…

Duckett comes to DC via 3 team deal

The Redskins acquired former first round pick running back TJ Duckett from Atlanta in a 3 team deal that shipped WR Ashley Leile to Atlanta.. Washington sends a draft choice (believed to be a 3rd round pick) but I have not gotten exactly yet at this point..

Duckett's presence puts the roster spots of Rock Cartwright, Nehemiah Broughton, Manuel White and Jesse Lumsden in jeopardy..

August 22-- Duckett Rumors Not Denied

The Redskins are not denying interest in the trade rumors.. Joe Gibbs would not specifically discuss the TJ Duckett rumor written in the Atlanta Journal Constitution saying that “calls are made from this office and we receive. People are just trying to cover their bases.” Gibbs also said he likes Stephen Davis but nothing appears imminent.. It is my belief that David Patten is not currently on the trade market.. The Falcons are trying to receive a player in return, potentially a #3 WR or a safety.. If Patten won’t be dealt, the Skins may not have what Atlanta wants..
Gibbs says he likes his current group of running backs and that the Clinton Portis injury, according to the doctors is not one that will linger into the regular season.. He believes the type of separation involved is one that is better then others, not involving the top of the shoulder, which apparently can have lasting effects..

Portis was present for the walk through, he of course is still not in pads and remains a ways away from actually practicing..

CB Shawn Springs was in the building, but he remains out of practice recovering from the abdominal surgery..

WR David Patten missed practice after suffering a thigh bruise in practice, he is questionable for the game with the Patriots..

Others who missed practice today: T Jim Molinaro (knee), DT Cornelious Griffin (knee), DE Phillip Daniels (back), TE Robert Johnson (ankle), LB Kevin Simon (abdominal)

LB Khary Campbell returned to practice after missing Monday with a bruised knee..

P David Lonie will take the first half kick offs and punts in the NE game as the punting competition continues.. Special teams coach Danny Smith said that no decision has been made on that front.. he also said no determination has been made about who will do kick offs during the regular season.. The original plan was to have the punter do it.. John Hall is capable, but the team is hoping to avoid having him do so to protect his leg for field goals… It will be dependent on whether or not the punter selected for the team can get the right distance and hang time..
Smith also said he is comfortable with the group he has despite the special teams breakdowns of a week ago but said that he learned a lot about the mixed and matched personnel he used last week..

Intensity remains high at practice, for the second straight day the team had a fully padded practice.. This was a first since camp began.. Also the amount of reps have increased dramatically.. Mark Brunnell said the team discussed their effort level in the Jets game and it is something that everyone believes won’t carry over from this point forward..

August 21-- Apologies to Lou Holtz as the Park gets Intense

There was a very different level of intensity pervasive at Redskins park today following the NYJ loss over the weekend.. Joe Gibbs changed what was scheduled to be a light practice into one with full pads.. Plauers said the time between reps was much shorter.. Brandon Lloyd said it best, that Gibbs didn’t have to say anything..
Gregg Williams had his players running sprints and doing up-downs during the early portions of practice..
Welcome to round two of training camp…

RB Clinton Portis was at practice in shorts and a T-shirt doing some light running, he is not near a return to practice but continues to try to keep his conditioning up.. Portis said he had a similar injury in the last game of his high school career but obviously had plenty of time for that to heal.. This one concerns him only because he has never had an injury in the pre-season and he hopes it doesn’t linger into the regular season.. Portis remains hopeful to play in the opener but likely remains at least a week away from giving practice a shot..

DT Cornelious Griffin (knee sprain) was held out of practice, DE Phillip Daniels (strained back) also did not practice..
Others who were held out: LB Khary Campbell (knee), CB Shawn Springs (abdominal surgery), T Jim Molinaro (knee), TE Robert Johnson (ankle), LB Kevin Simon (abdominal)..

Those who returned after missing practice last week: WR Brandon Lloyd, DE Nic Clemons, WR Atevius Cash, S Curry Burns, CB Ade Jimoh..

Brandon Lloyd said that he does believe the pre-season should be taken seriously and that he did not miss the game over the weekend to try to avoid anything.. he says he believes practice is very important and that he was just listening to his body late last week.. he expects to be fine for the NE game….

Adam Archuletta said what he likes most about playing with Sean Taylor is that Taylor comes in with a playmakers mentality, that he is willing to take chances to make plays knowing his teammates have his back.. This sounds like freelancing to me, the buzz word for the fall of LaVar Arrington in terms of on field performance, but apparently Taylor has more of the coaches’ blessing in this regard.. Archuletta said the terminology and technique used by this group is different then the one he was used to so he is still in the process of learning the system as it were.. Gregg Williams had said they need Archuletta to get better in pass coverage..

RB Stephen Davis’s agent contacted the Redskins to gauge their interest in him returning to Washington.. Davis was released with an injury settlement from Carolina.. My sources told me that while they like Davis, they are not interested in signing him right now, they would prefer to evaluate the players they have at the position through the pre-season.. Davis is expected to meet with the Eagles as well..

Terry Bateman was hired as the new Chief marketing officer for the Redskins internet and broadcast properties.. He was the President of Snyder Communications..

I must correct a story we discussed about Lou Holtz being offered the Redskins coaching job the year Steve Spurrier was hired.. It was reported that Holtz wrote in his new book that he was “offered” the Redskins head coaching position back in 2001.. This story was furthered by a couple of reporters for “The State”, a newspaper based in Columbia, SC in this respect, they have quotes from Holtz’s former boss AD Mike McGee at the University of South Carolina saying he was told the Redskins offered Holtz the job..
Vinny Cerrato came on Redskins lunch a week and a half ago and I asked him about this.. He denied the Redskins offered the job to Holtz, but they did have a casual meeting with Holtz to discuss potential coaching candidates.. Holtz reportedly pitched himself for the job, which I can’t confirm.. This was all set up through former front office man Pepper Rodgers..
Cerrato’s discussion of the story filtered back to Holtz.. Lou then left Cerrato a nasty message telling him essentially to read the book first before commenting on what was said.. In fact Holtz never wrote he was offered the job.. Stupid me for not reading the book but going on the reports that I read..
I spoke with the two reporters in Columbia who essentially explained the entire misunderstanding to me.. McGee believed Holtz was offered the job, however he came to that conclusion doesn’t matter, but Holtz never asserted he was offered the job in his book and the team never did offer him the job..
So, today I had to have a surreal conversation with Holtz himself apologizing on behalf of Cerrato for asking him questions about a false report.. It turns out Lou is on the road so I spoke with his very nice assistant, explained the situation.. Because it’s ridiculously confusing, she asked me to e-mail the explanation to her, when she received it, she promised to fax it to Holt so he could get to the bottom of it himself..
So, I get the idiot award today…

Stephen Davis interested in return to Skins?

Philly Daily News reports Stephen Davis who was released by the Panthers due to injury was contacted by the Redskins and is meeting with the Eagles..

Sources at the Park told me, Davis’s agent contacted the team, not the other way around.. The team does not have interest in signing him right now, the Skins are currently more interested in evaluating their own players at RB through the pre-season first..
The team does “like Stephen very much, but right now we don’t have interest.”

There remains a possibility the team could be interested after the pre-season ends, but if someone comes forward first, he likely won’t be coming back here..

August 20-- Gibbs angry after Skins fall to Jets 27-14

The Jets held the ball for an entire quarter longer then the Skins and dominated special teams play as Washingtonfalls to 0-2 in the pre-season after a 27-14 home loss..

NY had more return yards then the Skins had rush yards including a a TD return off a Skins scoring drive in the first half.. The opening kickoff coverage featured Jeff Posey and Mike Rumph, both signed this week and undrafted rookie Mike Espy, thus the usual starting group was not prevalent.. So the Skins were testing some new faces..

The defense gave up 216 yard rushing as NY held the ball for 37 plus minutes in the battle of time of posession.. The Jets had a 23 play drive that nearly ate up the entire third quarter..

Washington has still yet to have a lead in the two pre-season games and have lost by a combirned 29 points to two teams who did not play their starting quarterbacks at all..

Chad Pennington was out for the game due to personal reasons, Patrick Ramsey started and received a smattering of applause but no boos.. He was sacked by Adam Archulletta on the Jets first drive forcing a punt..
Brooks Bollinger was very successful against the Skins defense showing off his mobility..

The Jets scored their first TD on a reverse to former Missouri QB Brad Smith.. Mike Rumph was backing up on the play when it came to his side, by the time he figured it out, he was roadkill.. Gregg Williams gave him an earful after the play.. Renaldo Wynn took some of the blame fo the reverse saying he needs to make that play..

Joe Gibbs had a short terse press conference saying he is obviously not coaching well and the players need to take this serious as there is a high level of concern for the overall team play..

Injuries: DT Cornelious Griffin suffered a mild sprain of the MCL in his right knee, he'll be re-evaluated today, no MRI is scheduled, this doesn't appear serious but may keep him out of practice this week..
TE Robert Johnson suffered a sprained left ankle, X-rays were negative..
LB Khary Campbell suffered a bruised left knee but kept playing..

Jason Campbell said he hasn't much time with the starters in practice thus it was a little uncomfortable for him to be with them when he intiially came into the game.. He was very angry at himself for his INT saying he tried to force a play downfield after the Jets came on an all out blitz.. He was pleased how his teammates rallied around him afterward though and he said the team was playing at a different speed for him following the turnover..

WR Brandon Lloyd was held out of the game as a precaution due to a sore hamstring..

August 17-- Moss has no ill will toward Jets, Lloyd's hamstring smarts

WR Brandon Lloyd was held out of practice with a sore hamstring.. He and Joe Gibbs called it precautionary, but he is now questionable to play in the Jets game.. Lloyd said he is listening to his body and he'd rather sit out a day or two then push it and injure a muscle and miss 3 weeks..

RB Ladell Betts will start at RB for the Skins in the absence of Clinton Portis, Rock Cartwright, then Nememiah broughton, AJ Harris and Jesse Lumsden will all get carries..
There is no certainty how long the starters will go, but expect about the same as Cincinnati maybe a little more, 15 plays.. Jason Campbell should see 2 quarters of work again this time with the second team..

Training camp unceremoniously ended, the team has no more bed checks, the players will be moving out of the dorm this weekend and back home..

Santana Moss said he has no ill will toward the Jets as he faces his former team for the first time since being traded to Washington for Lavernues Coles.. Moss broke the Skins single season receiving mark last year and said that he was very capable of having a seaosn like that while in NY but that the team ran a different offense and that he was as productive as the offense allowed him to be..

Carlos Rogers says Jerry Gray told him he is very capable of being a pro bowl corner.. Gregg Williams touted Rogers as primed for having the best year of his career pro or college this season.. Rogers said he is not concerned about the absence of Springs because he believes it will just give him more opportunities to make plays.. This would be a first for him covering top WR's..

Those who did not practice along with Lloyd: RB Clinton Portis (shoulder), T Jim Molinaro (knee), DE Phillip Daniels (back), LB kevin Simon (abdominal), WR Richard Smith (high ankle sprain), CB Shawn Springs (abdominal), WR Atevius Cash (hamstring), CB Ade Jimoh (sternum).

Those who returned to practice after missing: T Chris Pino, T John Alston, DE Nic Clemons (his first work sdince suffering a bruised knee in the scrimmage against B'more) He still is not expected to play tomorrow night..

Former Secretary of Agriculture Mike Espy, father of the receiver trying to make the team was at practice today.. You can hear his interview on the Triple X ESPN radio pre-game show...

August 17-- 2 more signed, Daniels Hurts back

DE Phillip Daniels saw a back specialist today, he is going to rest for 1-2 weeks after a back strain.. He was not at practice and will not be playing in the game against the NYJ this weekend..

CB Shawn Springs is back home after undergoing the surgery to repair an abdominal muscle yesterday.. he will be back at Redskins park tomorrow.. Springs's timeline to return is more liekly in the 4-6 week range according to team tariners putting the opener very much in doubt... Initially, Springs asked trainers for some anti-inflammatory medicine to deal with the soreness in his groin, instead the team decided to check it out and ultimately came to the decision to have the surgery done now.,.

Clinton Portis "has a shot to get back by the opener." that's according to Bubba Tyer as the back continues to rehab his shoulder.. The team believes he should be able to increase his workload in about a week, for now the plan is to continue to allow the soreness to get out of the joint.. Tyer said the tissue in the region needs to "calm down" before Portis attempts any hard rehab on the injured shoulder..

T Jon Alston is undergoing an MRI on his knee to determine the severity of his injury.. WR Atevius Cash remained sidelined with a hamstirng injury, S Cuirry Burns (hamstring) is out for the Jets game, LB Kevin Simon missed practice with an abdominal strain, T Chris Pino was held out with shoulder soreness, he is expected to return to practice tomorrow.. DE Nic Clemons did some individual drills today, may do more limited work tomorrow (knee contusion suffered in B'more scrimmage), CB Ade Jimoh is lifting weights but his sore sternum is not ready for any kind of contact yet, he will not play in the Jets game.. WR Richard Smith re-aggravted a high ankle sprain he suffered while playing in NFL Europe, his leg was in a boot.. T Jim Molinaro remains out rehabbing a surgically repaired knee, he won't play this weekend either..

The team signed CB Julian Battle a former 3rd round pick of the Chiefs who missed most of the '05 season with an achilles injury and S Antuan Edwards who is a seven year vet who has played for Green Bay, St. Louis, Miami and Atlanta.. He only appeared in four games for the Falcons a seaon ago..
To make room on the roster, the team cut OL Jonta Woodard and CB Chris Hawkins..

CB Mike Rumph participated in his first practice as a Redskin after Taylor Jacobs passed his physical in SF last night.. The three newcomers to the secondary were all subjected to the conditioning test run by Gregg Williams, 40 up downs.. Williams said he borrowed this technique from Buddy Ryan when he coached with him in Houston.. Williams says the point is that no one on his defense should get used to staying on the ground, that when a defense gets gashed it's because of poor tackling or playing not getting up quickly enough.. Rumph had been clued in to the conditioning test thanks to some of his ex-Hurricane teammates.. The others had a rude awakening.. Rumph joined secondary coach Jerry Gray at the crack of dawn this morning hoping to begin the assimilation process as a new Redskin defender..
Williams said the secondary situation is nothing he will panic about, that all of his CB's will be physical "or they'll be cut" and agreed this was the best time for Springs to undergo this procedure.. He also said he is constantly reminding Reed Doughty that his first NFL play is getting burned on a flea flicker, saying it's partially his fault for not relaying the information that allowed him to look "that foolish."

Carlos Rogers "is ready to have the best year of his career, college or pro." That according to Williams saying Rogers made the strides in his game the way Shawn Springs did a season ago..

Williams also touted the play of Rocky McIntosh in his first game saying he came off blocks at the point of attack in a way that has to be ingrained inside a player, nothing he can coach..

On DE Karon Riley who had a good game against Cincy with a sack, Williams said it means nothing, that Riley needs to prove he can do that against starters not against guys the Bengals are going to cut..

Joe Gibbs said that David Patten appears to be 100 percent saying yesterday's practice, he appeared to be "flying."

I spoke with both Mark Brunnell and Jon Jansen, both friends of Patrick Ramsey about playing him this weekend, both said they speak to Ramsey regularly and that he is happy in NY and hoping, like he was here to get a shot at starting.. Joe Gibbs reiterated his respect for Ramsey saying "He has a lot of friends here."
Gibbs also said that Jason Campbell could be playing right now for the Redskins but that the plan remains for Mark Brunnell to lead the team this season.. Campbell will be the first off the bench this Saturday and is expected to play about as many snaps as he did in Cincinnati, which ammounts to about one half of work..

August 15-- 3 signed, 3 released, Springs out 3-6 weeks

CB Shawn Springs underwent surgery in Durham, NC to have an abdominal muscle reapired that is attached to the pubic bone.. He will be out 3-6 weeks.. Joe Gibbs said he did not have to have the procedure done now, but that Springs had been complaining about soreness in his groin region and the team felt it was best to address it now so it won't affect him in the season.. The team is not sure is the injury is related to the back and groin issues he dealt with at the end of last season..

Newly acquired CB Mike Rumph was at practice but was not allowed to participate because Taylor Jacobs had not cleared his physical with the 49ers before Skins practice started.. He is expected to be in uniform tomorrow assuming all goes well with the physical.. Rumph said he believes his injury issues are behind him, limited to five games over the past two seasons, most recently he had a torn muscle in his foot forcing him out of the Niners final 13 games.,. Gibbs said Rumph came highly recommended by some of the other University of Miami players on the roster, Gibbs did quip that the U guys don't always say to sign a free agent former teammate..

The team waived LB Chris Clemons, he will be available to sign with other teams when his knee is healthy..
The team also released safety Ben Emmanuel...
The Redskins placed RB Kerry Carter on IR after he tore two knee ligaments in the Cincy game..

Washington signed three players, LB Jeff Posey who is an 8 year veteran, this is his sixth team, he said he wanted to come to Washington due to the familiarty of the defense having played under Jerry Gray and Gregg Williams.. Posey said he was also speaking with the Jets and Saints, he said his decision took a while to make because "I like to pray on decisions like this."
OL Spencer Folau has been out of the league since last summer when he was released by New Orleans.. He played for the Saints, Dolphins and Ravens in his 8 year career..
RB AJ Harris was at Redskins rookie camp, he was signed to replace Carter on the roster..

DE Phillip Daniels suffered back spasms in practice, he was forced to leave early...

Guys who did not practice: RB Clinton Portis (shoulder), CB Shawn Springs (surgery for abdonial muscle tear), T Jim Molinaro (knee), T Chris Pino (shoulder) he won't practice tomorrow but is hopeful to return on Thursday, LB Kevin Simon (abdominal), S Curry Burns (hamstring), T John Alston (left knee), WR Atevius Cash (hamstring), DE Nic Clemons (knee), CB Ade Jimoh (sternum), DB Aric Williams..

RB Jesse Lumsden was back at practice but participated only in indiviual drills, he has a sore hip flexor..

Dt Anthony Montgomery was back at practice after missing all of last week with a hamstring injury..

T Kili Lefotu practiced for the first time since he had what may have been a seizure last week at the dorm where the players are staying.. Lefotu said he has little memory of what happened, only that he had a headache and the next thing he remembers was waking up in a hospital.. Lefotu also said that he doesn't believe that he called the operator the night he had his episode and that the operator told him no calls were made from his room, that refutes the team saying he did notify security at the NCC that he wasn't feeling well.. There still has been no cited cause, and Lefotu said he is still waiting for test results himself.. He said he was very nervous about taking the field so soon after what he described as the scariest moment of his life...

Clinton Portis said the injury he suffered will not deter how he plays the game which is very physical.. He did say next time he's in a pre-seaosn game though and a guy gets an interception, he might let that guy run the other way.. But in a regular season game, he'd do the same thing..
Earnest Byner told me that he's been telling Ladell betts for 3 years that he can and should be a starter and that now that he has the opportunity, he believes he will be ready to take over.. There is no panic over Portis being out, although the sentiment clearly is the faster he's back, the better.. Portis said the main discomfort he feels is when he is trying to get comfortable to sleep at night.. He also said he has been trying some minor rehab now and that causes some pain.. Betts is in the final year of his contract, he recently fired his agent and the team is interested in talking with him about a contract extension but that process will not start at least until the end of the pre-season..

Yesterday was the final public practice, and it was a day when a lot of players and team personnel brought their children to work.. One 3 year old pulled a fire alarm as practice ended.. The fire statikon had to reset it.. It blared for about 15 minutes..

There was also one fan who was in the building wearing a Redskins hat and a Lavar Arrington Giants jersey.. Now that took some balls.. A couple of administrators said something to him but there is no incident to report..

Practice highlight, first 11-11 play, Mark Brunnell hits David Patten streaking behind the confused coverage of Carlos Rogers and Pierson Prioleau for a would be 80 yard touchdown.. Jason Campbell looked particularly sharp, one of his best outings of the summer..

On Taylor Jacobs: Joe Gibbs said he now gets a fresh start and he feels bad that all of tyhe injuries limited his ability to take advantage of the opportunities in Washington.. He said he thinks a lot of Jacobs and he hopes things work out for him with San Francisco summing it up by saying "it just didn't work out."

The public portion of training camp ended..

August 15-- Roster Moves

The Redskins waived LB Chris Clemons, RB Kerry Carter (both injured) and S Ben Emmanuel today..

They signed rookie RB AJ Harris, OL Spencer Folau and LB Jeff Posey..

Posey was recently released by the Bills, he is in his 9th year, this is his sixth different team.. Posey started 15 of 16 games for the Bills the last year, he had 61 tackles a season ago and 3 sacks

Folau is an 8 year veteran who has been out of football since last summer when he was waived by the Saints in camp.. He’s played for the Dolphins, Saints and Ravens..

August 15-- Springs injures groin

CB Shawn Springs had a surgical procedure today to repair muscle damage in his groin.. It is undetermined how long he will be out, but the team is hopeful he can be ready by the season opener against Minnesota.. Springs likely will miss the remainder of the pre-season.. The injury is described as similar to the one that affected John Hall last season but not as severe…
CB Mike Rumph will not practice today with the team because WR Taylor Jacobs has to pass his physical with San Francisco before the deal can be official.. Because of the time change, that won’t happen before the end of practice today here at Ashburn..
The Redskins signed rookie RB A.J. Harris, they placed Kerry Carter on IR with two torn ligaments in his knee…

There is more to come from Redskin Park in terms of personnel moves.. Stay tuned..

August 14-- Skins trade Jacobs to 49ers for Mike Rumph

The Redskins have dealt wide receiver Taylor Jacobs to the 49ers for DB Mike Rumph.. Rumph was a 2002 first round pick out of the University of Miami but has only played in five games over the past two seasons, last year a foot injury limited him to only 3 games...
Rumph will vye for positions in the defensive backfield, potentially nickel corner and back-up safety..
As for Jacobs he finishes his Skins career with 30 catches for 315 yards over 3 seasons and 1 touchdown.. Jacobs was a second round pick by the Steve Spurrier Skins..
This opes the door for young receiver Mike Espy to potentially vye for a roster spot or practice squad and likely ensures the top five receivers to be Santana Moss, Antawn Randle-El, Brandon Lloyd, David Patten and James Thrash..

August 14th-- Portis in the opener?

Clinton Portis flew to Birmingham, AL to see Dr. James Andrews.. He has been told to rest his shoulder until the soreness is out of it and then he will begin rehab.. The team remains hopeful that he will be able to play in the season opener…
Ladell Betts is expected to be able to return to full go practice this week and becomes the lead back in Portis’s place.. RB Jesse Lumsden did some work over the weekend, the team hopes he also will return to practice and play this weekend.. Lumsden was held out of the game with Cincinnati with a hip flexor..

Portis will not play in any of the Redskins final 3 pre-season games...

August 13-- Redskins-Bengals, Portis Hurt, Plane and team are out of gas

RB Clinton Portis suffered a subluxation of his shoulder tackling a Bengals cornerback after an interception.. It basically means that his shoulder popped out and went back in.. His arm was in a sling and he will be re-evaluated in the next couple of days.. The team is hoping privately that he will be ready by opening day..



LB Chris Clemons suffered a grade 3 sprain on the MCL in his left knee.. He will not likely need surgery but will be out at least a few weeks..



RB Kerry Carter suffered a torn ACL and MCL, his season is over, he will undergo surgery to repair the ligaments after the swelling goes down..



LB Spencer Havner suffered a sprained elbow, he is day to day.





The Redskins at one point were down 2-nothing bad had given up negative nineteen yards.. Turnovers were a killer as all 3 quarterbacks who played threw a pick, Todd Collins was nearly intercepted a second time and he also gave up a safety when he was flagged for intentional grounding in the end zone.. Collins had the roughest night of the 3 Skins QB’s, 6 of 13 68 yards, an interception and the safety allowed.. He settled down in his latter series, but his night was overall poor..
Skins lose 19-3.. This was the first pre-season game between the two in Cincinnati since 1982 and the Skins first visit to Paul Brown stadium since it opened in 2000..



Mark Brunnell threw an interception (the play was where Portis got hurt when he tackled the Bengals corner back) on the team’s first drive, he ended up 4 of 9 for 66 yards.. The big play was a circus catch by Brandon Lloyd on a 27 yard pass play on the team’s first drive…

Jason Campbell played the entire second half, he finished 9-15 for 99 yards and one interception.. His big play was a 44 yard catch over the middle to rookie tight end Buck Ortega..



The starting defense was dominant.. They held the Bengals to minus 19 yards through three series of the first quarter, only one first down, 4 negative yardage plays in the first three series..



The Skins managed only 30 yards rushing, averaging under 1 and a half yards per carry..



The chartered flights to and from Cincinnati were a story in themselves.. The pilot wouldn't leave from Dulles on Saturday afternoon because he believed the bags on board hadn't been screened properly.. He was finally convinced..

The trip back last night though takes the cake.. We sat on the runway for about an hour because the plane didn't have enough fuel on it to carry the weight on board to DC.. Eventually, we left, flew to Indianapolis, refueled and then flew to DC.. We landed after 5AM! Why we couldn't get gas in Cincinnati is beyond me..

Earlier in the day, I placed my bag on the team bus before heading to the stadium, the driver proceeded to pull me aside to warn me that dogs will be sniffing my bags before they get loaded on the plane.. Apparently, I look like a drug dealer..

August 11-- Getting set for Cincy

Those who did not practice: Taylor Jacobs who tried to go, but his groin did not react well, CB Ade Jimoh (chest), DE Nic Clemons (knee), S Curry Burns (hamstring), T Jim Molinaro (knee), OL Kili Lefotu (episode), RB Jesse Lumsden (hip flexor), LB Kevin Simon (abdominal)

DT Anthony Montgomery was back at practice after missing the four previous days of practice with a hamstring injury..

On Lefotu—He was released from the hospital and was at Redskin park today.. A battery of tests were run to try and figure out the cause of the episode he had in the NCC on Wednesday but nothing has come back conclusive.. Bubba Tyer (Dir. Of Sports Medicine) said that doctors believe he may have suffered a seizure, but there is no certainty even of that.. he is going to stay with the other injured players in Washington this weekend and will continue to be monitored closely.. He may practice as early as next week, but only if the team feels comfortable that there is little risk of a repeat episode..

RB Ladell Betts is being worked back slowly, he has a hamstring injury and will be a game time decision..

Anyone who can’t play will not make the trip with the team to Cincinnati..

Don't forget to tune into the new Triple X ESPN radio on Sunday at 5 PM with the official Redskins pre-game show.. 94.3 FM to the west, 92.7 to the East, 730AM all over DC..

I have some great nuggets of information on Andre Carter, Adam Archuletta, Sean Taylor, Mike Sellars and Chris Cooley that I won't share now, you'll have to wait until the broadcast to hear that..

August 10-- Lefotu is stabile, Vinny looking for a Tackle

Rookie OL Kili Lefotu was moved from Loudon County Hospital where he was initially observed on Wednesday night to the Virginia Hospital Center where team doctors continue to run tests on him to find out the cause of his episode before Wednesday night’s practice.. Lefotu was not completely unconscious when the found him, in fact he called the operator at the NCC (the dorm where the team is staying) to tell someone he was feeling sick and to call 911.. Security officials, paramedics and team trainers got to the dorm around the same time.. When they got to Lefotu in his room he was not completely passed out, but eventually blacked out.. Lefotu told team trainers today that he doesn’t remember much..
The initial series of tests on him came back negative.. Trainers were worried he suffered a seizure, but there is no certainty if that occurred.. Lefotu is stabile and talkative, but at this point, there has been no determination as to why this happened.. he will remain in observation as tests continue.. The episode was not heat related according to trainers..

CB Ade Jimoh suffered a slight cartilage separation in the sternum region when he was hit by Rock Cartwright on a play two days ago.. He will not play in the Cincy game this week.. The team hopes he’ll return to the field next week..

Those who did not practice today: LB Kevin Simon (abdominal strain), S Curry Burns (hamstring), RB Jesse Lumsden (hip flexor), WR Taylor Jacobs (groin), DT Anthony Montgomery (hamstring), DE Nic Clemons (knee contusion), T Jim Molinaro (knee), DB Aric Williams (undisclosed)..

Back-up G Ike Ndukwe injured his right ankle during practice and had to have it re-taped.. There was no word if this will keep him out this weekend..

Lou Holtz wrote in his upcoming book, “Wins Losses and Lessons” that he was offered the Redskins coaching vacancy in 2001 before Marty Schottenheimer was hired.. Vinny Cerrato told me that this is an exaggeration, that Dan Snyder and the Skins front office went to South Carolina to meet with Holtz to talk about other coaching candidates but never in fact offered him the job..

Cerrato says the team remains in search of potential help along the offensive line.. he says he has some teams earmarked for potential releases later this month in the hopes of adding O-line depth for the team…

Joe Gibbs called Taylor Jacobs a good worker and someone who is unlucky in injuries, but made it very clear that in his case, as in the case of any player with job uncertainty, being able to make every practice is imperative to having a shot at keeping a job..

I talked to Gibbs following his press conference this afternoon and talked about his changing role of not running the offense two weeks into camp.. He continued to describe it as “different.” Asked if he enjoyed it, he called camp “hectic” and that it has freed him up to do some other duties he had no more time for.. he says he doesn’t have the feeling like he wants to stand behind Al Saunders and put in his two cents constantly, but during meetings following practice, he adds things “whenever I want.” And that so far the relationship seems to be working very well, he continued to call it “the best set up for the team.”

Gregg Williams said Chris Clemons making this team is very much reliant on him performing so well on special teams that coach Danny Smith fights for him when cut time comes.. Williams said those who play significant numbers of defensive snaps have to contribute on 3 of the four return/coverage units.. He said those who play less defensive downs have to be part of all four units.. He says, if you become an integral part of the teams units, “then we’ll find some place for you on the defense.”
As for playing time in Cincinnati, Williams was non-committal other then to say his main players will get a good amount of snaps that will be based on how long Cincy drives are..

Todd Collins will be taking the first snaps after Mark Brunnell is taken out of the Cincy game.. Jason Campbell will then take the first second team snaps the following week against the Jets..

Gibbs called the camp of back Kerry Carter, “very impressive” and that we will see a lot of him this weekend.. The Redskins have some very interesting decisions to make at back having had strong efforts from 4th and 5th stringers Carter and Canadian Jesse Lumsden..

Derrick Dockery lost 20 pounds this offseason working out with new trainers in Atlanta.. he says he feels much better this camp then in previous ones, faster, lighter on his feet and not concerned this time with losing weight but solely working on technique.. Chris Samuels said he has seen a big difference in his play this camp…

LB Rocky McIntosh laughed when asked if Gregg Williams is a different guy then the one he met at camp saying he “tricked me a little bit” but said Williams was up front and honest with him that this would be hard for him to grasp.. McIntosh said coaches want him to slow down to take in the defense more, a thing he isn’t accustomed to.. He said this D is much different then the one he ran at Miami, but that the veterans have been very helpful with his development..

August 9-- Kili Lofotu found unconcious

Rookie draft pick OL Kili Lofotu was missing at practice, the medical team rushed off the field and with security went into the NCC where the team is staying to find Lofotu in his room unconscious.. He was rushed to a local hospital where he underwent tests and was ultimately stabilized.. The team says he was speaking and alert but will remain in observation.. Lofotu was with the team for afternoon meetings, but no one noticed he was missing until the night practice began.. Lofotu’s roommate Manaia Brown had been released earlier in the day.. He has no history of these type of episodes and as of last night, there was no cause cited…

The team signed DL Chris Minio to replace Brown who’d been dealing with a groin injury for a number of days..

QB Mark Brunnell said he felt fine and was back at practice after dealing with a bruised calf last night.. he said he will ice the calf tonight and he should be fine tomorrow.. WR Brandon Lloyd was also back at practice after taking a day off with a sore hip flexor..

WR Taylor Jacobs was held out of practice, he injured either his groin or hamstring.. Others who missed the practice, CB Ade Jimoh (undisclosed), LB Kevin Simon (abdominal strain), S Curry Burns (hamstring), DE Nic Clemons (knee contusion), DT Anthony Montgomery (hamstring), WR Ataveus Cash (hamstring).. RB Jesse Lumsden also removed his pads midway through practice (undisclosed..

TE Calen Powell returned after missing almost a week with a quad injury..

T Jim Molinaro underwent a scope procedure to repair a torn lateral meniscus in his knee, he will be out 3-4 weeks…

The team spent a good portion of practice running the two minutes offense.. All the quarterbacks got their chance to run the hurry up drills.. Joe Gibbs credited the defense for making the work very competitive.. This was the last night practice during camp and likely the last night practice of the season..

The team has one open practice tomorrow at 4PM..

August 8-- Fight at practice, O-line depth issues

QB Mark Brunnell was held out of the afternoon practice with a bruised calf.. he was kicked in the lower leg during the morning practice.. It swelled up, he, Joe Gibbs and the training staff believe it is nothing serious and he coule be practicing at tomorrow night's practice..

WR Brandon Lloyd was held out of both practices with a tight hip flexor, he is day to day..

T Jim Molinaro has a tear of the lateral meniscus, he is scheduled for surgery to repair it at a Reston Hospital Wednesday morning, there is no timetable for his return.. The procedure is a scope..
S Dennard Wilson will also undergo a knee scope, he has received an injury settlement and was released.. The team signed former Panthers 5th round draft pick Ben Emmanuel to replace him on the roster..

Other injuries: Rookie LB Kevin Simon missed both practices with a mild abdominal strain.. WR Ataveus Cash was held out with a hamstring strain.. S Curry Burns also was out with a hamstring, DL Manaia Brown remains out with a groin, DE Nic Clemons remains out with a knee contusion, TE Calen Powell was out with a quad injury but is expected to return tomorrow, he's been out since last week, RB Ladell Betts was limited with a hamstring strain, he is expected to increase his workload tomorrow.. DT Anthony Montgomery was out as well with a hamstring..

CB Carlos Rogers returned to both practices and was said to have come out of both of those well.. TE Robert Johnson also returned to practice after missing yesterday with an ankle injury suffered in the scrimmage..

There was a practice skirmish in the morning session.. Rookie draft pick Reed Doughty knocked Mike Sellars out of bounds, a little too hard for Jon Jansen's taste.. The tackle came over and said something to Doughty, in came rookie Dt Kedric Golston who said something to Jansen.. jansen then started swinging at Golston.. It didn't last long, Golston laughed it off after practice and said it takes a dumb rookie to get a reaction like that in a relatively quiet camp.. Jansen wasn't worried about his previously broken thumb calling the cast a device that can be used to hit somebody if he has to..

Practice highlight in the afternoon came on a perfect long strike connected between Todd Collins and James Thrash.. Antawn randle-El was used to throw a pass back to Collins on a WR option play..

John Hall talked about the misses in the scrimmage on Saturday and said he is not concerned and that it is not a big deal.. He said it was only the second time he was kicking live since offseason surgery to repair torn pelvic muscles.. He says everyone should just forget about the 46 and 47 yard kicks wide left.. His range was fine, sources say his technique needed a little tweaking and that this was addressed on Monday.. Joe Gibbs said he has full confidence in Hall and his job is something no one should be concerned about..

Joe Bugel and Joe Gibbs discussed O-line depth now that Molinaro is out for an extended period of time.. Bugel said the depth chart has changed since the scrimmage.. Undrafted rookie Chris Pino has moved into backl-up right tackle and will be the first in line Sunday in Cincinnati when the starters go out.. Veteran Tyson Walter will be the back-up at left tackle when the reserves come in.. Another rookie, Jasper Harvey has improved in the eyes of the coaches and now has a shot at an interior O-line spot.. Molinaro according to sources was struggling in recent days as well.. He was perceived as the top back-up at tackle..

Chris Cooley said he feels more comfortable, feels like he can just be himself here in DC and that he doesn't mind being perceived as a goofball.. Cooley said he plays fantasy football with old high school and college friends and last year one of his teams made the playoffs but lost when the team he played in fanatsy ball started him in a late season game against Dallas.. Cooley scored three touchdowns that day.. He said since a

August 7th-- Noi suspension for Taylor, Patten is back

S Sean Taylor was fined four game checks as a result of his plea bargain in the case from last summer where he was alledged to have pulled a gun on a person he believed stole an ATV from him in Miami.. Taylor was not suspended for any games.. If Taylor does not have any more trouble on or off the field over the course of the season, he will recoop some of the money, according to sources that would be equal to two of the game checks..
Taylor had no comment unless you count some kind of strange mumbling he gave reporters when asked about it.. Joe Gibbs only said that he was glad this is all behind everyone..

T Jim Molinaro twisted his knee during 1 on 1 drills in practice.. He was taken off the field and is having an MRI done.. The team believes he possibly tore the meniscus in his left knee, if so, he will ahve a scope procedure and be off the practice field for a period of time, that will be determined following the results of the tests..

CB Carlos Rogers was held out of practice again dealing with a sore back.. he may do some individual work tomorrow but is not expected to participate in full team drills.. There seems to be minor concern of this lasting..

S Dennard Wilson (Maryland) tore the meniscus in his knee, he will have a scope on Wednesday, after which it will be determined when he can come back..

WR David Patten took part in his first practice of camp, he was out all last week with viral meningitis.. he described it as having a constant migraine headache for 3 days that was impossible to alleviate.. he had fevers and a neck so stiff he was unable to bend it.. Patten says he feels fine and reiterated his hope to compete with the newcomers at WR in the hopes of not becoming an afterthought in the offense.. Joe Gibbs and Al Saunders both credited Patten for his wherewithall this offseaosn in handling the acqusitions of Antawn Randle-El and Brandon Lloyd.. he says he knows he is a week behind the other receivers but vows to make his presence known in the competition this summer..
Patten says he hopes to be allowed to play in the pre-season opener on Sunday but say that will be up to the coaches, right now everyone is taking it slowly..

Punter Derrick Frost defended his play from a year ago saying, "I know I wasn't the best punter in the league, but I only had one kick which really hurt my team." He also said that he knows he doesn't have the booming type punts, but the average yardage is overrated as he explained that he was a part of the league's second best coverage unit.. Frost averaged 59 yards per punt in his three attempts on Saturday against Baltimore and is now an early front runner in the punting race after Aussie David Lonie had a rough day..

Asked about how much he needs to see Mark Brunnell play this pre-season, Al Saunders called his system player friendly and that the ammount of reps in the pre-season will be left up to feel between he and the QB.. Joe Gibbs reiterated that Jason Campbell is going to play a lot and told me, like Saunders he is confident that Brunnell doesn't need a lot of reps despite the implemntation of a new offense.. Essentially, the team is not going to show their cards unless practice proves that the O needs the reps..

One practice note, Mark Brunnell hit the ground for the first time when Joe Salave's jumped offsides on an 11 on 11 play and knocked the QB over.. It had a keystone cops feel to it and brought a giant laugh from the crowd..

The team was in shorts thus once again, very minor hitting took place.. Again, the Skins seemingly are using the practices more for conditioning and execution that pure hitting..

Other injured players who did not participate in the practice: S Curry Burns (hamstring), TE Robert Johnson (ankle), DL Manaia Brown (groin), DE Nic Clemons (brusied knee), DT Anthony Montgomery (left hamstring), TE Calen Powell (quad).. None of these injuries are considered serious..

August 5-- Redskins-Ravens scrimmage

Injuries: DE Nic Clemons bruised his left knee, he will be re-evaluated tomorrow but it is not expected to be a a serious injury..

TE Robert Johnson mildly sprained his ankle, he did return however to continue the scrimmage..

RB Ladell Betts was suffering from a sore hamstring and did not participate..

CB Carlos Rogers was held out after suffering from back spasms late this past week, he is expected back at practice on Monday.. DT Anthony Montogmery suffered a mild hamstring pull.. S Curry Burns also suffered a hamstring injury..
WR David Patten did not participate in the scrimmage, he is expected to practice for the first time in camp on Monday...

47,258 people attended the scrimmage with the Ravens.. Mark Brunnell and the starting O-line did not participate at all in 11-11 drills, but were prominent figures during the 7-7 work.. The offense used little motion, a far departure form the practice regimen we've seen at the camp.. This was vanilla to the extreme..
Al Saunders was not on the field for the scrimmage, instead watching from above, obviously the plays were scripted for each drive.. Joe Gibbs did however spend time behind the huddle during a couple of 11-11 series..

Marcus Washington intercepted a Ravens pass and scored a TD during the scirmmage.. Sean Taylor had the hit of the day popping Mike Anderson...

The right side of the offensive line was interchangable, but the left side featuring G Ike Ndwuke and T Jim Molinaro played all the 11-11 snaps confimring their spots as the top two back-ups at this point...
Todd Collins was the first quarterback to take reps after Mark Brunnell during 7-7, but Jason Campbell was the first to take snaps during 11-11 and took the lions share of those..

K John Hall missed 2-3 field goal attempts, wide from 46 and 47 yards.. but Hall's distance was obviously back easily hitting the net on both misses..

The Skins did not use Antawn Randle El on punt returns nor Betts of James Thrash on kick returns.. In the punting portion, Derrick Frost connected on two solid kicks, Aussie David Lonie shanked his two punts.. John Hall did not perform kick off, that was taken by other kicker Tyler Jones..

Joe Gibbs actually took questions from the Fed Ex Fans during his address at the stadium following the scrimmage..

The team has the day off on Sunday..

August 4-- Patten is back, Campbell in a battle

WR David Patten was at Redskin park today after spending the bulk of the week in the hospital for viral meningitis.. He did not practice and isn’t expected on the field until Monday at the earliest.. he won’t play in tomorrow’s scrimmage..

CB Carlos Rogers was held out of practice for a second straight day thanks to back spasms.. He is unlikely to play in the scrimmage..

DT Chris Pino, virus, TE Calen Powell, quad were both out of practice and neither will play tomorrow..

DT Joe Salave’a participated in practice again, whether he will be part of the scrimmage is up to the coaches…

One fan was wearing a shirt that read “He can Hit, you Must acquit. Free Sean Taylor.” With a picture of the Redskins safety..

Joe Gibbs touted the abilities of back-up Todd Collins and said that the back-up Q job will be a competition throughout the summer between he and Jason Campbell.. Expect the two back-ups to get the bulk of the snaps during the scrimmage tomorrow..
Gibbs wouldn’t disclose how much the starters will be a part of the scrimmage and hinted that it will be a good opportunity for the young guys to make themselves known..

August 3rd-- Rules changes and Lightning strikes

WR David Patten was released from the hospital.. he is back home with his family and is expected to rejoin the team tomorrow.. He will not practice however and will not participate in the scrimmage with Baltimore..

CB Carlos Rogers had back spasms this morning and was held out of both practices, he is expected to be fine..

TE Christian Fauria was held out of the morning practice, he did participate in the shortened evening practice.. This was a veterans day off..

Rookie DL Manaia Brown strained his groin, did not practice and won’t play this weekend.. TE Calen Powell did not practice again thanks to a quad injury..

DT Chris Pino has a stomach virus and was held out of both practices, he has a virus, but the team says it is not at all correlated to the Patten virus..

The night practice was cut short after one hour due to lightning in the area.. The team may add some extra work tomorrow but have no plans to add an extra practice to make up for the time.. They have one practice tomorrow and then it’s off to the scrimmage Saturday..

Rookie TE Buck Ortega was the subject of some hazing after the night practice was cut off.. he was tied to a tree with tape and had what appeared to be shaving cream all over him..

An NFL ref crew was at the Park today to give the team and media and update on the major rules changes heading into the season.. The down by contact rule has been altered.. You can now replay a call of down by contact if a fumble occurred.. If it is obvious on replay that the player lost the ball before he was down and it was obvious that the defending team recovered, a turnover will be given to them and the ball will be placed at the spot of recovery.. If a scrum ensues and it is not obvious he got the ball after the play was whistled dead, then the offense will retain possession and you will lose a challenge..

Safety is a big issue again this year.. You cannot hit a QB below the knees, if you do so, you will be penalized 15 yards for roughing the passer.. If you are blocked to the ground or blocked into the QB and just grab the QB’s legs and he goes down, this is not a penalty.. If the QB is running or out of the pocket, this rule does not apply…
Horse collar tackles have been clarified to include pulling down a runner or receiver using the back of his jersey, last year you had to grab the back of the shoulder pads to be penalized for this..
You can not overload one side of the field on onside kicks anymore.. You must have at least 4 players on each side of the kicker now..
You cannot line up directly over a snapper on field goal attempts, you have to line up on the opposite side of the snapper’s shoulder pads now..

Instant replay has been trimmed to 60 seconds from 90 for review once the ref reaches the viewing station..

Taunting is a foul now, if you get up in someone’s face and start barking at them you will be penalized.. They are trying to stop players from getting to the point where one guy reacts and then gets penalized for pushing an opponent.. Any altercation of this sort in pregame can be penalized and be subject to ejection..
End zone celebrations are also going to be curtailed again.. You cannot do anything choreographed with teammates, you can do a solo celebration if you stay on your feet.. Thus Chad Johnson’s river dance is OK, by Steve Smith’s snow angels are no longer.. You cannot use the football or anything as a prop to celebrate and if any solo celebration does not end quickly, you will be penalized..

Points of emphasis are holding.. Grabbing and restricting a defender, hooking and altering a defender’s angle is now holding.. If you tackle a defender or pull him to the ground, that is holding..

Center false starts will be watched closely, no more of the center’s pointing out defenders or wagging their fingers.. rocking movement of the center, moving the ball forward before the snap, abrupt movement of the center’s head will also be considered a false start..

We had a very minor scuffle at practice between draft pick Kedric Golston and OL Tyson Walter and DE Joe Sykes.. No punches, just a little pushing..

LB Marcus Washington is excited about an offseason where he did not have to undergo any kind of surgery, he had a cyst removed from his tailbone each of the previous two offseasons.. He says he likes what he sees from this defense but is not doing any kind of bravado in terms of expectations this year..

Mark Brunnell addressed the durability question saying he feels greatand it bothers him that a number of people (including me) are questioning if he can hold up.. He says if something happens and he gets injured, it won’t have anything to do with his history.. He understands the necessity to have a valuable back-up, but for any starting quarterback..
On the stealing of plays that led to some big moments particularly with Santana Moss, he said “there is no plagiarism in this league.” Everyone does it, but he admitted they did steal some thoughts from others that worked out for them..
As it turns out, bragadocious is actually a word in the Englsih language.. I apologize for having a crappy vocabulary..

One practice highlight, Brunnell hits Antawn Randle-El who makes a great leaping catch during 11-11 drills in the morning session..

OK men..

August 2-- Stealing plays led to Moss breakout

The Redskins performed a physical on former Raiders pro bowl tackle Lincoln Kennedy who is touring teams trying to gauge interest in a return to the field.. Kennedy is believed to have undergone gastric bypass surgery to lose weight.. Joe Gibbs said there “are medical issues there” and thus the team is not currently interested in singing Kennedy.. he did not work out for the team.. Gibbs went so far as to say that he didn’t think Kennedy would even come for a visit after initial conversations.. Kennedy is believed to have failed a physical in Dallas..

DT Joe Salave’a returned from Samoa following the death of his mother and was at the lone practice.. He only participated in a few drills and was not in full pads.. Gibbs said Salave’a could take his time coming back from the traumatic event.. Salave’a just had a baby last week, so he said he has mixed emotions about everything.. he said he needs to catch up on some conditioning before committing to a full practice and thanked the “second family” he has for their support..

WR David Patten remains hospitalized with viral meningitis, Gibbs said he spoke to him today and he said he is feeling much better and he hopes to have him back on the field by next week.. Patten will remain in the hospital tonight..

LB Spencer Havner was back on the field after being poked in the eye the day before.. TE Calen Powell remains sidelined with a strained quad…

When asked how the offense is different for him this year, Santana Moss surprisingly said that a number of the plays that gained big yards a year ago were things that throughout the season the team copy catted from others, and because these plays are incorporated in Al Saunders offense, he feels like it’s going to be another big year.. Moss said that throughout last season, they would watch other teams who had a player of similar size and ability and ran those plays that seemed to work against certain opponents… Moss didn’t go so far as to say the team was making stuff up on the run, just incorporating things they saw work around the league.. When asked about this, Mark Brunnell started to say it’s not uncommon for a lot of teams to steal others plays, but that he’d prefer to allow Joe Gibbs to address this..
Brunnell went on to say that the offense they are working on is very different form the one they ran a year ago.. He said the playbook’s enormity is keeping him up at night and he is crediting Todd Collins for helping him learn more by the day..

Brunnell addressed his “bragadocious” statements by saying he doesn’t need to clarify them, but wanted to emphasize that the team is “very confident” and being a starting quarterback, he feels like it is prudent to have lofty goals.. He emphasized he did not make any predictions, only that he feels like this team has a good shot at big things should everything fall right..

Practice was at a much more torrid pace then the first two days.. Brunne;; said the conditions were “shocking” at first.. The night practice allowed the elements to be much cooler, and the lights brought something out.. Highlights included a a highlight reel throw and catch during 11 on 11 from Mark Brunnell to Brandon Lloyd, who by the way rarely drops anything.. Clinton Portis got huge applause from the crowd after he completed a would be touchdown pass to receiver Richard Smith off a half back option.. Portis went streaking down the field after the completion.. Marcus Washington made a nice cover play on Chris Cooley hopping up and down after forcing an incompletion on a seam route down the middle of the field..
Jason Campbell had one particularly tough series throwing 3 bad incompletions and an interception on 4 consecutive plays during hurry offense drills..
Joe Gibbs again said the offense has a lot of work to do, the players including Moss and Brunnell agreed.. This however was a much more crisp effort then the first three practices, but that’s just my opinion’s ..

Last thought for the night, with all the attention on the offense, don’t be shocked if it’s the Defense that carries this team.. Typically the D looks good early in camp, but the more you watch the set-up, the more you are impressed by the speed of their back 7 and new found versatility of the front four thanks to Andre Carter.. Gregg Williams’ group is under the radar right now, probably the way he likes it, but not likely for long..

Two practices tomorrow, 8:30AM and 7PM, neither are open to the public..

August 1-- "Try Wiping Your Ass"

The lone practice on Wednesday has been moved to 7PM due to gthe heat.. The public can still attend but they will not be let in the door at 4PM as previously scheduled..

The team held it's first two-a-day session.. WR David Patten remains in Virginia Hospital Center, he has viral meningitis,.... He will remain there until Thursday when the team hopes he will be released.. The training staff believes it will be a few days after that before he will be back on the field.. The team currently does not think there is a major long term risk..

LB Spencer Havner got poked in the eye and was suffering from blurred vision.. he was taken to see an opthamologist..
TE Calen Powell has a strained quad, he was held out of the afternoon practice and is listed as day to day..

RB Clinton Portis was kicked in the right ankle twice over the last two days, he is practicing with it wrapped and says it is not as big deal..

DT Joe Salave'a was absent from camp again due to the death of his mother..

WR Antawn Randle-El was back at practice after being limited Monday with a back strain.. FB Mike Sellars particpated in both practices after getting carted off Monday for dehydration..

Joe Gibbs wanted to squash the perception that Mark Brunnell among others was "predicting" a Super Bowl.. Gibbs said Brunnell and company are confident but "no one in the organization is making any predictions."
Gibbs also praised the play of Jason Campbell thus far saying the hard work he put in during the off-season is showing on film.. This a day after he said Campbell and Todd Collins are competing for the back-up job..

RB Clinton Portis said the costume show he performed a year ago might be repeated.. he said a number of people enjoyed it and he still receives mail about it.. Portis and his characters are going to be featured during an NFL Network campaign for a new show..
Portis said personal numbers are not on his mind right now, he says the only goals he has are to win the division, NFC and then a Super Bowl.. He also lauded Al Saunders who he says could and should put him into a position to have a big season naming off the backs who had big numbers under Al Saunders (Marshall Faulk, Priest Holmes and Larry Johnson) Portis also said the offense will be much better, less confusing for the offensive line and of course offer him the type of space he has craved hoping he'll find himself in more 1 on 1 situations and less bodies in the box..

T Jon Jansen told me that he would do nothing differently in regard to playing with two broken thumbs a year ago.. He says he wanted to prove that he was tough and that he would have expected others on his team to do the same.,. He also told me that things have been very difficult for him in regard to everyday life due to his hands.. When I asked him how he was able to eat, he said "Eat, try wiping your ass."
Jansen said the hype for this team is so much more deserved then in the past due to the consistency this team finally has.. "We lied for five years about the importance of chemistry."

Gregg Williams disclosed that the weak side LB position is a competition mainly between rookie Rocky McIntosh and veteran Warrick Holdman.. He also said that Khary Campbell is "in the mix." LB Chris Clemons is working more behind Marcus Washington at strong side.. Williams lauded McIntosh as "the best LB in terms of getting off blocks and at the point of attack." Like all rookies, Williams said things need to slow down for him.. Williams did also say that the position of weak side LB is one that can and will be played by numerous position players, safety, DE, LB's..
LB Lemar Marshall said he is excited about finally being in a position to come into camp without having to worry about what position he'll play.. Williams also promised changing roles for both Lemar Marshall and Marcus Washington, not in psoition but roles in new packages..

Williams said "I pulled a hamstring": when I heard we hired Al Saunders calling him "the best coordinator in the league."
On D-backs coach Jerry Gray, Williams was ecstatic to get him back under the fold.. Gray played for Williams and was a coordinator in Buffalo after Gregg left for Washington.. Joe Gibbs confirmed that Gray was courted by Washington when he initially came back, but Gray was offered the Bills D coordinator job.. Gibbs went so far as to say in years to come, Gray is in line to be the coach at Texas... Williams called Gray the best secondary coach in the NFL..

Couple of practice notes: Gregg Williams laying into Robert McCune, "one minute you're making the play, the next minute you're f'ing it up."
McIntosh, right on cue from the praise from Williams had a near interception when he jumped a passing lane, a play after busting through a block during 11 on 11 drills for what would have been a certain sack..
Renaldo Wynn began 11 on 11 drills as a DT in place of the absent Salave'a..
Lemar Marshall putting a hit on WR Mike Espy after he caught a tipped pass on the sideline, the hitting is limited now as coaches are trying to ensure health early in camp..