No fights on Monday at Redskins’ camp
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By Brian Hunsicker
Published: July 28, 2008
When the newness of training camp wears off and players settle into a grind during some of the hottest weather of the year, tempers can flare. The occasional fistfight among teammates — guaranteed to make the highlight reel on nightly newscasts — has been absent from this training camp.
“The guys that played this game seven, eight, nine years, 10-plus, that’s the last thing you want to do is fight,” defensive end Andre Carter said. “I think as vets [you say], hey, you got me this play, next play I’ll get you. There’s too much wasted time, too much wasted motion to fight.”
Head coach Jim Zorn remembered a fight earlier in the year during organized team activities, OTAs. When he tried to intervene, one of the offensive linemen yanked him out of the pile.
“‘No, no, no. No coach, stay out of there,’” Zorn remembered.
But since then, he said, the focus has been on helping each other.
“It’s intense and what I like is we’re not pulling each other down, we’re not pushing people across the pile. That’s where fights break out,” Zorn said. “And we’re trying to cooperate with each other. Play at a high level, but help each other out.”
Monday even had a healthy dose of humor. Offensive tackle Chris Samuels celebrated his birthday — he turned 31 — with two cakes, one from his girlfriend and another from his linemates, which featured a picture of the singer, Seal. Teammates tease Samuels for his resemblance to Seal.
Guard Randy Thomas snuck behind the assorted media, no small feat for a 6-foot-5, 308-pound man. Samuels was looking the other way answering a question when Thomas plowed the cake into Samuels’ face. The cake shattered, covering half of Samuels’ face and landing in five clumps on the riser; part of the microphone was splattered with icing.
On the field, the day was unremarkable. The Redskins suffered no new injuries, even as several players — Devin Thomas, Malcolm Kelly, LaRon Landry and Chris Wilson among them — didn’t dress. Several others dressed but were limited on team drills.
Some cornerbacks, like Fred Smoot and Shawn Springs, were pressed into service as safeties in a few drills.
“With [Springs], just like me, there’s a lot of technique stuff that’s completely different,” safety Stuart Schweigert said. Schweigert is adjusting to the Redskins defense after being released by Oakland in the offseason.
“It’s definitely a big difference, especially when you start talking about 9-on-7 [drills] and you’ve got to fill that running lane. Then there’s a really big difference between safety and cornerback. He’s doing a great job and it’s great to have him step in and give some reps because ... we’re low on numbers at safety.”
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