What to expect as Redskins training camp begins
By: Turner Sports Desk
Jim Turner
Turnersportsdesk.com
July 29, 2010
Expect Competition
– Mike Shanahan
is a pure competitor and a riverboat gambler so you can expect training camp to be all about getting
back to extremely physical, no-nonsense Redskin football. One of the first things Mike Shanahan will do
away with is this front runner mentality that has permeated this football team.
He will make it known that veterans can lose jobs if they are out performed.
Highly drafted rookies are not guaranteed anything but an opportunity to show
what they bring to the table.
Expect injuries –
Shanahan runs physical, competitive camps so expect to see injuries. Why did Shanahan go out of his way to collect
seasoned running backs? He did it because with his physical style of play all
of them will likely see action. If Clinton Portis
is back down to his Denver playing weight he will become fast but fragile
again. Although Portis is listed as the starter going into camp don’t be
surprised if Larry
Johnson is the starter going into the season. The Redskins are going into
this camp thin on the line so another injury could prove disastrous.
Expect zero slack
– Veterans are going to be expected to produce or they will be gone. Rookies
will be expected to fill in and not be a weak link. Shanahan is all about
accountability and stepping up when your number is called. Guys like Laron Landry
will no longer be allowed to make dumb mistakes and continue to start. Carlos Rogers
better solve that double-move susceptibility or his wish to be traded or cut
will be honored. Fred
Davis better be over his childish tendencies or he will become nice trade
bait. The bottom line is accountability is back in fashion At Redskin Park. Players
will be held accountable for their lack of preparation and their failure to
execute.
Expect Surprises –
There will be some old faces that you love sent packing. There will be some new
faces that you had high hopes for cut. The purpose of camp is to set in place
the building blocks for a championship run.
Some maybe really talented but not fit this system. Some guys will be
asked to take on different roles and they may bulk.
Expect media
generated camp controversy – In the interest of full disclosure I am not a
fan of public camp. I’d prefer the Redskins seclude themselves and concentrate
on team building. I would happily trade public camp for more wins because the
players had fewer distractions. In
physics it is called the observer-expectancy
effect because a subject inevitably changes their behavior when they know
they are being observed. The job of the media is to report the story but for a
beat reporter that has covered this story 1000 times it gets boring. They make
it interesting by creating issues where none exist. Now some genuinely report
something they perceive as an issue while others have more devious intentions.
The Redskins have a large media following so it is advised that you take a lot
of the coverage with a grain of salt.