Redskins Sign Two Former Terps As Free Agents

Two former players with the University of Maryland have cut free agent deals with the Washington Redskins.  In the fold with the Burgundy and Gold are tight end Jason Goode and offensive lineman Andrew Crummy.

Redskins OTA’s Come to an End

The latest round of drills for the Washington Redskins are over.  The organized team activities are in the books.  It will be at least another month before the “Burgundy and Gold” hits the practice field.  Wide receiver Antwaan Randle El has had a knee scoped after experiencing some discomfort during minicamp.  Randle El plans to be ready to roll by training camp.  Quarterback Jason Campbell is experiencing a little pain in a hamstring, but doesn’t expect it to give him problems.  Coach Jim Zorn plans to work hard with the young signal caller to gear him up for his West Coast offense.  Players are saying that working out under Zorn is much more laid back than under former coach Joe Gibbs.

Randle El Has Knee Surgery; Should Return for Training Camp

Redskins WR Antwaan Randle El had knee surgery on Tuesday, but reports already say that he should be good to go come training camp.  It was an arthroscopic procedure, and came about when an MRI showed a “floating body” that was causing irritation in the knee.  Right now coach Jim Zorn says the time table for Randle El to recover is about three to four weeks.  He could be back on the field for offseason practices in June.

Last season the WR had his best season in the pros, catching 51 passes in 15 games for 728 yards and one TD.  He also returned 34 punts for 209 yards, a 6.1 yards per return average.  The former second-round pick from Indiana is expected to have a big role in the Redskins new wider open offense in 2008, as the team will use more three and four wide out sets in Zorn’s new look schemes.

Redskins Veterans Work Out In Ashburn

Veterans for the Redskins hit the practice field to begin the work week.  The drills without rookies followed a full-team minicamp under new coach Jim Zorn over the weekend.  Players such as cornerback Fred Smoot says minicamp is much more fast paced than workouts for seasoned players only.  Coach Jim Zorn says he will handle internally a punishment against rookie Fred Davis for oversleeping over the weekend.  The tight end from Southern California was late for one of the workouts during the minicamp. 

Redskins’ Only Minicamp Of The Spring Is History

Veterans of the Redskins got to mix it up with new draft picks over the weekend at the team’s only minicamp of the spring.  Among the long time players anxious for 2008 is offensive tackle Jon Jansen.  He broke his right ankle in the first game of the season last year against the Miami Dolphins and will try to stay healthy this time around.  It was a tough Sunday for rookie tight end Fred Davis.  The second round draft pick from Southern California overslept and missed the first part of the workout. 

TE Davis Oversleeps and Misses Rookie Camp Practice

You can bet that Redskins second-round draft pick Fred Davis will remember his first mini-camp.  That’s because he wasn’t at it.  Davis, a tight end from USC, missed the mini-camp because team officials said he overslept.  Davis was supposed to report to a local hotel, and when he failed to show, the team sent security looking for him.  “Everybody was scouring,” coach Jim Zorn said after the practice. “Nobody heard from him, so there was one of two scenarios: either there was some real trouble and we needed to find him, or he screwed up. I haven’t even got to talk to him yet. I know he has been found. I believe it is more in the ‘I screwed up’ category.”

Davis did show up finally, and once he did, he had to have a little sit down with Zorn.  Not exactly a good way to make an early good impression on your coach or new team for that matter.  “He just had a setback,” Zorn said. “Hopefully everybody will learn from the lesson that he is having to learn right now about what it is going to take to get to a place on time, to be responsible.”

Zorn’s First Mini-Camp Opens Today

Football is in the air early in May at Redskins Park this weekend.  The Redskins will hold their one and only minicamp of the spring starting today.  New coach Jim Zorn and new draft picks, such as the trio of receivers plucked first by the “Burgundy and Gold” last weekend, will mix it up with veterans in Ashburn. 

Thomas and Kelly Look to Fit into Roles in the Offense

A couple of young Redskin wide outs are looking to have big impacts once the 2008 season kicks off.  Those two WR’s are draft picks Devin Thomas and Malcom Kelly, both of whom landed in the Skins lap over the weekend at the NFL Draft.  New coach Jim Zorn wants to run plenty of 3 and 4 wide out sets, and Thomas and Kelly are going to have plenty of balls thrown their way from QB Jason Campbell.  What happens from there is anyones guess.

“We’re all coming in together,” said Kelly a news conferences. “We were all kind of the guy at our universities, now we’re all kind of pups again, and we know where we stand. We know we have to come in here and compete and push each other. We’re going to push each other to get better. Definitely.”

Many felt there was no way that the team would be able to get both Thomas and Kelly, but with the lack of wide outs taken early, the team was able to do enough to make sure both players landed in the Nations Capital.  Now the question will be which one shines and fits in better overall with the team.  Whatever the case may be, Zorn likes the look of the team with his new toys.

“It gives us a tremendous amount of flexibility,” Zorn said. “It gives us depth, and if we do have somebody that gets nicked up, we won’t lose anything with the firepower that we can put on the field.  I’m excited about the ability to change personnel groups, that’s what I think I’m most excited about, because that’s what aids this particular style of offense — personnel groups and changing them. We’ll be able to utilize certain guys for certain situations.”

New Crop Of Redskins Introduced

The Redskins have latched onto three pass catchers with the first three draft picks.  Fred Davis is a tight end from Southern California who says he’s excited to be part of the “Burgundy and Gold” that has a winning tradition.  The new selections, such as top choice Devin Thomas from Michigan State, and the veterans will take part in the first minicamp under new coach Jim Zorn starting Friday at Redskins Park. 

Redskins Go For Offensive And Defensive Help In Draft

The Redskins beefed up the offensive line by taking Chad Rinehart from Northern Iowa with the 96th overall choice.  Later, the emphasis was defense, as the franchise took cornerback Justin Tryon of Arizona State with the 124th selection.  Durant Brooks is a punter from Georgia Tech, nabbed on the sixth round.  He will compete with Derrick Frost, already re-signed for 2008.  Also plucked on the sixth round are quarterback Colt Brennan from Hawaii and safety Kareem Moore from Nichols State.  In the seventh, the choices for the “Burgundy and Gold” are defensive end Rob Jackson from Kansas State and safety Chris Horton from UCLA.