Teaching Albert Haynesworth a lesson could have a costly price for Redskins
Submitted by admin on August 2, 2010 – 3:17pm
The Washington Redskins made substantial moves in the offseason and with owner Dan Snyder stepping back and letting his employees do their jobs, things seem to be on the way up for the franchise.
Unfortunately, with the Albert Haynesworth debacle, things seem to be staying the same as much as they are changing. Head coach Mike Shanahan’s personal vendetta with Haynesworth has become painfully obvious as each failed conditioning test continues. Now with Haynesworth unable to do the test again because of his swollen knee, what will be the next step in getting him to the actual football field?
Haynesworth has already lost a sizeable amount of weight and agreed to play by Shanahan’s rules, but forcing him to pass a conditioning test that consists of two 300-yard shuttle runs is a bit much. As a defensive lineman, Haynesworth will not have to run this way at any point in a game. If he does, then the Redskins and Haynesworth are probably having a really great game.
At this point, Shanahan has proved his point and Haynesworth has been punished for skipping out on the offseason conditioning program, even though punishment can’t be levied for missing voluntary workouts.
As long as Haynesworth is a member of the team, he shouldn’t be treated like a stepchild. When it comes to football it is obvious the Redskins value his talent, otherwise they wouldn’t have signed him to a $100 million deal.
As the conditioning debate drags out, it appears that not only is Shanahan picking on Haynesworth, but now the media has joined the circus and has chosen to see if they can pass the test that Haynesworth can’t. Sadly for Redskins fans, unless you want the media to switch places with Haynesworth, this does your team no good.
While some people can pass the test, those same media members will have a much tougher time stopping the run and sacking the quarterback of the opposing team. Haynesworth is paid to play football and he has shown he is pretty good once the pads are on. If the Redskins continue to teach Haynesworth a lesson it could end badly for both parties before the season even begins.
Writer name:
Quentin Jones
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Contributor
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