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Redskins training camp report: Shanahan, McNabb and Haynesworth provide drama

A capsule look at the Washington Redskins as they begin training camp:

What’s new: A two-time Super Bowl-winning coach in Mike Shanahan, plus an established starting quarterback in Donovan McNabb. The Eagles’ decision to trade McNabb to an NFC East rival was one of the offseason’s biggest developments.

Asked what he would have said last year if someone had told him he would be traded to the Redskins, McNabb said, "I never would’ve believed it."

Meanwhile, Shanahan’s decision to switch to a 3-4 defensive system left star tackle Albert Haynesworth disenchanted, making the transition even more complicated.

Training camp battle: Reed Doughty, Chris Horton and Kareem Moore are battling to start next to safety LaRon Landry. This one may not be decided until the end of preseason. Doughty’s experience may give him the edge.

Rehab report: Starting tight end Chris Cooley looks recovered from a broken ankle that ended his 2009 season. A healthy Cooley, along with a blossoming Fred Davis, could give the Redskins a top tight end combo.

Rookie on the spot: Trent Williams, LT. The Redskins are counting on their first-round draft choice to protect McNabb’s blind side. This team had serious O-line issues last season, and Williams can help change that.

"That’s what you try to do in the offseason, take a look at where your weaknesses are," Shanahan said.

2010 outlook: With the additions of Shanahan and McNabb, the Redskins should improve over last season’s 4-12 meltdown. But to reach the playoffs–or to even escape the NFC East basement–many things would have to go right. The Redskins must hope their running back committee of Clinton Portis, Larry Johnson and perhaps Willie Parker is not too old to produce. The retooled offensive line also remains a question mark.

Shanahan gave this answer when asked about his goals: "We were 4-12 last year. We were 0-6 in the NFC East. Talk is cheap. You’ve got to do it on the football field."

This story appears in July 30’s edition of Sporting News Today. If you are not receiving Sporting News Today, the only digital sports daily, sign up today.

Senior writer Clifton Brown covers the NFL for Sporting News. E-mail him at cliftonbrown@sportingnews.com.

A capsule look at the Washington Redskins as they begin training camp:

Asked what he would have said last year if someone had told him he would be traded to the Redskins, McNabb said, "I never would’ve believed it."

Meanwhile, Shanahan’s decision to switch to a 3-4 defensive system left star tackle Albert Haynesworth disenchanted, making the transition even more complicated.

"That’s what you try to do in the offseason, take a look at where your weaknesses are," Shanahan said.

Shanahan gave this answer when asked about his goals: "We were 4-12 last year. We were 0-6 in the NFC East. Talk is cheap. You’ve got to do it on the football field."

This story appears in July 30’s edition of Sporting News Today. If you are not receiving Sporting News Today, the only digital sports daily, sign up today.

Senior writer Clifton Brown covers the NFL for Sporting News. E-mail him at cliftonbrown@sportingnews.com.

Capital loss: Albert Haynesworth finds out who’s in charge

ASHBURN, Va. — Albert Haynesworth took the money. Now Mike Shanahan is forcing him to earn it. By making Haynesworth take a conditioning test Thursday and forbidding him to practice with the team after he failed the test, Shanahan continued to put his stamp on the Washington Redskins in his first season as coach.

Mike Shanahan’s steely gaze focuses on improving the Redskins.

"He’s got to be at a certain level to practice with the rest of our football team," Shanahan said to a throng of reporters, chronicling another chapter of the battle between star player and star coach. "If he gets there, then he’ll be with us. If he doesn’t get there, then he won’t."

Here are three things to take from an eventful opening day of Redskins training camp:

1. Shanahan sends a strong message

Haynesworth showed up for camp and immediately got another memo that Shanahan is running this show. A showdown between player and coach was set from the moment Haynesworth collected his $21 million signing bonus, only to balk at playing nose tackle in Shanahan’s 3-4 defense and refusing to report to voluntary workouts.

The Redskins are coming off a lousy season, and all of their problems were not on the field. Players complained about roles, griped about a lack of leadership and, by season’s end, Redskin Park was not a happy place to come to work.

Shanahan is trying to change the culture while making it clear that nobody will have carte blanche, no matter how big your contract, your talent or your ego. Some coaches would have been happy Haynesworth showed up for camp and allowed him to practice to avoid another controversy. Not Shanahan. As long as Haynesworth is a Redskin, Shanahan wants everyone to know it will be his way — or no way.

"You could sense it from Day 1," wide receiver Santana Moss said of the new coaching staff. "You could tell they were different. They wanted things on demand. No matter what you did previously, they were going to make you do it their way. I feel like the most productive teams out there have those kinds of coaches."

2. Haynesworth is backed into a corner

Haynesworth did not address the media at Thursday’s practice, which might have been his best move. If he causes serious problems during training camp, it will not help his trade value, nor will it earn him respect from his teammates. Some Redskins were critical of Haynesworth when he skipped offseason workouts. If Haynesworth is going to be around, his teammates want him play well regardless of how they feel about him.

"I don’t think he has to win those guys back," cornerback DeAngelo Hall said. "We’re not out here trying to be best friends. We’re out here trying to win games."

3. Shanahan smartly leaves the door open

Haynesworth has lost weight since last season, and he has the talent to be a dominant lineman in any system. That is all the Redskins really want from Haynesworth — to be a dominant lineman on Sundays whether he is happy or not.

That’s one reason Shanahan said Haynesworth will be on the field as soon as he completes the conditioning test.

"Hopefully he’ll get it done tomorrow, but it could take two or three days–it may take a week," Shanahan said. "Albert’s got a lot of ability. We get him in shape, great football shape, he can help us."

The tug-of-war between Shanahan and Haynesworth is likely to continue. But Thursday’s victory went to Shanahan.

This story appears in July 30’s edition of Sporting News Today. If you are not receiving Sporting News Today, the only digital sports daily, sign up today.

Senior writer Clifton Brown covers the NFL for Sporting News. E-mail him at cliftonbrown@sportingnews.com.

Mike Shanahan’s steely gaze focuses on improving the Redskins.

Here are three things to take from an eventful opening day of Redskins training camp:

1. Shanahan sends a strong message

2. Haynesworth is backed into a corner

"I don’t think he has to win those guys back," cornerback DeAngelo Hall said. "We’re not out here trying to be best friends. We’re out here trying to win games."

3. Shanahan smartly leaves the door open

That’s one reason Shanahan said Haynesworth will be on the field as soon as he completes the conditioning test.

The tug-of-war between Shanahan and Haynesworth is likely to continue. But Thursday’s victory went to Shanahan.

This story appears in July 30’s edition of Sporting News Today. If you are not receiving Sporting News Today, the only digital sports daily, sign up today.

Senior writer Clifton Brown covers the NFL for Sporting News. E-mail him at cliftonbrown@sportingnews.com.

What the Roy Oswalt trade means for Phillies, others

Seven points about the Roy Oswalt trade to the Phillies:

1. This is bad news for the Cardinals, Reds and any other club thinking wild card. The Phillies already had closed to 3 1/2 games of the division-leading Braves and within 2 1/2 games of the wild-card leading Giants on the strength of a seven-game winning streak that was fueled by an offensive resurgence.

With Oswalt, Roy Halladay and Cole Hamels, the Phillies have the second-best 1-2-3 rotation trio in the league (after the Giants). Count on the wild card coming out of the NL East, which should make the races in the Central and West even more entertaining.

2. This makes the 2010 Phillies better than the ’09 Phillies. When Chase Utley returns, that is. The reason: Halladay, Oswalt and a back-to-form Hamels are better than Cliff Lee, Pedro Martinez and whoever was the Phillies’ third-best starter last October.

3. The Phillies still shouldn’t have traded Cliff Lee. No knock on Oswalt but he’s not pitching like Lee. And the Phillies would have had Lee for the entire season, not two months. And …

4. The Phillies gave up more to get Oswalt than they received from the Mariners for Lee.

Quick review:

For Lee, the Phillies received OF Tyson Gillies, RHP J.C. Ramirez and RHP Phillippe Aumont. At best, Gillies projects as a Brett Gardner-type left fielder, Ramirez as a back-end rotation guy and Aumont, who knows after the way this season has gone. The 6-7 right-hander has been a disappointment, being demoted from Class AA to A where he has been pitching in relief. "He’s been awful this year," a scout says. "His command is off the charts bad. He will flash you plus stuff but he can’t command. I think he’ll end up as a bullpen guy."

To get Oswalt, the Phillies traded LHP J.A. Happ, OF Anthony Gose and SS Jonathan Villar. Even if Gose and Villar don’t pan out, Happ already has shown he can win in the major leagues, going 12-4 with a 2.93 and winning Sporting News’ NL Rookie of the Year in 2009. He will make his first start for the Astros Friday night.

Gose, 19, has plenty of speed and a strong arm but is considered raw. For example, he has 36 stolen bases in Class A but has been caught 27 times. Villar, 19, was considered an up-and-comer by the Phillies. In low Class A this season, he was hitting .272 with 38 stolen bases — but 42 errors at shortstop.

5. Trading for Oswalt doesn’t hurt Philly’s chances of retaining Jayson Werth. Because the Astros have agreed to pay a large chunk of Oswalt’s salary — $11 million of the $23 million-plus he’s guaranteed through 2011, according to reports — the Phillies are in much the same situation with Werth as they already were. Which means …

6. Werth might not return next year but he figures to be with the Phillies as they make a run at history. They are trying to become the first team to win three straight NL pennants since the Cardinals in the early 1940s.

7. Joe Niekro’s record is safe. The late knuckle-baller will remain the Astros’ franchise leader in wins. Oswalt could have tied Niekro’s total of 144 with one more win, and he was scheduled to start for Houston Friday night. Instead, he’ll go for win No. 1 with the Phillies at Washington.

Stan McNeal is a writer for Sporting News. E-mail him at smcneal@sportingnews.com.

Seven points about the Roy Oswalt trade to the Phillies:

3. The Phillies still shouldn’t have traded Cliff Lee. No knock on Oswalt but he’s not pitching like Lee. And the Phillies would have had Lee for the entire season, not two months. And …

4. The Phillies gave up more to get Oswalt than they received from the Mariners for Lee.

Quick review:

Stan McNeal is a writer for Sporting News. E-mail him at smcneal@sportingnews.com.

Former Pats QB Grogan: ‘It’s hard to forgive’ Tatum

Sports Radio Interviews

Earlier this week, former NCAA All-American and NFL Pro Bowl safety Jack Tatum died of a heart attack. Perhaps the most controversial moment of Tatum’s career was when he hit New England Patriots wide receiver Darryl Stingley during a preseason game in 1978, leaving the receiver paralyzed from the chest down. Though the hit was legal and no penalty was called on the play, it is widely regarded as a catalyst for the league later changing its rules to better protect receivers.

Steve Grogan was the Patriots’ quarterback at the time, and he joined 98.5 The Sports Hub in Boston with Mike Felger and Tony Massarotti to talk about Tatum, Stingley, and what he thinks of the incident. To listen to the interview, go to Sports Radio Interviews. Responses have been edited for clarity and brevity.

Former New England Patriots quarterback Steve Grogan says it’s difficult to forgive Jack Tatum for paralyzing Darryl Stingley.

What is Grogan’s reaction to Tatum’s death, and what does he remember about him as a person?

Grogan: I guess it doesn’t surprise me. I read that he’s had some health issues the past several years, in magazines and newspapers. I just got off the phone with somebody at ESPN talking about the same thing, and I was telling him that there’s not too many people that I can’t find something nice to say about when this kind of situation arises. But, unfortunately, Jack Tatum is one guy that I just can’t find anything nice to say about. Just the way he handles the whole situation – it bothers me that I feel that way, but to never apologize to Darryl, to try to make money off the whole situation, never showing any regret or remorse. This is a man who wasn’t a good person.

Does Grogan think the play that paralyzed Stingley was a dirty hit?

Grogan: It was a hit that I probably wouldn’t call dirty, but it was unnecessary. It was a preseason game. It was a ball that I threw late — overthrew, because I did throw late — and was just trying to throw it away. Darryl went up into the air — and normally in a preseason game guys take care of each other in those situations — and Darryl just happened to get caught with his head in the wrong position, and Tatum just blasted him for no obvious reason in a game like that.

I saw hundreds of hits like that before and after, and it’s just unfortunately in Darryl’s situation that it caused paralysis, and in all the other situations the guy got up and continued to play.

What else can he share about Tatum, as a person?

Grogan: I can’t speak to that. I know Darryl was a great guy and I’m sure if Tatum had extended a hand to him and reached across the aisle and tried to at least apologize, Darryl probably would have accepted that. But that never happened, and as far as I know, Darryl resented the fact that Tatum never talked to him… The only time he ever really made contact with him was when he wanted to write a book or do a TV show and make some money off the whole thing.

How did other Raider players and coaches treat Stingley after the incident?

Grogan: From what I understand, Coach [John] Madden was great with Darryl. And I’m sure there were other Raiders players that visited him. I can’t tell you names right now, and in all honesty, you may talk to some of the Raiders of that time and they may tell you that Jack Tatum was a great guy and a great football player. Our experience with him is that he was just not a nice person, and did something to one of our players that could have been avoided, and never showed any remorse for it. And it’s hard to forgive that.

Does Grogan think the NFL has gotten more violent? What does he think about the league’s recent efforts to minimize dangerous play?

Grogan: I think the game can be played very physically without having to take the shots that everyone wants to get on ESPN. Everybody wants to see their hit make the highlights and I think that’s what the game is trying to legislate out of the NFL. Those kinds of hits are just totally unnecessary and cause a lot of damage that, actually, they don’t need. Players are too valuable these days; they’ve got too much money invested in these guys to have them sitting on the sideline. So they’re trying to take better care of that and I agree with that.

Sports Radio Interviews

Former New England Patriots quarterback Steve Grogan says it’s difficult to forgive Jack Tatum for paralyzing Darryl Stingley.

What is Grogan’s reaction to Tatum’s death, and what does he remember about him as a person?

Does Grogan think the play that paralyzed Stingley was a dirty hit?

What else can he share about Tatum, as a person?

How did other Raider players and coaches treat Stingley after the incident?

Does Grogan think the NFL has gotten more violent? What does he think about the league’s recent efforts to minimize dangerous play?

Orioles hire Buck Showalter as manager

Sporting News staff reports

BALTIMORE — Buck Showalter was hired to manage the Baltimore Orioles on Thursday, his latest rebuilding project in a major league career full of them.

Showalter’s first game will be Tuesday night at Camden Yards against the Los Angeles Angels.

Baltimore had the worst record in the majors at 31-70 going into Thursday night against Kansas City and is headed toward its 13th straight losing season. The Orioles fired manager Dave Trembley on June 4 and replaced him on an interim basis with Juan Samuel.

"Buck Showalter’s proven track record makes him the right choice for manager of the Orioles," president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail said in a statement. "We believe Buck’s extensive experience and expertise will be a major benefit to us as we look towards a more successful future."

Samuel will return to his job as the team’s third-base coach. Baltimore went 16-31 with him in charge.

The rest of the Orioles’ coaching staff will stay intact. Gary Allenson, the interim third-base coach, will resume his spot as manager at Triple-A Norfolk.

Showalter’s move was first reported by ESPN, where he worked as an analyst. His last television appearance was on Monday.

"My job with ESPN allowed me to follow this organization closely over the last several years, and although the current record may seem to indicate otherwise, I see enormous potential with this club," Showalter said in a statement released by the team. "I look forward to the challenge of competing in the American League East. Baltimore is a tremendous baseball town with passion and pride in its club, and my family and I look forward to making it our new home."

Showalter is a two-time AL Manager of the Year, winning the award in 1994 with the New York Yankees and 2004 with Texas. Both times, he had taken over teams and guided their turnarounds.

The 54-year-old Showalter also was the first manager in the history of the Arizona Diamondbacks. He was hired well in advance and given time to put the Diamondbacks in position to contend once they started playing in 1998. He was fired after the 2000 season, and Arizona won the World Series the next year.

A former minor league player who never made it to the majors, Showalter is known for a strong will and an obsession with fundamentals, details and preparation – he would often sleep in his office when there was a day game following a night game.

Showalter also does not tolerate players acting like stars, even if they are top talents. He feuded with Alex Rodriguez in 2003, when they were together in Texas.

Showalter’s last year as a manager was 2006 with the Rangers. His overall record is 882-833 in 11 years.

In Baltimore, Showalter faces an especially tough task.

The once-proud franchise has fallen on hard times since reaching the playoffs in 1997, usually finishing far behind rich AL powers Boston and the Yankees. No one pitcher currently on the Orioles has more than four victories this year and no hitter is at .300.

The Orioles interviewed former major league managers Bobby Valentine and Eric Wedge, ex-Baltimore catcher Rick Dempsey and Samuel before settling on Showalter.

MacPhail wanted to have a manager in place this season, to give the newcomer a better chance to evaluate the talent in Baltimore. MacPhail joined the franchise in June 2007.

Trembley was one of four managers to be fired this year. Kansas City’s Trey Hillman, Arizona’s A.J. Hinch and Florida’s Fredi Gonzalez also were dismissed.