Tag: Anthony Stalter (Page 88 of 133)

      Haynesworth’s conditioning tests less about running, more about respect

      July 30, 2010 /
      ASHBURN, VA - JULY 29: New Head Coach Mike Shanahan of the Washington Redskins watches practice on the first day of training camp July 29, 2010 in Ashburn, Virginia. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

      Far be it for me to write about another man’s intentions, but it sure looks to me that Mike Shanahan’s conditioning test for Albert Haynesworth is less about cardio and more about respect.

      According to several media outlets, Haynesworth has failed two conditioning tests over the past two days. He passed the first leg of Shanahan’s test (which consisted of two 300-yard shuttle runs) on Thursday, only to fail the second because he needed to take a bathroom break. (No word yet on if it was a No. 1 or a No. 2 for Haynesworth.)

      When Shanahan asked Haynesworth to run a third leg of the test, the massive defensive tackle told his head coach that he has never had to run three such sprints during even his best of seasons (including the years he went to the Pro Bowl). Considering defensive linemen never have to run further than 5-10 yards on a given play, it would seem a little absurd that Shanahan would make Haynesworth run this much (especially while the DT is reportedly in great shape as it is).

      But that’s not the point now is it? The point is that Haynesworth spent virtually the entire offseason complaining about this situation in Washington and Shanahan wasn’t going to allow the defender to waltz into camp on Day 1 and act like everything is just gravy. Shanahan has been around long enough to know how to handle these types of situations and he has decided to test Haynesworth’s resolve right off the bat. Again, I can’t speak for Shanahan’s intentions, but it appears as though he’s making a point that one player doesn’t come above the team. And if you want to be a part of this team, you’re going to have to bust your hump. If you don’t, well, then there’s the door.

      If these are indeed Shanahan’s intentions when it comes to Haynesworth’s conditioning tests, then how could you not appreciate this if you’re a Redskins fan? Coming off of Jim Zorn, this has to be a welcoming sight in D.C.

      External Sports, NFL

      Stephen Strasburg placed on DL. That can only mean that his, his kids’, and his kids’ kids’ careers are over with now.

      July 29, 2010 /
      Washington National's starting pitcher Stephen Strasburg delivers a pitch to the Cincinnati Reds during the first inning of play in their MLB National League baseball game at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati, Ohio, July 21, 2010. REUTERS/John Sommers II (UNITED STATES - Tags: SPORT BASEBALL)

      The Nationals had to place starter Stephen Strasburg on the 15-day disabled list (retroactive to July 22) with right shoulder stiffness according to MLB.com. Apparently the young phenom was having trouble getting loose before his scheduled start against the Braves on Tuesday and thus, the Nats decided to scratch him from the game and then place him on the DL.

      Like a shark smelling blood in the water, when an injury like this happens to a young pitcher, someone in baseball always takes the opportunity to predict future problems for the player. That someone in this instance is White Sox pitching coach Don Cooper, who told MLB Network Radio on Thursday morning that Strasburg’s arm action could result in future injuries.

      From the New York Post:

      “I am not wishing this guy bad, but for him to be having problems right now when they are really, really watching him what are they going to see when they are trying to get 220 innings from him? He does something with his arm action that is difficult, in my mind, to pitch a whole lot of innings on.”

      “It reminds me a little bit of Kerry Wood, a little bit of Mark Prior. I hope I’m wrong about this,” said Cooper, whose White Sox were held to one run over seven innings by Strasburg in his third major-league start. “When you throw with the kind of talent and force that he can throw, you can break easier than let’s say a Mark Buehrle type.”

      Wow, a prediction of future complications and references to Kerry Wood and Mark Prior? You went all out, Don.

      Cooper has probably forgotten more about pitching than I’ll ever know and he’s just sharing his opinion, but all of this seems a little too convenient for me. Strasburg hasn’t even been on the DL for over 24 hours and Cooper is already making national statements that he could have future problems. Shouldn’t we hold off first?

      Maybe Cooper will inevitably be proven right, but we have to wait and see. Just because Strasburg is having arm problems now doesn’t mean that he’s going to have the same issues in the future, nor does it mean that this injury is a prelude to a bigger problem. We just don’t know.

      The key is that the Nationals are taking the situation seriously and are proceeding with caution. Strasburg is a massive part of their future and they’re going about this injury the right way. They need to protect their investment and considering they’re not playing for a pennant right now, it makes sense that they would put him on the DL instead of taking any chances.

      External Sports, MLB

      Just who does Aaron Schobel think he is?

      July 28, 2010 /
      ORCHARD PARK, NY - DECEMBER 17: Aaron Schobel #94 of the Buffalo Bills gets ready at the line of scrimmage during the game against the Miami Dolphins on December 17, 2006 at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Orchard Park, New York. Buffalo won 21-0. (Photo by Rick Stewart/Getty Images)

      Look, there’s only one person that can be Brett Favre and that’s Brett Favre. There’s only one person that can do the retirement dance like Brett Favre and that’s Brett Favre. And there’s only one player that can drive their fan base and the media up the wall like Brett Favre and that’s, well, I’ll stop myself before I get to be too annoying.

      There’s only one person that can be as annoying as Brett Favre and I sir, am no Brett Favre.

      With that in mind, where Does Aaron Schobel get off thinking that he can be Brett-like in his version of will-he-or-won’t-he this offseason? In early June he told the Buffalo News that he didn’t he think he was going to play in 2010. Now Schobel is saying that he’s leaning towards coming back.

      “I would say I’m leaning more towards doing it (playing) then I was a month ago”, Schobel said on Tuesday. “At this point I’m thinking about it. At that point (a month ago) I didn’t want to even consider it. I wanted to enjoy my life like I was done with football. Lately both me and my wife have decided we have to do something.”

      So what’s changed? It was just over a month ago that Schobel told BuffaloBills.com that he didn’t think he was going to play in 2010. “I don’t know why.. I just started thinking I need to do something”, said Schobel. “I don’t want it to be January and say I wish I would have tried.”

      I’ll tell you what’s changed: it starts with ‘training’ and ends in ‘camp.’ Players hate grueling training camp sessions and if they can avoid them by holding out or acting like they’re pondering retirement, then they’ll do so in order to skip as many practices as they can. It appears as though Schobel has pulled a page out of Favre’s playbook in order to work his way out of training camp. The audacity!

      On a less sarcastic note, only those who are close to Schobel know why he’s considering retirement. It might be his desire to spend more time with his family or skip training camp, or it could be some other personal reason that we would never understand. The bottom line is that the Bills have stood firm in their position in stating that they’d like him to play but would understand if he chooses not to. So essentially it’s Schobel’s decision to come back or not and given how young the Bills’ defense is, they could use his veteran presence once again in their front seven.

      Schobel has always been a blue-collar player and a hard worker. Both the NFL and the Bills need him to play, so here’s hoping he does.

      External Sports, NFL

      There’s still time for Albert Haynesworth to turn things around in D.C.

      July 28, 2010 /
      CHARLOTTE, NC - OCTOBER 11: Albert Haynesworth #92 of Washington Redskins looks at the scoreboard against the Carolina Panthers at Bank of America Stadium on October 11, 2009 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)

      Chris Russell of 980 ESPN reports via his Twitter page that Redskins’ defensive lineman Albert Haynesworth will arrive early for training camp on Wednesday in an effort to reach out to head coach Mike Shanahan.

      That’s good news, but it’s only a start.

      Although they were few and far between, some believed that Haynesworth was within his rights to complain about his situation in Washington. They said that because the Redskins switched their defense from a 4-3 to a 3-4 and wanted Haynesworth to play defensive end that he should have begged his way out of Washington.

      But while that argument made sense on the surface, it completely ignored the fact that Haynesworth questioned the Redskins’ scheme last year as well – when he was playing in a 4-3. Following a 45-12 loss to the Giants on MNF, Haynesworth stated that he couldn’t survive another season in Greg Blache’s system.

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      External Sports, NFL

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