The Redskins Blog

John Beck Celebrates His Big Day With His Second Family

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Today is a special day for Redskins quarterback John Beck.

No, he wasn’t named starting quarterback–that hasn’t been decided yet.  No, he isn’t welcoming a child into the world–that was Graham Gano.

Beck turned the big 3-0 today, and celebrated his birthday with practice and film study.

Asked if he felt like a more-experienced quarterback today as opposed to yesterday, he joked, “So much more than yesterday, because I’m 30 now.”

Beck–who played with the Baltimore Ravens during the 2009 season–said he even received some happy birthday phone calls from former teammates in Baltimore.

Better now, than delivering them in-person on Thursday.

He seemed more concerned about any gifts he might receive from his current teammates. “I’d be a little worried about any presents coming from anybody in this building,” he said with a laugh. “You never know what it might be.”

Happy Birthday, John.

Edgar Jones Taking It Day-By-Day After Vicious Hit

Linebacker and special teamer Edgar Jones had a very scary moment on Friday night, when he was blocked in the back, into the oncoming returner.  As soon as he was pushed, he went from being the hammer to being the nail, and took the full force of the hit on the helmet.

Jones left the game with a concussion, and talked about the play with the media this morning.

“When I saw the video [replay], I just couldn’t believe it happened that way,” he said.  ”Like I said, the only thing I remember was him catching the ball and going to hit him, and somebody pushing me in my back.”

“And then once he pushed me in my back, I really had no control over that.”

A scary moment for Jones and his family, but it was good to see him up and moving around this morning.  Here’s a hoping for a full and quick recovery.

Check out the full video of his interview below: Read more »

‘Good’ Isn’t ‘Good Enough’ For Leonard Hankerson

On Friday night, Leonard Hankerson was the Redskins top receiver, with four targets and three receptions for 46 yards.  He had a 25-yard catch and run over the middle for a first down.  He moved the chains again with an 18-yard reception over the middle.

But no congratulations for this rookie; the only play that Hankerson wanted to reflect on after the game was the one that got away.

“I felt good actually playing out there, but I still gotta focus,” he said after the game.  ”I still had that one drop that I wish I could go back and catch it, but it’s over now, man.”

Hankerson has talent to spare, but he said that his concentration is to blame for his drops this preseason. Read more »

New Kickoff Rules Hurting Redskins Special Teams Ace

Lorenzo Alexander had a pretty good game on Friday night, finishing with a big sack of Colts quarterback Curtis Painter, for a six-yard loss.  However, he was more fixated on his special teams play, and vented his frustrations on Twitter after the game:

Something has to give with this kickoff. One of the best things I do. Now it's just keeps me loose with all these touchbacks.—
Lorenzo Alexander (@onemangang97) August 20, 2011

Read more »

Redskins Players Disperse On A Rare Off-Day

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The life of an NFL player in-season is so structured and scheduled that it’s hard to get a good feel for a player’s personality.  That is, until their days off.

Yesterday we had two rookies sitting back and watching some television: Read more »

Player Reflections On Indy, Confidence Building

The video above was the scene as players were leaving the field and coming back into the locker room on Friday night.

Body language is an important indicator to the attitude of a team.   A study by  San Francisco State University and the University of British Columbia found the following results on athletes expressing pride and shame:

The study showed that winning athletes…across all cultures, tended to raise their arms, tilt their heads up and puff out their chests after winning. Losing provoked a universal expression as well: slumped shoulders and a narrowed chest.

Right now, the Redskins are showing all of the confidence and body language of a winning team.  They’re one of six teams that has yet to lose in the preseason, and their offense and defense are both ranked No. 1 overall. Read more »