The Redskins Blog

A Closer Look At Chris Cooley The ‘Potter’

In continuing our trend of checking in to see how Redskins players, past and present, are spending their offseason, we’re going to take a look at free agent tight end Chris Cooley.

Cooley has been a staple of the Redskins organization for just over nine years. He is the Redskins’ all-time leader for receptions by a tight end (428), a fan-favorite among many crowds, a leader in the locker room, a spokesperson in the fight against breast cancer, and an experienced potter. He’s an all-around good football player and good leader; the kind of guy you would want your daughter to date.

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Alexander Prepared For First Pro Bowl Trip

Redskins linebacker Lorenzo Alexander understands that the key to success is through preparation.  Throughout the offseason he prepares himself to be stronger and faster than the year before. During the season, he prepares himself to be the best player on gameday.

And when he finishes off a career year that leads the NFL in special teams tackles, he solicits advice on how to be ready for his first career Pro Bowl.

The first person he talked to was teammate London Fletcher, who will be joining Alexander for his fourth-straight trip to the Pro Bowl. Like Alexander, Fletcher was snubbed until later in his career, when he finally got the respect from his peers to make the trip to Hawaii.

But that’s about where the respect element ends, at least as far as hotel room charges in concerned. Read more »

Football, Family Focus During Bye Week

(AP photo)

Whether a rookie or a 14-year veteran, the Bye Week is looked by all Redskins players at as a time to re-charge the batteries and stay mentally sharp and focused on their next game, which is Nov. 18 vs. the Philadelphia Eagles at FedExField.

The rookie example? Cornerback Richard Crawford, who will be heading home to Dallas to work out with his old defensive backs coach.

“I really don’t take days off during the season,” Crawford said Tuesday. “The only reason I’m really going back to Dallas is to get in some work with my old DBs coach to get some work in because we can’t be with our coaches. I’m going to do that probably every day, work out with him, and then come back here ready to play.”

While he’s in town, Crawford said he’s also looking forward to catching his alma mater, SMU, play Southern Miss — and he said he hopes he doesn’t get too caught up in the college atmosphere.

“We’ll see how it is,” Crawford said. “Hopefully I won’t get too involved, because I was kind of like a player-coach when I was there. So I’m going to try to stay away from all of that this time.”

Though this is Crawford’s first Bye Week as a professional, it’s certainly the opposite for Redskins middle linebacker London Fletcher.

Fletcher — a 14-year NFL veteran whose wife and kids live in Charlotte, N.C., during the season — said Tuesday he was very much looking forward to seeing his family.

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EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: ‘Skins Take The Field

Redskins fans, are you ready for the return of tight end Chris Cooley?

I thought so.

Cooley, who was released by the team during final cuts, was signed last week to replace tight end Fred Davis, who suffered a season-ending Achilles injury vs. the New York Giants. Cooley, Capt. Chaos himself, is back in his familiar No. 47, and we have the first video of him taking the field for the first time in the 2012 season with the Redskins.

We also have our usual glimpse at captain and linebacker London Fletcher’s pregame speech. It’s a must-see.

Enjoy:

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Kevin Durant Welcomes Back Chris Cooley

(Photo via @trey5 on Instagram)

Washington Redskins fans are ecstatic about the return of tight end Chris Cooley, who re-signed with the team Monday after starting tight end Fred Davis suffered a season-ending Achilles injury in last Sunday’s loss to the New York Giants.

Cooley, 30, is the franchise’s all-time leader in receptions by a tight end, and has become one of the more popular players in Redskins history since joining the team as a third-round selection in the 2004 NFL Draft.

So it’s no surprise at all that Cooley’s jersey is one of the Redskins’ best sellers.

Well, one particularly famous Redskins fan put on his own Cooley jersey and went to his Instagram account to welcome Captain Chaos back to his favorite team.

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Chris Cooley’s Career In Photos

(AP photo)

The Washington Redskins announced today that they were releasing veteran tight end Chris Cooley, who has spent all seven-plus years of his career with the Redskins, so that he can pursue a starting opportunity with another NFL team.

Cooley has produced countless memorable moments for Redskins fans over the years. Below is an Associated Press photo gallery of some of his biggest games in a Redskins uniform, including (but not limited to):

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Video: Chris Cooley Says Goodbye

If you’ve been a Washington Redskins fan the past eight-plus seasons, then it’s almost a sure bet you’re a Chris Cooley fan.

Cooley — the franchise’s all-time leader in receptions by a tight end — was released Tuesday by the team, in a move head coach Mike Shanahan said was meant to give the two-time Pro Bowl selection a better opportunity to start elsewhere.

In one of the more classier moves I’ve seen in my time covering sports, Cooley addressed the media and announced his release, and had nothing but great things to say about the Washington Redskins, the organization and its fans.

Here’s the video. Try not to choke up watching this:

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Redskins’ Summer Camps Approaching

(www.procamps.com/chriscooley)

One of the most rewarding aspects of being a professional football player is the ability to go into a community and touch the lives of area children.

At least four current Redskins players will have that opportunity here in the coming weeks through their personal youth camps.

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Club DJ Tiësto Is An Excited Redskins Fan

via @Tiesto

Make room on the Redskins bandwagon for Dutch musician Tijs Michiel Verwest, known in dance clubs around the world as the famous DJ Tiësto, or simply “Tiësto.”

For those of you that don’t frequent the rave, Tiësto has released 66 singles and 79 remixes in the last 15 years.  He has been nominated for 61 international awards, and has walked home with 48 pieces of hardware.  If you follow club music, he needs no introduction.

If you don’t, his introduction doesn’t mean much.  Just trust me that he’s a big deal.

The important part is that he’s officially a big fan of the Redskins, as he revealed to his 1,033,590 followers on his Twitter account (@Tiesto): Read more »

Injured Redskins Players Back In The Mix

Open locker room on “Black Monday” is generally headlined by quiet, somber reflection for the teams and players that don’t make the playoffs.

But for injured players, this is the first time that many of them have been permitted to sit in on team meetings and team functions.  Rather than feeling like outsiders looking in, this is an opportunity for these players to stand alongside their teammates and look forward to next season.

“As a player who hasn’t produced for my team for what feels like forever, I’m really excited about starting over and moving forward,” tight end Chris Cooley said.  ”Today is good for me because it feels like I’m back to the team.”

This was a fairly common sentiment in the locker room today, as injured players like Cooley, Kory Lichtensteiger, Chris Baker, Kedric Golston, Leonard Hankerson, and Tim Hightower all showed up to meet with coaches and clean out their lockers.

One advantage that the injured players have over their teammates is that they have already reflected on the disappointments of the 2011 season.  For Cooley, today was the first day of his preparation for the 2012 season, and it’s something that he was encouraging his teammates to do as well.

“I think a fresh start’s probably good for everyone right now, in terms of record and in terms of what we have going on right now,” he explained.  ”I don’t think it sounds daunting, we just need to get back to work.”

After a quick shower and change into his sweatpants, he told teammate Logan Paulsen that he was off to go get in a workout.  From the sounds of it, we can expect to see Redskins No. 47 back on the field in 2012.