The Beginning - An Ode To Spandex
Hello Redskins Nation. Glad to be among you. This is my first blog entry on Washington's favorite team, so forgive me if it goes astray. I woke up this morning and couldn't believe training camp was underway. Just wanted to welcome you all to my little cranny in internet land, and invite you all to participate. I had a blast doing a daily blog during the World Cup in Germany, and look forward to connecting with as many readers as possible on this Skins blog, too (and if my new soccer friends want to chime in as well and talk some futbol from time to time as well, far be it for me to stop them).
I thought I'd give my philosophy on this thingy as we get started. Basically, I want to have some fun, hopefully entertain some people and start a dialogue about whatever interests you. I like to deal with the many strange and offbeat things that happen covering this team, but if there are days when you want hardcore X's and O's, by all means send in a comment and let me know. I figure we do a lot of that already in our non-bloggy coverage of the team, but I am game for whatever. I'm kind of looking at this as an extension of the web chats I do, and, since I've really been given no parameters or restrictions from management thus far on this blog (what were you guys thinking?), I'm sticking with that ethos until told otherwise. Ah, sweet freedom.
I'll try to post stuff around lunchtime, when I am told net traffic is the highest, but admit some days I may not be able to do it until later at night when I get home and my wife and baby are sleeping. Weekends will probably be slow, but I'll give it the ol' college try five days a week at first, and we'll see how it goes. Again, please feel free to chide, deride and ridicule me. I learned long ago it comes with the job.
Monday, and the opening of training camp was notable for a few things, but what shocked me most was the number of guys wearing spandex shorts or tights, with no mesh shorts over them. It just struck me as kind of weird, like looking at one of those hairless cats or something. Especially the defensive backs wearing the tight, white shorts with nothing over them ( I won't name names, you guys know who you are).
One dude pulled off the cycling look, however, and of course it was a receiver. Always-suave wideout Brandon Lloyd (forever to be known on this blog as B.Lloyd) was rocking some long, black tights despite these crazy-muggy temperatures, and never seemed to break a sweat. After Monday's practice I felt it my duty to get to the bottom of this unique fashion choice (scrappy understudy receiver Jimmy Farris went with the same get up), and B.Lloyd, an offseason rapper and all-around cool character, was more than willing to indulge.
Lloyd, one of the countless big offseason acquisitions, said that in the heat there's nothing more distracting than having your mesh shorts stick to your legs "restricting your knee drive", and that these pants also allow for a better knee explosion. But there's more to it than that. Seems many a great San Francisco wide receiver has espoused these quirky pants during training camp, and Mr. Lloyd is another ex-49'er to go that route.
"Jerry Rice did it - he left," Lloyd said. "Owens (T.O.) did it - he left. Cedric Wilson did it - he left. I'm doing it - I left." Lloyd was rolling with laughter at this point, and I was cracking up right along with him, although now that I listen to this interview on tape, I'm not quite sure why. Anywho, he went on. "But it's just one of those things ...Any little thing bothering you, you don't want it. You don't want to even think about your shorts. That's the last thing you want to think about it."
Lloyd also claimed he had no idea if the pants were stylish or not, or how they looked, but I'm not sure I entirely believe him on that one. Anyone making it out to Redskins Park for a practice, let me know what you think (I'd be shocked if all are not at least a little freaked out by the players wearing the white lycra shorts). And in the interest of full disclosure, Farris is tight with T.O. and a former 49ers himself, so I don't want to give the impression he's taking all his cues from Lloyd.
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Those making the trek to Ashburn be warned. Water is going for $2 and soda for $3. Danny has indeed thought of everything, and if you arrive to the Park and realize you don't have a pen to get that autograph you covet, he's got you covered. You can buy a sharpie at the souvenir stand, but it'll cost you 3 bucks. Not sure what the going rate is on those; it's been a long time since I used to stake out the team hotels when baseball teams visited my beloved hometown of Baltimore, but unfortunately not nearly long enough since my house was robbed twice in a six month span, with all of my signed memorabilia and baseball cards stolen ... Since I'm on a baseball rant, just want to send a big shout out to Theo Epstein, my Red Sox boy genius GM. Nice moves at the deadline. Way to sure things up. Two years ago I was dancing for joy with Nomar sent packing, sensing big things after Esptein pulled a couple of masterstrokes. But his inactivity at this deadline could be just as significant, for all the wrong reasons ... Went to see "The Devil Wears Prada" with my wife over the weekend, one of our last outings for a long time given the nature of this beat. I let her pick the movie because she hasn't been feeling well, and frankly, that just the kind of dude I am. Had a bad feeling all along, and man, what a crappy flick. One cliché after the next. One predictable plot turn after the next. We both wanted to see the Al Gore environmental documentary, but it wasn't playing until 10, which is sleepy time ever since our daughter came along ...
I love the fanaticism of Skins fans as much as the next guy, but the droves of people wearing heavy, burgundy jerseys in this heat was mind-boggling. Maybe I'm just as extreme sweater or something, but I can't see putting anything but a t-shirts and shorts on for a few hours of baking under the sun ... Saw a bunch of stragglers still waiting for autographs outside the Park around 8 pm staring into cars to see if players were leaving. Should any of those people be reading this, I have a heads-up for you. All of the players are leaving in the two big busses headed back to the conference center the team is occupying, so it's probably slim pickings to chose that strategy. A noble approach, but probably won't net much success until the veterans break camp. I'm told new offensive guru Al Saunders was saluted by fans leaving Redskins Park Monday night, however, so if it's coaches you're after it might work ... We've all be caught up in talking about how hot it is, but in these parts there's more than just the humidity to fight: This place is crawling with flesh-nibbling bugs of all sorts and some of the beefiest dragon flies I have ever seen. They travel in hordes and if a swarm of them decide to buzz by your head, look out. I was getting eaten alive at the morning session today ... Alright, that's it for now. Got to write a few stories before the next practice starts. Thanks in advance to all who checked out the debut of this bad boy, and I'll keep blogging away, for better or for worse.
Cheers.
By Jason La Canfora |
August 1, 2006; 1:46 PM ET
Next: C-C-C-COOLEY
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Posted by: Rick | August 1, 2006 01:53 PM
you dare suggest a "futbol" comment is ok on a Redskins blog on washingtonpost.com.... oooo, you're in for it pal.
Posted by: Wait a minute... | August 1, 2006 02:15 PM
JLC-
It appears that, despite our mutual love of "the beautiful game", we may be at odds in other sports (I am a HUGE fan of the Bombers and Big Blue.)
As a side note, though I don't know how much you follow UMD sports, but where do you see Ralph Friedgen's Terps ending up this year, minus D'Qwell and VD?
Posted by: jterp | August 1, 2006 02:38 PM
Jason,
I'd just like to thank you and the Sports staff again for the WC06 coverage.
As far as Danny, what's he charging the media for wireless internet access?
Posted by: AbC | August 1, 2006 02:51 PM
Dragonflies are good. They are eating the other flying critters.
Posted by: | August 1, 2006 03:22 PM
Great to see the blog ... couple suggestions ... how about linking out (like to Loyd's blog). And shorter, more frequent entries might be an easier read. But all in all, I love it. Good to hear a journalist in a non-journalist voice.
Posted by: Scott | August 1, 2006 03:47 PM
White lycra shorts? Were the fans waiving dollar bills? How bad was traffic getting in and out of the Park? I live in Ashburn and wouldn't go to the open practices in the past because of the traffic. Maybe the new LoCo Pkwy has helped.
Posted by: Lyc, ra | August 1, 2006 04:21 PM
I am very optimistic about the skins chances this year, although I am a little bit gunshy about getting too amped up after what was done to me by the 2000 season. If Burnell plays like he did the first half of the season last year, I think we can make a deep push into the post season, after all, if we just get about 17 points a game, our D can do more than enough to win it for us. If Saunders is the genius that they say he is, man its scary what the skins can do. I mean look at what the skins have compared to the chiefs last year position by position:
QB: Trent has the edge over Brunnel, but not by too much
RB: I will say that its a toss up between Larry Johnson and Portis
WR: Redskins blow the Chiefs out the water compare to what the chiefs have
OL: I'll admit, the Chiefs had a monster OF, but the skins are not too far from them
TE: Though Gonzales is a beast, Cooley is coming along and is not that much infior to Gonzo
Posted by: THEOneSkins fan | August 1, 2006 04:53 PM
Jason,
I see the single biggest issue for the Redskins being the combined health of Brunell + O Line. Everything else is in place for a long, successful run. So any notes about the O Line, their health, how they are meshing, and little anecdotes would go a long way to explaining what probability the Skins have at a successful run.
Thanks!!! Glad to see you getting this role with the Post.
Posted by: Josh U, Seattle | August 1, 2006 05:12 PM
Enjoyed WC! Probably won't post again here either, but just wanted you to know that I'll be reading every day. Anything and everything I can get about the Skins here in Carolina is mostly from the Post online. Looking forward to a GREAT season from the team and from you. Thanks again.
Posted by: CharlieO in S.C. | August 1, 2006 08:12 PM
Hey guys, great to hear from all of you, and I will take all of the comments and suggestions to heart. There is so much going on and everything is so nuts during camp that I'll probably go with one longer blog per day to start, but once we get into the regular season I'll shoot for more smaller entries if they work better. Again, I aim to please.
I talked to a bunch of fans at practice today who all thought the move to these lycra shorts was weird to say the least. About 10 guys were wearing them at the afternoon practice. Strange. Hope this isn't going to catch on.
Thanks so much for those who were checking out the soccer blog. I won't have as many zany travel stories to share like I did in Germany, but I'm sure I'll come up with something.
I admit I have to get better with that linking stuff, because Lloyd's website was pretty wacky last time I checked it out. I think it's still blloyd.com.
As for the rest of the comments - I think the Chiefs get the edge at QB and RB; Fridge still rebuilding, I fear.
On the traffic front, I am generally at the Park many, many hourse before practice starts, so I don't see what it's like when cars are really pouring in, but the intesne heat has resulted in smaller crowds thus far. I'll let some in on a secret, though. Take the Rte. 28 exit and go in that way; it's cheaper and usually works best for getting into the Park, I've found, rather than staying on the tollway to the LCP.
And last but not least, Josh, I am with you 100 percent. Health of the O line is huge and I am working on a few stories to that end for next week.
Alright, going to get to bed soon, but is anyoen else getting slowly pulled in by this Rockstar Supernova show? I find myself drawn to it, and I generally have pretty strong reality show defenses.
Anywho, thanks again for checking in and we'll see what tomorrow brings.
Cheers.
Posted by: Jason La Canfora | August 1, 2006 09:38 PM
Jason,
Thanks for having the courage to admit you saw that awful movie, nice to know I'm not alone. I got to pick the next two movies after that catastrophe. As for our beloved Skins, I think the keys to success this season [now lets all hold our breath through pre-seaon]are obviously health,how quickly our offense can learn Al Saunders terminology,and how quickly all of the newbies can gel. I really love this time of the year. It's fun to watch rookies and second year vets grow in the process. I just hate to see these guys getting injured in meaningless pre-season games. I know it's necessary, but why not a couple of scrimmages and three pre-season games? Well... maybe one day when I become commish!(LOL)
Thanks for keeping us informed.
Posted by: John B. | August 1, 2006 10:16 PM
It would be nice to see X and O comments here, some short stuff for those of us who can't make it to camp ourselves.
Where is Lloyd lining up? How does Randle El look? What about Mike Espy's kid? Anyone particularly impressive? Jason Campbell is the one I'd like to hear the most about.
Thanks.
Posted by: Doug | August 1, 2006 11:45 PM
Hey Doug, let's talk nuts and bolt Skins. Randle El is going to be a real wildcard here, much like in Pitt, helping on teams with the return game, running the ball on reverses and end arounds, probably throwing some passes, maybe some of that direct snap stuff, and catching balls as well. Gibbs said he sees Randle El as the slot, inside guy, with Lloyd the prototype No. 2 outside guy. So while guys like Randle El and Cooley will be out wide from time to time as well, sure sounds like the two wideouts in a standard set would be Moss and Lloyd.
Espy's kid is a longshot who showed well in rookie camp. Seems to have decent hands and made an acrobatic catch ont he sidelines Tues. night before getting absoltuely blown up by Lemar Marshall. Espy lost his helmet but held on the to ball. Seems like a good kid, but that's not the position you want to be playing in this camp, WR. Campbell looks good, but I think it's going to be tough to unseat Collins. Saunders really trusts him and he has this system down.
Cheers.
Posted by: Jason La Canfora | August 2, 2006 01:35 PM
So do we get anything for noticing the Prince/Sheila E. reference ("1999:)??
As with the others, thanks for the WC coverage...looking forward to this one.
Also, do you ever read comments posted from the previous day?
Posted by: Dewey Girl | August 2, 2006 03:47 PM
Jason -
Your WC blogs helped get me through the workday, and now I have the 'Skins blog to pass the time. Excellent reporting, keep up the good work...and don't shorten the entries, I love the long, meandering narratives. They really seem to shower us with knowledge (or at least useless, yet entertaining info about training camp)!
Posted by: CY | August 2, 2006 04:45 PM
Dewey Girl, my family was just in your neck of the woods. had a great week in Rehobeth but no more partying for the wife and I in Dewey; getting up at 5 am with the baby will do that to you.
Thought the 1999 reference might slip through, glad you caught it. You're atop the leaderboard and they'll be plenty more of that stuff to come.
And my response to this answers your question. I definitely double back to see if there's old entries to tend to.
Thanks to all for writing.
Posted by: Jason | August 2, 2006 08:05 PM
KAKA-
And here I thought we got rid of you after World Cup-ha!
Welcome back to bloggin'!
Go SKINS!
Thanxxx...
Posted by: Pink C.C.- | August 3, 2006 01:31 AM
anyone know if the scrimmage is going to be on TV? Thanks.
Posted by: howdy | August 4, 2006 12:54 PM
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Missed ya buddy. Fantastic WC coverage!!