Redskins Insider

Redskins owner Daniel Snyder called ESPN980 not long ago and reminisced about growing up a Bullets fan and getting to know Wizards owner Abe Pollin, who died today at the age of 85:

"When I was a little kid, we moved to New York for a while," Snyder remembered. "We had an uncle that passed. We lived with my grandmother. And we moved in, and my father was working a little bit in New York, and we would go across the street and get the newspapers that came out in the middle of the night when [the Bullets] were playing Seattle. ... It goes way back. I mean, if you're a Washingtonian, you have to have loved Abe Pollin."

Inevitably in the course of the call-in, the question of the Redskins' problems arose:

"From my perspective, I think everyone knows how bad I feel for the fans of the Redskins right now," Snyder said. "Obviously we've disappointed everyone. We're REALLY sorry. It is what it is. We've just not performed, but I think from our perspective we'll get this thing going. But right now is a time of grief."

Dan Steinberg has more at the DC SportsBog.

In an appearance with teammates and owner Daniel Snyder at the Redskins' annual Thanksgiving food giveaway at FedEx Field, Chris Samuels spoke of his injury and his future in football.

Samuels suffered a neck injury Oct. 11 in the Redskins' loss to Carolina and his condition, further complicated by stenosis, caused him to be placed on injured reserve Oct. 31. Although he has not announced his retirement, Samuels, league sources have said, will not play again.

"I really don't know at this point. It was a pretty bad injury, stenosis is something I've been dealing with for years, so we'll have to sit back and wait and see," Samuels said. "I'm definitely optimistic about it. However it unfolds, I know the good Lord will take care of me, so I'll be happy with it. ..... I have to wait and see the doctors, so it'll be a few months, and I'll sit back and pray about the situation and make a great choice."

He was philosophical about his future after football, while insisting that he has made no decision.

"I'm not scared at all. I mean, I've had a blessed career, I played 10 years, I've been playing this game a long time," Samuels said. "It'll definitely be different, it'll be a little hard, but I'll make it. I mean, football is just something I did for a living for a while, it's not something that defines me."

[Editor's note: Dan will have more on Samuels' comments later. He's assigned to coverage of the death of Abe Pollin now.]

Redskins running back Clinton Portis, scheduled to miss his third straight game Sunday at Philadelphia because of a concussion suffered Nov. 8 in Atlanta, said he still struggles with blurred vision when he moves his head quickly, but he hopes to play again Dec. 6 against New Orleans.

During his weekly appearance on "The John Thompson Show" on ESPN980, Portis said he has seen six or seven doctors and passed a battery of tests, but won't play until his vision is back to normal.

"My vision, just sitting still, it's fine," Portis said. "Moving is when now and then it's blurry. I can sit still and read everything you put up in front of me, but when you move me, shake my head around, that's where my blurriness comes in and we [are] having the focus issues."

Portis touched on a number of topics during the interview, appearing befuddled by the Redskins' play-calling structure and saying the organization "always go[es] the difficult route for everything we do." He said he did not know until last week, when he heard Coach Jim Zorn speak about the system in a press conference, that offensive consultant Sherman Lewis called the team's passing plays while offensive coordinator Sherman Smith called the running plays. Co-host Rick "Doc" Walker, a former Redskins tight end, asked Portis if he had ever heard of such a structure.

"I never have, man, but that's the NFL," Portis said. "That's the Washington Redskins. We somehow, some way, we're going to make things harder. Everything's going to be exposed. ...

"If you look at us play, it's hard to find our identity. I don't even know our bread-and-butter plays. I can't go and tell you, 'This is our bread and butter. Whenever it's on the line, this is what we're going to call.' "

With Portis out again against the Eagles, and backup Ladell Betts now done for the year with torn knee ligaments, special teams captain Rock Cartwright will start in Philadelphia. Cartwright gained 67 yards on 13 carries and caught seven passes for 73 yards in Sunday's 7-6 loss at Dallas.

"I think everybody on our team know who the heart and soul of the Washington Redskins is, and that's Rock Cartwright," Portis said. " ... Once [wide receiver James] Thrash retired, the man of the Washington Redskins, the mascot, the player that you look for to say, 'That's the Redskins,' is Rock Cartwright.

"He go out on special teams, he gives you everything you got day in, day out. He's going to be a vocal leader. He [is] gonna speak his mind. He's going to fight. He's going to be scrappy. And you're seeing that."

Portis has been known to use his Tuesday appearances on Thompson's show to speak his mind about various situations with the team. But when Thompson asked Portis directly whether he was frustrated with the Redskins as a whole, the outspoken Portis took the high road.

"I can't sit here and say I'm getting frustrated with the Redskins," Portis said. "That's where I work at. That's where I'm employed at, and I've got to go out and do everything I can to help the Redskins win. I think everybody in that organization get[s] frustrated at some point about something going on. But I'm not the one to make the decisions. I can't change it. ...

"They're not going to change the Washington Redskins to suit Clinton Portis, and I'm okay with that. I'm not trying to make them change that. whatever role I'm asked of, that's the role I'll pay. I'm not going to go out and be disgruntled. I'm not going to go out and be unhappy. I'm going to continue to smile. I'm going to continue to go to work. I'm going to continue to feel fortunate about having a job in this economy. And when I get my opportunity to get back on the field and help, I'll try to do that."

Redskins owner Daniel Snyder has issued the following statement on the death of Wizards owner Abe Pollin today at the age of 85:

"Abe Pollin was a great owner for Washington, as well as a personal friend. His legacy will live through his teams and the arena he built, and just as importantly, through his commitment to his family and to Washington. My thoughts and prayers go out to Irene and the rest of his wonderful family."

Running back Ladell Betts, who will miss the remainder of the season because of torn knee ligaments, is under contract through the 2013 season. But Betts, 30, is not guaranteed money beyond this season, in which he has a base salary of $900,000 and is due another $450,000 in roster and workout bonuses. His base salary increases to $1.65 million next season, but considering the long rehabilitation process involved with torn anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments, it appears Betts has played his last game for the Redskins after having been selected by the team in the second round (No. 56 overall) in the 2002 draft.

"I plan to be around the team for the rest of the year, the only time I wouldn't be is if I have to leave to have the surgery," Betts said. "All I'm really thinking about right now is getting my knee right so I can get back to work again."

During his weekly appearance today on ESPN 980's "The Jim Zorn Show," Redskins Coach Jim Zorn revealed that he called eight plays in the Redskins' 7-6 loss to the Dallas Cowboys.

"They were just within the ... they weren't first-down plays," Zorn said. "Unless it was a two-minute drill. I called most of the two-minute drill."

Zorn has previously acknowledged he retained play-calling duties in two-minute drills, and it was Zorn, not primary play-caller Sherman Lewis, who again directed the offense in those situations against the Cowboys. So Zorn also called eight plays that were not in the final two minutes of the first or second halves, Lewis continued to call "the bulk of the passes," Zorn said, and offensive coordinator Sherman Smith handled most of the running game.

Owner Daniel Snyder and Vinny Cerrato, Washington's executive vice president of football operations, stripped Zorn of most of the play-calling decisions and promoted Lewis, hired as an offensive consultant on Oct. 6, to be the new play-caller for the Oct. 26 game against the Philadelphia Eagles.

But after five weeks of the new procedure, play-calling appears to be a hodgepodge operation primarily involving Zorn, who still installs the offensive game plan each week, Lewis and Smith, the main conduits to quarterback Jason Campbell. Offensive assistant Chris Meidt, who sits next to Lewis in the coaches' box, also has played a key role.

Lewis has not addressed the media since his introductory news conference on Oct. 7. He has repeatedly declined interview requests, according to team spokesmen, so Lewis's opinions about the Redskins' play-calling, offensive game plans and talent level, among other things, are not known.

For the most part, the play-calling process for the last five weeks has run much more smoothly than some critics envisioned. On his show, Zorn acknowledged the Redskins experienced a few glitches against the Cowboys, but said the problems were not the result of anything Lewis did wrong or the plays he called.

As for Zorn's role in calling plays not in the two-minute drill, he said he tries not to throw off Lewis's play-calling rhythm. "He's got a track, and I try to honor that feel for the game," Zorn said. "I'm up to speed, I think, in where we're headed, because we talk about the mix and where it's going. I feel pretty good about it."

Injured tight end Chris Cooley said this morning during his weekly radio appearance that he could likely be the latest Redskin player to join the injured-reserve list.

"I'm probably done," Cooley said on "Elliott in the Morning" on DC101. "If all went well, and it was an amazing 10-day recovery starting now, I can probably play the last three games. But I don't really see any benefit in me playing the last three games ... but I'd do it. If they wanted me to, and they kept a spot for me and I was fine, I'd do it."

Zorn, on his weekly radio show on ESPN 980, said that Cooley is "still some question mark." He hadn't yet decided whether to put the tight end on injured reserve and called it a "50-50 situation." Zorn said he's weighing his options and would like to have Cooley for the final four games.

"If it's just the final two games, I may back off that," Zorn said.

Cooley has worn a protective boot since having surgery to repair a broken right ankle Oct. 28. Cooley had another consultation with his doctor Monday and learned that he'd need to wear the boot for at least 10 more days.

"If there's any risk, that's what's going to happen," Cooley said on the show Monday, before the consultation. "But if there's no risk and the bone's healed and I can get back in a couple of weeks -- work hard for a couple of weeks - and I feel fine, that's great for me. I love to play. Mentally I'm there. I need a couple of weeks on my feet obviously."

Seven Redskins players -- including three this week -- have been placed on injured reserve. On Monday, the team put down running back Ladell Betts (knee), guard Chad Rinehart (fibula) and fullback Eddie Williams (fibula) for the season.

"I honestly can't believe the number of injuries we've had on this team," said Cooley, who was hurt in the first half of the Redskins' 27-17 loss to the Eagles on Oct. 26.
 
In the Zone
Today's Redskins Tailgate Zonequestion: With all the injuries, do Jim Zorn or Vinny Cerrato get a pass for this season?

Quinton Ganther is so new in the Redskins' locker room that his bio on the team's website still reads, "Coming soon," but on Sunday in Philadelphia, the newly-signed running back will likely see increased action with starter Clinton Portis still out because of the aftereffects from a concussion and back-up Ladell Betts bound for the injured-reserve list after tearing his anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments in the 7-6 loss to the Cowboys.

"It's just how this game works," Ganther said. "This game sometimes you get opportunities, sometimes you don't, but when the opportunity presents itself you've got to make sure you're ready for it. I hate to see [Betts] go down because he's a good guy, he's a good player. He runs hard and he does what you ask of him, so that's always a tough loss."

Signed originally on Oct. 20, Ganther was cut shortly thereafter but re-signed on Nov. 11 after Portis's concussion against the Atlanta Falcons.

Now with third-string back Rock Cartwright expected to start, Ganther and fan-favorite Marcus Mason, whom the Redskins re-signed on Monday, are expected to provide relief. Ganther said he was not told what his role will be against the Eagles but emphasized that he is up to speed on the playbook and will be ready.

Ganther also said he is excited about the opportunity both for himself and Cartwright, whom he praised for his willingness to fill whatever role is asked of him.

"Me and Rock we gel together because we're so much alike," Ganther said. "We do whatever's asked of us even if we don't get the bulk of the carries. We just play our role. He's a seventh-round pick, I'm a seventh-round pick and you know how this league go - when you come in as a seventh-round pick you really, there's really no chance for you to stay in this league. This guy has been here for eight years because he does the little things right, he does the things that everyone else is not willing to do and that's what keeps him around and that's what kept me around this league."

With running back Rock Cartwright forced into facing more action at running back in the Redskins' 7-6 loss to the Dallas Cowboys, wide receiver Devin Thomas got an opportunity to return kickoffs and he averaged 28 yards on two returns.

Thomas showed his ability in the return game on a 38-yard return in which he made several tacklers miss, and the 2008 second-round draft pick said he is eager for the opportunity to continue in that role with Cartwright expected to start in the backfield Sunday at Philadelphia.

"Just because it's real natural and it's an easy way to get me the ball and use my speed and my size, a combination of the things I'm good at [and] try to make a big play," Thomas said. "I think I did a pretty good job and hopefully I get some more opportunities. I think with Rock getting more playing time at running back, it allows me to do that, takes [the] hits off of him."

In his junior season at Michigan State, Thomas returned 39 kicks for an average of 29.1 yards, ranking 11th in the nation. Asked what makes him a good returner, Thomas answered that he had a number of qualities that made for a strong option to take back kicks.

"I think just my ability to hit it hard, explosive, don't slow down, no fear, just hit it and try to hit that hole," Thomas said. "If it's there, I'm telling you I'm going to the house. I'm waiting to do it."