ASHBURN – The fields were frozen Wednesday, forcing the Redskins onto their artificial turf surface. A day later snow forced them indoors for the fourth time this season.
That’s why coach Mike Shanahan said afterward that building an indoor facility was “a priority.”
“We’ve talked about that in detail before,” Shanahan said. “You want the preparation you need to get ready for a game.”
Instead of preparing on-site, the coaches and players piled into their cars and drove to a local gym.
Washington is one of 10 teams not to have an indoor practice facility. Cincinnati is the northernmost team without an indoor site, with Washington right behind. Former Redskins coach Joe Gibbs did not want an indoor facility. Because the current practice fields are on a flood plain, they can’t be covered. However, there are other places on site that could accommodate a bubble.
Meanwhile, Shanahan tried to put a positive spin on the situation.
“You deal with the elements,” he said. “The last time we worked on a Thursday, we won the game. Sometimes the guy upstairs is saying, ‘Hey, you’re practicing a little too hard or a little too long. You need to slow down a little bit.’ Hopefully it works out in our advantage.”
Defensive coordinator Jim Haslett, a former head coach, didn’t want to comment on whether the Redskins needed an indoor facility. But he did say it makes it harder to prepare.
“But these guys are resilient,” Haslett said. “Over time you will play in these elements. The only bad thing this week is we don’t; we’ll play in ideal conditions. This is just something you have to fight through.”
The players had fun with it.
“Driving in the snow is rejuvenating,” said linebacker Chris Wilson, who grew up in Flint, Mich. “It helps the mind relax; it’s Christmas time.”
But Wilson said players who hail from the south were the ones asking to be driven to the facility.
“Perry Riley never practiced in [snow],” Wilson said. “He wanted to go throw snowballs. I hate guys like that. … [Nose tackle and Hawaii native Maake Kemoeatu], I wouldn’t let him drive. But he probably wouldn’t slide that far. He’d get weighted down.”
