Because it’s Tuesday, that means the players day off … and radio interviews. The best? As always, Clinton Portis and DeAngelo Hall, who is not a regular but was a guest. And, really, he should have his own show, shouldn’t he? After Monday, I’m guessing somebody in power at a local radio station realizes the same thing.
By the way, we won’t bore you with what Donovan McNabb had to say. Basically, he said: he won’t get caught up in the Philly hype next week; Hall is a “fiery guy” who wants to play; and the running game is alllllmost there. That about sums it up. Um, McNabb is a lot more colorful away from the cameras and microphones. He has to be, right?
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Anyway, on to the highlights. First stop: Hall.
Speaking on ESPN 980 with Kevin Sheehan and the Washington Examiner’s Thom Loverro, Hall said he has spoken with defensive coordinator Jim Haslett about what he said Monday.
“I had a chance to talk to the whole defensive staff and let them know how I was feeling. And I sat down with coach Shanahan and I’m juiced up for this week. Coach ‘Has’ is a joking guy and he said, ‘Yeah, I know [what you meant]. I you said it the way I thought you said it, then we’d been fighting right now.’ [And] he said, ‘We ain’t playing nothing but man-to-man, so when he beats you for 10 touchdowns, it’s all on you.’ Jokingly, though.”
As for Albert Haynesworth, Hall used to be one of his biggest supporters. Now, not so much.
He said: “It’s, it’s an ongoing saga. From Albert being banged up to not holding up his end of the bargain. I think people had refrained from really commenting on the situation because we really wanted to get him in here and wanted him to buy into what we’re doing here and be a part of the process. It’s still up in the air as to if he has bought in. We still can’t get a feel for his mindset. We see him out there in practice and he goes pretty hard in practice. … I went the bat for him a couple times and, uh, I’m still trying to find the strike zone.”
And then: “I think at the end of the day, he has enough guys in his ear and helping him out, as far as players on our roster, that I think he’ll get with it. It’s definitely taking a little longer than a lot of us wish it did. But Albert’s a different person. … I think I might’ve wanted him to handle things the way I would have, or Fletcher might’ve wanted him to handle things the way he would have, but we’ve got to back off and let him sort through it the way he would do it. That’s been the biggest thing so far: us trying to figure out why he would do this or that, but that’s just Al being Al and eventually he’ll suit up and get the most out of it.”
Meanwhile, Portis really didn’t have a lot to say either on 106.7 The Fan (with Brian Mitchell and Holden Kushner). Except when the topic of last week’s comments regarding female reporters in the locker room
In full, Portis said:
“I put it behind me. I can’t control — people are always going to have negativity, man. If people don’t wish me the best, It’s always something that they’re going to find. I think everything that comes out of my mouth is the truth, whether people like it or not. With the comments I made that people didn’t agree to, they were true. Some people can’t stand the truth, and some people do.
“At the same time, if you know me and my sense of humor, you’re getting the humor and you’re getting the truth out of me. That being said, I don’t think it’s that serious. I think there’s more to life going on that you can complain about and make a topic of discussion and have on all the talk shows and give people reason to tune into the talk shows and point fingers besides the stuff that comes out of my mouth.
“But for the people that don’t understand, I’m never throwing anybody under the bush and I don’t never bash nobody. I think I tell the truth, I speak from the heart and it’s up to you to assess it. If you don’t want to me talk, you can always tune out or turn off this station. If you see me come across, just turn the TV off or turn the radio off. You don’t have to listen. I think every day is going to be topic of headlines and they’re going to take my quote and put it in a context that I didn’t say it in.
“I think if people would have listened to that whole interview, they would have seen that I didn’t say anything about the woman reporter. I was just speaking in general about reporters in the locker room. So, I mean, it’s over and done with.
“For myself, I just won’t comment on matters that I don’t know anything about, and I’m gonna continue to mind my business and going about my day and not lose any sleep and go back and when I get with my teammates laugh about what I want to laugh about and take the criticism that I’m gonna take. I’m used to it. This is my ninth year in the league. I’ve been a topic of criticism since I’ve been here. I’ll be alright.”
