Defensive line » Clemson’s Phillip Merling was once mentioned as a likely choice. His recent surgery for a sports hernia temporarily caused him to slide, but the Redskins weren’t concerned. He’s now rising again and might be out of reach for Washington. Another possibility is Florida’s Derrick Harvey, from Eleanor Roosevelt High School. But Detroit, picking 15th, apparently likes Harvey. Miami’s Calais Campbell, coached as a sophomore by Redskins defensive line coach John Palermo, has slid, possibly into the second round. But he’s considered a good kid with a strong work ethic.

Offensive line/linebacker » The Redskins want tackle depth, and possibly a new starter at right tackle. They like Virginia’s Branden Albert, but so do others. “He’s really moved up a lot,” one NFL source said. The Redskins hosted USC’s Sam Baker Friday, but he’s considered a second-round pick. Also, they’ve hosted Tennessee linebacker Jerod Mayo, who can play inside or outside but 21 might be too high to take him.

Like father, like son … at least publicly

A Steinbrenner popping off? How unusual. But don’t infer that Hank Steinbrenner is just like his dad based on what he said Sunday.

That might be hard to believe given his statements regarding reliever Joba Chamberlain. But New York sources say the father spoke from passion; the son speaks from a business perspective. He understands the need to stay in the news in New York, so this is his way of doing so.

On Sunday, Hank Steinbrenner said of Chamberlain, “You don’t have a guy with a 100-mile-per-hour fastball and keep him as a setup guy. … You have to be an idiot to do that.” Never mind that Yankees GM Brian Cashman said afterward that Chamberlain was staying in the pen.

Steinbrenner also said he would not have allowed Chamberlain to be moved to the pen last year, a move he said was made “out of panic.”

But the younger Steinbrenner talks less to the baseball people than his father, who would contact them before, during and after games. The son focuses more on the YES network and the construction of the new stadium.

 “Bottom line, to Hank the Yankees are a billion-dollar business and to his father the Yankees was a passion,” said one person familiar with both men.

Billick to analyze QBs on NFL Network

Former Baltimore Ravens coach Brian Billick will be in an unusual position this weekend: instead of sitting in a team’s “war room” he’ll serve as a draft analyst in New York for the NFL Network.

Billick, fired this offseason, will be in charge of helping to analyze the quarterbacks. He does not expect the Ravens to select a quarterback with their eighth pick.

“Ozzie Newsome has made it clear that taking a quarterback is not necessarily the way they will go in the first round,” Billick told The Examiner’s Jim Williams. “So I don’t think a guy like Matt Ryan out of Boston College is a lock for the Ravens even if he is there.”

This weekend’s gig could lead to a bigger role for Billick come this season. However, other stations have interest in him: CBS, ESPN and FOX. The NFL Network and CBS seem to favor him most.

Column inches

Opinions from around the nation on the hottest topics in sports:

» The Pistons won’t blow a 15-point second-half lead again, right? They won’t miss 12 of their last 15 shots, at home, including eight of their last nine, right? They won’t see their best player, Wallace, fail to come through in the clutch after playing so well earlier in the game, right?

— Mitch Albom writing about the Detroit Pistons losing their playoff opener to seventh-seeded Philadelphia (Detroit Free Press).

» Everybody at Valley Ranch was prepared for the day when a certain key player demanded to be paid like the very best at his position. The Dallas Cowboys just expected that player to be DeMarcus Ware, not Marion Barber. Has anybody who has done so little ever asked for so much?

— Jennifer Floyd Engel on Marion Barber’s demand for a contract (Fort Worth Star-Telegram).

» Being at school isn’t the same thing as being in school. Rationalize it any way you want, but one and done is mercenary sports, nothing more.

But if the NBA insists on an age minimum, then the least it can do is consider Major League Baseball’s draft stance. It isn’t perfect, but it beats this mess.

— Gene Wojciechowski writing about college basketball players having to stay in college at least one season (ESPN.com).

» Not sure why people are fussing that the excitement has been drained out of the golf season just because Tiger Woods didn’t win the Masters. I mean, the most dominant player in professional golf still has a decent chance of winning the Grand Slam this year.

That’s right. Lorena Ochoa just has to stay hot in June-August.

— Jeff Rude writing about Ochoa after her fourth straight win, without a week off (GolfWeek.com).

On the record

“We usedto say that Japanese baseball was like Double-A or Triple-A baseball.  How wrong were we?  [Japanese players] have come over and starred in this league.”

— TBS analyst Ron Darling on the quality of players from Japan.

“It was more like an orangutan. I got the orangutan off my back.”

— Los Angeles Lakers center Pau Gasol after his first career playoff victory following 12 straight defeats.

By the numbers

5: Consecutive years the previous Stanley Cup champion has failed to advance to the second round after Anaheim’s exit this weekend.

23.4: Millions of dollars Jason Giambi will earn this season. He’s currently batting .109 with six RBI after an 0-for-6 weekend in Baltimore with three strikeouts.