Pro Bowler works as second-team nose tackle
ASHBURN – At times he looked like a Pro Bowler. Even if nobody was in full pads, it was still impressive at times. Albert Haynesworth ripped his right arm over the center and pushed him aside with his left, chasing the quarterback in the backfield. Another time, he beat the guard down the line as he pursued the ballcarrier.
But then …
His lack of conditioning showed. Those were the times he would engage the center, then back off and guard against cutbacks. It’s the sort of first full day to be expected for Haynesworth.
“From what I saw he looked pretty good,” Redskins coach Mike Shanahan said.
Haynesworth also happened to work as the second-team nose tackle, as the team said he would.
How long that happens remains to be seen.
“I don’t know. It depends on how he looks in practice and what kind of football shape he’s in,” Shanahan said. “It takes a while to get back into game shape. That’s one of the reasons why you have preseason games, to get back into football shape and to get acclimated to doing football related things. Hopefully he stays in good shape and there are no setbacks to his knee. We’ll see how he does in the preseason games.”
Redskins defensive coordinator Jim Haslett and defensive line coach Jacob Burney both declined to talk about Haynesworth’s first full day back. Haynesworth missed the first nine days of practice while trying to pass the conditioning test and, after passing Saturday, he was limited.
However, his teammates were more than happy to talk about the return of a potential defensive force up front.
“About as powerful as he was before,” center/guard Edwin Williams said of Haynesworth. “He’s still getting used to the defense and his assignments. [Burney] was over there coaching him up, what hand to put down, what technique to use, things like that. So he’s still getting the feel. But I’m sure when we put the pads back on the power will still be there.”
Center Kory Lichtensteiger was victimized by the swim move.
“He didn’t look like he was missing a beat to me,” he said. “You’re bracing for power, and then he’s just explosive.”
Haynesworth lined up mostly at nose tackle, but he did move around on occasion; sometimes lining up directly over the nose and other times at an angle. He also slid to tackle in a two-man front and was at end another time. The plan for him this season is to not be stationery.
“That’s what he finally realizes,” linebacker Brian Orakpo said. “Whether it’s a 3-4 or a 2-5, it don’t matter; he can make plays.”
