When Albert Haynesworth signed a record contract with more than $41 million in guarantees, the Washington Redskins and owner Dan Snyder looked to him to be the most disruptive defensive tackle in all of football. After all, Haynesworth had just finished a season with the Tennessee Titans where he single-handedly turned that front seven into an elite unit. More than a year after signing that deal, Haynesworth has succeeded in being disruptive, albeit not in the way the Redskins were looking for.
The volatile Haynesworth has been a disruptive force in the locker room, crying over a shift in defensive philosophy and claiming that he'd take his 41-million dollar ball and head home. Signed to dominate offenses and control the line of scrimmage, the only thing he's dominated has been national headlines. Though Haynesworth has never been an overly popular player going back to his days at Tennessee, the South Carolina native is now taking bullets from all angles. He's a national punchline of sorts, after new coach Mike Shanahan laid down the law.
Complaints of a phantom knee injury have been common and missed workouts were the summer norm for the tackle. Though he claimed to be getting in shape on his own, results from the early part of camp haven't reflected that. Haynesworth has yet to pass his required conditioning test. Though national pundits have admitted that the test is hard and probably unnecessary for a player like Haynesworth, Shanahan has been unrelenting. Looking to take control of the situation, he's denied Haynesworth access to more than a dozen practices after the big man has come up short.
National outlets have had a lot of fun with this story, with some taking it to different levels than others. ESPN radio show host Mike Golic actually took to the field to see if he could complete the same conditioning test. A former lineman who has been out of action for almost 20 years, Golic's successful test was filmed and run on ESPN.com. Without training, one half of ESPN's "Mike and Mike" was able to beat the test and offer a winded interview a few seconds later.
The bigger story seems to be the hammer that Shanahan is bringing down in Washington. Well aware of the fact that Haynesworth has run unchecked on all of his previous teams, Shanahan set strict standards and stuck to his guns. As big Albert continues to fail the relatively simple conditioning test, the joke grows larger. Shanahan has indicated that he might finally give in and allow Haynesworth to practice without passing the test, but more than a week into camp, that has not happened. Regardless of his large contract and his checkered past, Haynesworth isn't bullying around a multiple Super Bowl champion like Shanahan.
Will the national joke grow larger or will Haynesworth finally step up to the plate and complete the 600 yards worth of sprints? Only time will tell, but for now, Shanahan is getting the last laugh.
