American Football Update: NFL Albert Haynesworth of Washington Redskins says he will Attend Training camp
There is no ‘I’ in ‘team’ but if you wiggle the words around there is a ‘me’ in there. Haynesworth has been lashed, and ripped at for not showing up for scheduled trainings over disagreements about the defensive strategy being pursued.
Albert Haynesworth, the South Carolina, American football defensive tackle for the Washington Redskins of the National Football League, came to the Redskins for a phenomenal one hundred million dollars. Redskin owner signed Haynesworth last year for the absurd amount of money and might now be regretting it. First he asked to be traded, then Haynesworth did not attend voluntarily team events, which is sort of acceptable even if not very sportsmanlike of him, but then he decided to not even show up for mandatory minicamp either. He was fined 10,000 dollars for that stunt. While his teammates practiced and learned a new playbook with a new coaching staff, Haynesworth was pouting because he didn’t get to play the kind of game he wanted.
His bone to pick with the coach is the switch from 4-3, more suited to Haynesworth personally, to a 3-4 defensive alignment. The defensive tackle has reason to be concerned of course. With the 3-4 tackle, he would have to take up the nose-tackle position, his responsibility then would be enabling linebackers to make tackles. With the 3-4 defence, Haynesworth won’t be able to make the high number of tackles and sacks he has been pulling off, the plays that got him his 100 million dollar contract in the first place. Nevertheless, Haynesworth is unhappy with the team’s switch to a 3-4 defence and he hasn’t been afraid to voice out his opinions. Haynesworth was a no-show at the Redskins mandatory minicamp Wednesday because of the team’s new defence strategy. It has resulted in the escalating long showdown with Coach Mike Shanahan. Players responded with some of the harshest comments that can be directed at a teammate.
There is a growing chorus of Alumni and teammates, who have been very publicly criticizing his behaviour. The feeling of being let down as Haynesworth made it abundantly clear that he is looking out for himself and the team takes a back seat to his performance. "He's going to mess the most satisfying parts of playing football, and that's being with your teammates, maybe going and having a beer, going to dinner, but it's not the game, it's the commitment that you make to one another that lasts a lifetime" teammate Pat Fischer said. Randle El on the Haynesworth saga said that players expect everyone to give it their best to the team and when one player isn’t putting in the effort, the rest intrinsically feel odd at that player’s side which isn’t good for the team.
There is also the less complicated issue of owning up to the contracts you sign into. Mike Nelms “If they paid us $21 million, you wouldn't have to tell us to come in, you'd have to tell us to go home, because we'd stay there" Nelms, another Redskins alumni said. "But he's looking out for himself.”
Never mind everyone else, even his ex-wife, Stephanie, lunged at the opportunity to launch a verbal attack against him in the media. "He thinks he's above everything. He feels like he's entitled. He's narcissistic. It's very frustrating to go to someone constantly and ask them repetitively to do the things they're already supposed to be doing” Stephanie said addressing Haynesworth’s failure to make her health insurance payments or their children’s bills.
In a statement, he said that he was continuing his training on his own to prepare for the upcoming season saying that he would report to the team before the season begins “in shape and ready to play football.” The only upside of things, Albert Haynesworth, has finally come through and announced that he would be attending training camp. “Despite my differences with the Redskins, I have always planned to attend training camp and honour my contract” he said.
Surely not always because the 10,000 fine levied against him came for a breach of contract. Albert has cashed in millions of dollars from his contract and even collected a 21 million dollar bonus in April. Money is always part of the equation. Haynesworth stands to lose part of the 42 Million dollars guaranteed to him if he were to fail to show up at training camp. In contrast, failing to uphold his responsibility in attending minicamp can only result in the maximum fine of 10,000 dollars.
The financial cost to him in terms of lost credibility and value is immeasurable. One of the most dangerous defensive players now appears like a volatile, unreliable, selfish and petty 6 foot 6 adolescent.
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