Washington Sports

Last Wednesday was my girlfriend’s birthday. So of course I l told her we could do whatever she wanted to do all day. Then she hit me with all the requests.

She wanted to go shopping, eat at a nice restaurant, and see a movie. So I thought no big deal, all of those things don’t sound that bad. After shopping for about an hour at the mall she wanted to go to a different store. The store was a thrift store. I hadn’t been to one since I was young so I was a little nervous.

When we got to the thrift store I was impressed by its enormous size. I had never seen a thrift store like this one. After entering the front doors I noticed that I was a little out of place. The store wasn’t as clean as I would have liked but I decided to give it a chance.

After about an hour I became extremely bored. My girlfriend was completely entranced in shopping so I decided to wonder myself. After looking at what seemed to be a bunch of useless stuff I found a bin of sporting equipment. The bin had been pushed under a collection of blankets and didn’t look as if anyone had looked through it in a while. I noticed a basketball at the bottom of the bin so I decided to get it out. Just about two weeks prior to this I was at a local park and I left my basketball behind and when I went back it wasn’t there.

I started pulling some of the equipment out and placing it on the floor beside me. As I got deeper in the bin the equipment seemed to be getting older. I noticed a wood golf club, a wooden baseball bat and a rugby ball. After removing a Hockey mask from the bin I noticed a white panel football. When I examined the football closer I noticed that there were two signatures on it. The first signature was a printed on signature from the NFL’s former commissioner Paul Tagliabue. The second was a real signature that was done in black marker. To my surprise it was a Darrell Green autograph.

The price tag on the football was two dollars and 93 cents. So, I decided to buy it. I am unsure of its true value but I intend to find it. Even if the football isn’t worth more than a couple of bucks a Darrel Green autographed football deserves more than to be smashed in a bin at a thrift store.

Darrell Green is a Washington Redskins legend.

The real question here is should Cam Newton play for the Washington Redskins next season. Given his past I don’t feel that the Redskins should add him to the roster.

However, I do know that the kid is talented. After taking Binn College in Texas to a national championship, he turns around and takes Auburn to a National Championship. One has to ask if he can be stopped. The NFL is going to be a huge jump for him but with his current resume I have a hard time saying he isn’t going to be a great NFL player. He has all the physical attributes that a good Quarterback in the NFL needs. He is large in stature and has incredible speed. The only down side to his physical attributes is his throwing arm. Some NFL coaches believe he doesn’t have the accuracy that an NFL player must possess. I agree with them. He struggled at the NFL combine in accuracy and at times he seemed frustrated with himself. A quality we have yet to see from Cam.

Despite all the negative things about his accuracy that have been said I have to look at all the good things because there are so many. The greatest attribute Cam possesses is the ability to win at any measure. He brings swagger to a team. He brings hope and belief to a team. That is something I believe the Redskins desperately need right now.

After the 2009 NFL season the Redskins had a record of 4-12. After many changes within the organization fans were supposed to buy into a changed culture. However, what fans were handed with was a week to week struggle. The Redskins finished the 2010 NFL season with a record of 6-10. There was little improvement from last year but not enough to make anyone believe that big things are ahead for the Redskins.

If Cam Newton came to Washington I believe he will be a great football player. He has what it takes to win. He understands that over every aspect of the game the most important one is winning. This attribute seems to have been lost here in Washington. Redskin’s players seem to want to pine over all the mistakes that have been made.

Another important thing that must not be overlooked is the position. Cam Newton is a quarterback. The Redskins just so happen to need a quarterback after chewing up Donovan McNabb and spitting him out. After seeing what Rex Grossman can still do I believe we should allow him to start the season and teach Cam the offense? If Rex starts to fall short of expectations than we can make a switch and see what Cam has.