More than two dozen former members of the Washington Redskins attended the 31st Annual Washington Redskins Alumni Golf Classic, and they pretty much seemed to agree defensive lineman Albert Haynesworth needs to get back to work.
Haynesworth skipped last week's minicamp and demanded a trade. He doesn't want to play in the new defensive system.
"We just had our minicamp, and 99 percent of our players were there," said General Manager Bruce Allen, who hosted the charity golf event at Lansdowne Resort. "Ninety-nine percent of players got better at this camp. If he elects to come to training camp, we'll work with him then. Otherwise, you'd have to ask Albert."
"I'm shocked," said Hall of Fame wide receiver Charley Taylor. "I think the young man is being misled by his advisors. I think he could be a legend in Washington."
Mike Nelms noted the huge contract Haynesworth signed as a free agent last year.
"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," he said. "But he's looking out for himself."
"I can't comprehend, you know, when you talk about that kind of money that you're laying out for a player and it's his job to be here and do the things that he's paid to do," said Larry Peccatiello, a Redskins defensive assistant coach from 1981 until 1993. "It's not comprehensible."
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Teammates finally spoke about the matter last week, expressing their disappointment with his selfishness.
And teammates are the best part of the game, said Pat Fischer, a Redskins cornerback from 1968 to 1977.
"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," he said.
When asked if he was sure that Haynesworth would report to training camp in a few weeks, Haynesworth's agent told News4, "I think so."
"He's got a contract," Allen said, "and we expect him to honor it."
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