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Yeah, I know. You want to know when the Washington Redskins are going to re-sign London Fletcher. Don't have anything for you on that. All I can tell you is that they still plan to do it, he hasn't signed with anyone else yet and there are five months left before the season starts, so there's no real reason to worry that I can see.

In the meantime, though, they are still working. Mike Shanahan has said many times that the biggest thing the Redskins have lacked since he got there was depth. Having struck out in their pursuit of an upgrade at right tackle, they announced Monday that they have signed tackle James Lee, a former Buccaneer and Brown who will be thrown into the reserve tackle mix along with Willie Smith and Tyler Polumbus. He provides some level of veteran insurance in case Jammal Brown still can't shake his hip injury. At this point, with the top free-agent tackles all signed elsewhere and unless they can find a starter in the third round of the draft or later, the Redskins' best bet at right tackle is a healthy Brown. They just need to make sure they have some coverage in the somewhat likely event that Brown is not healthy.

Earlier in the day, ESPN 980 in Washington reported the Redskins had agreed to terms with defensive end Kedric Golston, who played for them last year and gets thrown into the defensive line mix. Having already re-signed Adam Carriker earlier in the offseason, and expecting Jarvis Jenkins back from the injury that cost him his rookie season, the Redskins believe their defensive line depth is a strength of the team. They signed defensive linemen Stephen Bowen and Barry Cofield in free agency last year, and both are back as projected starters in 2012.

Expect the Redskins to keep making depth moves in advance of the draft. They had defensive back Madieu Williams in for a free-agent visit last week, and they still intend to re-sign Fletcher and running back Tim Hightower.

It's Saturday, which makes it the day I have to take my kids to swim lessons, which makes it the day I understand why some people drink alcoholic beverages before noon.

It also makes it mailbag day.

Andrew from New York, N.Y., admits he's a Philadelphia Eagles fan and therefore likely biased, but he says this to me: "I simply don't understand how you can report what Redskins sources say as the final word on McNabb's work ethic."

Dan Graziano: I didn't, Andrew. I presented and acknowledged both sides. Which Donovan McNabb pointedly did not, even leaving himself and his own win-loss record off his list of failed post-Elway Mike Shanahan quarterbacks. I would welcome a chance to discuss it with McNabb, and I let the producers of First Take know this, but they were not interested in having me on.

Dale from Novato, Calif., asks whether, if the Dallas Cowboys drafted a first-round cornerback, that would mean they're planning to part ways with Mike Jenkins after this season.

DG: Dale, I don't think it would automatically mean that, but as you point out, Jenkins does come with some injury questions. They love the way he played last year when healthy, but he wasn't healthy nearly enough. So if they were to draft a cornerback in the first round this year, they'd obviously be sending a message to Jenkins as well as covering themselves in case he can't get through the year healthy and they decide the best thing is to move on to other options. Better to address this now by thinking ahead then wait until next year when they have a clear problem/need at the position. And in this day and age, there's really no such thing as too many defensive backs.

Chris from Charleston, S.C., tells me that the reason Victor Cruz crushed Brian Orakpo in the Madden 13 cover vote was that Washington Redskins fans were voting against Orakpo because of the "Madden Curse." Chris is of the belief that I've not heard of this "Curse."

DG: Chris, I have heard of the Madden Curse, and of the idea that fans are voting against, rather than for, their favorite players in an effort to avoid having them land on the cover and end up "cursed." I just think it's foolish, and didn't see the need to acknowledge it in my post on the subject. We've reached an odd place in sports-fan history if this is really something about which people feel that strongly.

Tony G from Hamilton, Ontario, wants to know why the Arizona Cardinals are drafting ahead of the Dallas Cowboys when they had identical records and the Cardinals won the head-to-head matchup.

DG: Tony G, head-to-head result is not the tiebreaker for determining draft position. They use relative strength of schedule, and Arizona's was weaker, so their 8-8 record is deemed, for purposes of the draft, to be worse than Dallas' 8-8 record.

Ian from ODU wants to know if I think the Eagles would take Courtney Upshaw, the Alabama LB/DE, with their first-round pick (No. 15 overall) in next month's draft.

DG: Ian, my sense is that Upshaw will be gone by then, making this a moot issue. But if he is there, I'm still not 100 percent sure they take him. Upshaw is being looked at as a pass-rusher, and unless they were going to use him at defensive end in their 4-3 (where they're pretty well stacked with Trent Cole and Jason Babin), he might not be a fit for them. He's probably better suited to a 3-4 team as an outside linebacker who can get after the quarterback. The linebackers in Philadelphia's system aren't responsible for the pass rush.

Paul from Indiana Harbour Beach, Fla., likes Stanford tight end Coby Fleener for the New York Giants when they pick at No. 32 in the first round.

DG: Could definitely happen, Paul, and I agree with you that someone of Fleener's talents could make magic with Eli Manning. But since they've already signed Martellus Bennett and they surely expect Jake Ballard, Travis Beckum or both back at the end of this season if not before, I'm not certain they're looking at tight end as a long-term need position. The Giants will take the best available player still on their board at that spot, and if it's Fleener, I don't think they'd hesitate to do it. But I wouldn't be surprised if the highest player on their board at that point plays offensive tackle or defensive line. They really need a tackle, and they really love to draft defensive linemen.

Ahsen from MD wants to know why the Redskins didn't receive any compensatory draft picks for losing Carlos Rogers in free agency last year.

DG: Ahsen, you only get compensatory picks if your total net loss in free agency is deemed to have exceeded your net gain. So while the Redskins lost Rogers and others last year in free agency, the players they signed -- Stephen Bowen, Barry Cofield, Josh Wilson, etc -- were deemed by the NFL's formula to have been worth more than the total value of the free agents they lost. Hence, no compensatory picks.

Teon Wilson from Richmond, Va., wants to know if it's realistic for the Cowboys to trade for Eagles cornerback Asante Samuel.

DG: A couple of people I spoke with in Palm Beach this week told me they wouldn't be surprised to see the Eagles trade Samuel within the division. Nevertheless, I would. I don't think their need to trade him is so pressing that they'd send him someplace where he'd play against them twice a year. He's still pretty good. My guess is the price for Dallas would be higher than it would be for, say, an AFC team.

Nick from Rutgers wants to know why the Giants aren't at the top of the Breakfast Links posts anymore.

DG: We went back to alphabetical order once the new league year started. New year, standings reset. But I liked doing the links in standings order, and plan to do so again beginning in Week 2 of the 2012 season.

And to answer some questions that came in numerous times from numerous sources:

• I don't know when the arbitrator will decide about the Redskins/Cowboys cap penalties.
• No, I am not crazy.
• Sorry, but unless you're a Redskins fan, I simply do not know which player your team will pick in the first round of the draft.

Enjoy your weekend.

Just after I posted about the Washington Redskins signing free-agent wide receiver Pierre Garcon, Adam Schefter reported they were on the verge of a contract with free-agent wide receiver Josh Morgan, formerly of the San Francisco 49ers. It's been a busy first couple of hours of free agency for the Redskins, who also have re-signed defensive lineman Adam Carriker to a contract extension.

Jason La Canfora of the NFL Network reported the Carriker deal first, and he reports that it's for $20 million ($7 million guaranteed) over four years. A short time later, Carriker tweeted, "I'm back! #resign94 complete." Carriker is an important piece for the Redskins, a favorite of the fans and the coaching staff who helped the conversion to a 3-4 defense, and with him back and Jarvis Jenkins expected back from his rookie-year injury, the Redskins should have good depth along the defensive line.

Now, as for the wide receivers, they're not the ones for whom you were hoping. I understand that. Vincent Jackson was the big prize, but he appears to be off to Tampa Bay, and Garcon was probably about the best option left on the market after Jackson. But he is not an established No. 1 wide receiver. He could turn into one. He turns 26 in August and caught 70 balls for 947 yards in Indianapolis last year without a real quarterback. He's a good fit for Mike Shanahan's offense, and he has the ability to blossom as a No. 1 wide receiver if he clicks with the Redskins' new quarterback, who's expected to be 22-year-old Robert Griffin III. And that kind of future bet was the best the Redskins could do if they weren't going to get Jackson.

Similar situation with Morgan, who's also 26 and played just five games for the 49ers this past year before breaking his leg and missing the rest of the season. Mike Shanahan has been looking for free agents who have done some work to establish themselves as NFL players but are still hungry and young enough to grow with the team over the coming years. This was the thought last summer behind the signings of guys like Josh Wilson and Barry Cofield, and Shanahan is sticking with it. He targets guys he thinks will fit what he plans to do on offense and who are young enough to still be with the team once it's a contender. His hope is to build a team that can contend for a number of years, not just for one.

So while the Redskins needed quality and not quantity at wide receiver, without Jackson and Marques Colston (who re-signed with the Saints earlier in the day) they didn't have too many top-level options. So they're banking on younger guys who can grow up around Griffin and hoping they're getting them right before they take off.

In that respect, the criticism the Redskins are taking for reverting to old habits seems unfair. These aren't aging, big-name stars who are on the downsides of their careers. They are players who fit what the Redskins are trying to build. And whether it works out or not, this is the residue of an actual plan, not just a dartboard free agency approach that looks like what they used to do.

My goodness. The NFL playoffs begin in two days. Our division's representative plays in three. Where does the time go? Links.

New York Giants

People can officially stop asking me whether the Giants will bring in Steve Spagnuolo to be their defensive coordinator. It turns out, the Giants signed current defensive coordinator Perry Fewell to a contract extension that runs through 2012. Turns out they did this last year, when Fewell was interviewing for head-coaching positions. Nothing like a little leverage, huh? The Giants like Fewell, their issues on defense were personnel-related and not scheme- or coaching-related, and there's no reason to think he's going anywhere. Unless someone hires him to be their head coach.

Also, Giants defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul was named NFC Defensive Player of the Month for December, which isn't real surprising considering he was NFC Defensive Player of the Week twice in the month and had a 16-tackle game in one of the weeks in which he wasn't. Pierre-Paul just had his 23rd birthday on Sunday. Given his talent, his rapid learning curve and the team for which he plays, it's terrifying to imagine how good he can become.

Philadelphia Eagles

Les Bowen reports that Spagnuolo, the former Eagles defensive assistant and Giants defensive coordinator who was fired earlier this week as head coach of the Rams, is interested in coaching next year and would be interested in the defensive coordinator job with the Eagles, should that come open. The Eagles still have to decide what to do with current defensive coordinator Juan Castillo and whether they're willing to overhaul the defensive scheme under new leadership for the second year in a row.

Linebacker remains an offseason need for an Eagles team that struggled to find production out of those positions for much of the year. But Geoff Mosher writes that, at the very least, the group of linebackers the Eagles have played much better toward the end of the season. Just don't tell Jeffrey Lurie that. Remember, the way he sees it, it doesn't matter because they didn't play anybody good!

Dallas Cowboys

Jean-Jacques Taylor writes that young, talented Cowboys receiver Dez Bryant is embarking on his most dangerous time of the year -- the offseason. Jacques says Bryant needs structure in his life, and the proof lies in the off-field issues he's had involving behavior and his finances. All eyes are always on Bryant, whom the Cowboys believe can be a building-block player for them if he keeps his head on straight.

ESPNDallas.com invites you to play "Take him or trash him" with the Cowboys' roster. Go through and click on each player and decide whether you want him on next year's team or not. Something to do instead of work, which I know you're looking for.

Washington Redskins

John Keim lists five players who could help improve the Redskins' defense in 2012. Two of them -- defensive linemen Jarvis Jenkins and Barry Cofield -- are already on the roster. But a healthy return from Jenkins and continued improvement from Cofield at nose tackle would, in fact, help. The others John lists are Oakland Raiders safety Tyvon Branch, who can be a free agent, and two players who will be in this year's draft -- LSU cornerback Morris Claiborne and Oklahoma State safety Markelle Martin.

The Redskins will be working on the offensive line as well, and only the first year of right tackle Jammal Brown's five-year deal was guaranteed. In order to return in 2012, Brown is going to have to prove to the Redskins that his troublesome hip is finally really healthy. The guess here is that they look elsewhere for a tackle.

ASHBURN, Va. -- Everyone knows the Washington Redskins need a quarterback. Head coach Mike Shanahan might not want to come out and say he needs to fix quarterback this offseason, since he doesn't want to insult the players he currently has at the position. But in a wide-ranging interview in his office Friday, he did acknowledge that it would be good to have a "franchise" guy.

"Everybody wants a franchise quarterback," Shanahan said. "Every team you talk to, if you don't have a franchise quarterback, everybody's looking for a franchise quarterback. I understand. If you're in this business long enough, you understand that everybody wants a Peyton Manning, a Drew Brees, a Tom Brady, and rightfully so. If they're out there, you try and get one. And if they're not, you go with what you have and try and get it done."

I pointed out to Shanahan that part of the problem is that there aren't 32 guys in the world who fit that description. He smiled.

"Not everybody understands that," he said.

I left Shanahan's office with the definite impression that the Redskins would look at every conceivable available option at quarterback this offseason -- drafting one, trading up to get an Andrew Luck or Robert Griffin III if they need to, or even looking at the possibility of bringing in Manning if the Colts let him go as expected and he can prove he's healthy. Shanahan didn't really discuss any of those specific names, and I didn't expect him to, but every time I raised a specific possibility, he made it clear they'll look at all options.

As for other needs, let's go to your questions.

Jason from Washington, D.C. checked into the mailbag last week and wanted me to ask Shanahan what was "the most glaring positional need" for the Redskins to address in the draft or free agency.

Mike Shanahan: "We've got to get a wide receiver that's a playmaker. You've got to have a No. 1, no question about it. We've got [Santana] Moss, and [Jabar] Gaffney, who's going to be right at 1,000 yards. But you're still looking for a guy that can go the distance and make plays, running on a short shallow cross and go the distance. Everybody's looking for that."

---

Later in the interview, the topic of rookie wide receiver Leonard Hankerson came up. Hankerson missed the final seven weeks of the season with a hip injury, but Shanahan's eyes got big when he talked about him.

MS: "I think he's got a chance to be the guy. Health is what we don't know. He's got the hip. But we're hoping he's going to be that guy. You can see in practice where he's a natural. Big. The thing that separates guys at No. 1 is when they can beat bump coverage and they don't have to slow down to beat it. They're able to keep their speed and be able to get by somebody. He's got that."

Of course, if the Redskins are looking for a No. 1 receiver for next year, it's unlikely they'll be willing to take a chance that Hankerson could come that quickly. There are some potential free-agent options in guys like Dwayne Bowe, Stevie Johnson, Reggie Wayne and Vincent Jackson. And if the Redskisn decide to take a receiver instead of a quarterback in the first round, Oklahoma State's Justin Blackmon is the top option.

---

Bill from Maryland submitted a question asking what Shanahan's plans are for free agency, and he responded that they'd be similar to what they were last year, when they targeted a couple of specific guys with specific characteristics -- Barry Cofield, Stephen Bowen, Josh Wilson -- at some need positions.

MS: "We'll try and do the same thing this year -- take a look at a couple of upgrades on defense, a couple of upgrades on offense. Guys that have proven themselves, who aren't too old, that we think are still hungry in that 26-, 27-, 28-year-old range. That's what we'd like to target in free agency if we can get those guys, and then try to target everything else in the draft."

So there you go. That's your fun homework assignment for this week. Go look at the lists of prospective free agents and find guys in that 26-28-year-old range who play positions like safety and offensive line and wide receiver and see if you can figure out who they might be targeting. I will of course do what I can to find out more, but it sounds like we can start piecing some possibilities together no?

Lots more to come all this week from my Shanahan interview, including more of your questions.

Over at the AFC South blog, Paul Kuharsky has a post that says the Texans' Johnathan Joseph was the most valuable free-agent signing of this past offseason. Surely, the transformation of the Texans' defense is a big part of the reason for their division title, and Joseph was a big part of that transformation.

But if you disagree with the choice, there's a SportsNation poll in Paul's post that allows you to vote for someone besides Joseph as the best 2011 free-agent signing. Other choices include New Orleans running back Darren Sproles, Tennessee quarterback Matt Hasselbeck, Denver running back Willis McGahee and Philadelphia Eagles defensive end Jason Babin.

What's interesting about this is that none of these guys was projected to have the impact he has had, while bigger-name signings have had far less impact. I guess that's the way it always works, but it got me thinking.

Babin was clearly the best free-agent signing in our division, the best of many by the Eagles, who likely imagined ballyhooed cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha would top their list. Asomugha has played fine, for the most part, but has had some memorable negative moments in his first season in Philadelphia. Babin, meanwhile, ranks among the league leaders in sacks and has made it clear that his first season as a dominant NFL pass-rusher (2010, in Tennessee) was no fluke.

So Asomugha was supposed to be the Eagles' best free-agent signing, but Babin actually was. How about our other three teams? Let's take a look:

Dallas Cowboys

Then: The biggest deal was to lock up left tackle Doug Free before he hit the market, and the Cowboys did. But Free has been a disappointment and could be moving back to right tackle next season as impressive rookie Tyron Smith moves over to the left side. Free-agent safeties Abram Elam and Gerald Sensabaugh have had their moments but are part of a struggling secondary.

Now: The Cowboys' best signing turned out to be wide receiver Laurent Robinson, who has 797 yards and nine touchdowns on 50 catches. He answered the team's preseason questions about the No. 3 receiver spot and was a more-than-adequate replacement for Miles Austin during Austin's many injury problems.

New York Giants

Then: The Giants eschewed external free-agent pursuits because of the importance of signing their own. At the time, the highest priority was running back Ahmad Bradshaw, who has played well on either side of the foot injury that cut out the middle of his season. Center David Baas has been a bit of a disappointment in his first year in New York.

Now: When the Giants re-signed defensive end Mathias Kiwanuka and said they would be moving him to linebacker, it seemed like a desperate move from a team that had very little behind its defensive line. But Kiwanuka has been a major stabilizing force for the Giants at his new position, and he still moves up to rush the passer with his old defensive line buddies on third downs.

Washington Redskins

Then: The Redskins made a big splash when they signed defensive tackle Barry Cofield away from the Giants and made him a nose tackle for the first time in his career. Cofield has played well, but it took him a while to adjust to his new position. A year from now, this will look like their best 2011 signing from a list that includes Santana Moss, Donte' Stallworth and yes, Rex Grossman.

Now: The Redskins signed safety O.J. Atogwe just before the lockout -- a move a lot of people almost forgot they made once free agency began in earnest. He's had some injury problems, but when he's been on the field, Atogwe's been an impact player, as has cornerback Josh Wilson, whom they signed away from Baltimore.

When they signed him away from the New York Giants to play nose tackle -- a position he'd not played before -- the Washington Redskins knew Barry Cofield would need time to adjust. They neither expected nor required him to grasp all of the nuances of his new position right away. As with most of the moves Mike Shanahan has made over the past year, the Cofield signing was done with the long view in mind.

Now, 14 games into his first season in Washington, Cofield is showing great strides in his transition from 4-3 defensive tackle to 3-4 nose tackle. And given the research they did on him prior to the signing, the Redskins are not surprised. Rick Maese has the nice story in The Washington Post:

"When he was playing the three-technique, you kind of watched his technique over the guards," Shanahan said. "Then you heard how unselfish the guy was, how he played more plays than anybody else, how he ran sideline to sideline, just a team-oriented guy... To put that same person over the center position, there's really no difference except there's a lot of different blocking combinations."

Shanahan said getting an understanding of Cofield's work ethic and study habits particularly sold him. He remembered watching Cofield when the big tackle came out of Northwestern in 2006, and when it comes to intelligence, Shanahan said Cofield is "off the charts."

"When you interviewed him in college, he was the same way," Shanahan said. "He's a pro. It doesn't take you long to figure out when you talk to him why he's been successful."

This has been a big point of emphasis for Shanahan -- that he wants to have high-quality people on his roster. Shanahan is building something he hopes can be successful and sustainable, and he believes the best way to do so is with high-character guys who can play. (This is why the Trent Williams and Fred Davis drug-suspension issue has to be so troublesome for him, but that's a different story.) The Redskins targeted Cofield -- they didn't settle for him. They went out and bid aggressively on a guy they believed fit what they were trying to do in a number of ways. They did so assuming they could make him fit in the ways he didn't already obviously do so. And to this point, it appears to be paying off.

"The guy is going to be, I think, one of the best noses in the league when he comes bac." next season, defensive coordinator Jim Haslett said.

Said Shanahan: "He's going to make a great nose tackle for years to come."

Another positive for Redskins fans to take out of their third straight losing season. Another sign that there's reason to feel good about the direction the franchise is taking.

Getting cold in the East as we arrive at December. What can we expect for this month? A spirited Cowboys-Giants race? A hot finish by the Eagles or Redskins to make things fun or interesting? A daily serving of links? I can only promise the last.

Dallas Cowboys

Gerald Sensabaugh says it's amazing to watch film and see how good Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald is at getting open even when double-teamed. Fitzgerald will be the greatest challenge Sunday for a Cowboys defense that needs to shut down Arizona and get a win heading into the first Giants game. There's some talk in that Dallas Morning News story about how having already seen top wideouts Calvin Johnson and Brandon Marshall will help the Cowboys against Fitzgerald. No mention, though, that those two guys combined for 13 catches for 199 yards and three touchdowns in their games against the Cowboys. So I mention it. So there.

Despite early week optimism that wide receiver Miles Austin would return from his second hamstring injury of the year and play against the Cardinals, Austin missed practice again Wednesday and his status remains in doubt.

New York Giants

Former Giant Michael Strahan stopped by practice and spoke with the Giants' current defensive line, which hasn't been as good at sacking the quarterback lately as it usually is. This is a big deal here in the New York metropolitan area because it recalls a time last season when Strahan gave a pregame pep talk and the defense went out and sacked Jay Cutler nine times in the first half. Should this indeed be a similar situation, it would be well timed, as the Giants have the Packers coming to town this week. The Packers are currently on a 17-game winning streak that began with a 45-17 victory over the Giants last Dec. 26 in Green Bay and includes a Super Bowl victory, so they're pretty hot. Or maybe due for a loss? One or the other.

Dave D'Alessandro says the Giants have been asking too much of Eli Manning and that he can't do it all.

Philadelphia Eagles

Kevin Callahan says the only way things are going to be better for the Eagles in the final five games than they were in the first 11 is if they give running back LeSean McCoy the ball more. Why does it increasingly seem like the only people who don't believe this are the ones making the Eagles' game plans each week?

One of the things Jeff McLane and Jonathan Tamari are watching tonight in Seattle is DeSean Jackson, since whatever he does is going to be making headlines in the coming days, good or bad. We're at the point where Jackson is almost a bigger story than what's going on on the field for the Eagles, since everybody's looking ahead to next year and beyond and wondering what chance remains that he's a part of the team going forward.

Washington Redskins

Barry Cofield was a bit of a surprise signing for the Redskins back in the offseason -- a 4-3 defensive tackle signed to play the nose in Washington's 3-4. But Cofield was game, and has played it fairly well, though he and the team acknowledge that he's still learning it and should expect to eventually be better at it than he is now.

It seems as though safety LaRon Landry's groin injury is worse than the Redskins initially thought it was. Landry missed practice Wednesday, and his injury-plagued season continues.

I almost want to lead the links with the Eagles today, since it seemed like they had 10 times as much going on Monday as any of our other teams did. But rules are rules, and the completely arbitrary rule we set here a month or so ago was that we would present the links in order of the division's current standings. So the Eagles have to wait until... ahem... third.

New York Giants

It sounds as though linebacker Michael Boley's hamstring injury might not be serious enough to keep him out of Sunday night's game against the Eagles, though the team is listing him as day-to-day and we really won't have any good clues until we see whether he practices Wednesday. While Tom Coughlin downplayed his players' assertions that Boley was the most indispensable player on the defense, the players who said so make a strong case. He's kind of held things together out there. Cornerback Aaron Ross is also day-to-day, which means the Giants could go into Sunday's game banged-up on defense. But as you'll see in a few paragraphs, the Eagles have plenty of injury problems of their own. And kind of stink anyway.

Mike Garafolo's review of Sunday's game revealed some concerns about pass coverage, communication on defense and, of course, the running game. Mike believes these are things that have to be shored up if the Giants want to navigate the second half of their schedule and cash in their 6-2 start with a playoff appearance.

Dallas Cowboys

The Cowboys hope to have Felix Jones back on the practice field Wednesday and that he's over his ankle injury in time to play Sunday in Washington. They just don't know what they're going to do with him once he is back, what with DeMarco Murray running all over everybody.

Blogging the Boys takes a detailed look at the Cowboys' playoff chances -- a reality that now seems to be setting in for a lot of fans who thought the season was in the dumpster after a tough loss in New England. People really should read my blog more closely, but whatever.

Philadelphia Eagles

Here's what DeSean Jackson had to say Monday about his benching, his general unhappiness at work due to his contract situation and the apparent fact that the "spokesman" who issued a statement on his behalf Sunday doesn't really speak for him. Or at least didn't in this case. Sounds as though Jackson and Andy Reid have made their peace, but I guess they'll always wonder whether Jackson's discretion cost them a game they needed to win.

And here's what Michael Vick had to say about playing Sunday after breaking a couple of ribs on the second play of the game. I still don't know if I understand his explanation for why he wouldn't put the kevlar vest on, but the fact remains that he's in a lot of pain and is at least considering the possibility he won't be able to start Sunday night against the Giants. The news on Jeremy Maclin's shoulder doesn't sound good either.

Washington Redskins

Rex Grossman will remain the Redskins' starting quarterback, Mike Shanahan said, because for all of his obvious faults Grossman is a capable veteran who at least gives Washington a chance to win the game. Shanahan won't say this, but it's become rather obvious that John Beck is not.

Redskins nose tackle Barry Cofield dished out some harsh truth, saying there's not another obviously easy win on the Redskins' schedule and that things could get "historically ugly" if they don't start playing better. Hey, well, at least they'd be making some history, then, right?

Chat today at noon ET. Be there or be the object of scorn and derision for the remainder of the week.

ARLINGTON, Texas -- In the raw, emotional aftermath of an 18-16 meat-grinder of a win, Dallas Cowboys receiver Dez Bryant spoke about his quarterback, Tony Romo, in awed, reverent tones.

"He motivated me to go out there tonight when I obviously wasn't 100 percent," said Bryant, who was slowed by a thigh injury but still managed to make the critical third-and-21 catch that kept the Cowboys' final scoring drive alive. "I mean, broken rib, punctured lung, and he's out there. You've got to be willing to put yourself out there for a guy like that."

This was the prevailing thought in the Cowboys' locker room -- that in spite of the tower of circumstances that were stacked against him, Romo was the reason the Cowboys beat the Washington Redskins on Monday night. He was without top receiver Miles Austin, and Bryant wasn't himself. His offensive line played a miserable game, especially center Phil Costa, who was so confused by Redskins defenders barking fake snap counts that he kept snapping the ball before Romo was ready for it. The running game didn't get going until the second half. Oh, and his rib is still broken, and that hurts.

And yet, without much help from any of his offensive friends, and without so much as a single touchdown, Romo managed to deliver a fourth-quarter comeback win for the second week in a row.

"Pure will," tight end Jason Witten said. "And nobody in this locker room is surprised. We knew he had that kind of makeup, and when you have a quarterback with that kind of mentality, it's easy to want to go out there and play for him."

The watchword for the NFC East so far in this young season is "tough." Sunday in Philadelphia, the undermanned, injury-ravaged New York Giants came back on the division-favorite Eagles and won a game they seemingly had no business winning. Giants quarterback Eli Manning wasn't playing with broken ribs, but his passing-game options are as shredded as Romo's right now, and that says nothing of the injury issues the Giants are enduring on defense. But Manning remained cool and calm Sunday, picked his spots and threw four touchdown passes to lift the Giants to 2-1 in spite of all they're going through.

Monday night, Romo did basically the same thing. No, he didn't throw any touchdowns. The scoring hero of this game was rookie kicker Dan Bailey, whose six field goals accounted for every point Dallas scored. But with everything seeming to crumble around him and his center flipping the ball over his head, Romo kept making plays. He kept getting in his teammates' faces and urging them to be better. His very presence on the field did as much. It may well have been Romo's shining moment as a leader.

"He won the game for them," Redskins nose tackle Barry Cofield said. "Quarterbacks are measured by wins and losses, and he did enough to win the game. He made enough plays."

The Redskins, by the way, would like to be included in the toughness discussion. They know everybody picked them to finish last, but they came into Monday night's game 2-0, and when it was over they felt they'd let one slip away. They're not into moral victories in Washington. They believe themselves to be a good team, and they took a tough loss just the way you'd expect from a team that expects itself to win. They took it hard.

"We feel like we have everything we need to be a winning team," left tackle Trent Williams said. "We've just got to find a way to bring these tough games home."

Williams was flat-out exhausted from working all night to try to contain Cowboys pass-rushing monster DeMarcus Ware. Williams had Ware frustrated to the point that the Cowboys moved him over to the other side to send him against right tackle Jammal Brown for much of the second half. Ware got past Williams a couple of times in the fourth quarter, when the Redskins were unable to sustain the clock-eating drive that would have salted away their victory, but overall Williams had reason to feel good about his performance. He said he did, but he looked spent.

"It's almost impossible to go out there and dominate him to where he doesn't make any plays," Williams said. "I felt like I recovered well, but there's some stuff he did that he didn't even show on film, a lot of inside moves and stuff. He's a great, great player."

But Williams hung tough, and the Redskins' defense hung tough for most of the night. And the offense ran the ball tough, though without much success against an extremely tough-looking Cowboys defense. These two teams traded punches as if they were fighting at the end of a "Rocky" movie, and in the end the Cowboys were one or two plays tougher.

"I don't feel like we took a step back," Redskins linebacker London Fletcher said. "We held them to six field goals and we needed to make one more play than we made defensively."

Coming out of this week of head-to-head matchups in the NFC East, the Cowboys, Giants and Redskins are all 2-1. The favored Eagles are 1-2, mainly because their own quarterback hasn't been able to finish the past two games. While Michael Vick is complaining about not getting calls, Manning and Romo have been finding ways to overcome their challenges and win games anyway. Their teams may not have as much talent on the field right now as the Eagles do, but they're taking a back seat to no one in the toughness department, and the records reflect that.

"It's going to be tough and hard-fought every single week, right to the end, and I think with all four teams," Cofield said. "That's the way it always is in the NFC East. That's the way we like it."

Much less is new about the Washington Redskins now compared with a year ago. This is Mike Shanahan's second season as their head coach, not his first. It's the second year of his zone-blocking offense, of Jim Haslett's 3-4 defense, of owner Dan Snyder staying in the background. And yet, even though so much less is new, so much feels different. Redskins players were saying this week that things this year around the team are "boring, in a good way."

"Most of the time, I've been around boring teams," Shanahan said when reporters relayed those comments to him. "That's what you like. You like guys taking care of business, and I guess compared to the first year, it is kind of boring."

After a year's worth of dealing with an Albert Haynesworth mess he inherited and a Donovan McNabb mess he helped create, Shanahan has the team he wants. He has a quarterback in Rex Grossman who knows how to run his offense and -- perhaps more importantly -- wants to do it. He has a converted 4-3 defensive tackle in Barry Cofield who's excited about playing 3-4 nose tackle. He has players he brought in -- such as Tim Hightower, Stephen Bowen and Josh Wilson -- who can carry out what he wants done now while also growing with the team as it develops into the future. He has high-caliber, high-character holdovers such as London Fletcher, Brian Orakpo and Santana Moss, whose leadership isn't being drowned out anymore by controversy after controversy.

For all of those reasons, this is the year in which people will make up their minds about Shanahan as Redskins coach. And the "Monday Night Football" spotlight he's got here in Week 3 in Dallas against the banged-up Cowboys is a huge opportunity for Shanahan to show people he's not just a big name but a great coach who knows what he's doing.

On the surface, it looks like a bigger game for the Cowboys, who would be 1-2 with a loss and heading into a very tough portion of their schedule. If the Redskins lose, they're 2-1 and still further ahead of the game than anyone expected them to be after three weeks. But if Shanahan's serious about changing the way things work and feel around the Redskins, he sees this game as a huge chance not just to do it but to announce it to the entire football-watching world.

A win in this rivalry game would make the Redskins 3-0, and 76 percent of NFL teams that start out 3-0 reach the playoffs. That was a goal that looked unattainable for the Redskins before the season started, but the way their schedule lays out, and the way their defense is playing, it's not out of the question. This is a league in which five new teams make the playoffs every year, in which we're guaranteed a handful of teams that turn out to be much better than we imagined they'd be. The Redskins are in a position to be one of those teams, and if Shanahan is able to take advantage of that position, it would rank among his most stellar coaching achievements.

Very little was expected of this year's Redskins, and they still have a long way to go to make good on their promising early returns. It won't always be this much fun around them. They will lose games they believe they should have won, and they will have to deal with more challenging issues than they've faced so far. Shanahan will have to manage all of that, and he surely knows this and believes he can.

But right now, in Week 3, Shanahan and his "boring" bunch of Redskins have a chance to do something that would force everyone who watches this league to sit up and take notice. Shanahan can make an early announcement that his team is for real and so is he -- that those who doubted after Year 1 were wrong and that he really does know something about how to put a team together from scratch and coach it. If they lose Monday, it doesn't mean none of that is true, and he'll have more chances down the road to prove it with steady progress. But if the Redskins win this game, there's going to be a lot of attention paid all of a sudden to the work Shanahan has done since he got to Washington. And people are going to be very impressed.

LANDOVER, Md. -- The play that could have broken the spirit of the Washington Redskins' defense happened with 11:09 left in Sunday's game. Linebacker London Fletcher was just a quarter of a second too late in getting to Cardinals quarterback Kevin Kolb, who found Larry Fitzgerald deep down the right side of the field for a 73-yard touchdown that stretched Arizona's lead to eight points. After a day of missed opportunities, a game in which they'd dominated time of possession and should have had things well in hand, the Redskins were staring at the strong possibility that they'd let one get away.

"There was no panic on our sidelines," Fletcher said after a 22-21 victory that pushed the Redskins two games over .500 for the first time since 2008. "We were disappointed to give up the touchdown, of course, but I was really stressing to the guys that there was a lot of football left to be played."

The Redskins still had a lot going for them. They knew they'd been stopping the Cardinals pretty much all day. Their offense was marching down the field behind Rex Grossman and Roy Helu for a touchdown drive. And perhaps just as important as either of those two things, they had Fletcher, their inspirational leader, urging them on, as he always does.

"He's obviously still got a lot left in his tank," Redskins nose tackle Barry Cofield said. "If a guy who's played as long as he has can still be that fired up and that hungry, it makes you feel bad if you can't be that same way yourself."

There were some who predicted that the Redskins would play this whole season and not win any more games than the two they've already won. Those who did so ignored the improvements Washington made on defense, the benefits the returning players would draw from the season they spent in Jim Haslett's 3-4 defense in 2010, and the veteran leadership the Redskins have on that side of the ball. Fletcher was all over the field Sunday, making five tackles, hitting Kolb twice and collecting an interception. He blitzed out of the Redskins' shifting, confusing defensive fronts as if he'd been playing in them his whole career. The Redskins' linebackers were the stars of the defensive show as the banged-up secondary kept losing players to injury, and Fletcher led them.

"He's the captain of our ship," said reserve cornerback Byron Westbrook, who forced the Chansi Stuckey fumble that sealed the game for Washington in the final minute. "He's vocal. He has a lot of passion. He's always positive and upbeat. Guys want to follow a leader like that."

It was Fletcher who organized those Redskins player workouts during the lockout, scribbling down plays he remembered Haslett running (or trying to run) last season and keeping them on a piece of paper tucked into his back pocket so he could make sure those workouts were directed and productive. It was Fletcher who set the attacking tone the Redskins wanted to set against Kolb and the Cardinals Sunday -- a plan that resulted in three sacks. It was Fletcher who made sure, once the Cardinals started to have success running the ball and then hit that monster pass play, that no one got discouraged.

"When he sees guys in the huddle with their heads down, he's always bringing them back up," linebacker Brian Orakpo said. "That's what I really respect about him. He's always the same."

The great leaders are, and Fletcher-as-leader is a bit of a secret weapon for the Redskins, who aren't as surprised as you are that they're 2-0, by the way.

"We really don't get caught up in what's said about us outside our locker room," Fletcher said, affably, not angrily. "What matters is the way we feel about ourselves."

And in case you're wondering how they feel about themselves ...

"There's just a belief on this team that we're going to win," defensive end Adam Carriker said. "We honestly believe we have one of the best defenses. We believe we're going to win. We believe we're good. And when teams have that belief, they're not going to fold."

And so it was that the Redskins, after Grossman went down the field and cut the lead to two points with a touchdown to Santana Moss, went out and got the three-and-out that put the ball back in their offense's hands. And Westbrook, pressed into service thanks to an injury to starting cornerback Josh Wilson, jumped up from the back end of the depth chart to make the game-clinching play.

"Our young guys, they have resolve," Fletcher said. "And they study."

They probably do so because of the example Fletcher and the other defensive veterans on the Redskins set. And while that may not be the kind of thing that shows up in statistical projections, the belief and confidence it inspires can be hugely valuable to a team, like this one, that's growing and figuring out what it's going to be.

"We know we have a long way to go," Fletcher said. "But the thing we can be happy about is the character of the football team."

He probably won't, but Fletcher should take a bow for that.

Mike Garafolo of The Star-Ledger offers an interesting breakdown of Washington Redskins linebacker Ryan Kerrigan's tipped-pass-interception-return touchdown from Sunday's victory over Eli Manning and the New York Giants. Based on comments made by Redskins nose tackle Barry Cofield in the days leading up to the game, and his own video review of the play, Mike thinks it's possible that Cofield, the former Giant, tipped off Kerrigan to what was coming:

Manning sees the Redskins' seven-man blitz coming, so he walks forward and yells something to his lineman. (It was either "Block it!" or "Rocket!" Tough to tell.) The 'Skins defenders trade knowing looks, linebacker Rocky McIntosh tells cornerback DeAngelo Hall to move forward on Hakeem Nicks because the quick throw is coming and Cofield looks right at Kerrigan and S Oshiomogho Atogwe, who were over Kareem McKenzie.

McKenzie said most times defenders protect themselves when blockers are lunging at their legs or -- worse -- higher. I think we know why Kerrigan didn't: He knew what was coming. And I think Atogwe did, too, because he ran with his head down and then suddenly jumped up to bat down a pass he couldn't have seen coming, on account of his eyes being down.

Nothing untoward about any of this, of course. Cofield practiced against Manning for years in New York and has every right to use that experience against the Giants now that he's on the other side. Just maybe a little more salt in the wounds for Giants fans already smarting over (a) the team's losses in free agency and (b) the season-opening loss. I thought it was interesting, is all.

Everybody will talk about Washington Redskins quarterback Rex Grossman, and so will I, but I think I should start with the Redskins' defense. Having watched the Redskins play four games against the New York Giants over the past two seasons, the thing I noticed most about their 28-14 victory Sunday was the difference in the energy on the defensive side of the ball.

The Redskins did a lot in the offseason to improve their defense as they headed into the second year in defensive coordinator Jim Haslett's 3-4 scheme. They added former Giant Barry Cofield at nose tackle, signed defensive end Stephen Bowen away from the Cowboys, brought in cornerback Josh Wilson and drafted outside linebacker Ryan Kerrigan in the first round. Those additions, plus the fact of the holdovers having spent 2010 learning what Haslett wanted from them, has resulted in major improvements over last year's defense, and it showed Sunday.

Kerrigan provided the highlight-reel play when he tipped and intercepted an Eli Manning pass and returned it for a touchdown, but there were big plays all over the field from the Redskins -- and at big times. The Giants were 1-for-10 on third downs and 0-for-1 on fourth, and running backs Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs combined for just 73 yards on 19 carries -- an average of 3.8 yards per carry. Manning had a lousy game and will surely get the bulk of the blame in New York. But without a healthy tight end and with the passing-game options limited, the Giants undoubtedly believed they could and would run on the Redskins. They were disappointed.

Shortly before the game, the Giants announced that star defensive end Justin Tuck would not play due to his neck injury. It was the final, crushing blow for a defense that lost starting cornerback Terrell Thomas, starting middle linebacker Jonathan Goff, starting defensive end Osi Umenyiora and reserve linebacker Clint Sintim to injury during preseason. The result was a badly undermanned Giants defense trying to stop a Redskins offense that looked sharp as it stuck to a good-looking plan. Grossman was 21-for-34 for 305 yards and two touchdowns, spreading the catches around among six different receivers. Tim Hightower carried the ball 25 times, demonstrating a commitment to the run that will serve the Redskins well as a foundation in every game this year if they can maintain it. Tight end Fred Davis was unstoppable, especially when he was able to get open in the middle part of the field against a confused and overwhelmed group of Giants linebackers.

The Redskins played an excellent all-around game in their opener. The Giants will limp home and deal with many of the major problems that were exposed in this game. But as Grossman and the Redskins prepare for next week's game against an Arizona defense that just gave up 422 yards to Cam Newton, the confidence and optimism they generated with their strong preseason has intensified, and they're surely (and justifiably) feeling very good about themselves.

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Five nuggets of knowledge about Week 1:

All Along the Hightower. Over the past three seasons, the Arizona Cardinals were 6-1 in games in which Tim Hightower carried the ball at least 14 times. What jumps out, given that winning percentage, is that there were only seven such games in three years. The Cardinals were a passing team for the first two of those years under Kurt Warner and were using Beanie Wells in a lead-back role last year, so Hightower's chances were limited. It should not be thus in Washington, where I'd expect Mike Shanahan to feed Hightower the ball early and often in an attempt to help keep the Giants' pass rush off newly minted starting quarterback Rex Grossman. Hightower also has 10 fumbles over the past two years, so keep an eye out for that and don't be surprised to see Ryan Torain and/or Roy Helu factor into the run game if Washington gets enough chances to run it.

Giants love Washington. What did Justin Tuck mean Wednesday when he told Redskins beat writers he felt the Giants had the Redskins' number? Well, New York has won five straight games against the Redskins in Washington -- the Redskins' longest home losing streak to the Giants since they lost seven straight from 1957-63. In the five games of the current streak, the Giants have outscored the Redskins by a total of 157-71, or an average of about 31-14 per game.

The Eagles are coming for Sam Bradford. Philadelphia rushed five or more defenders on 41.2 percent of their defensive plays last year. That was the fifth-highest percentage in the NFL and it could go up this season, given the stated commitment of new defensive coordinator Juan Castillo and new defensive line coach Jim Washburn to be more aggressive up the field. Opposing quarterbacks hit on 51.7 percent of their passes and gained 5.7 yards per attempt when the Eagles rushed five or more. Oddly, Rams quarterback Sam Bradford saw five or more rushers more than any other quarterback in the league last year. He completed 57 percent of his passes for 6.6 yards per attempt against five or more rushers.

DeMarcus Ware will make Rex Ryan jealous. As great as the Jets' defense has been under Ryan, he has not had a player remotely like the Cowboys' star outside linebacker. Ware has recorded at least 11 sacks in each of the past five seasons -- an NFL-best 72 over that span. During that same five-year stretch, the Jets have not had a single player record 11 sacks in a season. Their highest individual total in that stretch was Bryan Thomas' 8.5 sacks in 2006.

I expect the Giants to throw it early. I know, the Giants want to run in general, but if they're watching tape of their old buddy Barry Cofield and the Redskins' run defense from the preseason, they'll see Washington has toughened up in the middle. By contrast, with starting safety LaRon Landry out and cornerback Josh Wilson still finding his way, the secondary looks as though it could be the weak point of the Redskins' defense. If the Giants' line can keep Brian Orakpo and Ryan Kerrigan away from Eli Manning, I'm thinking Manning looks downfield early in an effort to establish the lead that eventually helps the Giants run.