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Good morning. It's Tuesday. The draft is the day after tomorrow. Let's link.

Dallas Cowboys

I thought about cornerback Stephon Gilmore with the No. 14 pick in Monday's ESPN blogger mock draft, but as you know I went with defensive lineman Michael Brockers instead. I don't think Dallas would be wrong to pick a corner if that's who they believed was the best defensive player available at 14, and here's a look at some possibilities.

I know how much you guys love it when I link to Tony Romo golf stories, so here you go! He's playing quite well, it appears.

New York Giants

It's been about two and a half years since Marvin Austin played in a football game in which result counted in the standings. He knows this, and is eager to end that drought. The Giants' second-round pick in 2011, Austin would be a big help to the middle of that defensive line if he could get healthy.

Be honest: When you heard the story about the New Jersey State Police officers and the high-speed race down the Garden State Parkway, a little part of you -- maybe not even one you could hear -- wondered whether Brandon Jacobs might have been involved somehow. Yeah. There's a report that he was. Wait. That makes this a 49ers link, right? Where's Sando? Ah, slow day. Which March 30 on the Parkway apparently was not.

Philadelphia Eagles

Rich Hofmann says that the numbers don't do Brian Dawkins' Eagles career justice -- that you had to be there to understand what he meant to the team and to the fan base. Dawkins retired Monday, in case you missed it, and the Eagles are honoring him Sept. 30.

Despite Howie Roseman's new best-player-available pledge, Jeff McLane believes we'll learn what the Eagles think about their young secondary players by whether the team picks any new ones in the first three rounds of the draft Thursday and Friday.

Washington Redskins

We all believe the Redskins' draft focus this year will be on offense -- starting, of course, with quarterback in the first round and continuing with offensive linemen when they can start picking again in the third and fourth. But if they do draft defensive players, Mike Jones writes, expect them to be cornerbacks and safeties. They have quantity, but they still need what Jim Haslett calls "stability" in the secondary.

Burgundy Blog has a nice interview with second-year Redskins receiver Niles Paul, who discusses a few things, including why he thinks the coaches have asked him to work at tight end this offseason and whether he thinks he can make that switch.

Good morning. Four days until the Giants' playoff game in Green Bay. The Cowboys are shuffling their coaching staff. The Eagles and Redskins are quiet, but we all know that never lasts. Let's have some links, shall we, and talk it all over?

New York Giants

Ohm writes that this year's Giants are trying to channel some of the "road warrior" mentality that the 2007-08 Super Bowl team had -- the "us against the world" attitude that helped them win four games away from home to claim the Lombardi trophy. These Giants haven't played a game away from MetLife Stadium since their Dec. 11 victory in Dallas, and the Packers have beaten them twice in the past 13 months. But they remain confident, which is one of their greatest assets right now.

Chase Blackburn was going to be a substitute math teacher but had to put that on hold when the Giants called in November to ask him to come back and play linebacker for them, Steve Politi writes.

Philadelphia Eagles

Jeff McLane says the speculation about potential changes to the Eagles' defensive coaching staff is nothing more than that at this point, especially while Andy Reid is on vacation and hasn't spoken to the media since the season ended. Could Steve Spagnuolo return as defensive coordinator? Sure. But Jeff's sources say it's "premature" to assume it'll happen.

And while DeSean Jackson looms as perhaps the most important roster decision the Eagles need to make this offseason, Paul Domowitch posits that the Eagles' offense could survive just fine if Jackson were to go elsewhere.

Dallas Cowboys

Todd Archer writes that the coaching moves the Cowboys made Tuesday -- replacing longtime offensive line coach Hudson Houck with Bill Callahan and replacing longtime secondary coach Dave Campo with Jerome Henderson -- may have come a year too late but were wise decisions. Not to discount the significant contributions Houck and Campo made to the organization, but these are the kinds of forward-looking moves the Cowboys need to make to address and correct their weaknesses.

Jean-Jacques Taylor says the success that former Cowboys coach Wade Phillips has had this year as defensive coordinator with the Houston Texans proves that the players, and not Rob Ryan's scheme, are the problem with the Cowboys' defense. Don't think there aren't roster moves coming with these coaching changes.

Washington Redskins

Linebacker Brian Orakpo had surgery on his left shoulder, which he injured in the season finale in Philadelphia. No word on how long it will take Orakpo to recover, but his Twitter review of the surgery certainly sounded upbeat. Who knows? Could be the pain meds talking. Brian, your words are hurtful!

Rich Campbell takes a look at the personality contrast between head coach Mike Shanahan and defensive coordinator Jim Haslett -- an odd couple that came in to Washington together and seems to be working together quite nicely as the Redskins rebuild their defense.

Mike Jones of The Washington Post writes that the Washington Redskins interviewed former Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Raheem Morris for an assistant coaching position Wednesday. The Bucs fired Morris on Monday after three years with him as their head coach, but Morris is still only 35 years old and is considered a bright defensive coaching mind. There's no reason to think Washington defensive coordinator Jim Haslett, who came in with Shanahan two years ago with the assignment of converting the Redskins from a 4-3 defense to a 3-4, is in any danger. Morris is being looked at as someone who can help coach defensive backs specifically. As Mike writes:

Washington's current defensive backs coach is Bob Slowik, who served as Mike Shanahan's defensive coordinator in Denver in 2007 and 2008. Slowik is coming off his second season with the Redskins. The team's safeties coach, Steve Jackson, is the lone member of the Redskins' defensive coaching staff who wasn’t originally hired by Shanahan and Haslett. Jackson joined the Redskins in 2004 and has coached the safeties in each of the last seven seasons.

Morris has strong ties to some members of the Redskins organization. He and current Redskins offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan served as assistants in Tampa Bay in the mid-2000's. Shanahan worked as an offensive quality control assistant, while Morris held the assistant defensive backs coach post. Kyle Shanahan and Morris remain close.

If the Redskins are serious about Morris -- or about any other changes to their coaching staff -- expect things to move quickly. Mike Shanahan told me last week that the team is entering a two-week period in which the coaches meet to offer evaluations of every player on the roster -- offensive coaches assessing defensive players and vice-versa. Any coach who would be new next year would certainly be an important voice in such meetings, especially since he'd bring a potentially valuable outsider's perspective on the Redskins' roster.

The secondary is a potential issue for the Redskins in 2012, as the team could wave good-bye to both of 2011's starting safeties, LaRon Landry and O.J. Atogwe. Landry is headed for free agency and likely surgery on his Achilles, and Atogwe's contract would allow the Redskins to get out of it if they found a better option. The team views DeJon Gomes as a future starter at safety, but it's unclear whether he'd be ready for such a role in 2012.

The St. Louis Rams have fired head coach Steve Spagnuolo, who began his NFL coaching career with the Philadelphia Eagles and rose to prominence as the defensive coordinator for the 2007 Super Bowl champion New York Giants. Spagnuolo's been a hot name around this blog lately (though, for some reason, not a name that's getting any easier to type), so let's take a team-by-team look at his chances of returning to the NFC East in 2012.

Philadelphia Eagles

This is the most likely spot for Spagnuolo to resurface in the division. He was a defensive position coach in Philadelphia from 1999-2006 under legendary defensive coordinator Jim Johnson. And while reports have said he was upset toward the end of his Philadelphia tenure, that Eagles coach Andy Reid blocked him from pursuing opportunities to be a defensive coordinator elsewhere, the two men have since reconciled and their relationship likely wouldn't be an impediment to a potential Spagnuolo return. Other things could be, however. While first-year defensive coordinator Juan Castillo took a lot of heat in Philadelphia this year -- and Reid took a lot of heat for converting Castillo from offensive line coach to defensive coordinator -- the Eagles finished the season strong and ended up ranking eighth in the NFL in total defense, as measured by yards allowed. Additionally, the Eagles just hired Jim Washburn to coach their defensive line a year ago. The scheme that Washburn and Castillo installed this year leans on pressure from the front line, whereas Spagnuolo has been more known for blitz-heavy and zone-blitz schemes. It's possible that the Eagles are (a) happy with Castillo's performance in spite of the outside criticism and/or (b) loath to make major coaching and scheme changes again leading into next year, since that seems to have backfired in 2011. Spagnuolo could return to Philadelphia as defensive coordinator, but it's certainly no slam dunk.

New York Giants

There are Giants fans who'd like to see Spagnuolo back in New York as defensive coordinator. But first of all, you don't often see a guy make a direct backward career move like that. Second of all, the Giants like current defensive coordinator Perry Fewell, even though the team ranked 27th in total defense this year and the coverage issues in the secondary need to be addressed along with the linebacker position before next year. Third of all, I don't know if you heard, but the Giants just won this division and are in the playoffs, so they certainly won't be making any coaching changes for at least a week. And for those who thought Spagnuolo could come in as coordinator and be a coach-in-waiting behind Tom Coughlin -- the way the Giants have finished this season makes it very unlikely that Coughlin would be going anywhere anytime soon.

Dallas Cowboys

Obviously, Rob Ryan's first year as defensive coordinator in Dallas was a flop, but it'd be a surprise to see them give up on the well-regarded Ryan after just one year and without addressing the personnel issues they have in their own secondary. Also, the Cowboys likely would have to transition from a 3-4 defense to a 4-3 under Spagnuolo. Possible? Sure, but it'd be a big surprise.

Washington Redskins

The defense was a strong point for the Redskins this year, and Mike Shanahan is pleased with the way the second year of the conversion to the 3-4 under Jim Haslett went. Haslett's safe.

It's Friday. These are links. That makes them the Friday links.

Dallas Cowboys

Jerry Jones said he thought his comments from earlier in the week, when he said he was "scared" of the Eagles, were misinterpreted. Said he wasn't trying to send any kind of message to his team but rather to communicate his excitement about the game and the nervous energy that results from remembering how badly it went the last time. For the record, Jerry, that's exactly how I think everyone interpreted it. But maybe I'm wrong.

And Cowboys defensive coordinator Rob Ryan, who made headlines by calling the Eagles the "all-hype team" earlier in the year, is now raving about all of the talent they have on offense and how tough their speed makes them to stop. I think this is called overcompensating. And regardless of what anybody's trying to clarify, it seems to me certain members of the Cowboys organization are, in fact, terrified right now.

New York Giants

Justin Tuck is sick of all of the Giants-Jets pregame talk and says it's actually the Yankees -- not either of the football teams playing Saturday -- who own New York.

Ian O'Connor lists the folks with the most to lose in Saturday's game, and for the Giants he picks head coach Tom Coughlin, defensive coordinator Perry Fewell and the Giants wide receivers who talked so tough about Darrelle Revis earlier in the week. Ian says there's precedent that tells him Revis can get motivated by stuff like that and play even better than usual.

Philadelphia Eagles

Jeff McLane knows the Eagles have an outside shot of still getting into the playoffs, but what he knows for sure is that 2012 will bring questions, and he's trying to look ahead and answer some of them, including what will happen with the logjam at cornerback and whether Asante Samuel is on his way out for real this time.

Oh, and about those 2011 playoff chances, Sam Donnellon points out that things looked bleak for the Packers this time last year, too, as they were coming off a loss to the Patriots and needed to win their final two games to get into the playoffs. The Eagles also need help, which is one major difference, but that does make this the second NFC East team this week to find itself compared to the Packers of a year ago in terms of circumstances and opportunity. Nothing from the Giants or Redskins on that so far, but I'll keep you posted.

Washington Redskins

Ever wonder what goes into preparing for and executing an NFL practice? Barry Svrluga has an inside look at the way the Redskins do it.

And Rich Campbell checks in with 36-year-old London Fletcher, who's having another career year and needs a new contract after it's over. Jim Haslett says he considers Fletcher the perfect person around which to continue building his defense.

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.

Perspective is a rare thing to find in the analysis of today's NFL, where fans are week-to-week extremists and former players seem bent on saying the most outrageous things they can think to say about their former teams. So imagine my surprise when I saw this item from Dan Steinberg on the calm wisdom being preached today by injured Washington Redskins tight end Chris Cooley:

"I've listened to everyone call in, and I've listened to everyone talk about our staff, and this is what I like about it," Cooley said Monday on the LaVar and Dukes show. "Our fan base hates our owner, ok, because he can't ever keep a coach, he'll never keep players, he'll never keep guys around, he changes it, it's like a fantasy football team to him. But then everyone calls in and says we gotta get rid of Kyle Shanahan, we gotta get rid of Mike Shanahan, we gotta get rid of these players, we gotta trade Chris Cooley.

"So you criticize Dan Snyder for trading coaches and players every year and trying to do things every year, and then you call and say this is what we’ve got to do? I hate it. What we've got to do is keep consistency over a period of time, and continue to try to build, trust me, under Mike Shanahan, who knows football and knows players."

Imagine the idea of patience for a change in Washington. In the past few weeks, Cooley has made headlines for saying he enjoyed watching Tony Romo choke away a game and for blaming his season-ending knee injury on the NFL lockout, and it's made me wonder why anybody ever listens to the guy on any topic. But then he goes and says something like this, that makes so much sense amid the noise and panic, and I'm compelled to share it with all of you Redskins fans out there on the ledge.

Look: No one's getting fired. Mike Shanahan is in Year Two of a five-year contract that includes stipulations that Snyder stay out of his way and let him make the football decisions. Kyle Shanahan, the offensive coordinator, is Mike's son. Jim Haslett, the defensive coordinator, was handpicked by Shanahan to come with him and change over the defense from a 4-3 to a 3-4 -- a process that takes a great deal of time. They were all hired, two years ago, to establish a level of continuity and sustainable, year-to-year success for a once-proud franchise that had lost focus and direction. Just because they've lost three games in a row and didn't have enough depth on offense to weather all of the injuries they've had over the past few weeks doesn't mean ownership will or even should consider coaching changes.

The whole point of hiring Shanahan in Washington was to be patient with him and what he was doing. At no point was winning this year's Super Bowl a realistic goal, and to judge these coaches and players on what happened this October would be foolish and rash and counter-productive. This is a long-term rebuilding project, folks, and I expect the Redskins to continue treating it as such. To do otherwise would be a big mistake.

Friday links. Yours for the clicking.

New York Giants

The Giants plan to have both Justin Tuck and Brandon Jacobs back for Sunday's game against Miami. Tuck's return is gigantic for a defense that has had a hard time stopping the run, and it should create a defensive end rotation that will be nearly impossible for opponents to handle with Tuck, Osi Umenyiora, Jason Pierre-Paul and even outside linebacker Mathias Kiwanuka occasionally assigned to rush the passer.

Steve Politi thinks the Giants need to do more than simply win the Miami game -- that they need to win it convincingly. I can see Steve's point, but I don't agree with him. A win is a win, and heading into the second half of their schedule the most important thing for the Giants is to make sure they don't lose games they should win. If the Giants were a team that was unsure of itself and in need of a confidence boost in advance of their second-half gauntlet, I think a big blowout Sunday would be important. But the Giants are not short on confidence, and I'm sure they'd be just as happy winning by one as they would be to win by 30.

Dallas Cowboys

Now, Jason Witten thinks the Cowboys need to win the Sunday night game in Philadelphia because they need to start moving away from this .500 record they have. I see his point, too, but in the big picture I believe the Cowboys are the NFC East team that can most afford to lose this weekend. The Eagles need the game much more than does Dallas, whose remaining schedule is soft.

Tony Romo's ribs are still hurting him enough that he'll keep wearing the protective vest and taking the painkilling injections Sunday night. He's obviously hoping that any week could be the last week he needs to do those things.

Washington Redskins

Chris Cooley blames his season-ending knee injury on the NFL lockout. I'm not sure how much more I have to say about Cooley. Everybody loves the guy, so go ahead and keep doing that. I guess I don't know him well enough.

Earlier in the week, Mike Shanahan said he could have done more to help prepare his defense for the Carolina game. Defensive coordinator Jim Haslett said he agrees, and wouldn't mind the kind of help Shanahan could offer.

Philadelphia Eagles

DeSean Jackson doesn't think Cowboys defensive coordinator Rob Ryan was right to take shots at the Eagles in the preseason since he's a coach and not a player. Jackson also continues to say all of the right things about his contract situation, even though I don't think that's headed for the same resolution he thinks it is.

Defensive coordinator Juan Castillo said that, if Asante Samuel is unhappy with the way he's been treated by the front office, it's not affecting his work on the field.

A little groggy this morning. Was up late watching baseball, which ... wow. But I know you gotta have your links.

Dallas Cowboys

Jason Garrett says Detroit Lions receiver Calvin Johnson is "arguably the best player in the National Football League," and Johnson is a main focus of Dallas' preparation for Sunday's game. Practice squad receiver Andre Holmes is 6-foot-5, same height as Johnson, and the Cowboys are using him this week in practice to try to simulate Johnson's ability to out-jump defenders for the ball, especially in the end zone.

I'd thought, if Dan Bailey could kick the ball into the end zone Sunday with David Buehler on the shelf, the Cowboys could cut Buehler, get down to one kicker and pick up a roster spot. But Jerry Jones says it's not happening, and Buehler's in no danger of losing his job.

New York Giants

Eli Manning admits it took him a while to develop rhythm and a comfort level with the Giants' offense this season as he adjusted to life without Steve Smith and Kevin Boss. But since the second quarter of the Rams game, he's looked like a different guy, and he thinks the key was to stay patient. He'll have to stay as patient going forward as he was Sunday in Philadelphia, where he waited for his shot at big plays and then hit them. Eli gets in trouble when he tries to force a big play.

Sam Borden's got a look at the Giants' goal-line defense, which was another key to the win Sunday and represents the kind of thing in which they'll need to and should be able to rely on as the year goes along.

Philadelphia Eagles

Michael Vick sounds like a different guy than he did Sunday, saying things like, "I'm tired of letting my guys down" and promising to do whatever he can to finish games from here on out. Phil Sheridan wonders if NFL players lean too much toward trying to tough out injuries. He may have a point, but it's doubtful that's going to affect Vick as much was watching Tony Romo on Monday night apparently did.

The Eagles are making another switch at linebacker, in case you didn't hear, sending Casey Matthews to the bench and replacing him at the weak side with fellow rookie Brian Rolle, who says he'd like to get a chance to cover 49ers tight end Vernon Davis on Sunday. Well, hey, you might as well find out how good you are right away, huh?

Washington Redskins

Sick of all the praise Romo's getting for toughing out that victory over the Redskins on Monday? Well, Brian Orakpo's right there with you. "I mean, they tried to make it seem like the guy was hospitalized the night before the game," said Orakpo, who left the same game with what the team said were cramps. Orakpo's point seems to be that Romo played the way Romo always does, but I guess I'd counter by saying people reacted the same way people always react to Romo's performances, be they good or bad. Over. People always over-react to Romo.

DeAngelo Hall has thought about it, and he's not as upset as he was Monday about the decision to zero-blitz Romo on third-and-21 Monday night in Dallas. Says he'd have done the same thing if he were faced with the same situation in Madden. That's got to be nice for Jim Haslett to know.

The Friday links are up. Enjoy 'em.

Dallas Cowboys

Fresh injury on the offensive line, as Derrick Dockery, the Week 2 starter at left guard, has a knee injury and will miss Monday night's game. Rookie and Week 1 starter Bill Nagy looks like he's in line to start in his place. Are the Cowboys as banged-up on offense as the Giants are on defense? As of now, their starting quarterback, center, top two wide receivers and starting running back have a chance to miss Monday's game in addition to Dockery, and tight end Jason Witten plans to play with rib injuries. London Fletcher and the rejuvenated Redskins defense must be salivating.

Tony Romo's not close to being ready to play, Clarence Hill writes, but that doesn't mean he won't be ready by Monday night. Long way to go yet on this story.

New York Giants

Giants defensive coordinator Perry Fewell would neither confirm nor deny the assertion by former Giants linebacker Bryan Kehl that he (Fewell) coaches guys to fake injuries to slow down an opposing offense. Which of course means he does. But enough of this story, right?

Osi Umenyiora finally talked about his contract dispute with the team, which was resolved over a month ago, though not to Umenyiora's satisfaction because the Giants resolved it by just not doing anything and expecting him to play for his contract. I think people are sick of this story too and just want to know now when Umenyiora might play. He still doesn't seem to know.

Philadelphia Eagles

It seems clear by now that Michael Vick will start for the Eagles on Sunday in spite of the concussion he suffered in Week 2. The key, of course, as Bob Ford writes, is finding a better way to make sure Vick doesn't get another one.

Defensive coordinator Juan Castillo said the shift of linebackers could just be a temporary fix designed specifically to help the Eagles stop the Giants' running game this week. Pshaw. If it works, they're really going to go back to the alignment that the Rams and Falcons gashed? I call shenanigans. And I already called pshaw. So that's pshaw and shenanigans on the same story. Your move, Juan Castillo.

Washington Redskins

Brandon Banks is really fast, and he likes talking about how fast he is. Banks is one of those guys who makes you stop and watch the kickoffs and punts, because you hold your breath knowing he's going to break one and you don't want to miss it when he does. Fast and fearless. Good combination for someone in his job.

Redskins defensive coordinator Jim Haslett supports DeAngelo Hall's stated plan to hit Romo in the busted ribs, if only because that may be the only place the rules allow you to hit a quarterback.

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.

The Washington Redskins' feel-good preseason took a big hit Friday morning when rookie defensive end Jarvis Jenkins revealed that he tore the ACL in his right knee during Thursday night's game against Baltimore. It's almost certainly a season-ending injury, though the team has yet to many any announcements about that.

The Redskins' second-round pick in this year's draft, Jenkins injured the knee chasing after Ray Rice early in Thursday night's game. An MRI on Friday morning apparently revealed the severity of the injury. It's a tough blow for Jenkins, who'd played well enough in training camp to challenge for a starting role on the line or at least a prominent role in the team's rotation of defensive ends. He's earned praise for his athleticism and the speed with which he was learning Jim Haslett's defensive schemes.

It's also a tough blow for the Redskins, who were counting on Jenkins to rotate in with Adam Carriker and Stephen Bowen at those end spots and now will have to rely more than they planned on Kedric Golston and others. The Redskins' defense has been one of the most impressive aspects of the team's encouraging preseason performance, and now they're thinner in a key spot.

We say it all the time, but it doesn't matter who wins or loses in preseason, or really how well anyone plays, as long as no one gets seriously hurt. Count the Redskins among the unfortunate teams who couldn't make it through the preseason without a significant injury.

Morning. As some of you know, I've been taking a semi-vacation this week with my family, sightseeing in Washington, D.C. The earthquake was a nice touch. Fortunately, nothing can derail the links.

Dallas Cowboys

Unimpressed by the options they already had there, the Cowboys have signed Shayne Graham and added him to the kicker competition. You may remember Graham as the guy the Redskins signed about a month ago to create a kicking competition with their guy, Graham Gano. You may also remember than Graham looked utterly awful in the Redskins' first preseason game, missing two field goals, and getting cut the next day. But kicker is a fickle position, and you never know. A guy can be rotten in one place and great in the next. Graham is the most accurate kicker in league history, statistically, and his competition is David Buehler and Dan Bailey.

Interesting thoughts from Cowboys linebacker Bradie James on why recent Dallas teams have disappointed. "I think the entitlement kills us," James told FoxSports.com. "Our alumni, our former greats have made us America's Team and we reap benefits that we haven't earned — all the way around, as individuals, as a team. Those guys earned it. We just think we deserve it." Now, that could be James' own conclusion. Or it could be something head coach Jason Garrett is saying behind closed doors and the players are parroting back to the media, as happens often. Regardless, it's good. And if James is the one who came up with it, the Cowboys would benefit from him saying it behind closed doors, too.

New York Giants

Giants fans have to be wondering what their team did to deserve this injury curse. Rookie defensive tackle Marvin Austin has a torn pectoral muscle and will miss the season, which means even more will be expected of second-year defensive tackle Linval Joseph and veteran Jimmy Kennedy, who was recently signed for depth at the position. If you count Osi Umenyiora's knee surgery from last week and (obviously) Terrell Thomas' season-ending knee injury in Monday night's preseason game, that's three significant injuries on defense in less than a week's time on a team that already lacked depth.

But here's a bit of good news, Giants fans: Mike Garafolo writes that new center David Baas showed a lot of improvement from the first preseason game to the second and that he "feels like he's beginning to turn a corner mentally." That's Baas who's turning the corner, not Garafolo, who remains exactly as mental as ever.

Philadelphia Eagles

Three weeks after suffering a seizure on the practice field due to an arteriovenous malformation in his brain, Eagles defensive tackle Mike Patterson is expected to play in Thursday night's preseason game against Cleveland. The doctors have cleared him, they say, and he can play without risking a serious brain injury, so that's good. Everyone's obviously hoping for the best for the guy. From a football standpoint, if he can play, it just deepens the already very deep Eagles defensive line rotation.

Interesting take here from Bob Grotz, who wonders if all of the offseason player acquisitions the Eagles made could be done in by the fact of so many new faces in key places on the coaching staff. I think it's tough to judge Juan Castillo (or any coordinator, no matter how experienced, on either side of the ball) off of a couple of preseason games. It's always possible the other team had done some game planning and he hadn't. Happens all the time in preseason, and it's the main reason these games have little predictive value. But Bob raises a good point -- as defensive coordinators go, Castillo is a rookie, and if he's not up to his new job, things could get ugly in Philly.

Washington Redskins

Speaking of coordinators, the Redskins did not change theirs, and Santana Moss thinks that continuity at the offensive coordinator spot will be a help to the Washington offense as it looks to exceed very low outside expectations. The offense has indeed looked very good in each of the first two preseason games, but remember what I said like an inch and a half above here about the predictive value of that. Moss' theory is sound, but it's going to come down to how well the quarterback plays and how well the line protects him. No matter who the coordinator is.

Dan Daly looks at O.J. Atogwe and where he ranks among the best safeties in the league. Atogwe was indeed a very good under-the-radar signing the Redskins made before the lockout hit (and before the market for safeties took off), and it doesn't hurt that he's played under Redskins defensive coordinator Jim Haslett when both were in St. Louis. Atogwe is a strong, quiet leader (of which this Redskins' defense has several), and is one of those players who can help the others understand what the coordinator is saying as the team moves into the critical second year of 3-4 installation.

I'll be back home this afternoon and back up to normal posting speed and reliability either tonight or certainly no later than tomorrow morning. That assumes no frogs or locusts, of course. Thanks for bearing with me. Kids had a blast at the Diamondbacks-Nationals game.

DALLAS -- Up and back at 'em, and trying to figure out why it sounds as though there's a marching band practicing outside my hotel at 6:00 in the morning. But that's not your problem. You want your links.

Dallas Cowboys

Patrick Crayton is enjoying these Chargers-Cowboys joint practices, as it's allowing him to reconnect with some of his former Cowboys teammates. As he raced to the team bus following Thursday's practice, Crayton was asked about the Cowboys' potential need for a third receiver with Roy Williams gone. "I won't be available," he said, smiling.

The Cowboys have switched Isaiah Greenhouse from inside linebacker to fullback. Jason Garrett said it's a case of a guy impressing on special teams and the coaching staff deciding to try to find him an opportunity as a result. He wasn't getting that opportunity at linebacker, so here's something new they think he can handle. Never know.

New York Giants

The Star-Ledger's Matthew Stanmyre has an intense, painful and outstanding look at Darius Hamilton, a New Jersey prep football star and the son of former Giant Keith Hamilton. The relationship has been brutal at times, with Keith having been arrested for child abuse after beating Darius with an electrical cord over a bad report card, but they appear to have survived it, and their story is the best Giants-related read out there this morning.

Mathias Kiwanuka spoke with The New York Times about the ways in which his neck injury and his brother's motorcycle accident have altered his perspective on his life and football career.

Philadelphia Eagles

Plenty to criticize from the Eagles' extremely disappointing preseason effort against the Steelers on Thursday night. Jeff McLane zeroes in on Casey Matthews and takes the Eagles to task for their decision to go with a rookie at middle linebacker after all of the improvements they made elsewhere on the roster. As Jeff points out, that decision isn't final and still could be corrected.

And while this isn't game related, Les Bowen points out that those focusing on the did-Roger-Goodell-steer-Michael-Vick-to-Philly part of that GQ story are missing the overall point of the story -- which is about how race influences people's perspectives on Vick's story and the depth of Vick's own feelings about his crimes and the reaction to them. Les is, of course, correct.

Washington Redskins

Redskins defensive coordinator Jim Haslett says he's happy with what he's seen so far from his defensive line rotation, particularly the way Barry Cofield has taken to the nose tackle position. When I was at Redskins camp, more than one person told me how nice it was to have a nose tackle who actually was excited about playing nose tackle, which may or may not have been a series of digs at another guy who's not there anymore.

And yeah, it's John Beck time tonight, folks, as Beck gets the start in the preseason game against Indianapolis. Remember, the Redskins' coaches say they're sure Beck is talented enough to be an NFL quarterback and now want to see how he handles the spotlight and pressure of his opportunity. So all eyes will be on Beck in the Redskins' second preseason game, and for good reason.

Sadly, I'll be in the air during most of this game, flying back home from Dallas after my trip to Cowboys training camp here. But I plan to watch the game upon my return home and will offer you my own observations sometime Saturday morning. Meantime, more today from the Cowboys and anything else that may catch our attention in the wild and woolly NFC East.

We're back, and so is Osi Umenyiora, who told the AP on Sunday night that he would return to New York Giants practice Monday and play under the terms of the contract he hates. This was already in the works at the end of last week, as Umenyiora seemed to be grasping the idea that he couldn't push his protest any further to any real effect, and while it's fun and easy to think that the performance Jason Pierre-Paul put on in Saturday night's preseason opener made Umenyiora wake up and realize the Giants could survive without him, it appears as though he'd already made his decision before that happened. Regardless, the Pierre-Paul thing is one of the reasons the Giants always held all the cards in this situation, and so no, I don't expect them to look to trade Umenyiora because he's unhappy. All along, I expected them to call his bluff, and they did, and now he's back. I imagine he'll be plenty motivated to have a great year and put himself in a stronger position from which to execute this same tactic a year from now.

More Giants

Some things take more time than teams have had, post-lockout, and the Giants believe new center David Baas merely needs more time with his offensive linemates in order to correct some of the mistakes that showed up on film from Saturday's game against the Panthers. This year's preseason games are more important than those of years' past due to the limited amount of practice time some of these groups have had together. In the past, a summer's worth of OTAs and minicamps and training-camp two-a-days might have had the reworked Giants line communicating more smoothly by the first preseason game. The point, of course, is to get there by the Sept. 11 regular-season opener in Washington.

Kicker Lawrence Tynes has a bruised thigh as a result of the blocked kick by the Panthers late in the game. Tom Coughlin seemed to lay the mistake at the feet of rookie offensive lineman James Brewer, but he declined to name Brewer as the responsible party when pushed on it. Good move, since why get on the rookie when the whole team looked bad, but I don't think Coughlin's fooling anyone on this. Seemed pretty clear that Brewer missed his block. No word on whether they'll bring in a kicker while Tynes gets healthy, but Shayne Graham is available.

Dallas Cowboys

Jason Garrett has had officials at every Cowboys training camp practice, which is uncommon but is apparently part of Garrett's plan to get his team to cut down on penalties this year. The Cowboys were sixth in the league in penalties in 2010, making that just one of several areas that must improve if what's basically the same roster expects to contend for a playoff spot.

Charean Williams believes Cowboys fans could be seeing a lot more of Stephen McGee in the future, as he is being groomed to take over as Tony Romo's backup. Jon Kitna was outstanding as a fill-in last year when Romo got hurt, but he's about to turn 39 and it's possible that McGee could be the guy to take over if Romo were to get hurt again this year. No word on whether this is a make-or-break year for McGee.

Philadelphia Eagles

Those looking for clarity on how the Eagles plan to use their cornerbacks this year are welcome to read Les Bowen's story on the topic. But (and this is no reflection on Les), you're not going to find the clarity you seek. That's because the answer to the question of how the Eagles plan to use all of their cornerbacks is: A whole bunch of different ways, depending on situations and matchups. Which is actually smart, assuming you have the kind of nimble coaching minds that can handle the play-to-play adjustments. The Eagles obviously believe they do.

Steve Smith and LeSean McCoy have yet to meet to discuss Smith's involvement in this summer's lovingly remembered Twitter feud between McCoy and Umenyiora while Smith was still a Giant. Now that Smith's an Eagle, he said he planned to speak with McCoy about that. McCoy said Sunday that hadn't happened yet.

Washington Redskins

John Beck is back and planning to play Friday night in the Redskins' second preseason game. In the first one, with Beck sidelined by a groin injury, Rex Grossman played very well. If Beck wants to be the starter, he'll have to look as composed as Grossman did when the lights go on. But if he does, then yes, I believe he still retains a very good chance of winning the job. The coaches like him a lot.

Safety O.J. Atogwe is hoping to return soon from the hamstring injury that kept him out Friday night. This is not an unimportant guy. Not only is he a very good player, but he knows things about Jim Haslett's defense, from their time together in St. Louis, that other guys are still learning. Having Atogwe on the field during games, helping with the calls and the checks, would be an asset.

I am home for the first few days of this week and hoping to catch up on some stuff I still have from my first three training camp trips -- John Beck stuff, Eagles offensive line stuff, William Beatty stuff ... lots of stuff that you'll see here in the coming days. I fly to Dallas on Wednesday night and will spend a couple of days at Cowboys camp Thursday and Friday, so there'll be plenty of stuff from there as well. Meantime, I hope you enjoyed this stuff.