The Washington Redskins opened the season with concerns about the left side of the offensive line. Pro-Bowl left tackle Chris Samuels missed most of training camp with an injury. He did not have the chance to work with newly signed left guard Pete Kendall who joined the team after the Todd Wade experiment failed. Two games into the season and there are deeper concerns on the right. Guard Randy Thomas will undergo surgery to repair the torn triceps suffered in the Eagles game. He could miss most — or all — of the season. Last week, tackle Jon Jansen suffered a dislocated and fractured ankle and is lost for the year. Thomas is considered the Redskins second best lineman, after Samuels, and Jansen is the team’s long tenured anchor on the O-line. _________________________ Funny how things work out in life. Todd Wade bounced from Houston’s much maligned offensive line to Miami to the Redskins looking for a shot to start again. It didn’t figure to happen in Washington where the line has been the most stable part of the offense. Gibbs offered Wade the unconventional opportunity to convert from tackle to be the starting guard, replacing Derrick Dockery. Wade struggled with the conversion. A shoulder injury ended the effort. It seemed Wade was destined for the back-up role again. Then, Jansen is lost for the season and Wade is in the right spot at the right time. Jason Fabini was a long time starter with the New York Jets before they bounced him. Former Jets coach Bill Parcells signed him to a reserve role with Dallas last season, but he was lightly used. Fabini left when Parcells left. He came here looking for another shot. With Thomas out, he’s the kind of veteran the Skins crave. Gibbs & company are never really comfortable with youth and inexperience. _________________________ Having experienced replacements is one thing. Upsetting team chemistry is another. Gary Fitzgerald’s story on redskins.com put it “Wade and Fabini provide reliability as veterans, but Jansen and Thomas offered tangible on-field leadership that will be missed.”
“It was almost like, I couldn’t believe it,” Joe Gibbs said. “Two weeks in a row it happened. You hate it for [Jansen and Thomas]. Both of those guys are dynamic leaders in the locker room and they come to play. Our players all know it. “I told Jon this morning that we want him here every minute. It’s the same thing with Randy, whenever we determine how long he’ll be out. They’re certainly a big part of what we do here–both of them. We want to keep them here with the team, in the meetings. “They’ve made a huge investment in their life into this football team, and so we want them to be here.”
_________________________ The Redskins expect to work out other offensive linemen this week.
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