’Skins hold day for fans

By Uriah A. Kiser

Published: July 30, 2008

ASHBURN — The gates opened at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday, but cars of fans were lined up well before sunrise to watch the burgundy and gold take the field.

The Washington Redskins held their annual fan appreciation day, welcoming more than 28,000 fans to Redskins Park. The attendance record shattered an all-time high of 25,000 fans in 2004, according to the team.

Bob Moen of Stafford, who attended the event, said he got a tattoo of the Redskins logo on his right arm in 1995. Moen, who has a thick New England-area accent, aid that most people think he roots for the Patriots. 

“I lived up there for a while but I started following the ’Skins when I was 16 and never stopped,” he said.

At the center of the event was an intra-squad scrimmage that pitted the team’s offense against the defense for the first time during the pre-season. Fans at the 50-yard line were hoping the to see a strong performance from their beloved team.

“We have high expectations and expect a lot from our players and myself,” said Jim Zorn, Redskins head coach.
Zorn, a former quarterback for the Seattle Seahawks, takes the reins of the 76-year-old franchise for the first time this year as head coach. This is Zorn’s first head coaching position in the NFL.

“I think we all want the same thing. If we work together we will achieve it in the end,” said Zorn.

Despite the heat that was only dissipated by the occasional breeze, sweaty diehard fans said it was good to see the team practice.

“This is one of those seasons where we are either good out of the box, or if not, we will need to work on some things,” said Chris Crawford of Lake Ridge.

After growing up in Northern Virginia, Crawford said he moved back to the area nearly 10 years ago and never lost his love for the Redskins. He brought his 65-year-old father, another diehard fan, to see the team practice.

The team took to the field for some full-contact work, as well as some two-minute offensive drills.

It was clear the offense miscalculated starting quarterback Jason Campbell’s play as they approached the end zone, forcing him to make a two-yard scramble for a touchdown. The crowd roared with approval. The defense stepped up their game, but exposed some of the offense’s struggle to work together.

The rules of the scrimmage were no contact, forcing officials to blow the whistle when defenders got too close to the passer.

Zorn said his players wouldn’t be “killing themselves on the field today,” but fans could expect full action across the field.

That action proved painful for seven players on the team who sat out practice the next day with scrimmage-related injuries. The list included defensive lineman

Anthony Montgomery, who suffered a fractured hand in a tackle during the scrimmage.

Montgomery will be sidelined for two weeks.