Gäste Forum » use the reason for Krzyzewskis absence as their to

ASHBURN, Va. -- When Ricky Jean Francois sits at home with fellow defensive end Corey Crawford, hes quick to quiz him on blitzes and situations.Jean Francois just wants everyone on the Washington Redskins defense to be prepared.Every snap counts for the Redskins this training camp, especially on defense where newcomers Josh Norman and David Bruton Jr. are joining a unit that ranked 28th in the NFL last season.Training camp, which opens July 28 in Richmond, Virginia, is the first chance for the new-look defense to come together around returners such as Jean Francois, safety DeAngelo Hall and linebacker Ryan Kerrigan.You just feel a way better mold this year, linebacker Will Compton said. You have a year under your belt, youre more comfortable -- things of that nature.Adding an All-Pro cornerback in Norman and a Super Bowl-winning safety in Bruton and getting linebacker Junior Galette back from injury should improve the Redskins pass defense, even though defensive lineman Terrance Knighton left in free agency for the New England Patriots and Jason Hatcher retired.The secondary has received a lot of attention, especially after Norman signed a $75 million, five-year contract following his release from the Carolina Panthers.Nothing against my D-line, I love them to death, but Im more of a fan of the back end, just seeing all those new pieces being back there -- the safeties, the corners, seeing D-Hall do his thing and seeing Josh back there, Jean Francois said.Man, the skys the limit for this defense and hopefully when we get out there on this field against Pittsburgh Monday night, well put on a show.Theres a long time before the Redskins open the regular season on Monday night, Sept. 12 at home against the Steelers.First is camp and the preseason, where a handful of roster competitions will play out, including left guard (Spencer Long vs. Shawn Lauvao), inside linebacker (Perry Riley vs. Mason Foster) and strong safety (Bruton vs. Duke Ihenacho).Our depth chart is in pencil, its not in Sharpie, defensive coordinator Joe Barry said. Obviously, we do have a first team, we have a second team, we have a third team at every position, but were in constant competition.One place theres no competition is at quarterback, where this is Kirk Cousins team. Its also Matt Jones No. 1 running back job after Alfred Morris signed with the Dallas Cowboys.Offense vs. defense is the only large-scale competition at camp because, unlike previous years, the Redskins wont have another NFL team in Richmond. Players dont seem to mind.Iron sharpens iron, left tackle Trent Williams said. We make it tough on (defenders) it makes them better. They make it tough on us, it makes us better.Here are five things to watch at Redskins training camp:THREES COMPANY NO MORE: With Robert Griffin III gone, Cousins goes into camp as the unquestioned starter and Colt McCoy his clear backup. But Cousins will also be playing on a one-year franchise tender and will begin trying to prove he deserves a long-term deal.CHANGE-UPS: Converted cornerbacks Will Blackmon and Hall all are now full-time safeties, former linebacker Trent Murphy bulked up to become a defensive end and rookie Sua Cravens can play linebacker or safety. The Redskins want as much versatility as possible on defense, but that method will be put to the test.JUNIORS RETURN: Galette missed all of 2015 with a torn left Achilles and was kept off the field for offseason workouts to make sure hes ready for camp. Galette could be the key to the pass rush being as effective as it was early in the playoff game against Green Bays Aaron Rodgers.MR. JONES AND WHO: Jones is the feature back in his second season, but will the Redskins look to sign a backup? Chris Thompson, 25, has the most experience of any other running back on the roster, which also includes undrafted Mack Brown and 2016 seventh-round pick Keith Marshall.CATCH REED IF YOU CAN: Coming off a career season of 87 catches, 11 touchdowns and 952 yards and with a shiny new contract, tight end Jordan Reed could be even better in 2016. Niles Paul and Logan Paulsen are back from season-ending injuries, and Washington signed Vernon Davis to give Cousins more options and take some heat off Reed.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and AP NFL Twitter feed: www.twitter.com/AP-NFL Randy Jones Padres Jersey . The 20-year-old Pelicans big man glanced up and smiled widely at the well-wishers -- a fitting end to a day he wont soon forget. Davis responded to his selection earlier in the day as a Western Conference All-Star with 26 points and 10 rebounds, and the New Orleans Pelicans overcame a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit to defeat the Minnesota Timberwolves 98-91 on Friday night. Tony Gwynn Padres Jersey . Hargreaves began his career in 2008 with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and has played with the Edmonton Eskimos and last season with the Saskatchewan Roughriders. http://www.padressale.com/padres-fernando-tatis-jr-jersey/ . -- The boos poured down on Tom Brady and the New England Patriots at the end of a horrible first half. Greg Garcia Padres Jersey . NBA officials ruled the court unplayable in the Bucks final exhibition game on Oct. 25 because players were slipping, and the game was cancelled midway through the first period. Custom San Diego Padres Jerseys . Kozun faked to the forehand and beat Monsters starter, Calvin Pickard, pad side in the second round for the winner. Spencer Abbott also scored in the shootout for the Marlies (25-13-4). Nate James and Jon Scheyer have been handed the keys to the Tesla. Theyre not about to go joyriding.We dont want anything to happen on our watch while hes away, James said.Can you blame them?He would be Duke Blue Devils coach Mike Krzyzewski; he of the five national championships and more than 1,000 wins; he of the Basketball Hall of Fame; and he of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, a graduate whose steely-eyed stare could leave a grown man weak in his knees. And he currently is in Rio where hes leading the U.S. mens basketball team, the best basketball players in the world, in his final go-round as Olympic head coach.Meantime, back in Durham, North Carolina, sits his Duke mens basketball team, which will arguably be one of the best college basketball teams in the country this coming season, winding up its critical offseason conditioning.Essentially, James and Scheyer, two of Krzyzewskis two assistants, have been given one charge: Dont mess it up.Theres no question you feel a huge responsibility to make sure youre holding up what he would want, Scheyer said. The big thing we tell our guys is, how do you want this team to look when he gets back? The first chance he gets back to watch us again, how do you want to be?That, indeed, might seem like good fuel to get the old motor running.The good news is the coaches know their boss pretty well. James and Scheyer both played under Krzyzewski and have been on staff for a few seasons. James came on board in 2007-08, just as Krzyzewski was prepping to head to Beijing for that Olympic run. With Chris Collins and Steve Wojciechowski manning things on campus, he often found himself as the lone man on the recruiting trail, tying up loose ends. He repeated that role in 2012, when Krzyzewski headed to the London Games.Now, with associate head coach Jeff Capel in Rio, James is the old veteran on staff. He and Scheyer, who has been on staff since 2013, are the guys in charge while Nolan Smith is the low man on the totem pole as the newly hired special assistant.The staff got through July relatively easily. The coaches were fairly certain about who they were interested in -- and those players already knew of Dukes interest -- so there was no need to explain why Krzyzewski wasnt around. It got a little tricky when they spied someone who hadnt initially been on their radar.Whenever theres a new recruit thrown into the mix, it creates a slight problem, James said. We were gym-hopping a lot to begin with, so we were limited in the number of guys we could see and we also had to think, Ok, how can we make this work without him feeling like we dont have any interest?But as vital as planning for the future is, handling the present is really critical this year ffor Duke.dddddddddddd With Harry Giles and Jayson Tatum, the anchors of the nations No. 2 recruiting class, joining Grayson Allen, Amile Jefferson, Matt Jones and Luke Kennard, the Blue Devils will be among the heavy favorites to win it all next season. All of the players already are on campus, working on conditioning drills and individual workouts. Thats the easy part. Most high-caliber athletes are accustomed to training and weight lifting.The harder part of the winning formula is combining the old with the new. That worked exceptionally well two years ago, when Justise Winslow, Jahlil Okafor and Tyus Jones mixed seamlessly with veteran players on the roster, the lack of friction as much the reason for the 2015 national championship as the talent on the roster.Krzyzewski used that offseason -- in particular the month of August, when the freshmen were on campus -- to foster team building. That year, the Blue Devils participated in a program called Dear World, in which people write meaningful phrases on their bodies and then share the stories behind them.Now its up to James and Scheyer to ensure this critical early time goes smoothly. Though Krzyzewski is in frequent contact -- usually via text, or through Capel -- hes surprisingly not a micro manager. The Army man in him has left his soldiers to figure things out on their own, entrusting them to do what they think will work best with the players.He gives us complete freedom, letting us follow our instincts, Scheyer said. Of course hes keeping tabs, but he really leaves it up to us.Realizing that the dog days of August arent exactly fun for anyone, the coaches decided to try to use the reason for Krzyzewskis absence as their tool. Lets call it the Blue Devil Heptathlon.The coaches have divided the team up into three groups of four -- the gold, black and white teams -- and created their own pseudo-Olympic games. There are no individual event medals, just points assigned to each with an overall gold awaiting the group that scores highest.Weve got the medicine ball throw, like a shot put, the mile run, a bunch of relays, James said.At last update, Jones, Giles, Frank Jackson and Chase Jeter had the early lead for the overall gold medal. This week as the U.S. enters the quarterfinals and medal rounds, the Blue Devils will gather to watch and celebrate their own, as yet still to be determined, gold medalists.Were trying to be as creative as possible, without getting anyone hurt, James said with a laugh.Thats probably not a bad idea. If youve been handed the keys to the Tesla, the last thing you want to do is crash it. ' ' '