Update: Ok, so as you know this was our April Fool's joke. At first we had the phone # go to the Redskins Club Level ticket office, but they politely asked us to take it down after getting bombarded with calls. So we switched it to the Cowboys ticket office, and after 3 days they did the same. I'd say this joke was a success.
You have to give Bruce Allen credit. He has not been idle very much this offseason. As an active participant in the discussions between the players and owners last month, Bruce Allen was already pretty busy. But now he has really stepped up the activity at Redskins Park by announcing that the Washington Redskins will be holding open tryouts in April for potential replacement player roster spots in September.
Director of Player Personnel Scott Campbell was seen yesterday in Upper Marlboro, MD at a practice for the semi-pro team, the Upper Marlboro Nokotas. Rumor has it he will be in attendance at a game this weekend for the semi-pro team out of Annapolis, MD, the Thunder.
If you have seen these leagues in action, you know that they wear full pads, are stocked with legit athletes and generally have plenty of players who understand the game of football pretty well. They also come with the best names, like Big Baby Taylor, Easy Munny and The Terrible Terl.
To me, this signals a very real indication that the Redskins are looking to follow the tradition that has been established in previous work stoppages: field the best replacement team in the NFL.
We expect that most roster spots will be handed to guys who have at least some experience either in the AFL or UFL. But the open try-outs in April will undoubtedly produce at least a few diamonds in the rough.
For anyone interested in signing up for the open tryouts at Redskins Park, please call 817-XXX-XXXX. They'll be handling the reservations there and making sure people know what they have to bring.
Again, that number is 817-XXX-XXXX.
Is this a good decision by the Redskins?