Redskins Hoping Smoot Isn't All Talk

"And in the end, many of those players assumed guilt. Smoot pled guilty to disturbing [the peace], and that covers a wide range of things. If you say you were disorderly, you don't have to say you were doing things to two women with a [sexual device]. So if he wants to be indignant about it, then it deserves some scrutiny. If he wants to rewrite history, I can't blame him for wishing it would go away. But it would be smart to keep your mouth shut, and maybe it would go away."

Redskins team officials have said the scope of the allegations against Smoot did not deter their pursuit. He was an immediate target, with management confident in their assessment of Smoot's character. In the end, it was a football decision -- a business move -- and with Williams and his staff retooling their defense, Smoot made sense.

The Redskins are minimizing the cover-2 shell this season and using far more man-to-man defenses. Smoot had difficulty adjusting to Minnesota's cover-2 tendencies but relishes locking in on one wide receiver. That will be his chore now, jamming opponents and being stout against the run.

"He is awful proud of that one bench-press rep he got at the [draft] combine," Williams joked. "He says he's paid to cover, not to lift weights, and sometimes in cover-2 you want a little more of those physical corners. He is more than physical enough to play the cover-2 system, but he thrives in what we like to do, and that's the go get 'em, man-to-man out there, fire zones out there, one-on-one. He likes the challenge of being out there one-on-one."

Being able to perform back at FedEx Field, where Smoot enjoyed the best years of his professional life, is a refreshing concept as well. He always was a crowd favorite, with his trash-talking and animated antics. Chants of "Smoooot" often rang out on game days.

The fans in Minnesota never took to him in that manner -- not that Smoot provided much impetus during his brief time there -- and getting away from the Metrodome is one more circumstance for which the veteran is thankful.

"I didn't get along with the people there. I didn't get along with a lot of stuff there," Smoot said. "And when a player's not happy he's not going to perform up to his ability. Everybody knows that. It's proven in free agency every year. Great players go someplace, don't like it, and go someplace else and get right back at it."

Redskins Notes: Wide receiver Brandon Lloyd missed practice with shin splints and probably won't play in the Redskins' preseason game at the Titans tomorrow. . . . Wide receiver James Thrash was limited in practice with a groin injury, but Coach Joe Gibbs said it's not believed to be a major problem. . . . Running back Clinton Portis said there is no timetable for when he could be back at practice, and though his sore knee is responding well to treatment, he does not know much on-field work he would be able to take next week. Gibbs said Portis is doing well and will travel with the team to Tennessee, where he will be examined by orthopedist James Andrews.