Landry's Learning Curve

"I love to go on blitzes and I love getting free and getting hits on the quarterback, but it's kind of hard to let up. I could have had him [Clemens] like two more times, but I let up. I didn't want to get that penalty again. Coach Williams gets hot."

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But Landry is his own toughest critic, and the fine was another negative mark on a performance he graded as a "C-minus, even a D," Landry said. "There were some plays I could have made and I didn't play the proper technique. I missed three, four tackles. I feel it's never good enough for me."

Landry, 23, has pushed himself to improve since childhood while trying to keep pace with his older brother, Dawan, a starting safety with the Baltimore Ravens. His determination to excel only increased under the tutelage of former LSU coach Nick Saban, who helped Landry to prepare for what he's facing now.

"Having Coach Saban, an NFL-type coach, he really coached me up well my freshman year," said Landry, a four-year starter at LSU. "So I had the experience of being put in situations to learn how to blitz. You've got to know the scheme, you've got to know the protection of the offense and how they're going to pick you up."

Now in his first season at Alabama, Saban said Landry's success is not surprising.

"One thing you always look for, and it comes from personal characteristics in terms of guys reaching their full potential, is a guy who is a relentless kind of competitor, a guy who has a high standard of excellence and takes tremendous pride in what he does. LaRon is about as good as I've ever been around when it comes to that," Saban said. "He really hadn't played much defensive back in high school, comes and starts the fourth game as a freshman and plays every game of his career. Each year, he got better and better, bigger and bigger, stronger and stronger, and he's what you want everybody to be."

Last season, according to the Elias Sports Bureau, the Redskins were last in the NFL in average yards allowed per pass attempt, giving up an average of 6.91 yards. This season, they're third in the league with a 5.88-yard average, and Landry has helped to shore up the pass defense, Gray said.

"LaRon is a rookie, so you look at him and think, 'How can a rookie step in all of a sudden and do such a good job?' But LaRon is very smart," Gray said. "Yes, he's got talent, but he's also smart. He takes good notes and he wants to improve. He has growing room, so we work on those things where he needs to improve."

It's all about the proper technique, Landry said.

"Stepping into the NFL, I knew it was going to be a big step, but I didn't know so much about the little things that result into big plays," he said. "That's what I'm really trying to grasp a hold of, learning the little things, watching tape and really critiquing myself.

"The main thing is just technique and knowing formation, down and distance. Your opponent, too, who you're going up against and what you expect those guys to do as offensive players."

Landry is catching on faster than he realizes, the Redskins said, and his best moments are yet to come.

"LaRon is a special talent," safety Pierson Prioleau said. "He has the physical tools to be as great as he wants to be. Now, he still has a lot to learn in this league because he's a young guy, but he's picking it up at a speed that is very comfortable for the coaches.

"He's grasping some of the situations and game things that usually don't come until your second and third year. And if you tailor things to his talents and strengths, which is attacking and blitzing, he's going to be real good at that."