Playing With Pain

"It's hard for me to see her struggle, because I know how she's dedicated her life to my dad," Springs said. "I hope she's not offended by my talking about what she's going through in telling my story, but for her to have breast cancer and have her own fight now, that just kills me. I'm like: 'Man, how can something like that happen? Am I not living right? What am I doing for these things to happen?' "

Adriane Springs has been given a positive prognosis and is expected to recover, but Shawn's problems continued when his wife, Lily, and 1-year old son, Shawn II, moved out a short time later. Being apart from his family, no longer able to wake up with his baby every morning, left Springs hollow, and he questioned whether football could fill the void.

He thought about becoming a Montgomery County teacher (Springs went to high school in Silver Spring) or moving to Dallas to be closer to his stepmother and younger sisters; one is in college and the other is a high school senior and Springs supports both. He first told his agent, Kennard McGuire, of his retirement consideration in May.

"Shawn was very serious about [retirement]," McGuire said, "and I would dare anyone to go through any of the things he's going through and not have those same thoughts. When he first told me what he was thinking I said, 'Let's take our time, stay away from football for a while and digest everything.' But he was very serious."

Fred Smoot was the only teammate Springs confided in, and even then Springs -- normally a bright-smiling, wise-cracking mass of positive energy -- masked his retirement talk in the form of jokes.

Springs's absence from June's voluntary organized team activity practices was a relatively minor hitch for the team during an otherwise placid offseason. Coach Jim Zorn, whom Springs likes from their time together in Seattle, joked about putting out an "APB" on Springs when the player would not return his phone calls.

"I go into a shell," Springs said when asked if he had any regrets for not speaking directly to Zorn. "The only three people I'm answering the phone for are my mom, Mrs. B.J. [team receptionist B.J. Blanchard] -- if Mrs. B.J. told me to quit today I would -- and Barack [Obama, whom Springs has met and campaigned for in the past]."

"But I have a good agent, and [vice president of football operations] Vinny [Cerrato] and Mr. Snyder [owner Daniel Snyder] and those guys, I honestly believe they know that I'm in shape and that I was doing what I had to do to be ready to play."

Cerrato declined to comment for this story, but McGuire said he had several conversations with team officials and expressed Springs's desire to maintain an individual workout regimen away from Redskins Park this offseason as he did in 2007. "My message was he's fine, let's give him some space," McGuire said. "There's no reason to worry about anything."

Still Working

Springs had continued his workouts even while doubting his future. The veteran had taken just two weeks off after January's playoff loss to Seattle, then headed to the Arizona heat to work on core strength, perfecting his running stride and recovering through any lingering maladies from the football season. In late May he returned to the Washington area and began working again with personal trainer Mark Craig -- a former pro boxer and Buster Douglas's old sparring partner -- five days a week. They do extensive track work -- focusing on burst and explosion -- and then head to Planet Fitness in Potomac to spar.

Craig, who trains many Redskins at the team's facility on Fridays during the season, works closely with team trainers Harrison Bernstein and John Hastings to ensure the club approves Springs's workouts, with ample recovery time built in. "This is a lot harder than training camp," Springs said during a brief water break between sessions last week. "It's not even close."

Springs began taking up boxing after the 2006 season, crediting it for helping him overcome a sports hernia to play all 16 games in 2007. On what is considered a "light" day, Springs and former Redskins wide receiver Mike Espy do a series of sprints and track work for nearly an hour, then Springs dons boxing gloves and endures 20 minutes of high-intensity rounds with Craig. Craig barks out a litany of commands ("One-two with the left, one-two roll up and under, right left right, right to the body, double jab") and Springs pushes himself to the limit, with his shoulders and upper body hardened and chiseled from the grueling work.