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Rocky's Road Gets Smoother
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"You got to go out there and play defense. All the other guys are playing, so you got to play, too. Just going out there and just being out there, you've got to play full speed. That's what I'm going to go out there and do no matter how I feel or what point I am [at in his recovery]. As soon as you step in between those white lines it's either hit or be hit. I don't want to be hit."
With warmups completed and the jitters gone, McIntosh lined up in his familiar spot alongside Washington and middle linebacker London Fletcher. Rogers replaced McIntosh, who was credited with only one tackle but was involved in several plays, when the Redskins used their nickel package on the Jets' first possession.
"He stepped right up there and took people on," Zorn said of McIntosh. "I don't think he shied away from anything. I think it'll take two to three games to get the instinct back. But when the play comes right at him, that's easy to read. He's right on top of it and he's enjoying it."
McIntosh "got in a lot more action" than Rogers did, Rogers said. He "got in on some tackles, so he had a big test for his knee."
In their offseason rehab, McIntosh, who had a history of right knee problems while at the University of Miami, was considered to be further along than Rogers, who tore his right anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments in a 52-7 loss to the New England Patriots on Oct. 28. McIntosh and Rogers pushed each other through grueling exercises to strengthen their knees.
"Unfortunately, we had those knee injuries," McIntosh said. "Just us having the same injury, we were out there trying to work hard, [competing] against each other. Everybody heals differently. He still has a couple of months on me. That's a lot of rehab time, a lot of healing."
Despite sitting out the last two games in 2007 because of his damaged knee, McIntosh finished second on the team in tackles with 105, including 70 unassisted, according to Washington's charts (tackles are not an official NFL statistic). Frustrated about missing the end of the regular season and the playoff game against the Seattle Seahawks, McIntosh was "just more motivated to get back to where I am now."
So motivated, in fact, that McIntosh tried to eliminate anything that would distract him from returning as quickly as possible. Speaking with reporters was high on his list of distracting activities, McIntosh said in a rare interview during camp.
After the Redskins' final practice before facing the Jets, Bolno unsuccessfully tried to arrange a group interview with McIntosh, who fended off Bolno from the field to the weight room as Bolno pleaded with him to meet with reporters. Bolno estimated he spoke with McIntosh numerous times before McIntosh agreed to be interviewed earlier this week. The jersey switcheroo with Campbell was all McIntosh's idea.
"Just going with the flow, man," McIntosh said of his upbeat approach. "Just coming out here and practicing and getting to run around and things like that. Just trying to be like the rest of these guys and come out here and play."
At the time of his injury, McIntosh had made major strides in his first season as a starter. Players coming off reconstructive knee surgery sometimes need a full season -- or more -- to revert to form physically. Just in case, McIntosh has focused on becoming a smarter player.
"I'm definitely critical of myself," he said. "Everything can be better, reads and my mental game. I just want to go out there and be perfect."
In addition to McIntosh's season-ending knee injury, Marcus Washington was slowed throughout 2007 because of recurring hamstring problems and sat out four games. With McIntosh back and Washington's hamstrings cooperating, the Redskins' linebackers could be among the NFC's strongest units, defensive coordinator Greg Blache said.
"Could be, but nobody is going to give it to us," Washington said. "We're going to have to work for it. It's going to start in practice and, of course, it carries over into the game. It's definitely going to take some work, but having Rocky back helps."
