Williams was convinced M.J. Stewart Jersey Elite , so he gave receiver Zac Parker a shot.
Parker is one of a handful of players from Historically Black Colleges and Universities the Williams-led Redskins front office invited to rookie-camp tryouts. The group joined two undrafted free agent signings, Grambling running back Martez Carter and Southern cornerback Danny Johnson, on the field Friday trying to earn a job from a team with a reputation for giving HBCU products a look this time of year.
Williams, a Grambling star who also coached there twice, isn't the only NFL executive looking to HBCUs for talent. But Washington's senior vice president of player personnel and his scouts continue to invite several players from places like his alma mater, Southern, Texas Southern, Norfolk State and Alabama A&M in the hopes of adding depth to the roster.
"HBCUs, they might get looked down on a little bit more as maybe not a big school, but we have talent for sure," Parker said. "As you can see: Doug Williams went to an HBCU. He's the prime example of it."
His legacy as a Super Bowl MVP quarterback is common knowledge for Carter given his time at Grambling and for Johnson, who grew up in Louisiana not far from Williams' hometown. The name Doug Williams has value at places like Grambling and Southern 鈥?"He's in history Patriots Troy Niklas Jersey ," Carter said 鈥?and his reputation as an executive precedes him even for players 40 years younger.
"He just goes out and finds talent," said Johnson, who performed in front of Williams and about 15 other scouts at Southern's pro day. "Regardless of what school you went to 鈥?small school, big school 鈥?he makes a way for everybody to get a chance."
Parker, fellow receivers Norlando Veals from Alcorn State and Darvin Kidsy from Texas Southern, defensive linemen Richardson Johnson from Howard and Chris Lee from Norfolk State and tight end Dillon Beard from Southern were all brought in by the Redskins from HBCUs to try out at rookie camp.
Williams doesn't believe he's unearthing any secrets, though his presence in the Redskins' front office has already had an impact in hitting on one undrafted free agent from an HBCU. The team signed defensive lineman Anthony Lanier out of Alabama A&M two years ago, and he's now considered one of their best young prospects on that side of the ball.
Lanier picked the Redskins over several other interested teams because of Williams, who saw him play in college and complimented his game.
Carter and Johnson are trying to overcome the same long odds Lanier did to make the 53-man roster and appreciate the chance Williams and the Redskins are giving them.
"He knows how hard it is for guys like us at HBCUs to get notoriety and he knows how hard it is for guys to stand out due to all the big schools that surround us and kind of drown us out," said Carter, who at 5-foot-7 rushed for 854 yards and 10 touchdowns last season. "Just by him giving me the opportunity, it means a lot to me and I won't take it for granted."
Even though he was a first-round pick Joel Iyiegbuniwe Color Rush Jersey , largely because of then-Tampa Bay offensive coordinator and eventual Washington coach Joe Gibbs showing interest, Williams doesn't take his own path for granted and just wants to bring in the best players possible.
"It's not about a certain school, it's prospects," Williams said. "We send the scouts to where there are prospects. It just so happens Danny and Martez were prospects at Grambling and at Southern."
Now that they're Redskins prospects, Carter and Johnson feel a certain responsibility to prove to Williams he was right for signing them.
"I'm standing on some big shoulders," Carter said. "By him giving us this chance, it's a confidence boost. He sees something in us that other teams don't, obviously. He was a great athlete himself, so we just want to stand up to his standards."
NOTES: Coach Jay Gruden said G Arie Kouandjio is getting a second opinion on what is feared to be a torn quadriceps muscle. Washington re-signed G Shawn Lauvao last week before Kouandjio's injury that was first reported by NBC Washington. ... The Redskins confirmed first-round pick Daron Payne's first name is spelled without an apostrophe after he was known as Da'Ron at Alabama. ... Geron Christian, an offensive tackle out of Louisville selected in the third round, is the team's only unsigned draft pick.
The youth of the Colorado Avalanche has been a big part of a playoff push but is encountering some speedbumps recently.
A week ago, the Avalanche were in a strong position to make the postseason a year after earning just 48 points Cheap Marquez Valdes-Scantling Jersey , but a sudden stop to the offense has contributed to losing three of four and dropping a point out of the second wild card in the Western Conference with five games left heading into Friday’s home game against the Chicago Blackhawks.
Colorado (41-28-8) has scored four regulation goals in the last four games and snuck a win against Vegas in a shootout last Saturday.
“Everybody goes through spurts where you don’t score as much as you’d like to,” Avalanche right winger Blake Comeau said after Wednesday’s 2-1 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers. “When that happens, you have to buckle down defensively.”
The goal drought has come at an unfortunate time.
Top goaltender Semyon Varlamov, who has played in 21 straight games, missed Wednesday’s game with an illness. His backup, Jonathan Bernier, is dealing with an infection in his left hand from a cut so Andrew Hammond was recalled from the AHL to start against the Flyers.
He gave up two goals in the first period but settled down to make 31 saves in his Avalanche debut.
The good news for Colorado is Varlamov and Bernier may both be available against Chicago. Varlamov worked on the ice Thursday and Bernier said he is ready to go, although coach Jared Bednar said he won’t decide on a starter until the morning of the game.
The Avalanche will need both in a tough finish to the season. Three of the last five games are against teams it is now chasing for the two wild card spots — Anaheim, Los Angeles and St. Louis. The bad news is the only non-playoff team the Avalanche face is Chicago.
The Blackhawks are coping with an unexpected demise from the No. 1 seed in the 2017 Western Conference playoffs to out of the postseason picture that is leaving fans nostalgic for the good days of three Stanley Cup titles from 2010-15.
So, it is not surprising there was plenty of recognition of defenseman Brent Seabrook playing in his 1,000th career game during Thursday night’s 6-2 win over Winnipeg.
It is a milestone game at the end of a disappointing year that will not include the postseason for the first time in 10 years. Chicago is firmly entrenched in last place in the Central Division, a spot previously occupied by Friday’s opponent Cheap Mason Cole Jersey , the Colorado Avalanche.
Chicago is infusing young players into the lineup and defenseman Blake Hillman could make his NHL debut soon after signing a two-year deal this week.
In recent years having the Blackhawks on the schedule was a negative, but with major injuries — center Jonathan Toews is out, as is goaltender Corey Crawford — and a look at young players, Colorado can earn two vital points Friday night.
The Blackhawks (32-36-10) are looking for some hope that this season is an aberration. But with the core of the team aging, chances are this might be the near future Chicago fans can expect.
“I think next year’s team is going to look very similar to this year’s team, not identical,” general manager Stan Bowman said in February. “We’re going to have some changes.”
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