We already heard Washington Redskins head coach Mike Shanahan praise Albert Haynesworth for his gutty performance against the Chicago Bears not much more than a week removed from the tragic passing of his brother. Haynesworth’s teammate DeAngelo Hall also lauded Haynesworth during his appearance on EESPN 980 in DC with John Thompson and Doc Walker following the Skins’ victory. Considering Hall had just tied the NFL single-game record with four interceptions, it was nice to see him deflect some of the attention away from himself and onto a teammate. But don’t worry, Hall was sure to do some of his patented self-promotion as well. Here’s a few transcribed excerpts of the informative and entertaining interview:
Hall’s thoughts on Bears’s QB Jay Cutler saying that if given the another opportunity he’d try to pick on Hall again despite being picked off four times by him:
You know what? I didn’t know that until after the fact. I’m not going for that. I mean, Cutler’s a good quarterback. A little arrogant, a little cocky, cockier than you’d like him to be. But I played the kid one other time before yesterday, and it was when I was in Oakland, it was a Monday Night game. Everybody knows Oakland’s going to play man coverage , we’re going to play what Al Davis wants us to play, and Mike Shanahan knew that – he was still the coach of the Denver Broncos at the time. They were just mad protecting, max protection every time, leaving nine guys in there to block, running two-man routes, I’m talking double, triple move, comebacks, stutter-go comebacks, you know, nothing deep down the field. But the kid probably had four or five completions on me. And for him after that game to say he had a lot of success, I’m not this, I’m not that, and then to take that into this game too…my mindset was I definitely know he’s going to come at me. The way he talked about me after that game, I knew we was going to try to come at me. So I definitely wanted to bring my A-game in, but I didn’t think he would keep coming after all that."
Hall’s decision to give the game ball awarded to him to his defensive coordinator, Jim Haslett:
“Yeah, yeah. After the game, Coach Shanahan gave me the game ball, and I just told Coach Haslett for sticking with me, for staying on my back. You know, I’ve played against Coach Haslett a lot in this league. Against him. Especially when he was the head coach of the New Orleans Saints, and I made him pay a lot. I guess I hadn’t showed him that same killer instinct since he’s been here, and I definitely wanted to show him that, just for sticking with me, staying on me, trying to get the best out of me. I felt like he deserved my game ball, because I told him I had too many already….Coach Haslett was definitely appreciative of that. We’re a focused team out there Doc. "
Hall’s thoughts on how Haynesworth set the tone for the defense:
“He played the way we expected him to play. I think it all started with him. I think that opening play, that opening series, when we saw him attacking and playing the way he was playing, I think guys fed off of that. Normally before every game Doc, you normally see I go up to London Fletcher. Hey cat I’m going to follow you, you lead me I’m going to follow you. I did that same thing to London, and after Al went out there, me and Fletch went up to him and were like ‘hey bro, keep playing like that, we’re right with you. You know man? We’re right with you, we’re right behind you. I saw Donovan go up to him on the plane whisper some stuff to him in his ear. Al was just focused man, he was just focused. And the tragedy that happened in his life, I’ve lost a brother before that got murdered. So I know what that feels like. I know what that feels like, and for him to get out on the field like I was telling Coach Shanahan, that field is sometimes the only place you really have to get away from all your problems. And for him to really have that opportunity to get on that field yesterday and get away from everything else in his life except football, and to focus on that and dominate – he played lights out man, he played lights out, and we all fed off it.”