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Top Washington D.C. Sports Stories 2011, No. 4: Donovan McNabb, Albert Haynesworth Eras End After One Year

The end of the Albert Haynesworth/Donovan McNabb era in D.C. is No. 4 on our countdown of the top 2011 stories in D.C. sports.

The 2010 calendar year was dominated by two big names that were spectacular failures for the Washington Redskins: Donovan McNabb and Albert Haynesworth. By now, you know all the drama that took place for them on the field. In 2011, though, there was the matter of removing them from the situation, which turned out to be far more painful than one could imagine.

With McNabb, the hits never stopped coming. An offseason story speculated that McNabb refused to wear a wristband because he was afraid of his image personified the silliness of the lockout. McNabb didn't do anything wrong per se, but once again, his name was being dragged through the mud. Flashbacks to 2010 were easy to make.

With Haynesworth, the issue was the law. First, Haynesworth picked up a misdemeanor for reckless driving. Then, he picked up another charge for sexual abuse stemming from an alleged incident where he fondled a cocktail waitresses' breast. The incidents added to the infamy of Haynesworth and only accelerated the need to get rid of him.

And then, it happened. Within 24 hours of each other, they were both gone -- McNabb to Minnesota and Haynesworth to New England. Neither experienced any sort of success in their new spot, further validating, in a way, Mike Shanahan's distaste for them. No matter what, they won't be tormenting the D.C. sports scene again.

For the complete D.C. Top 10 of 2011 countdown, visit this StoryStream. For more coverage of Washington D.C. sports, visit our D.C. blogs: