Washington Redskins

See if this makes sense to you: For years, I've argued with certain African-American people about their insistence upon using the so-called N-word which, to my ears, is, inalterably, a statement of self-loathing. They say I don't understand. They say the word no longer means what it has always meant. They say it's just a friendly fraternal greeting. I say one cannot arbitrarily decide that a word -- especially an old and bloodstained word -- suddenly means something other than what it always has. I say that while language does change over time, it doesn't do so because a few of us want it to or tell it to. And I say that if I call you an "idiot," but say that "idiot" now means "genius," you will be no less insulted.

See if this makes sense to you: For years, I've argued with certain African-American people about their insistence upon using the so-called N-word which, to my ears, is, inalterably, a statement of self-loathing. They say I don't understand. They say the word no longer means what it has always meant. They say it's just a friendly fraternal greeting. I say one cannot arbitrarily decide that a word -- especially an old and bloodstained word -- suddenly means something other than what it always has. I say that while language does change over time, it doesn't do so because a few of us want it to or tell it to. And I say that if I call you an "idiot," but say that "idiot" now means "genius," you will be no less insulted.

* WHEN, WHERE: Tonight, 9 o'clock at RFK Stadium, Channel 13.* RIVALRY: Redskins have won five of the last seven games.* KEY MATCHUPS: Redskins' DE Charles Mann vs. Eagles' rookie T Antone Davis; Redskins' RB Earnest Byner vs. Eagles' ML Byron Evans; Redskins' T Joe Jacoby vs. Eagles' DE Reggie White; Redskins' CB Darrell Green vs. Eagles' WR Fred Barnett.* STRENGTH-ON-STRENGTH: The Redskins have the NFL's most potent offense, averaging 36.5 points. The Eagles have the league's No. 1 defense, giving up 210.3 yards a game.

For decades, the Orioles commanded a sweeping empire of fans - a territory larger than some European countries, stretching from southern Pennsylvania to North Carolina and including Washington, where the team operated a popular retail store. The club's games are still broadcast across most of the same region, but the Orioles now share much of it with the Washington Nationals, who are ensconced in a population-rich portion of what was once the Orioles' domain. The Nationals' arrival in 2005 created a complicated relationship in which the teams are at once neighbors, opponents on the field and, lately, bickering business partners when it comes to the regional television network they co-own but the Orioles control.

WASHINGTON -- To some, it was the most highly prized ticket in the nation's capital -- more coveted than a seat at a White House state dinner, more enviable than a ticket to an embassy gala.It was a seat at the home of the Washington Redskins, Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium, a Washington football institution seemingly as permanent as the Capitol itself.Not anymore. Like so many other longtime city dwellers, the Redskins are moving to the suburbs. This Sunday, in the last Redskins game ever at RFK, this year's team won't have any playoff hopes at stake -- just another piece of its history and a share of this city's identity.

FROSTBURG -- The love affair between this Appalachian town and the Washington Redskins began in the summer of '95. Only now is the meaning of their relationship becoming clear. Now, that is, that the team may never come back. Since 1995, the NFL franchise held training camp at Frostburg State University. For three weeks in July and August, the Western Maryland town came alive. Almost 35,000 visitors -- wired-up 'Skins fans from as far as South Carolina -- flocked here annually. Sports reporters from Washington began newscasts by describing the weather and happenings in Frostburg, population 9,000.

The Washington Redskins yesterday signed Dallas middle linebacker Derrick Brownlow, a 6-foot, 241-pound player out of Illinois who led Cowboys' special teams players in tackles last season with 27.Drafted on the fifth round by Dallas in 1991, Brownlow also has been on the Los Angeles Raiders, Buffalo Bills and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Redskins today Matchup: Chicago Bears at Washington Redskins in season opener Time: 1 p.m. TV/Radio: Chs. 45, 5/1430 AM, 106.7 FM Line: Redskins by 6

If this thing sticks, Gennifer Flowers could get to sing the National Anthem at the Republican National Convention.Who needs the B-2 bomber? We have the Washington Redskins.

Headlines in yesterday's Sports section incorrectly characterized the status of the Cooke family's ownership of the Washington Redskins as a result of Jack Kent Cooke's death. There are no plans to sell the team.The Sun regrets the errors.Pub Date: 4/09/97

Three months after winning their first Super Bowl in 1983, the Washington Redskins received another reward. With the 28th and final selection in the first round of the 1983 NFL draft, and one pick after the Miami Dolphins grabbed a strong-armed quarterback from Pittsburgh named Dan Marino, the Redskins settled on an undersized but lightning-quick cornerback out of Texas A&M-Kingsville. Darrell Green played 20 seasons with the Redskins, earned two Super Bowl rings, appeared in seven Pro Bowls and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2008.

Running Charm City Run to honor victims of marathon bombing Charm City Run will join independent running stores across America in hosting a "Runners For Boston" fun run Monday at 6:30 p.m. Runners are encouraged to meet at the Annapolis, Baltimore, Bel Air or Clarksville store locations and wear past or present Boston Marathon gear or other Boston-related clothing. For more information, contact info@charmcityrunonline.com . Salisbury Shark Run: The Salisbury rugby team will host the Miles For Mom Shark Run on Sunday.

Karl Marx is credited with saying that religion is "the opium of the people. " But here in the nation's capital, baseball is the drug of choice that rescues political junkies from the unpleasant realities around them. Currently providing relief from the congressional stalemate over the deficit that has produced the "sequester" of spending cuts, job furloughs and general fiscal paralysis is the return of last year's Cinderella baseball team, the Washington Nationals. After rising from traditional doormat to champion of the National League's East Division, the Nats heart-breakingly collapsed in the final game of their first playoff series.

Redskins Corner Hall released; Carriker's deal redone     Forced to make moves to get below the NFL-mandated salary cap of $123 million, the Washington Redskins released cornerback DeAngelo Hall , restructured defensive end Adam Carriker 's deal and were in the process of negotiating several other contract revisions Monday. The team had to be under the cap by 4 p.m. today, which marks the start of the new league year and free agency. Washington entered this past weekend roughly $3 million over the cap but still re-signed starting left guard Kory Lichtensteiger (an impending unrestricted free agent)

If you follow the Ravens at all, you know this was the season John Harbaugh pushed all the right buttons - and pushed himself into the top tier of NFL head coaches, too. Wonder why so many of these guys burn out? Think about all the challenges Harbaugh faced in his fifth year running this team. Every NFL season is an emotional rollercoaster. But the ride Harbaugh and the Ravens took to their Super Bowl win was as exhausting and as exhilarating as any in recent memory. It started around the April draft when the Ravens learned that Terrell Suggs, their best pass rusher and the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year, had torn his Achilles tendon.

Laurel Park Vegas No Show favored in Miracle Wood Stakes Saturday's $125,000 Miracle Wood Stakes at Laurel Park has attracted eight 3-year-olds, including three stakes winners. Vegas No Show has been made the 7-5 morning line favorite in the one-mile test. The son of Hard Spun has tested stakes company in his last five outings, with a win in the Dover Stakes at Delaware Park and a runner-up finish in the Nashua Stakes (Grade 2) at Aqueduct. Trained by Kelly Breen, Vegas No Show posted a bullet workout at Belmont Park at the end of January and will carry Jeremy Rose for the first time.

Sports loyalty is based on the illusion of continuity through constant change. A team, like a river, never stays the same. Symbols remain. So pity the Washington Redskins, who will eventually succumb to national sensitivities and forsake the name Redskins, and to owner Jack Kent Cooke's deal-making and leave Washington. Should the club move to a race course on the banks of the Patuxent, the obvious name would be Colts, a label unhappily owned in the NFL by a rival in the Midwest and unavailable.

WASHINGTON -- It's often said that quarterbacking the Washington Redskins is the second-toughest job in the nation's capital.For the Lions, going on is all that's left for them to do.

Every morning, Monday through Friday, blogger Matt Vensel will hook you up with reading material -- mostly on the Ravens but with some other Baltimore sports stuff, too -- to skim through as you slug down coffee and slack off at the start of your workday. That way he'll have an excuse to do the same to start his workday, too. RUNNING IT BACK With Sunday's 31-28 overtime loss to the Washington Redskins, the Ravens have now lost two games in a row for the first time since 2009.

Deactivated for the previous five contests, Richard Crawford picked an opportune time to make a lasting impression for the Washington Redskins. The rookie cornerback's 64-yard punt return set up rookie kicker Kai Forbath's 34-yard field goal that propelled Washington to a 31-28 win over the Ravens at FedEx Field Sunday. The outcome was significant as it kept the Redskins one game behind the New York Giants in the NFC East and one game behind the Seattle Seahawks and the Chicago Bears for the last wildcard berth.