Redskins GM Bruce Allen was so close to the late Deacon Jones that he called him "big brother." Meanwhile, Rich Tandler has more on the newly-departed Hall of Fame defensive end who finished his career with the Redskins. Dan Steinberg has even more.

There have been a number of articles recently about how DE Jarvis Jenkins needs to live up to his vast potential this season. Here's another of those articles.

WR Pierre Garcon is feeling better after a 2012 season scarred by constant injury struggles. He still seems concerned about further injuries, though, particularly to that troublesome foot.

Free agent acquisition CB EJ Biggers is feeling right at home with the Redskins. I'm a big fan of this signing, since Biggers was one of the most effective cornerbacks in the NFL last year. Buccaneers fans will tell you differently, but the stats confirm it. 

QB Pat White, who starred at West Virginia but flamed out during a brief NFL career with the Miami Dolphins, is hoping to make his second chance in football pay off with the Redskins. It remains to be seen if he's anything more than just some guy with good speed the Skins signed to run the read-option during the offseason while Robert Griffin III recovers. 

In the face of lofty expectations as a World Series contender, the Nationals needed to break out of a funk that saw their record slip below .500.  Management did their part, shaking up the roster with six roster moves yesterday.  The Nats did their part last night, with a 2012ish type ninth inning rally sparked by Ian Desmond, Ryan Zimmerman, and Adam LaRoche, and capped off with a game winning sacrifice fly by Steve Lombardozzi.  It was a much needed win for the Nats in their opening game of a six game home stand. 

Jordan Zimmermann put together a fine performance on the mound, but exited the game after the eighth inning with no decision.  Through 8 innings, Zimmermann allowed 2 runs on 4 hits while fanning 4 Mets.  Tyler Clippard (4-1) picked up the win, throwing a 1-2-3 ninth inning. 

Ian Desmond started the Nats off with a solo home run in the second inning to give the Nats an early 1-0 lead in the second inning.  It was Desmond's 8th home run and his first hit of a two hit night.  After Zimmermann gave up  a two run double Omar Quintanilla, his only mistake on the night, the Nats entered the bottom of the ninth staring at a 1 run deficit and just 4 hits of offense on the night. 

Ryan Zimmerman started the ninth inning rally with a leadoff double and advanced to third base on a wild pitch by Mets closer Bobby Parnell.  Adam LaRoche followed with an RBI single to tie the game at 2-2 and sparked chaotic outburst at Nationals Park. Immediately following LaRoche, Desmond doubled to left center to advance LaRoche to third base, setting up an intentional walk of Roger Bernadizne to load the bases with no outs.  After battling off numerous high fast balls, Lombardozzi launched a fly ball to right field that easily scored LaRoche and provide the walk off winner and lift the Nats to the 3-2 win. 

The Nats failed to pick up any ground as the Atlanata Braves downed the Pittsburgh Pirates 5-4.  Nats remain in second place at 7 games out.  Dan Haren takes the mound tonight for the Nats and will face Dillon Gee.  

Anthony Rendon's stay in Triple-A didn't last long as the Nationals top hitting prospect has been called back up to the majors. Rendon is expected to play second base as Danny Espinosa has finally been placed on the DL with an assortment of injuries. Espinosa is hitting only .158 and has struggled since Opening Day. Rendon had been promoted over the weekend to Syracuse,  after raking at Double-A Harrisburg with six home runs and a .319 batting average.

Until Bryce Harper and Espinosa return, expect the Nats to platoon Roger Bernadina and Tyler Moore in left field, with a similar rotation at second base with Rendon and Steve Lombardozzi.

The Nationals also made several moves in the bullpen, designating Zach Duke and Henry Rodriguez for assignment. Ian Krol was summoned from Double-A and will assume Duke's role as a left handed reliever. Krol, who has been lights out in Harrisburg, was acquired from Oakland in the Spring in the three team deal that send Mike Morse to Seattle.

As expected, Jayson Werth was activated from the DL and will assume the other roster spot.

The beat up and bruised Washington Nationals get a bit of lineup relief today with the return of Jayson Werth to the Nats.  Werth returns to the Nats after going on the disabled list on May 3.  

Werth will join the Nats in the lineup tonight, as they kick off a crucial six game homestand.  Werth is batting .260 with 4 home runs and 10 RBI in 26 games this season.  His return tot he lineup will help bolster the middle of the lineup that is already missing Bryce Harper.

Dropping one game under .500 was shocking.  Especially given the lofty expectation of the 2013 Washington Nationals.  Given the pretty poor start, changes were bound to come.  They have arrived. 

The Washington Nationals have designated pitchers Henry Rodriguez and Zack Duke for assignment.  It was only a matter of time for both pitchers.  Rodriguez has been injury prone and has struggled with control over the last two seasons.   His command has been a big problem for the hard throwing right hander.  This season he has posted a 4.00 ERA, but has issued 16 walks in 18 innings of relief.  Duke was the only lefty to open the Nats roster in the bullpen, after posting a 1.32 ERA in 13 innings last year.  This season, Duke posted a ballooned 8.64 ERA, getting hammered around for 20 runs and 31 hits in 20.2 innings out of the Nats bullpen. 

The move will also make room for two big prospects to come to DC.  The move lead to the promotion of 2011 first rounder Anthony Rendon and prospect reliever Ian Krol.  Additionally, 2B Danny Espinosa was placed on the 15 day disabled list.  Espinosa has struggled with a torn rotator cuff, causing a major slump in his offensive numbers.  Through 44 games, Espinosa is batting just .158 and has smacked only 3 home runs.  Rendon will replace Espinosa on the roster.  Despite Rendon's arrival in DC today, Steve Lombardozzi is in the lineup at second base.  In 36 game sin the minors this season, Rendon is batting .307 with 12 doubles, 2 triples, and 3 home runs.  He leads the Nationals system in slugging and on base percentage. 

Krol will join the Nats bullpen.  Krol was acquired this season as part of the Mike Morse deal.  He was assigned to AA Harrisburg where he put up some impressive numbers.  In 21 games out of the Senators bullpen, Krol has posted an ERA of just 0.69, allowing just 2 runs over 26 innings.  He has also fanned 29 batters.  Opposing batters have batted a mere .157 against Krol. 

Pro Football Talk came out with their Washington Redskins Mount Rushmore, putting Sammy Baugh, Joe Gibbs, Darrell Green and the Hogs on the mountain. That seems like a bit of a cop-out to me, since the Hogs include more than half a dozen guys [Russ Grimm, Joe Jacoby, Jeff Bostic, Mark May, George Starke, Jim Lachey, R.C. Thielmann and Raleigh McKenzie.] 

Redskins running back Eric Kettani is now a Lieutenant in the US Navy. He was promoted recently and his new insignias were pinned to his collar by Head Coach Mike Shanahan and Running Backs Coach Bobby Turner during a brief ceremony at the team practice facility in Ashburn.

Perhaps the greatest pass-rusher in NFL history, the great Hall of Famer Deacon Jones, the man who invented the term "sack," for tackling the quarterback, died yesterday of natural causes at his home in southern California. He was 74. Although known primarily for his magnificent career with the Los Angeles Rams, Jones finished his career in Washington. 

"Deacon Jones was one of the greatest players in NFL history. Off the field, he was a true giant," said Redskins general manager Bruce Allen, whose father, George, coached Jones with the Los Angeles Rams. "His passion and spirit will continue to inspire those who knew him. He was a cherished member of the Allen family and I will always consider him my big brother."

Because sacks didn't become an official statistic until 1982, Jones' total is uncertain. His impact as a premier pass rusher and team leader is not.

Jones was the leader of the Rams' Fearsome Foursome unit from 1961-71 and then played for San Diego for two seasons before finishing his career with the Redskins in 1974. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1980 and made the league's 75th anniversary all-time squad.

"Deacon Jones has been the most inspirational person in my football career," said former teammate and fellow Hall of Famer Jack Youngblood.

Jones made the Pro Bowl every year from 1964-70 and played in eight overall. He combined with fellow Hall of Famer Merlin Olsen, Rosey Grier and Lamar Lundy on a defensive line that at times was unblockable.

Olsen died in March 2010 at age 69 and Lundy died in February 2007 at 71. Grier, who is 80, is the only surviving member of the Fearsome Foursome.

George Allen, who coached the Fearsome Foursome, called Jones the "greatest defensive end of modern football." The Allen family had Jones present George Allen for his Hall of Fame induction in 2002.

The 2013 Major League Baseball Draft is just a few days away, with the draft beginning this Thursday, June 6.  The MLB Draft is widely known as one of the biggest crap shoots in all of sports.  No matter where MLB teams draft, even in the first round, there are very little guarantees to major league success.  Still, the MLB Draft has its fans and the baseball world is excited about the coming draft. 

The MLB Mock Draft Database is the original MLB mock database to ever appear on the web, now in it's tenth MLB draft.  It is modeled after our original NFL Mock Draft Database, again, the first to ever appear on the web 15 years ago.  You see many other ones modeled after our concept.  It is also the largest array of baseball mock drafts you will find anywhere.  Updated today, we added 9 new mocks to bring the total today to 54 mock drafts for the 2013 MLB Draft.  By Wednesday this week, that number will increase.  We will keep you updated, that's for sure!

That being said, the top 6 projected picks are far from a crap shoot.  According to our MLB Mock Draft Database, mock writers are pretty consistent in their projection of the Top 6 spots, with 5 of the top 6 spots having projections of 50% or more. 

Earlier in the Spring, it appeared as if Stanford pitcher Mark Appel was a solid #1 overall pick.  Appel was selected 8th overall last season by the Pittsburgh Pirates, but chose to not sign and instead return to Stanford for his senior season.  He put up even better numbers this year, posting a 10-4 record with a 2.12 ERA.  Opposing batters batted just .203 against Appel, while he racked up 130 strikeouts to just 23 walks through 106.1 innings.  However, Oklahoma ace Johnathan Gray is the favorite among mock writers to go first overall to the Houston Astros.  Gray posted an 8-2 record in 13 starts with an impressive ERA of 1.43.  In 94.2 innings, Gray fanned 112 batters while yielding only 19 walks.  Opposing batters struggled against Gray, batting just .175 against him.  Damn impressive!

Here are a few more stats of the Top 6.  Kris Bryant had a heckuva season with the University of San Diego.  The third baseman batted .3629 through 62 games.  His power is impressive.  He launched 31 home runs and drove in 62 runs.  Bryant hold leverage because he is only a junior and could opt to return to San Diego for his senior season.   High School senior pitcher Kohl Stewart is a projected Top 5 pick.   Stewart is also a 20103 signee for Texas A&M as a quarterback.  Stewart could be a huge risk at the #4 slot, given his leanings to Texas A&M.  Third baseman Colin Moran is also slotted for a Top pick.   The third baseman out of North Carolina batted .351 with 9 doubles, 2 triples, and 13 home runs this season.  He also drove in 85 runs.

So how do the mock writers see the Top 6 slotting out.  Well, we munched together the mock drafts that were updated between May 27 to June 3, a total of 25 mock drafts.   We munched them together and  here is where mock draft writers stand.

The Nationals get a huge boost on Tuesday with the return of right fielder Jayson Werth to the lineup.

If there was any doubt if Werth was healthy enough to return, those concerns were answered after a five game rehabilitation at High-A Potomac. Werth going 9-for-17 with a pair of home runs.

Werth's return helps Washington in a number of ways. Jayson obviously can help the Nats struggling offense, but also provides veteran leadership and solid overall play defensively in right field.

Having Werth back everyday in right allows the Nats to platoon Roger Bernadina and Tyler Moore in left field. With Bryce Harper and Wilson Ramos on the disabled list and Danny Espinosa playing hurt, the Nationals have been struggling to provide enough run support for the pitching staff.

Werth has been sidelined with a hamstring injury since May 2nd and has only appeared in 27 games this season. Werth has 26 hits in 100 at bats, with four home runs, ten RBI and a pair of stolen bases.

It's less than 100 days until the Washington Redskins play a real NFL game -- their season opener on Monday night against the Philadelphia Eagles.

Redskins TB Alfred Morris, who ran for a franchise record 1613 yards in his rookie season, went on the Dave Dameshek show to talk about himself, the Redskins and RG3. He does reveal that he's invited to RG3's wedding and talks about the gift registry, if you're into that thing. I'm not. My favorite highlights from the interview: 

• Least favorite division rival: Cowboys
• Fastest NFC East QB: RG3 or Michael Vick
• Favorite Redskins uniform: Burgundy & gold [good man!]

There's more in the interview and Morris is an engaging guy. Give it a listen when you get a chance.

Speaking of Morris, Head Coach Mike Shanahan says he's not just a creation of RG3 and the zone-read offense and would, in fact, thrive in any offense. 

Fanspeak ranks the NFC East quarterbacks. I think the rankings -- Eli Manning, RG3, Tony Romo, Michael Vick, in that order -- are perfectly correct. The guy with two Super Bowl rings has to come first, even if rookie Robert Griffin III was the best in 2012. 

DE Jarvis Jenkins is hoping his third season -- the first was lost to a knee injury -- will be the charm. He's fully recovered from the knee injury and expects to show the kind of form that made him the terror of the Redskins training camp and preseason in 2011. With Adam Carriker have a difficult time coming back from his own injury, that starting DE spot opposite Stephen Bowen would appear to be Jenkins' to lose. 

Rich Tandler explains what happened to those June 1 cuts we all got used to over the years. Turns out, they didn't go away, they're just hiding on another date in the calendar. 

ILB Keenan Robinson, who suffered a torn pectoral muscle in the final minutes of Washington's Thanksgiving Day win over the Cowboys in Dallas, is almost 100% healthy after offseason rehab. This is good news because the 2012 4th round pick from Texas is a real talent and, I believe, the odds-on favorite to replace London Fletcher in the lineup by 2014. 

Redskins OLB Brian Orakpo, also coming off a [much more serious] torn pectoral muscle injury that cost him virtually the entire 2012 season, believes he's an elite player in the NFL and will prove it this upcoming season. That'd be nice. Orakpo has elite talent, but has never put together a truly great season. He's been named to two Pro Bowls, but hasn't reached the elite status of edge rushers. As a run defender, he also leaves much to be desired. Orakpo is a spectacular athlete, though, and he promises this year is the year he puts it all together. He better be right because he's in his contract year and needs a big performance to get the payday he wants. 

TE Fred Davis is hoping to participate in this month's mandatory minicamp as he continues his rehab from blowing out his Achilles Tendon in week 7 of last season. It looks like Davis should be healthy for the regular season, which should be an enormous help to the offense. Davis was the team's leading receiver before the injury in the first half against the NY Giants. 

Retired NFL QB Donovan McNabb would like to mentor Robert Griffin III. Not sure if RG3 needs a mentor and REALLY not sure if McNabb's offers are made in good faith. His disgust for the Shanahans is pretty well-known.