Zac Boyer will be entering his third season covering the Washington Redskins for The Free Lance-Star this fall. Make sure to follow Zac on Twitter (@ZacBoyer) for the latest updates or e-mail him with any questions at zboyer@freelancestar.com.
After Two Seasons, Doug Worthington Ready For Greater Role
By ZAC BOYER
ASHBURN – Doug Worthington spent the first two weekends watching the Washington Redskins’ games at a sports bar. He’ll have a much better view of the action this weekend.
Worthington
Worthington was signed from the Redskins’ practice squad to the 53-man roster on Tuesday to replace Adam Carriker, who was placed on injured reserve after tearing the quadriceps tendon in his right knee against St. Louis.
The Redskins promoted the 6-foot-5, 311-pound defensive end for the final two games last season, but he was inactive for each. He was also inactive for Tampa Bay in the final game in 2010.
There’s no guarantee Worthington, more of a run stopper, will be active for the Redskins on Sunday, either, as he’s been working mostly on the scout team in practice this week. Jarvis Jenkins will start in Carriker’s place, Kedric Golston will continue to fill in on run downs and reserve nose tackle Chris Baker can also play on the end.
“I can’t say it’s nothing but a blessing to be able to be on that sideline, to get in the game, get a little bit of action and get on the field this year,” Worthington said. “It’s tremendous. There’s not a lot of words that can describe it.”
Worthington credits Carriker and Stephen Bowen for helping him learn the nuances of the position and defensive line coach Jacob Burney for doing “tremendous [work] with me the last year and a half.”
He gained confidence from the preseason, where he had nine tackles over four games. These games, finally, will count.
“You know, I’ve been practice squad for a few years now and have been working my tail off, and just to get an opportunity is a blessing,” Worthington said.”
