By Sally Fahey
The Trent Williams holdout is now a week old, and Redskins coach Jay Gruden has been quiet, hoping against hope that the turmoil between team officials and the Pro Bowl left tackle will dissipate.
“It’s unfortunate, man, because we love Trent, and we know how much he means to this offense and this team in general,” Gruden told USA TODAY following yesterday’s practice,
“But, end of the day, we have to coach the guys that are here. We have to get guys ready to play. We’ve had that dilemma before the last couple years with all the injuries we’ve had. We’ve had to adjust our roster and that’s what we’re doing now until we get him back and hopefully, my fingers are crossed, we get him back soon.”
When Williams refused to report for the mandatory minicamp in June, it was believed that although he still had two years left on his deal, he sought a contract extension that would restore him to the ranks of the league’s highest paid left tackles.
Then came reports alleging Williams’ distrust in Washington’s medical staff following the diagnosis and handling of a growth on his head (that was surgically removed in the offseason).
“He’s the best left tackle in the league,” Gruden explained. “When he’s not on your team, you’ve got to adjust what you do and adjust to whoever’s in the game. There’s a lot of things that he can do that most tackles can’t, so when he’s not out there, those plays are out. We have other ways to attack, but at the end of the day, I am still very hopeful that we get him back here.”
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