Read More: Donovan McNabb (QB – MIN), Rex Grossman (QB – WAS), John Beck (QB – WAS), Washington Redskins

Rex Grossman has officially re-signed with the Washington Redskins, announcing the news to local media late Tuesday afternoon. Coach Mike Shanahan had said Grossman would be in camp by the end of the day, and he now is there with a new contract. Grossman announced that it was a one-year contract, because he wanted to play the season and try free agency again next year.

Grossman’s return was all but assumed, but it hadn’t yet gotten done before Tuesday, which made some people wonder. Grossman took over as the team’s starting quarterback late last season after Donovan McNabb was benched, and did a decent job, considering the circumstances. It looks like he’ll be a backup again, though, with John Beck picking up most of the first-team reps early in training camp.

For all your NFL free agency rumors, visit this StoryStream. Also, be sure to check out SB Nation’s Redskins blog Hogs Haven.

The Washington Redskins‘ quarterback carousel has twirled away from Donovan McNabb toward John Beck and maybe Rex Grossman. Coach Mike Shanahan is at the controls, and he feels good about a situation that many fans and media have questioned. Really good.

“I believe in the guys,” Shanahan said Friday evening in his first media session since the draft in April. “I’ve been doing this for a long time, and I’m putting my reputation on these guys that they can play.”

Shanahan established the stakes before the anticipated quarterback competition between Beck and Grossman begins. For it to get underway, Grossman must sign a free-agent contract. Shanahan and Beck both said they expect him to re-sign soon. For now, Beck and undrafted free agent Ben Chappell are the only two quarterbacks in training camp.

Shanahan’s faith in Beck became apparent after the Redskins didn’t draft a quarterback in April. Suddenly, Washington’s No. 3 quarterback in 2010 was a favorite for the starting job. Never mind that he hasn’t played in a regular-season game since he lost all four of his starts for the 1-15 Miami Dolphins as a rookie in 2007.

“You evaluate those games and there’s nothing that he shows … that says he can’t do it,” offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan said. “He plays like a rookie in those [four] games sometimes, but he also does some good things. The jury is still out. He’s a second-round pick and a guy that should get a chance.”

Mike Shanahan thinks so, too. His belief in Beck has helped him move on from McNabb’s checkered one-year tenure.

The head coach reflected on his failed union with McNabb and spoke for the first time about the decision to trade him to the Minnesota Vikings.

“I told Donovan when he came in here, I said, ‘Hey, these are the reasons why I think Philly did not sign you,’” Shanahan recalled. “They were going to go with [quarterback Kevin] Kolb. ‘This is what you’re going to have to do to stay on our football team for a number of years. And if you do that, I think you have a chance to go to the Pro Bowl and do the things you’ve been doing throughout your career.’ And it didn’t work out, and we go on.”

Shanahan’s feud with McNabb became ugly and public last December after he benched McNabb in favor of Grossman. Shanahan applauded how McNabb handled the situation and blamed McNabb’s agent, Fletcher Smith, for handling it without class.

During the winter, the Redskins gave Smith permission to find a trade partner, and the deal ultimately came to fruition this week.

“I still think that Donovan has a great future ahead of him,” Shanahan said. “If he decides to do the little things he needs to do to get to the next level, then it will be there. But I’m not going to go into detail about what those things are.”

Shanahan addressed a wide range of topics during his first session with the Redskins media corps in almost three months:

• He might as well have done backflips about trading away maligned defensive lineman Albert Haynesworth.

“I’ll be honest with you,” he said. “Either way, Albert wasn’t going to be here. If we traded him or not, he wasn’t going to come to our camp.”

• He’s pleased with the Redskins free-agent acquisitions so far. Players such as defensive linemen Barry Cofield and Stephen Bowen are young and known to have strong character.

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Read More: Donovan McNabb (QB – WAS), Albert Haynesworth (DT – WAS), Washington Redskins

UPDATE: The Redskins have clarified and said Friday, not Saturday, is the first official practice, but it is closed to the public.

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The full Washington Redskins 2011 training camp schedule has been released to the public, and now, we know what it will mean for the players. Training camp will officially begin on Thursday, but the first open practice won’t be until Saturday morning. As it turns out, that also will be the first practice with pads all week.

Mike Jones of the Washington Post reports that the first three days of training camp will not feature full practices. Here is the schedule:

#Redskins timeline: Wednesday is report day, Thursday is physicals; Friday is conditioning work and first official practice is Saturday.

This is hardly a surprise, but now it is official. Players began using the facilities as early as Tuesday, though not everyone was present. Wednesday is the day that everyone needs to report, so it will be interesting to see whether Donovan McNabb and Albert Haynesworth show up.

For more on the Redskins, visit Hogs Haven.

Washington Redskins chief operating officer David Donovan is leaving the team to return to his law firm.

The team announced Donovan’s departure Monday.

He worked for the Redskins for six years and says he’s leaving “for personal reasons.”

Redskins owner Dan Snyder said in a statement that Donovan “will continue to consult with the Redskins as he did prior to joining the organization.”

(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

By Mike Prada

– Senior Editor

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Jul 11, 2011 – Dave Donovan, the chief operating officer of the Washington Redskins and a longtime adviser to owner Dan Snyder, has resigned from his position for “personal reasons,” according to a team press release. Donovan will be returning to the law firm he came from back in 2005. He will continue to consult with the Redskins, according to owner Dan Snyder in the release.

“I have had a great six years with the Redskins. It has been an experience I will always appreciate and never forget. For personal reasons, I am returning to partnership in the law firm that I left in 2005,” Donovan said in the statement. “I am thrilled that I will have the ability to continue my relationship with the Redskins. I would like to thank Dan Snyder and all coaches and staff who I have worked with over my time with the team”

Donovan was probably best-known publicly for answering for Snyder on many issues, including the seizing of signs at FedEx Field in 2009.

For more on Donovan’s resignation, visit Hogs Haven.

Read More: Washington Redskins