Albert Haynesworth Saga Day 7: Just How Bad Is The Knee?

Redskins defensive lineman Albert Haynesworth missed his seventh straight day of training camp after once again not being able to complete his fitness test.

Haynesworth is reporting a "sore knee" as the cause for his failure to complete the test required to join the rest of the team on the practice field, but that's a pretty vague injury and Haynesworth has been very vocal about wanting to leave Washington.

Haynesworth accepted the Redskins $21 million roster bonus, but has done nothing to live up to his end of the bargain. Head Coach Mike Shanahan is switching the Redskins to a 3-4 defense, but Haynesworth has made it clear he prefers a 4-3, and has lost weight this offseason, reportedly to force Shanahan to play him on the outside.

Whatever is going on, the fact that Haynesworth refused to attend any part of the offseason program and now has yet to pass a relatively easy fitness test raises a certain amount of cynicism and suspicion.

Haynesworth has made it clear in the past that he will put himself and his own interests before the team. Now you have a situation where the contractual gray area gets rough to navigate.

The Redskins front office has a big decision ahead of them should Haynesworth continue to fail the fitness test because his contract is prohibitive and they've already committed a ton of money to him.

Also, due to the size of his contract, Haynesworth is pretty much untradeable. Theoretically, the Redskins could cut him and sue to get their money back, but that's a long and winding legal road with no guarantee they'll recoup one dime.

Even if Haynesworth passes his fitness test and starts practicing, everyone will have to question his commitment to the team, especially if he takes plays off as the season progresses.

The other question to ponder is, taking the cynics route, what if Haynesworth is faking the sore knee? What does he do to prevent a real injury down the road, and how will that affect the rest of the team?

The Redskins have no easy answers to any of these questions, and their best hope is Haynesworth deciding to play out the year. With one week in training camp already gone though, it's doubtful anyone is expecting Haynesworth to do anything besides take care of himself.

It's what he does best.