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Roger McIntosh
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McIntosh Is Taking Big Steps - Linebacker Likely To Gain Starting Job
Jun/20/07 10:27 AM | Permalink
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For nearly all of the last season, during which a once-feared defense plummeted in the league rankings and teams consistently exploited the same weaknesses, the inability of prized rookie Rocky McIntosh to get on the field raised the kind of red flags players and talent evaluators want to avoid.

The Redskins traded two draft day picks to the New York Jets in 2006 to acquire McIntosh, so why wasn't he playing? Wasn't he better than incumbent weak-side linebacker Warrick Holdman, who was consistently beaten in coverage and to whose side teams pounded their running games?

During last season, after each game he could not unseat Holdman, McIntosh would demur, saying only he was trying to improve and help the team. He trusted the decisions of the coaching staff, he said, and if playing special teams was where they thought he was at his best, then so be it.
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Ready after Rocky debut
Jun/20/07 10:26 AM | Permalink
With the Washington Redskins' history of playing their top draft choices fairly soon and only retread Warrick Holdman ahead of him at weakside linebacker, Rocky McIntosh figured to see plenty of action as a rookie last season.

That didn't happen. Asked every week last season when the second-round pick would play, assistant head coach-defense Gregg Williams danced around the subject.

"It was pretty hard not playing," said McIntosh, a three-year starter at Miami. "I was down a little bit, but I gave it my best shot on special teams. The first time we played Philadelphia [rookie linebacker Omar Gaither] blew right past me, and he was making plays. The second time we played them, I kind of snuck up on him and got him real good."
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Rocky McIntosh Update
Jun/19/07 09:54 AM | Permalink
While Gibbs offered a measured analysis of how his players were doing, Williams made it sound as if half of the team was headed to the Pro Bowl, and his gushing over linebacker Rocky McIntosh - a player with two career NFL starts - was especially lavish.

"Rocky may be the top guy on the defensive side of the ball that has flashed this spring," Williams said.

McIntosh was a slow developer as a rookie last year, but, as Williams said, he has had a good spring.

(hometownannapolis.com)
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Rocky McIntosh Update
Jun/16/07 11:42 AM | Permalink
McIntosh, who is expected to start at weakside linebacker, was also with his wife and their first child, who was born on Wednesday. The 2006 second-rounder is expected to return to action today.

(washingtontimes.com)
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McIntosh back in his hometown
Feb/23/07 08:13 AM | Permalink
GAFFNEY -- Fresh off his NFL rookie season, Roger "Rocky" McIntosh is only too happy to be in his first offseason.

The Gaffney native is especially glad to be back in the South, where the weather is warm -- warmer, anyhow -- than up north where his Washington Redskins play.

"Oh man, don't even start talking about (cold weather). I spent three days trying to dig out my garage, my driveway, my sidewalk before I came here," McIntosh said Thursday night. "I'm glad to be back down here. It's pretty warm.

"The only thing I really wanted on draft day was to end up somewhere pretty warm, but I'm in Washington … so it is what it is."
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McIntosh Makes Good Impression in First NFL Start
Dec/26/06 12:20 AM | Permalink
ST. LOUIS, Dec. 24 -- In a game that did not have meaning in the standings for the Washington Redskins but was important for their continuing evaluation of personnel, rookie linebacker Rocky McIntosh made his first NFL start Sunday against the St. Louis Rams.

McIntosh, 24, had worked out during the week at the strong side in practices when it appeared Marcus Washington would be out, but assistant head coach-defense Gregg Williams did not commit during the week that McIntosh would start. Before the game, the team announced that Jeff Posey would replace Washington in the starting lineup, but when the game began, Williams shifted weak side linebacker Warrick Holdman to the strong side and started McIntosh.

In the first half, McIntosh made two nice plays. The first came when he tackled running back Steven Jackson behind the line on a screen pass. The second came when he closed space on an end-around to Kevin Curtis, turning what appeared to be a potential big gain into a seven-yard play.

McIntosh finished the game credited with eight solo tackles, tied for second with Andre Carter to strong safety Vernon Fox's nine.

(washingtonpost.com)
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Rocky McIntosh Update
Dec/13/06 09:51 AM | Permalink
Redskins LB Roger McIntosh says he had no idea why he was relegated to special-teams duty without getting to work with the first-team defense prior to Week 14. The coaches had told him to keep studying his playbook before giving him his first extended action with the base "D" vs. Philly.

(profootballweekly.com)
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McIntosh Makes His Defensive Debut at Linebacker
Dec/11/06 11:55 PM | Permalink
Washington Redskins rookie Rocky McIntosh played with the first defensive unit in its base package for the first time this season. McIntosh, the Redskins' top pick in the April draft, has been a consistent performer on special teams but until yesterday had not been able to crack the defensive rotation at weak-side linebacker.

McIntosh made his first impact play a week ago on special teams when he blocked a punt against Atlanta.

"I think he was good," linebacker Marcus Washington said. "He had that youthful bounce that young guys have."
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Redskins rookie was friend of slain Hurricanes player - LB McIntosh played with Pata at Miami, recalls him as leader
Nov/09/06 08:27 AM | Permalink
ASHBURN -- Early yesterday morning, Rocky McIntosh was awakened by his dogs. They needed to go outside.

McIntosh, a rookie linebacker for the Washington Redskins, dutifully climbed out of bed and let the dogs out. On his way back to bed, around 12:30 a.m., he checked his cell phone and saw he had several text messages.

When he read them, he was shocked.
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McIntosh on Special Assignment Until His Opportunity
Nov/05/06 10:55 AM | Permalink
Rocky McIntosh has spent a half-season on the bench before, only then nobody noticed. The Washington Redskins' rookie linebacker was a freshman at Miami in 2002 and did not begin playing regularly that season until the final four games. Once he grabbed that starting job, however, McIntosh never let go, starting in the national championship game that season. He is waiting patiently for his time to come again.

Thus far, McIntosh has not been given a chance to play, paying his dues on special teams while stuck behind struggling weak-side linebacker Warrick Holdman on the defensive depth chart. Learning assistant head coach-defense Gregg Williams's complex scheme has been challenging for many veteran free agents, so for McIntosh to progress slowly was expected. For him to have not played on defense at all -- even in pass-rush or third-down situations -- has surprised some around the league, though.
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A ROCKY START
Nov/04/06 09:34 AM | Permalink
While some Redskins fans advocate second-year quarterback Jason Campbell as a solution to the team's struggles, other high-priced youth has yet to be served in Washington.

Washington traded a sixth-round pick in this year's draft, plus a second-round selection in 2007, to take linebacker Rocky McIntosh with their 2006 top pick (No. 35 overall). But McIntosh, who led Miami with 89 tackles as a senior, has been limited to special teams duty, even as seventh-year pro Warrick Holdman has had an up-and-down season.

But patience is nothing new for McIntosh, who didn't start regularly for the Hurricanes until his junior season.

"That's what I've got to do now, just wait 'til my turn comes," McIntosh said. "(With Washington), I know where I fit into the team and how I can make the team better, and right now that's special teams. ... It's fun. You get to run as fast as you can down the field and hit somebody."

Gibbs said McIntosh's special teams play is improving each week.

"I think our guys over there like everything they see," Gibbs said.

(dailypress.com)
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Rookie Progress - Rocky McIntosh
Oct/14/06 11:45 PM | Permalink
Rookie linebacker Rocky McIntosh had a busy week of practice filling in for Washington, and is beginning to make progress in his adjustment to the team's defensive scheme, linebackers coach Dale Lindsey said.

McIntosh was the Redskins' first draft pick in April, and is slated behind starter Warrick Holdman at weak-side linebacker on the depth chart. With Washington out much of this week, he worked regularly at strong side, his position in college, Lindsey said.

"I've watched him on special teams the last few weeks, and the light is coming on about how to cover a kickoff and do certain things," Lindsey said. "And I think the light is coming on for him at linebacker, too, and that's typical. About four games into their first year they get a feel for the flow of the game. Everything's on target for him."

Lindsey said he could envision McIntosh getting more playing time in the coming weeks, but is pleased with the starters.

"The two guys in front of him are playing well," Lindsey said. "If we didn't have that we might have tossed his butt in there and thrown him to the lions, but we don't have to."

(washingtonpost.com)
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NFL: REDSKINS: Getting Rocky Ready: Another 'Cane In Mix
Sep/27/06 08:05 AM | Permalink

Apologies to Penn State, Ohio State and USC. It's just that you could make a case for "Linebacker U" now being a team associated with the University of Miami.

Yes, the Hurricane program has been traditionally known for its flash and brash, its fleet-footed wide receivers, running backs and defensive backs. Just look at the Redskins' roster, sprinkled with great "Made in Miami" athletes such as Clinton Portis, Santana Moss and Sean Taylor.

Yet it seems as though Miami has also turned out more quality linebackers than any other football program in recent memory.

The most notable is Baltimore Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis, a two-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year and Super Bowl XXXV MVP. He is considered one of the best to ever play the position.

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Rocky McIntosh Update
Sep/12/06 10:01 PM | Permalink
Heart of the matter

Rookie linebacker Rocky McIntosh didn't start Monday night, but assistant head coach/defense Gregg Williams hinted that it's only a matter of time before the second-round pick from Miami becomes a regular on the field.

"You have to be able to pay your dues and slow your heartbeat down and not be all caught up in the hoopla," Williams said. "The first regular-season game for a rookie is also kind of shattering to their confidence, but since he comes from a big-time program that plays with an attitude anyway, he'll have an easier adjustment.

"He's come a long way. I'm very impressed with his toughness, and very impressed with his resiliency as a rookie to block out distractions, me included."

(roanoke.com)
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Rocky's Road to Redskins Starter Won't Be Smooth
Aug/16/06 11:35 PM | Permalink
ASHBURN, Va. (AP) - When Sean Taylor was the No. 5 overall pick in the draft two years ago, he was made to toil with the Washington Redskins (website - news) second-string and third-string units throughout training camp, even though his talent as an instant-impact player was obvious. He didn't make his NFL first start until the third week of the regular season.
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Recent 'Cane past on McIntosh's side in D.C.
Aug/16/06 11:34 PM | Permalink
Washington Redskins rookie linebacker Roger McIntosh enters his first year in the National Football League with plenty of history in his favor. The second-round pick, who was signed to a four-year deal recently, attended the University of Miami, where he captained a terrific defensive unit. Much like past Miami Hurricanes linebackers, the 23-year-old has a chance to be a big-time playmaker at the pro level
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