THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, April 29, 1995 TAG: 9504290480
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C4 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JIM DUCIBELLA, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: ASHBURN, VA. LENGTH: Medium: 70 lines
On and off the field, there was a different Heath Shuler quarterbacking the Washington Redskins Friday.
There was confidence when he dropped to pass. There was an air of certainty about where to throw the football.
And there was a zip and zing to his passes that frequently wasn't in evidence during his trying 1994 rookie season.
When the Redskins' first workout of this weekend's mini-camp was through, Shuler took one free agent aside and explained to him what he and coach Norv Turner were trying to accomplish on certain plays.
``Last year, my first day of mini-camp was a disaster,'' he said later, smiling. ``Everything went wrong. Today, there still were a lot of things to correct, but it went smoother.
``There's a comfort zone.''
At one point, Shuler even walked over to the team's top pick this year, receiver Michael Westbrook, and offered some advice.
``I told him to stand next to Henry (Ellard) and go where he went,'' Shuler said. ``I told him, `He can teach you and you can't learn enough.'
``Last year, I felt like I had to correct everything I'd ever been taught about football. I knew I was confused, but I figured it wouldn't take too long. Then, after awhile, you ask yourself, `When am I ever going to get it?' ''
As far as Shuler is concerned, he learned enough last season to count for two years. He played in 11 games, started eight, and averaged 190 passing yards per start, a Redskins' rookie record.
However, his passing rating before December was 37.7; his rating during the last month of the season was 84.4.
So it's not surprising that he calls the latter part of 1994 as ``my second season.''
``The biggest change is that I am a lot more accurate now,'' he said. ``The Arizona game (a 19-16 overtime loss) is where I started to feel more comfortable. The speed of the game changed. Before, it was fast, After that, it slowed down for me. I didn't feel like I was rushing as much.''
After being the third player selected in last year's draft, Shuler spent some time with New England's Drew Bledsoe, picking his brain about life in the NFL.
Bledsoe said the biggest difference between his first and second years is that he stopped looking at football as a game, that he accepted it as his job. Shuler acknowledged he's done the same thing.
Since Feb. 1, he has been a regular at Redskin Park for weightlifting and running in the mornings, film study in the afternoon. Before hitting the field Friday, he ducked into a film room and studied plays from a 21-17 loss in the rain at Philadelphia.
``You look at defensive alignments, pass coverages, anything you think will help you understand,'' he said. ``But mostly, I really have been concentrating on our offense.''
Happily, Turner says he's noticed the change.
``He's made great strides since the day last season ended in Los Angeles,'' he said. ``Today, when Heath threw the ball to Henry, it looked like we knew what we were doing.
``We've had him here on a day-to-day basis for the last two and a half months. And it's here where you get better, not in the games. It's what you put in now that makes the difference.'' ILLUSTRATION: ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE photo
Heath Shuler, who had plenty of problems his rookie season with the
Redskins as seen in this game against Dallas, is now offering some
advice to teammates as a second-year QB.
by CNB