Washington Redskins players said tight end Fred Davis and left tackle Trent Williams apologized after they received four-game suspensions for violating the NFL's substance-abuse policy.
Quarterback Rex Grossman said Davis and Williams spoke at a team meeting Wednesday morning and that their words were "extremely genuine." But Redskins coach Mike Shanahan was harsher, saying he's disappointed "big time" in both players and that they will have to prove themselves in order to be a part of the team's future.
"You're talking about accountability," Shanahan said, "people being there through thick and thin. And when you don't do that, there's not really anything you can say except, 'I screwed up.' And they were men enough today to stand in front of the team and say, 'Hey, I did screw up, and we promise it won't happen again.'
"Now we will find out in the future if they're true to their word."
Grossman seems to already have taken his teammates for their word.
"I know they feel bad about it," Grossman told The Washington Post. "They talked to us today in a team meeting, just letting us know they're remorseful and that they're apologetic about it. They feel bad enough. It's a tough situation for them. They know they made a mistake and they have to pay some pretty harsh consequences for it."
Guard Chris Chester said it was a tough moment because "no one wants to be in that position."
"I didn't need an apology," said wide receiver Santana Moss, an offensive captain. "I feel like what they done to themselves, they (needed to) apologize to themselves before they apologize to me."
The Redskins re-signed tight end Dominique Byrd and promoted nose tackle Chris Baker from the practice squad to take the roster spots vacated by Davis and Williams.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
