McNabb excited about TE opportunities

[ethat001]

Forget Davis and Cooley -- we have ANOTHER tight end on our roster..

-- Selvish Capers could have been a tight end.

As a kid in Louisiana, the rookie right tackle modeled himself after Antonio Gates and Tony Gonzalez. He was a three-year starter on his basketball team, a 6-foot-5, 240-pound leaper with self-described "great" hands and a nose for the end zone.

But after he arrived at West Virginia, he started adding weight. He also realized the Mountaineers' offense wasn't dialing up a lot of plays for the tight ends. Coaches suggested he change positions, and he agreed, at first reluctantly.

He said he has a 32-inch vertical and can still put down windmill dunks. And he said he'll change his body type once football ends.

"I never really tried to gain weight, it just happened," said Capers, whom the team lists at 6-4 and 308 pounds. "I don't know where it goes, to be honest. A lot of people say I've got all the weight in my legs. I don't even really know."

When he was at West Virginia, Capers told reporters that "I still watch the tight ends and think to myself, 'I can do that.' " So I asked whether he'd drop that message on Mike Shanahan's desk.

"No, indeed not," he said. "I've got to tell them I'm gonna block first and get that down pat, and then maybe we can discuss it."

washingtonpost.com