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Grandfather's dying wish to Redskins rookie: 'Just beat the Cowboys'

Ben Rohrbach

Obviously, every member of the Redskins faithful wanted to beat the NFC East rival Dallas Cowboys on Sunday, but nobody had more motivation than Washington rookie linebacker/safety Su’a Cravens.

All week, the USC product and California native ignored phone calls from his mother, Yolanda — still a Cowboys fan, despite her son being drafted in the second round by the Redskins.

“I haven’t spoken to her,” he told reporters earlier in the week, according to the Richmond Times-Dispatch. “I’m serious. She called me this morning. I haven’t spoken to her. I don’t talk to Cowboys fans.

“She called me and I hit silent. My dad called me and I was like, ‘Hey, what’s up, Pops?’ She was kind of jealous.”

As if that wasn’t enough, Cravens’ maternal grandfather, Adolphus Fulcher, died last week, and his dying wish was for his grandson to “just beat the Cowboys,” per ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter. At his grandfather’s request, Cravens didn’t travel to the memorial services on Friday, instead focusing on practice with the sole goal of handing the Cowboys a second straight loss to start the season.

Nobody wants to beat the Cowboys more than Redskins rookie Su'a Cravens. (Getty Images)
Nobody wanted to beat the Cowboys more than Redskins rookie Su’a Cravens. (Getty Images)

Cravens played only 18 of Washington’s 68 defensive snaps in Week 1, but after the Redskins allowed 437 total yards in their 38-16 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, including 143 on the ground to DeAngelo Williams, there was reason to believe he might play more against Dallas. And why not give the guy a shot when his mission now is to beat the Cowboys, make his grandfather proud and vex his mother?

As it turned out, though, Cravens didn’t see starter’s minutes in Sunday’s 27-23 loss to Dallas, and Washington may regret not playing him more often. He looked sharp in his limited action, finishing with four tackles, but his mother got the last laugh. Cravens will have to wait to exact his revenge.

Interestingly, the Redskins next play the Cowboys on Thanksgiving, so Yolanda might have to think about changing her football allegiance if she wants to talk to her son for the holiday this year.

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