Mike Shanahan, the Washington Redskins coach, and Donovan McNabb, his quarterback, expect their high-profile partnership to produce some great moments during the forthcoming National Football League season.
The new regime got off to a good start in the team's pre-season opener, routing the Buffalo Bills 42-17.
"It was an exciting time," said McNabb, who was traded to the Redskins from the Philadelphia Eagles in the off-season.
He played two series and threw a short touchdown pass in the first quarter.
"When you play your first game, obviously, with a new ballclub, it takes you back to the first game you played," he said. "
Your adrenaline is high and you have to settle down a little bit."
In front of a crowd announced at 69,578, the Redskins dominated the Bills in Washington's return to their home field for the first time since a major off-season makeover, which team officials hope will transform the team's fortunes after two poor seasons in the doldrums.
Daniel Snyder, the owner, hired Shanahan and gave him control of the football operation, and also brought in Bruce Allen as general manager to work with Shanahan.
But the arrival of McNabb, the Pro Bowl quarterback acquired in a surprising Easter trade with the Eagles, energised the fan base the most.
"He is special," Snyder said in a televised interview. "His form, his leadership - he is the total package."
Coming off a 4-12 season, the Redskins have turned to Shanahan and McNabb to help restore the once-successful organisation to prominence.
Their initial steps on Friday against the Bills, who went 6-10 in the 2009 season, would seem to have stirred optimism that they are indeed making steps in the right direction.
"It was a good first game," Shanahan said, "and hopefully we can build from here."
Although not particularly sharp early in training camp, McNabb has improved recently while working with Kyle Shanahan, the offensive co-ordinator, and becoming more comfortable in the West Coast scheme. Scheduled to participate in a maximum of 18 plays, McNabb was in for 17.
McNabb, beginning his 12th season, helped the first-team offence take a 7-3 lead late in the first quarter when he teamed with Anthony Armstrong, the wide receiver, on a four-yard touchdown pass.
Television replays appeared to show that the ball did not reach the goal line, but the Bills did not challenge the call and the Redskins had their first touchdown of the pre-season.
The quarterback was productive lining up directly behind Casey Rabach, the centre, or from the shotgun, and he displayed good mobility.
On a third-and-one play, he faked a handoff left and then rolled right, beating the Bills' defence to the sideline to pick up the first down for his team.
McNabb seems to be developing a good rapport with Chris Cooley, the tight end who missed much of the 2009 season after fracturing his ankle in the seventh week of the campaign.
With Cooley fully recovered, the Shanahans have big plans for the Pro Bowler and for Fred Davis, the emerging third-year tight end who caught a nine-yard pass for a touchdown from Rex Grossman, the backup quarterback.
The new-look Bills, meanwhile, looked like the same old Bills, making lots of mistakes and adding two running backs to their already lengthy injury list.
Fred Jackson will miss the rest of the pre-season with a hand injury, and Marshawn Lynch has an ankle problem that Chan Gailey, the new coach, hopes is "more short-term than it is long-term" and he will not be sidelined for long.
"Thank goodness it's pre-season," Gailey said. "When we get to early September, it's going to be 0-0 on the win-loss column and thank goodness for that. But we've got to find who can do what in these next three ballgames and get ourselves ready for that first one."
* Agencies
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
Europa League group stage draw
Group A: Villarreal, Maccabi Tel Aviv, Astana, Slavia Prague.
Group B: Dynamo Kiev, Young Boys, Partizan Belgrade, Skenderbeu.
Group C: Sporting Braga, Ludogorets, Hoffenheim, Istanbul Basaksehir.
Group D: AC Milan, Austria Vienna , Rijeka, AEK Athens.
Group E: Lyon, Everton, Atalanta, Apollon Limassol.
Group F: FC Copenhagen, Lokomotiv Moscow, Sheriff Tiraspol, FC Zlin.
Group G: Vitoria Plzen, Steaua Bucarest, Hapoel Beer-Sheva, FC Lugano.
Group H: Arsenal, BATE Borisov, Cologne, Red Star Belgrade.
Group I: Salzburg, Marseille, Vitoria Guimaraes, Konyaspor.
Group J: Athletic Bilbao, Hertha Berlin, Zorya Luhansk, Ostersund.
Group K: Lazio, Nice, Zulte Waregem, Vitesse Arnhem.
Group L: Zenit St Petersburg, Real Sociedad, Rosenborg, Vardar
Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5
WHAT IS GRAPHENE?
It was discovered in 2004, when Russian-born Manchester scientists Andrei Geim and Kostya Novoselov were experimenting with sticky tape and graphite, the material used as lead in pencils.
Placing the tape on the graphite and peeling it, they managed to rip off thin flakes of carbon. In the beginning they got flakes consisting of many layers of graphene. But when they repeated the process many times, the flakes got thinner.
By separating the graphite fragments repeatedly, they managed to create flakes that were just one atom thick. Their experiment led to graphene being isolated for the very first time.
In 2010, Geim and Novoselov were awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics.
MATCH INFO
Europa League final
Who: Marseille v Atletico Madrid
Where: Parc OL, Lyon, France
When: Wednesday, 10.45pm kick off (UAE)
TV: BeIN Sports
The Year Earth Changed
Directed by:Tom Beard
Narrated by: Sir David Attenborough
Stars: 4
More from UAE Human Development Report:
How to play the stock market recovery in 2021?
If you are looking to build your long-term wealth in 2021 and beyond, the stock market is still the best place to do it as equities powered on despite the pandemic.
Investing in individual stocks is not for everyone and most private investors should stick to mutual funds and ETFs, but there are some thrilling opportunities for those who understand the risks.
Peter Garnry, head of equity strategy at Saxo Bank, says the 20 best-performing US and European stocks have delivered an average return year-to-date of 148 per cent, measured in local currency terms.
Online marketplace Etsy was the best performer with a return of 330.6 per cent, followed by communications software company Sinch (315.4 per cent), online supermarket HelloFresh (232.8 per cent) and fuel cells specialist NEL (191.7 per cent).
Mr Garnry says digital companies benefited from the lockdown, while green energy firms flew as efforts to combat climate change were ramped up, helped in part by the European Union’s green deal.
Electric car company Tesla would be on the list if it had been part of the S&P 500 Index, but it only joined on December 21. “Tesla has become one of the most valuable companies in the world this year as demand for electric vehicles has grown dramatically,” Mr Garnry says.
By contrast, the 20 worst-performing European stocks fell 54 per cent on average, with European banks hit by the economic fallout from the pandemic, while cruise liners and airline stocks suffered due to travel restrictions.
As demand for energy fell, the oil and gas industry had a tough year, too.
Mr Garnry says the biggest story this year was the “absolute crunch” in so-called value stocks, companies that trade at low valuations compared to their earnings and growth potential.
He says they are “heavily tilted towards financials, miners, energy, utilities and industrials, which have all been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic”. “The last year saw these cheap stocks become cheaper and expensive stocks have become more expensive.”
This has triggered excited talk about the “great value rotation” but Mr Garnry remains sceptical. “We need to see a breakout of interest rates combined with higher inflation before we join the crowd.”
Always remember that past performance is not a guarantee of future returns. Last year’s winners often turn out to be this year’s losers, and vice-versa.
About Housecall
Date started: July 2020
Founders: Omar and Humaid Alzaabi
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: HealthTech
# of staff: 10
Funding to date: Self-funded
Dhadak
Director: Shashank Khaitan
Starring: Janhvi Kapoor, Ishaan Khattar, Ashutosh Rana
Stars: 3
The%20specs
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E6.5-litre%20V12%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E725hp%20at%207%2C750rpm%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E716Nm%20at%206%2C250rpm%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E8-speed%20dual-clutch%20auto%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EQ4%202023%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFrom%20Dh1%2C650%2C000%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
The specs
Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax
Power: 310hp
Torque: 583Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh192,500
On sale: Now
If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
Game Changer
Director: Shankar
Stars: Ram Charan, Kiara Advani, Anjali, S J Suryah, Jayaram
Rating: 2/5
