Training camps set to begin this week

The Patriots head into camp as Super Bowl favorites.
NEW YORK (AP) -- For seven months, Washington fans have anticipated the opening of Joe Gibbs' first training camp in 12 years as coach of the Redskins.
Too bad they won't get to see much of it.
The Redskins open training camp next Saturday at their home training base in Ashburn, Va., one of 32 camps that start in the next 10 days. Denver, Chicago, Carolina and St. Louis begin the process Tuesday.
But Washington fans, who have waited for this week since their Hall of Fame coach was rehired last January, may not get to see much. While most teams encourage their supporters to attend drills, the new/old coach probably is restricting fan access.
"I don't care if you're taking a test or what you're doing," Gibbs says. "If there's things walking around, and people talking, good-looking girls walking up and down the sidelines and everything, then generally what people do is: 'I'd rather look over there than look out here.' So that's a problem, distractions are."
Despite the return of Gibbs and owner Daniel Snyder's annual signing flurry, Washington isn't the favorite in its own division, the NFC East.
NFC East favorites
That designation goes to Philadelphia, losers of three straight conference title games. The Eagles have added pass rusher Jevon Kearse and Terrell Owens, the standout wide receiver they desperately needed.
Still, that guarantees little in this era of parity, especially with potential locker room problems after the departure of cornerback and team leader Troy Vincent to Buffalo and the addition of the tempestuous and moody Owens.
The overall Super Bowl favorite may again be New England, which could equal the mark of the 1992-95 Cowboys with three titles in four years.
Despite a recent history of teams coming from nowhere -- from the Rams in '99 to Carolina last season -- the Patriots seem to be as solid as last year, when they won their second Super Bowl in three seasons by beating the Panthers 32-29 in the final seconds.
New England also could break Miami's 31-year-old modern record of 18 straight victories. If the Patriots win their first three games, they'll go for No. 19 against the Dolphins in Foxboro, Mass., on Oct. 10.
Coaching carousel
The 63-year-old Gibbs, who won three Super Bowls and reached a fourth during his tour in Washington from 1981-92, is one of seven new coaches.
The "newcomers" include three other retreads -- Tom Coughlin (formerly of Jacksonville) with the New York Giants, Norv Turner (Washington) in Oakland and Dennis Green (Minnesota) in Arizona.
Green and Lovie Smith, the former St. Louis defensive coordinator who took over the Bears, bring the number of black head coaches in the NFL to five, most ever.
There was a lot of player movement, too.
Owens, Kearse and Vincent are among the many Pro-Bowl caliber players who changed uniforms. The Giants alone signed 18 free agents after a slide to 4-12 in a season they were supposed to challenge for a title.
Quarterback shuffle
Big-time quarterbacks also have been shuffled, moves set off in part by the Giants' trade to select Eli Manning, brother of Peyton, the league's co-MVP with Indianapolis last season.
That led to the release for salary cap reasons of Kerry Collins, who quarterbacked the team in the 2001 Super Bowl.
Collins was replaced by Kurt Warner, the 1999 and 2001 league MVP and the MVP of the 2000 Super Bowl. He was released by St. Louis after two seasons behind Marc Bulger and gives the Giants an experienced QB to start if Manning isn't ready to take a pounding behind what could be a shaky offensive line.
Collins landed in Oakland, where his size and strong arm make him the perfect quarterback for the "vertical offense" that owner Al Davis has always favored. Turner says 38-year-old incumbent Rich Gannon, who missed nine games last season with injury, is the starter, but that could change.
Copyright 2004 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.