Working their way back

Unlike quarterbacks, running backs and receivers, numbers rarely tell the story for offensive linemen.

But consider these in the case of right guard Randy Thomas and right tackle Jon Jansen of the Washington Redskins: 32, 37, 30.

The first is their age. The second is the number of games in which Thomas and Jansen didn’t line up next to each other in the past four seasons. The last is the number of games in which they did.

Thomas and Jansen played every game together in 2003, the year the former signed with Washington as a free agent from the New York Jets. Since, however, serious injuries have plagued the duo. Jansen was sidelined for all of 2004 with a ruptured left Achilles tendon. Thomas missed the final two regular-season games and the two playoff games in 2005 with a broken right leg and sprained ankle. The next year, Jansen gave in to a torn right calf muscle and sat out Week 15.

However, last season was the topper. Jansen broke his right leg and dislocated his right ankle in the second quarter of the opener and was done for the year. The following week, Thomas tore his left triceps. He rushed to get back in the lineup in Week 14 only to suffer a partial tear of the same muscle, joining Jansen on injured reserve.

“People say Jon and Randy are too old, but I don’t worry about a 32-year-old guy,” line coach Joe Bugel said. “Ray Brown was starting for us at 42 [in 2005]. Jon’s had some unfortunate injuries [but] not because he’s old. He’ll probably play five more years. And Randy’s a spring chicken.”

With this season nearly four months away, Jansen, though still rehabbing, is fully participating in the organized team activities that began Monday. Thomas, meanwhile, isn’t taking any team drills. The Redskins are being extra careful to avoid a second recurrence.

“I’m very excited that Jansen’s at full throttle,” Bugel said. “He worked hard getting ready for this. He hasn’t missed a snap. Randy said that he could play this weekend if we had a game, but there’s no sense in testing that thing now. We’ll wait until training camp.”

In contrast, Jansen couldn’t wait to get back in team drills.

“It feels as good as it’s going to right now,” Jansen said. “I’m still in the rehab process, but this is part of it. The only way to get it back to 100 percent is to get out there and use it. By the time the season rolls around, I expect it to be 100 percent.”

In fact, Jansen, who appeared to favor his right leg during the minicamp over the weekend, is progressing well enough to be back to normal by the start of training camp in mid-July. But he considers these injuries worse than the Achilles.

“The rehab was a lot longer and more challenging because there was more pain,” Jansen said. “But the only part of me now that’s probably not 100 percent is my mind. That’s just being able to get out there and build the confidence that I should have. I’ve got to have the experience of changing directions, having somebody lean on me and press on it, have somebody fall on me and know that I’m going to be fine.”

After getting burned by the triceps he thought was healed in December, Thomas isn’t taking any chances with it this spring.

“I don’t regret coming back when I did,” Thomas said. “Ain’t nothing worse than sitting back in the rehab room while guys are meeting to try to win a playoff game. The physical part is something I miss doing.”

Thomas started lifting weights with his left arm in March and is close to his peak performance — on a limited basis, that is.

“It’s the repetitions,” he said. “I’ve got to get my endurance back. I can punch the bag a couple of times, but I can’t do it 100 times. We’re being cautious right now. I can really take my time and get it right. Stay tuned about preseason. I just don’t know right now.”

Notes — The Redskins signed quarterback Derek Devine and safety Patrick Ghee and cut defensive end Alonzo Dotson, quarterback Bret Meyer and safeties Kevin Mitchell and Justin Scott, all of whom signed as rookie free agents last week. Devine and Ghee were in training camp with Seattle last year, so Devine has more experience working with new coach Jim Zorn than holdover Sam Hollenbach or rookie Colt Brennan, the other candidates for the No. 3 job behind Jason Campbell and Todd Collins. …

The Redskins’ rookie pool is $4.544 million, leaving them with about $3 million to spend on veteran free agents and for a reserve fund to replace players who are injured during the season. Executive vice president Vinny Cerrato said he doesn’t expect the team to begin negotiations with the agents for any of its 10 draft picks until next month.