Chris Samuels In Japan, 2002

Every so often here at Redskins Park, you can open a drawer that's somehow been ignored for years or a box that's been in storage forever and find something completely awesome. These pictures would be among those somethings. Most Redskins fans remember Osaka pretty clearly. That's where the American Bowl was played during the 2002 preseason, the one night when Steve Spurrier's offense really lived up to the hype before coming brutally back to earth during the regular season. Osaka is now a shorthand warning for Redskins fans not to take the preseason too seriously, and many of the stories from that trip have been told. These images, though, don't come from the trip itself. Then-young offensive lineman Chris Samuels and then-49ers quarterback Jeff Garcia went on an advance promotional trip to Osaka in March of that year to help drum up enthusiasm for the game. The trip included visits to a baseball game and a sumo match, school visits, press conferences, an...