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ASHBURN, Va. (AP) — Washington Redskins safety Brandon Meriweather was at his locker Monday morning, receiving warm greetings and a bit of teasing from teammates happy to see him back after a two-game suspension.
"We're pretty excited that he's back," safety Ryan Clark said. "He was real sensitive during those two weeks. I thought he was a tougher guy than that. Maybe we'll put some lavender balloons or something really girly around his locker to welcome him back."
Meriweather missed the first pair of regular season games for a helmet-to-helmet hit in a preseason game. It's the sixth time he's been cited by the NFL for violating player safety rules.
"It's like a family reunion, coming back and seeing everybody," Meriweather said.
The defense truly missed him. Second-year fill-in Bacarri Rambo gave up big plays and continues to struggle with his tacking. Cornerback DeAngelo Hall's eyes lit up at the mention of Meriweather's name.
"It's going to be a nice change-up," Hall said, "as opposed to having a young guy out there."
Meriweather wasn't allowed in the Redskins' facility during the suspension. He said he spent the extra time with his family.
Meriweather said during training camp that he had worked on improving his technique to avoid helmet-first hits. Asked on Monday if he's changed his game enough to avoid more suspensions, he said he'll have to "go even lower" when he delivers a hit.
"I think I've changed it," he said. "I just have to do it a little bit more now."
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