Defensive tackle Brandon Noble had a setback in his recovery from recent arthroscopic knee surgery and could sit out off-season workouts longer than initially expected, head coach Joe Gibbs said on Wednesday.

Noble experienced some inflammation in his right knee that led to an infection, Gibbs said.

"He went back into the hospital and basically what the doctors did was they cleaned it out and put him on some strong antibiotics," Gibbs said. "The good thing is, [the inflammation] is on the outside of the joint. Hopefully now he's on the road back."

In late April, Noble developed swelling in the knee--not the one he severely injured during the 2003 preseason--leading to the first scope of the knee.

Noble was expected to be back at full health by the June 17-19 mini-camp, but Gibbs said it could take him a "little bit longer to recover" now. It is expected that Noble will be ready by the start of training camp.

Meantime, Mike Barrow underwent a MRI on his left knee last weekend and his status remains uncertain, Gibbs said. It was expected that Barrow would be able to begin a running program following the MRI, but doctors want to spend more time on strengthening the knee.

"He's doing some flexibility work," Gibbs said.

Barrow was expected to be the starter at middle linebacker last year, but he developed tendonitis in his knee and was sidelined the entire 2004 campaign.

Linebacker Marcus Washington is recovering well from recent surgery to remove a benign growth in his tailbone area, Gibbs added.

Although Washington's condition is not serious, he is expected to miss the next few weeks and his status for the team's mini-camp in June is uncertain.

The Pro Bowl linebacker had the same procedure performed last year approximately three weeks before signing with the Redskins as a free agent.