Training Camp Update
Volume 2, Issue 2 – 8/09/06
Training Camps are in full swing and we want you to feel like
you have attended every practice and seen every preseason
game.
To keep all our Footballguys subscribers on top of everything,
we've created our incredibly detailed Camp Updates. They're
an exhaustive look each week covering every bit of news you
need to know to stay completely on top of every team. Quite
simply, they're the key to Dominating Your Draft.
This is the fourth of five training camp updates from us. We'll
break down every team's skill positions and position battles.
It's the stuff you'd see if you were there at every camp. This
Camp Update was created by our own Bob Henry and reflects
the most up-to-date info regarding each of these teams.
Happy reading and let's have a great 2006 season,
Joe Bryant and David Dodds
Owners, Footballguys.com
Arizona Cardinals
QB: Nothing has changed on the Matt Leinart front. Leinart’s
absence is John Navarre’s gain, at least for now. “I am glad to
get as many reps as I can,” Navarre said. “I want to take
advantage of them. Experience is so valuable to playing
quarterback. I will take all the reps they can give me.” Navarre
was supposed to battle Leinart for the No. 2 quarterback job.
They split reps with the second team during OTAs in the
summer, but they’re all Navarre’s for the time being. HC
Dennis Green said he wants Navarre to get rid of the ball
quicker, but he’s pleased with his progress. Meanwhile,
Leinart received a text message from his buddy Reggie Bush.
“I text-messaged him last night and just gave him some words
of encouragement,” Bush said. “I don’t think he’s too down.
Matt’s a pretty level-headed guy, and I think he’ll be fine
through this process. He’s not the only guy to hold out in this
world.”
Kurt Warner says the offense is continuing to improve every
day, acknowledging that the defense usually has the upper
hand early in training camp. “The big thing is that we are
improving every day,” offered Warner. “The first practice was
a little sluggish and disappointing but I think we are starting to
realize when we get things moving and the tempo going, that
it just benefits us. Coach does a good job of throwing a lot of
situations at us and it gets us thinking.”
RB: The preseason isn’t about Edgerrin James. Or should we
say Edgerrin James isn’t about the preseason? James would be
just as happy to practice hard, but leave the preseason games
to the guys fighting for spots behind him. That doesn’t prevent
him from setting the tone in practice though. His banter is just
as good as his play and his teammates seem to enjoy it, too.
“He talks a good game too,” said Dennis Green. “Defensively
we have a lot of guys that are good at it and he is too. He
brings a good intensity but has a lot of fun with it and he likes
being out there. That is what we really try to emphasize and
that is what we have tried to do from the start. You really have
to love the game. You have to love coming out onto the field
and Edge has always done that.” Darnell Dockett confessed,
“We look forward to hitting him in practice because if you
don’t you hear about it all day. He is one of the best running
backs in the league and we have to go up against him all of the
day and it is just going to help us be ready when the season
comes around. We’ll be ready to face good running backs and
it is a good challenge and key to having him on our team.”
Fullback James Hodgins remains hopeful that he’ll return to
practice next week after rehabilitating his surgically repaired
knee for the first week of camp. He was initially upset after
being held out of practice. He’s been mentoring converted
tight end John Bronson as he learns the position – even if it
might cost Hodgins a roster spot. The Cardinals signed
Diamond Ferri on Tuesday, August 1st. Roger Robinson is
expected to miss four to six weeks. Ferri, 24, played for
Amsterdam in NFL Europe. Ironically, Robinson re-injured
his toe during practice last Monday. It was the same toe he
hurt in the NFL Europe title game.
WR: Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin were asked about
becoming the best receiving duo in the NFL and becoming
synonymous with the Dolphins’ Mark Duper and Mark
Clayton. “That is something you have to do year in and year
out,” Fitzgerald said. “One year is not going to get it done. We
were on a terrible team last year. We moved the football and
we produced in terms of us two, but we didn’t produce wins.”
Boldin added, “Hopefully, we will get there one day. We’re
starting to get recognized in that department, but the only way
to get recognized as the best duo in the league is to put up
numbers consistently. We are still working on that.” Edgerrin
James enjoyed the benefits of playing with Marvin Harrison
and Reggie Wayne and admitted the Cardinals duo helped lure
him to the desert. “I never put a rank on it,” James said. “Both
sets are good. I am friends with both of them and if I see
something that Marv did or Reggie did that I can tell Anquan
or Fitz, I would. They know what they have to do. As a
receiver, you only get better as time goes. It’s amazing how
hungry these guys are.”
Bryant Johnson continues to hold off LeRon McCoy for the
No. 3 job, but that doesn’t mean McCoy can’t overtake him at
some point. Dennis Green was asked if there’s a scenario
where McCoy could take the job over Johnson. Green said, “I
don’t know...LeRon is young and ambitious and he wants that
number three spot.” Johnson is a prime candidate to be the
team’s kick returner and Green still believes Johnson is due
for a breakout season. Johnson is taking it all in stride. “I
don’t feel there is a battle,” said the former first round pick. “I
know Q and I tried to take LeRon under our wings, and the
better our entire receiving corps are, the better our team will
be.”
TE: On Wednesday, August 2nd, the Cardinals released tight
end Ben Hall.
Other: Starting right tackle Oliver Ross suffered an injury to
his right knee on Tuesday, August 1st. Ross is expected to
miss several weeks of action and former defensive tackle Fred
Wakefield moved from backup LT to take Ross’s spot. Jeremy
Bridges is also working into the mix in Ross’s absence.
Cardinals Depth Chart
Defense: DT Kenny King will be sidelined for a month after
breaking his right hand. He injured it during last Thursday’s
morning workout. King spent the last two seasons on injured
reserve and missed most of his rookie season after breaking
his right wrist twice. MLB Gerald Hayes has recovered from
reconstructive knee surgery and he’s up to 253 pounds. He
added the weight to help him make a run at the starting job.
Dennis Green is making him earn the spot against James
Darling. SLB Karlos Dansby heard rumors that the coaching
staff was down on him during the off-season, but he didn’t
know what to make of it. “I was productive (in organized team
workouts) until my injury happened, and once my injury
happened I still went through a whole week of practice,”
Dansby said. “People didn’t know what was going on, but I
finished the week out. All that stuff in the news, I don’t know
how it came about; I didn’t even read it. I was in the blind
with that. I never found out anyone was disappointed in my
offseason workouts. I thought I did pretty doggone good.”
Antrel Rolle is expected to make a bigger impact in his second
season. He has impressed the staff with his playmaking skills
in camp. “Every day he makes a big play,” spouted Green.
Rolle had an interception in Friday morning’s practice during
team drills. “He made a big play today and that is his style as
a defender,” confirmed Green. During red zone drills on
Thursday morning, Rolle picked off another Warner pass.
Rolle has been aggressive since camp began a week ago;
batting down passes and talking smack with receivers. Rolle
remains cautious though and Darnell Dockett talked about the
return of Rolle and others from injury last year. “We keep
looking at film and some of the mistakes we made last year.
We made a lot of big mistakes and we have a lot of guys
coming back from injury and that is going to help us. A big
key is Antrel Rolle. He’s back and we needed that in a huge
way so we’re going in the right direction.” With Rolle,
Dansby, Dockett, Chike Okeafor, Bert Berry and Adrian
Wilson the Cardinals have a potentially explosive defense.
Special Teams: Kicker Neil Rackers displayed his precise
accuracy during practice last week, taking aim at a staff
member operating a camera perched on a lift between the
uprights. Rackers forced him to move twice to avoid being hit.
Meanwhile, the debate rages on regarding the authenticity of
Rackers’ video clip on the NFL Network. RB Marcel Shipp
recently discussed his revised role on the team now that
Edgerrin James is a Cardinal, “I'm on pretty much every
special team. I'm hard core. I don't mind. That's how I made it
into this league, and it's a very important part of the game."
HC Dennis Green continues to mention that they’re hopeful
that WR Bryant Johnson will be more involved on returns.
WR Troy Walters however remains the favorite in that
department. The other primary return candidate, WR Michael
Spurlock, has looked like the rookie he is practice,
occasionally putting the ball on the ground.
QB Kurt Warner, Matt Leinart, John Navarre
RB Edgerrin James, J.J. Arrington, Marcel Shipp, Damien
Anderson, Diamond Ferry
FB Obafemi Ayanbadejo, James Hodgins, John Bronson
WR Larry Fitzgerald, Anquan Boldin, Bryant Johnson,
LeRon McCoy, Troy Walters, Todd Watkins, Carlyle Holiday,
Michael Spurlock (QB), Greg Lee
TE Leonard Pope, Adam Bergen, Eric Edwards, Alex Shor
K Neil Rackers, Nick Novak
DE Chike Okeafor, Bertrand Berry (inj), Anton Palepoi,
Antonio Smith, A.J. Schable
DT Darnell Dockett, Kendrick Clancy, Tim Bulman,
Langston Moore, Gabe Watson, Kenny King (inj), Jon Lewis
MLB James Darling (W), Gerald Hayes, Lance Mitchell
OLB Karlos Dansby (S), Orlando Huff (W), Darryl
Blackstock (W), Calvin Pace (S), Mark Brown, Isaac Keys,
Brandon Johnson, Lawrence Pinson
CB David Macklin, Antrel Rolle, Eric Green (inj), Robert
Tate, Dyshod Carter, Lamont Reid, Darrell Hunter, Jay
McCareins, Damarius Bilbo, Justin Wyatt
S Adrian Wilson (SS), Robert Griffith (FS), Aaron Francisco,
Ernest Shazor, Jack Brewer, Chris Harrell
Atlanta Falcons
QB: On Tuesday, August 1, Michael Vick left the Falcon’s
practice with a hamstring injury. Head coach Jim Mora didn’t
think Vick would miss more than a couple of days, but Vick
remained out of Friday’s practice marking his third straight
day with the “tweaked” hammy. Vick didn’t require any
assistance to leave the field, but he did pull up during a drill
midway through the session. On his way into the locker room
he insisted, “It’s no big deal.” As expected, Matt Schaub took
the first team snaps in his stead.
Bryan Randall and D.J. Shockley have both impressed the
coaching staff as they vie for the No. 3 job. Mora likes
Shockley’s presence in the huddle and his field generalship
saying that it eased his concerns of him being a rookie and
feeling overwhelmed. Mora can’t wait to see them in
preseason game action. "I've been really impressed with D.J.
Just his personality, the way he conducts his business. The
way he goes about running the show. He's got a real maturity
to him. I can tell now why people love him. He's got a certain
persona about him. Plus, he's got a whip. When he decides to
throw it, he can sling it.” He notes that Randall is doing well,
too, "Bryan Randall certainly is not backing down."
RB: The Falcons like their backs to be “one cut” backs just
like the Broncos do. To that end, veteran RB Warrick Dunn is
putting on a clinic so far in training camp, but perhaps almost
impressive has been the speed and elusiveness that rookie
Jerious Norwood is flashing. Norwood needs to learn from the
veteran Dunn how to pick the hole, commit and accelerate.
Norwood is making a concerted effort for playing time thereby
putting due pressure on T.J. Duckett, who reported to camp in
great shape. Duckett continues to hold onto the backup spot,
but Mora is taking note of the quickness that Norwood brings
to the table "He's got that one cut-and-go ability you like in
this zone scheme," Mora said of Norwood, who might be the
better fit for the Falcons offense. "I've also been impressed
with the way T.J. has played and practiced. He's going after
it." Duckett is in the last year of his contract and his name has
been floated in trade talks during the offseason. To his credit,
he’s been making would-be tacklers pay, running downhill
consistently and authoritatively.
WR: With Brian Finneran on the shelf for the entire season,
the Falcons are said to be exploring trade opportunities.
Oakland’s Jerry Porter and Denver’s Ashley Lelie are two
prominent names that immediately come to mind, but the
Falcons front office will do their homework before acquiring
either of the erstwhile veterans. HC Jim Mora said if they do
bring in any players they wouldn’t displace the Falcons
current starters – Michael Jenkins and Roddy White. Mora
likes what he’s seeing out of his receivers, even rookie Adam
Jennings, a sixth round pick. "I think the receivers, in general,
have really done nice work the last three days," said Mora.
"Roddy is kind of hitting his stride. Jenkins is catching the ball
well out in front of him and I keep liking Adam. I like him
every day. He's mature and the game doesn't seem too big for
him. So it's fun to watch him."
TE: Alge Crumpler isn’t expected to play in the team’s
upcoming preseason game against New England for
precautionary reasons. Crumpler had shoulder surgery in
February and the team is taking things slowly with him
through the early part of camp. "I can't remember anything
about preseason games, but you do get something out of them
as far as your timing is concerned," Crumpler said Monday. "I
can't imagine that I would play, but it doesn't really matter
because it's not my call." Reserve Dwayne Blakley is expected
to start in Crumpler’s place.
Defense: Patrick Kerney has been a terror at times in camp.
Last Thursday, he was a beast during pass drills as he
punished just about every lineman that lined up against him.
Kerney and John Abraham give the Falcons their best pass
rush in years – perhaps the best in the NFL if both players stay
healthy. The improved pass rush should be a help to the
team’s secondary, which underwent a makeover in the
offseason. Rookie corner Jimmy Williams is penciled in to
start as the team’s right corner when the season begins. Jason
Webster, last year’s starter, missed four days of practice with a
sprained foot before returning on Thursday. "I don't take it
personal," said Webster, who knows Williams wants to start
just as he does. "I see it as a good thing. We can both make
each other better." DeAngelo Hall practiced with the receivers
during the last week. At one point, he sported the offense's red
practice jersey. After about 30 minutes, he returned to playing
defense, and put his white practice jersey back on. Darrell
Shropshire was promoted to starter over Chad Lavalais, but
Mora indicated the move is not set in stone.
Special Teams: After Zac Derr was injured and released, the
Falcons quickly added Carlos Martinez to join the kicking
competition. He spent the last three years playing for the
AFL’s Dallas Desperados, who happen to be owned by Jerry
Jones, who happens to also own the Dallas Cowboys, who for
many years employed kicking coach Steve Hoffman, who was
hired by the Falcons this year to develop a cheap kicker.
Martinez quickly joined the mix with kicker Tony Yelk.
Punter Michael Koenen also remains a possibility, as he went
3-for-3 on FGs in practice recently, including a long one of 60
yards right down the middle. Jim Mora addressed the question
of whether they’d really use him for both punting and kicking,
"We don't know if he could do it all effectively. We'd really
have to think about it and talk about it, and we are. We're
going to work all three guys and hope we can find someone
we'll be confident with. If not, we'll go with somebody else.
But we're not to that point yet.” Mora also commented on the
need to get all three involved in preseason games, “I'm not
saying we're going to kick on third down, but I want to create
some situations where we have to kick field goals. We've got
to find out whether we've got a kicker who can make a field
goal. I hope we get some long kicks. I hope we get some
pressure kicks at the end of the half and the end of the game. I
hope we get some wind. I hope we get some rain. I want to
find out about these guys. You can't do that with extra points.''
CB/KR/PR Allen Rossum is being pushed by rookie RB
Jerious Norwood on kickoff returns and by rookie WR Adam
Jennings on punt returns. With a sore hamstring Rossum is
pacing himself in camp, "If I learned anything, it was that I
shouldn't try to push myself so hard and go full-speed all the
time out. That's what the coaches told me, and they were
right."
Falcons Depth Chart
QB Michael Vick, Matt Schaub, D.J. Shockley, Bryan Randall
RB Warrick Dunn (3RB), T.J. Duckett (SD), Jerious
Norwood, Deandra Cobb (KR), Butchie Wallace
FB Justin Griffith, John Pannozzo
WR Michael Jenkins, Roddy White, Jerome Pathon, Adam
Jennings, Cole Magner, Troy Bergeron, Jamin Elliot, Javarus
Dudley, Brian Finneran (inj)
TE Alge Crumpler, Dwayne Blakely, Eric Beverly, Daniel
Fells. Boone Stutz
K Tony Yelk, Michael Koenen
DE Patrick Kerney, John Abraham, Chauncey Davis,
Constantin Ritzmann, Paul Carrington
DT Rod Coleman, Darrell Shropshire (NT), Chad Lavalais
(NT), Jonathan Babineaux, Antwan Lake (NT), T.J. Jackson
MLB Edgerton Hartwell, Jordan Beck
OLB Keith Brooking (W), Michael Boley (S), Demorrio
Williams (W), Ike Reese (S/W), Artie Ulmer, Travis Williams
CB DeAngelo Hall, Jimmy Williams, Jason Webster, Allen
Rossum (KR), Leigh Torrence, Kevin Mathis
S Lawyer Milloy (SS), Chris Crocker (FS), Antuan Edwards
(SS), Omare Lowe (FS), Chris Reis, Nick Turnbull
LaTendresse said. "Every catch counts." On Thursday, August
3rd the Ravens signed Matt Cherry (Akron).
Baltimore Ravens
QB: Steve McNair has lofty expectations after coming to
Baltimore to replace the disappointing former first round pick
Kyle Boller. In the team’s Saturday scrimmage against
Washington, McNair was intercepted on his second pass. He
wasn’t too upset about it, but did say he felt comfortable in his
brief playing time going 5-of-6 for 30 yards. Part of those
expectations comes from being reunited with Derrick Mason.
"You expect that. You expect that at that position, when you
have that type of status," Mason said after the scrimmage as
reporters flocked to McNair as he returned to his locker.
"You've got a responsibility - kind of like the Spiderman
movies. He's got those powers. Now, with those powers comes
great responsibility. That's what Steve has to uphold, and I
don't see any indication of him not upholding that
responsibility of being our starting quarterback and our leader.
So everything he does is going to be scrutinized. Even if he
does it perfectly, somebody's going to find some way where
that gets scrutinized. But it's been that way his whole life, his
whole career." McNair just needs some time to acclimate
himself to the Ravens offense and offensive coordinator Jim
Fassel. Later in the scrimmage, Drew Olson completed a 24yard touchdown pass to Romby Bryant.
RB: Jamal Lewis started in the scrimmage Saturday night, but
only for the 7-on-7 drills. He did not play in the full-team
scrimmage. The Ravens used Mike Anderson as a fullback
during the 11-on-11 drills increasing the possibility the
Ravens could use them both on the field at the same time.
According to RBs coach Tony Nathan, it might happen.
"That's in the plans, that's in the works," said Nathan.
Anderson suffered a mild concussion on the fifth play while
picking up a blitz. The injury thrust No. 3 RB Musa Smith into
action. Smith has been marred by injury after injury in his
brief career with the Ravens. He appears to be healthy after
gaining 23 yards on five attempts. "I approach things with an
attitude of gratitude," Smith said. "I'm just grateful that I'm
back and playing."
WR: It’s been an up and down training camp so far for
Devard Darling. On Thursday, Darling dropped a possible
long touchdown, but bounced back with two great efforts later
– beating Ed Reed for a short touchdown catch on one play,
and then hauling in another touchdown later. Darling is
competing for the No. 3 job against Clarence Moore and
rookie Demetrius Williams. During last Thursday’s practice,
starter Mark Clayton (hamstring), Moore (groin) and Williams
(hamstring) were all sidelined giving Darling ample
opportunity for more reps. During last Wednesday’s practice,
Darling filled in for Clayton and made a stellar one-handed
catch during the red-zone drills. Clayton didn’t play in
Saturday’s scrimmage either. Travis LaTendresse made some
good impressions. The free agent caught passes for 23 and 20
yards during the Ravens' first touchdown drive. His 20-yard
reception put the team at the 4-yard line and set up a Boller
TD pass. "I'm just a free agent trying to make this team,"
TE: The Ravens know they have a major weapon with Todd
Heap at the position, but they intend on using him even more
this year in short-yardage and goal-line situations. "We're
going to move him around, not just play him on the wing,"
said Jim Fassel said when talking about Heap. "Moving him
outside will definitely be part of the package. He will cause a
mismatch. That's what I like about TE's when they are athletic
like that, you can place them in different spots and that's the
hardest match for the defense." The Ravens added Quinn
Sypniewski in the fifth round because of his blocking. Yet so
far in camp Sypniewski has caught everything thrown at him,
including a 30-yard pass from Boller. Rob Abiamiri caught a
4-yard touchdown pass from Boller and admitted afterwards
that he had dreamt about the play for years. "Since the Ravens
came here, I've always watched them," said Abiamiri, who
comes from Maryland and was a three-sport athlete nearby at
Mount St. Joseph. "I grew up here, and to be able to play for
them is a blessing for me."
Defense: Rookie DT Haloti Ngata sprained the MCL of his
left knee during the 11-on-11 drills in Saturday’s scrimmage.
Ngata said the injury was not serious and expected to be back
in practice by midweek. "It feels good," Ngata said. "It's just a
minor sprain. I'll be back in a couple of days." Rex Ryan had a
funny quote when talking about the Ravens 12th pick. "If his
upper body ever catches up to his lower body, he could really
be a 380-pound guy. Right now, he's a little puppy, but he
could become a really big puppy." Ryan said of Ngata. The
Ravens' first-team defense seemed to be in midseason form in
the scrimmage, especially when matched up against backup
quarterback Jason Campbell instead of starter Mark Brunell.
The Ravens' starters allowed 2 yards on six plays, stuffing the
Redskins behind the line twice. "They got a good chemistry
going," Billick said. "The communication was very good.
That's something that we've really been stressing. We caught
ourselves short last year a few times because of
communication." Some of the players weren't satisfied by their
brief but dominating effort. "We still have a long ways to go,"
linebacker Adalius Thomas said. "We set a higher standard
than anybody else." Rookie Dawan Laundry joined Ed Reed
and corners Chris McAlister and Samari Rolle when the
secondary took the field with the first-team defense. Landy
might have surpassed Gerome Sapp as the starter opposite
Reed. "That's pretty encouraging, but at the same time, I've
still got to stay on my game and do a lot of film study," he
said. "I want to be on the same page with those guys." Earlier
in the week during practice, Rolle snatched a McNair pass and
took it 50 yards for a “would be” touchdown. Last
Wednesday, McAlister dropped an interception and did 10
pushups as a penalty. He came back strong the next day when
he stepped in front of a quick slant from McNair to Mason
during red-zone drills.
Special Teams: The Ravens were dismissed from practice 15
minutes early the other day when kicker Matt Stover just
cleared the crossbar on a 48-yard field goal, which is near the
end of his range. Attempts much over 50 yards have been
handled by the kickoff specialist in recent years. Kicker Aaron
Elling continues to compete with punters Sam Koch and Leo
Araguz on kickoffs in practice. All have looked good,
although Elling has looked the strongest, often getting the ball
across the goal line. Running back / kickoff returner / punt
returner B.J. Sams has been expanding his versatility by
practicing at safety. He also handled all the returns in practice
the other day, when his only competition at the position,
rookie RB Cory Ross, sat out with a strained hamstring. Ross
returned to practice the following day.
Ravens Depth Chart
QB Steve McNair, Kyle Boller, Brian St. Pierre, Drew Olson
RB Jamal Lewis, Mike Anderson (FB), Musa Smith, P.J.
Daniels, B.J. Sams (KR/PR), Cory Ross
FB Justin Green, Ovie Mughelli
WR Derrick Mason, Mark Clayton (inj), Clarence Moore,
Devard Darling, Demetrius Williams, Ronald Bellamy,
Romby Bryant, Rufus Skillern, Brian Bratton, Tre Moses,
Matt Cherry
TE Todd Heap, Daniel Wilcox, Quinn Sypniewski
K Matt Stover, Aaron Elling
DE Terrell Suggs, Trevor Pryce, Jarrett Johnson, Roderick
Green, Gary Stills
DT Kelly Gregg, Haloti Ngata, Dwan Edwards, Aubrayo
Franklin, Justin Bannan, Cedric Hilliard, Remi Ayodele
MLB Ray Lewis, Mike Smith
OLB Adalius Thomas (S), Bart Scott (W), Dan Cody (S/DE)
(inj), Dennis Haley, Ryan LaCasse, Tim Johnson
CB Chris McAlister, Samari Rolle, Corey Ivy, David Pittman,
Evan Oglesby, Derrick Martin, Ronnie Prude
S Ed Reed (SS), Dawan Landry (FS), Gerome Sapp (FS), B.J.
Ward (FS)
Buffalo Bills
QB: Kelly Holcomb and J.P. Losman continued to battle each
other for the starting QB this past week while Craig Nall was
sidelined with a hamstring injury. Holcomb has been
noticeably more accurate, but he appears to lack arm strength.
His throws don’t seem to going more than 20 yards. New
offensive coordinator Steve Fairchild’s offense is predicated
on short and intermediate throws – a scaled down version of
Mike Martz’s offense. That would appear to favor Holcomb,
but whoever does win the starting job will still need to throw
the deep ball and there is no question that Losman has the
stronger arm of the two. Losman looked sharp in Saturday’s
practice completing nine straight passes during the team’s 7on-7 drills, including a touchdown to TE Robert Royal. Craig
Nall hopes to return to the practice field sometime in the next
week. He still hopes to compete for the starting job. "Not to
put any extra pressure on myself, but I know I have to come
out and pick up right where I left off when I get back,” he said
realistically.
RB: During the first week of camp it’s become apparent that
Steve Fairchild intends to use Willis McGahee much
differently than the former Bills staff. The Bills are working
with him in the passing game with the hope he’ll become a
true three-down back. So far in his career, McGahee has
largely been a 1st and 2nd down back often leaving the field
on third downs. For his part, McGahee is noticeably thinner
than last year and he’s running decisively, too. The backup job
remains up in the air with Anthony Thomas, Lionel Gates and
last year’s backup Shaud Williams competing. Anthony
Thomas reported to camp at 218 lbs, the best shape of his
career, but Dick Jauron has been taking longer looks at Lionel
Gates and Shaud Williams. Perhaps he’s familiar with Thomas
from their days in Chicago, or perhaps Gates and Williams are
ahead of Thomas. The Bills signed former Ravens fullback
Alan Ricard to compete for playing time with Damien Shelton
and Joe Burns (who is more of a special teamer).
WR: So far, Josh Reed seems to be leading the pack for the
starting job opposite Lee Evans. Reed is competing against
Peerless Price, Andre Davis and to a lesser extent Roscoe
Parrish, who will probably be the team’s slot receiver. Oddly
enough, many think Reed is a better fit in the slot, but for now
he’s in the starting lineup. In Saturday’s 7-on-7 drills, Price
was the top receiver with eight catches and a TD. Lee Evans
wasn’t able to play due to an ailing shoulder, so the defense
was focused on Price as the No.1 receiver. The team is taking
it easy with Evans’ shoulder so they won’t rush him back onto
the field even thought it’s considered a minor injury. He was
sidelined from Wednesday, when he fell awkwardly while
catching a pass, through Saturday when he took part in
individual drills fully dressed in pads.
Defense: The most noteworthy change this past week was the
move of WLB Takeo Spikes to SLB with former backup
Angelo Crowell lining up as the team’s starting WLB – as he
did while filing in for Spikes last year when he was out.
Crowell beat out veteran Jeff Posey; who was subsequently
waived by the Bills this past week. The move drops Spikes’
fantasy value, while ‘spiking’ Crowell’s considering they’ll
use the cover-2 defense and the WLB is usually the leading
tackler in that scheme. After missing the first eight days of
camp, first round pick safety Donte Whitner agreed to terms.
He’ll compete with Matt Bowen to start alongside veteran
Troy Vincent at strong safety. The Bills are using Vincent
against slot receivers in the dime package.
Special Teams: Punter Brian Moorman remains the starting
holder for Rian Lindell on kicks. Quarterbacks J.P. Losman
and Kelly Holcomb practiced as backups last week for the first
time this year in that role. Camp leg kicker Nicholas Setta has
been working with the kickoff return group. Terrence McGee
is, of course, the starting kickoff returner. Competing for the
backup role, and in some cases competing to make the final
roster, have been RB Shaud Williams, WR Jonathan Smith,
WR Roscoe Parrish, CB Nate Clements, WR Andre Davis, S
Jim Leonhard, and RB Fred Jackson. RBs Lionel Gates and
Anthony Thomas have been practicing in the upman role.
When the team practiced running reverses, WR Sam Aiken, S
Matt Bowen, S Rashad Baker, and DB Kiwaukee Thomas
took handoffs from whoever fielded the kickoff. Nate
Clements, Jim Leonhard, Roscoe Parrish, Jonathan Smith and
Shaud Williams have also been practicing punt returns. The
latter three are the top contenders.
Bills Depth Chart
QB Kelly Holcomb, J.P. Losman, Craig Nall
RB Willis McGahee, Shaud Williams, Anthony Thomas,
Lionel Gates, Fred Jackson
FB Damien Shelton, Alan Ricard, Joe Burns
WR Lee Evans, Josh Reed, Peerless Price, Andre' Davis,
Roscoe Parrish (PR), Sam Aiken, Jonathan Smith, George
Wilson, Martin Nance, Chris Denney
TE Robert Royal, Brad Cieslak, Kevin Everett, Ryan Neufeld
K Rian Lindell
DT Larry Tripplett, Tim Anderson (NT), Lauvale Sape (inj),
John McCargo, Jason Jefferson, Kyle Williams
DE Aaron Schobel, Chris Kelsay, Ryan Denney, Mark Word,
Ryan Neill, Jason Hall, Joshua Cooper
MLB London Fletcher, Liam Ezekiel, Courtney Watson (inj)
OLB Takeo Spikes (S), Angelo Crowell (W), Josh Stamer
(S/W), Mario Haggan (W), Keith Ellison, John Digiorgio
CB Nate Clements (PR), Terrence McGee (KR), Eric King,
Jabari Greer, Ashton Youboty, Kiwaukee Thomas, Eric
Bassey
S Troy Vincent (FS), Donte Whitner (SS), Matt Bowen (SS),
Coy Wire (SS), Ko Simpson (FS), Rashad Baker (FS), Jim
Leonhard (SS), James Bethea
DeAngelo Williams is competing with Shelton for the No. 2
job. Williams is catching the ball very well, but he’s also put
the ball on the ground twice within two days taking away from
what has otherwise been a solid showing in camp. In
Saturday’s scrimmage, Williams showed his quickness on a
pitch to the right gaining seven yards against the team’s
second-string defense. Also in the scrimmage, he had a 4-yard
carry and a 3-yard loss.
WR: So far, Keyshawn Johnson has been the perfect
teammate, playing hard consistently throughout practices. Due
to Steve Smith’s hamstring injury, which will sideline him for
a couple more weeks, Johnson has been able to work more
with Jake Delhomme on their timing. Keary Colbert looks like
a different player than last year. "He is a different player,"
quarterback Jake Delhomme said. "You can just see the way
he runs his routes. He has explosion. He has separation." Said
offensive coordinator Dan Henning: "It's markedly different.
He is 100 percent quicker and stronger than he was last year."
Colbert and Drew Carter are having their moments in camp as
they battle for the team’s No. 3 WR. The Panthers added
another body for camp last Tuesday signing free agent WR
Terrance Metcalf to a deal.
QB: The Panthers are taking it easy with starter Jake
Delhomme. In their first scrimmage, Delhomme was on the
field for only five plays and did not throw a pass. "It's not the
shoulder," said Delhomme, who also was given Friday's
practice off. "I could've thrown it this morning, but Foxy just
wanted (me) to rest. That was his decision, but I was ready to
go today. It's hard not to be out there and throw a little bit. I
almost called a couple of passes. But hey, that's just part of it.
We want to be smart, because we're throwing a ton of balls."
Delhomme’s rest gave Stefan Lefors an opportunity to mix it
up against the starting defense. Lefors, grouped with several
other backups, drove the team to the 32-yard line before they
were stopped when LB Dan Morgan tipped a pass that was
intercepted by safety Mike Minter.
TE: Starter Kris Mangum will be out for several weeks after
partially tearing the plantar fascia in his left foot. Mangum
struggled with the injury during the first few days of camp, but
was then put into a cast and walking boot on Thursday. The
team hopes he can play in at least one preseason game. That
gives Michael Gaines an opportunity to get more reps and
develop consistency. That’s the main drawback with Gaines.
Dan Henning was asked if Gaines needs to practice and play
with more consistency. Henning replied, "Yes, the answer to
that question is definitely yes.” In a recent press conference,
HC John Fox talked at length about his young backup tight
end. “He's a young player that continues to improve. I saw
great improvement last year, and he worked hard this
offseason. He even went back to college and got his degree.
He's continuing to work… He was always a mature kid. The
more you do something the better you get. He just lacked
experience. He's further along now and he's continuing to
work on that aspect of his game. He's got all of the physical
tools.”
RB: In addition to Delhomme resting, starting RB DeShaun
Foster was held out of action, too. "We just rested them," Fox
said. "We kind of know what both those guys can do; we still
have a lot of camp left and there's a lot of hits to be taken." So
far in camp, Foster has looked good showing no ill-effects
from a broken ankle suffered last year in the team’s playoff
loss to Chicago. Foster’s absence was a golden opportunity for
second-year back Eric Shelton, who gained 4, 4 and 5 yards on
consecutive running plays against the first team defense. He
also caught a 12-yard screen pass. "I'll be able to look back on
this day and (say), `I can produce in the NFL against the No. 1
defense and be successful,' " he said.”I've got confidence in
myself. I think I put confidence in my teammates and my
coaches, as well, that I can produce." Coach John Fox watched
intently adding, “Just by the naked eye, watching what was
going on, he was productive… He ran hard. He's a big,
physical guy."
Defense: If the Panthers are to become the No. 1 defense in
the league, (they were No. 3 last year) the prevailing opinion
is that second year LB Thomas Davis needs to have a breakout
season. It’s not whether DT Kris Jenkins can stay healthy. The
team did fine last year when he went down for the second
straight year. They are deep at tackle. Frankly, the front four
are stacked with talent. The team’s corners are solid, too.. Dan
Morgan was asked about Davis: "Once he knows exactly what
he's doing out there, he's going to be dangerous. He's got all
the athletic ability in the world." Davis is known as a
"thumper”, meaning that when he hits someone you can hear it
throughout the stadium. When asked what his favorite part of
the game is, "Contact," Davis said, smiling. "By far."
Defensive coordinator Mike Trgovac said, “We have to realize
he's not a seasoned six-year linebacker and not try and throw
the whole playbook at him each and every game… His first
step is so explosive. He's a great hitter. He can change
Carolina Panthers
directions and turn and run and when he hits you, he packs a
punch. And he loves the game. With all those elements in
there, we're hoping for big things."
Another player the team is watching closely is rookie
linebacker James Anderson. John Fox recently discussed
Anderson’s progress. “He's doing well as are all of our
rookies. We're adding stuff everyday, and everyday is a new
experience for them because it's new things. Fortunately, they
heard it at mini-camp and they heard it in summer school and
now they are hearing it for a third time around. At some point,
you want them to just go play. Right now they are still
thinking, and that hurts their playing ability. Hopefully, we'll
get that all cleaned up at this camp.” Fox was asked if
Anderson reminds him of former Panthers LB Will
Witherspoon. “They are very similar. We were looking for a
similar player, and there are similarities between the two. Now
it's just a matter of developing. Will was a finished product.
He's no longer here, so James has got a lot on his plate but he's
handling it well.” Fox then described their similarities, “Good
speed. Good athleticism. Very good pass defenders.”
Special Teams: Kicker John Kasay continued to miss
practices with muscle tightness in his kicking leg. He has been
doing some light kicking and stationary bike riding. Like
Kasay, temporary kicker MacKenzie Hoambrecker is also a
leftie. This has allowed long snapper LB Jason Kyle and
holder P Jason Baker to stay in sync. Kasay’s importance has
been reinforced as Hoambrecker has missed several short
range kicks (26, 39, 40, and 40 yards). WR/PR Steve Smith
continued to miss practice due to his hamstring injury. He has
done some light agility drills and caught a few balls. WR
Efram Hill has been getting some work on punt returns.
Rookie RB DeAngelo Williams persisted in his quest to return
kicks, “Every time I pass the special teams coach I say, 'When
are we doing kickoff returns, coach?' I bet he's probably tired
of hearing that.” He got his wish and has been working as the
primary kickoff returner. RB Jamal Robertson and rookie CB
Richard Marshall have been practicing as backups.
Panthers Depth Chart
QB Jake Delhomme, Chris Weinke, Stefan Lefors, Brett
Basanez
RB DeShaun Foster, DeAngelo Williams, Eric Shelton (SD),
Jamal Robertson
FB Brad Hoover, Nick Goings, Casey Cramer
WR Steve Smith (PR) (inj), Keyshawn Johnson, Keary
Colbert, Drew Carter, Karl Hankton, Jovon Bouknight, Daniel
Smith, Justin McCullum, Lynzell Jackson, Taye Biddle, D.J.
Smith
TE Kris Mangum (inj), Michael Gaines, Mike Seidman, Jeff
King
K John Kasay
DE Julius Peppers, Mike Rucker, Al Wallace, Jovan Haye,
Stanley McClover, Devan Long
DT Kris Jenkins (inj), Ma'ake Kemoeatu, Damione Lewis,
Jordan Carstens, Atiyyah Ellison, Tony Brown
MLB Dan Morgan, Vinny Ciurciu (W/M)
OLB Thomas Davis (S), Keith Adams (W), Na'il Diggs (W),
Adam Seward (W), James Anderson (W), Chris Draft (S/M),
Sean Tufts
CB Chris Gamble, Ken Lucas, Reggie Howard, Richard
Marshall, Jermaine Hardy, Marcus Cassel, Jarrett Bush,
DeShane Dennis
S Mike Minter (SS), Shaun Williams (FS), Colin Branch
(FS), Kevin McAdam, Nate Salley (FS)
Chicago Bears
QB: Backup quarterback Brian Griese had surgery during the
off-season to repair a torn ACL and MCL in his left knee. Yet
so far he has shown no ill effects from the surgery, but he’s
only practicing once per day during two-a-days. His mobility
looks good and he’s reporting no problems. "I haven't had as
much swelling as I expected to have, and I've really been
pleased with it,'' he said. During Friday’s practice Griese
showed good accuracy, putting passes into tight spots along
the sidelines. On Thursday, Griese was given the day off
allowing Kyle Orton to work with the second team. Orton’s
two minute drill ended when Dion Byrum intercepted his pass
along the sideline.
RB: Cedric Benson was carted off the field on Friday evening
after injuring his left shoulder after catching a short pass over
the middle. He’s expected to miss two or three weeks – bestcase scenario. Benson was hit by LB Brian Urlacher and then
safety Mike Brown, but the hits looked clean and nondescript.
Benson then went down to one knee and it quickly became
apparent he was hurting as he grabbed his wrist writing in
pain. "He broke through, a freak accident, those kind of things
happen," head coach Lovie Smith said. "Hopefully it isn't too
serious." “The X-Rays were negative. I'm doing pretty good,"
Benson said. "I don't think it's nothing severe. Everything
seems good. I did a little treatment this morning and was
moving it around. I felt pretty strong. I just feel really sore
today." Benson will likely miss the team’s preseason opener
on Friday against San Francisco. There was speculation that
the defense was dishing out punishment to him during the first
week in camp, but he downplayed that notion saying, "Initially
you tend to think bad things. You start to wonder why they hit
you or if they were looking to hit you. But we watched the
film and stuff and I definitely don't think they were trying to
hit me or nothing like that. It was basically what we do every
day in practice. I think it was a combination of bad timing,
where I got hit and bad luck." Smith added, "Our guys don't
hit unnecessarily out here. It's a team. But you're going to get
hit from time to time. Nothing cheap about it." Asked for his
opinion of the play, Mike Brown shrugged. "You're asking the
wrong cat.” Benson had been running the ball well, but
concerns remain regarding his ability to pass protect and catch
the ball. While his hands might be improved, his blocking is
still questionable. Thomas Jones remained out of practice
nursing his hamstring, so Adrian Peterson figures to get plenty
of reps while Benson is out.
The injuries to Benson and Thomas Jones give Adrian
Peterson a chance to work as the starter for the time being. P.J.
Pope will work with the second team and the Bears signed
rookie free agent Andre Hall to a contract on Friday to give
them another back in camp. Hall was released by Tampa Bay
on July 21. 'It's a little bit of a setback,'' Grossman said when
asked about Benson. ''But we have to do what we can. Adrian
is a great running back. He's going to play a lot this season. It's
a good time for him to get some reps with the 1's.'' Less than
24 hours after Benson went down, the team’s starting fullback
Bryan Johnson pulled his hamstring and had to be carted off
the field. Johnson’s injury opens the door for Jason McKie to
work as the starter. Rookie J.D. Runnels returned early in the
week from a quad pull. ''Whenever they lay on the ground a
little bit, you should consider it as a serious injury, and that's
what we're doing,'' coach Lovie Smith said. ''We don't know
exactly what extent, but it wasn't a tweak. He actually pulled
it.’
WR: Leave it to Muhsin Muhammad to lead by example. The
veteran receiver reported to camp 10 pounds lighter. Offensive
coordinator Ron Turner saw him from a distance last week
and thought they signed a new player. Bernard Berrian even
walked past him without recognizing him. ''When a guy loses
weight like that, it tells you he is trying to do something,
trying to make himself better,'' Bears coach Lovie Smith said.
''When you lose weight, that is normally some kind of
commitment you've made to get pounds off like that. Moose
has worked extremely hard. It seems like the All-Pros, the
ones I have been around, they seem to get better as the years
go on. They take care of their body year-round. He didn't have
the type of year he wanted last year. Normally, when that
happens you say, 'Hey, what can I do?' All you can do is get
your mind right and then come in the best physical shape you
can.''
As for the heated competition for the starting job opposite
Moose, Bernard Berrian holds a slight edge over Mark
Bradley. "Bernard has played well throughout camp," said
Smith. "He's making a move. It's been documented about the
second receiver (competition), and somebody needs to step up.
Who's to say that it won't be him?" Berrian is more
comfortable in his third camp, he is completely healthy and he
got some experience in the playoffs last year, catching five
balls for 68 yards against Carolina. "It's experience. No one
else but 'Moose' (Muhammad) really has a lot of experience at
the receiver position, so that would be the main word," said
Berrian. "I think a lot of the coaches and players know that I
belong here and that I can be the number-two guy. I've always
known I can get the job done; it's just a matter of getting the
opportunities to do it." In the long run, Mark Bradley may
overcome Berrian as he did last year, but Bradley has missed
some practice with a sore knee. He returned to the field last
Thursday and made a diving grab on a pass from Rex
Grossman while also looking smooth running routes across the
middle. The team hopes he’ll be 100% by the season opener.
On Friday, Berrian was forced from practice after tweaking
his groin. He sat out practice on Saturday, too. 'I would be
really mad [if the injury was more serious],'' he said. ''It didn't
even scare me because I knew it wasn't.'' Berrian was expected
back on the field early this week. Airese Curry underwent
arthroscopic knee surgery on Friday, as did OG Terrence
Metcalf. Justin Gage had a strong practice last Thursday.
TE: There has been little to no news out of Bears camp
regarding the tight ends, but Desmond Clark continues to
work as the starter and he made a nice catch over his head in
Friday’s practice between Charles Tillman and Mike Brown.
Defense: Defensive coordinator Ron Rivera said the team is
converting Dwayne Slay, out currently with a hamstring pull,
to outside linebacker. Safety Cameron Worrell has looked
good playing with the second and third team defenses after
missing all of last year with a dislocated shoulder. Todd
Johnson is being used as the backup nickel back at the
moment while rookie DB/WR/KR/PR Devin Hester could be
the team’s fifth corner and wide receiver.
Special Teams: Robbie Gould and rookie Josh Huston
continue to compete for the kicking job. WR/PR Bernard
Berrian has missed time with a hip flexor. The Bears signed
free agent RB Andre Hall, who was released by Tampa Bay.
He returned kickoffs during his junior year at South Florida.
Rookie WR Devin Hester continues to look like the real deal
as a return specialist. His former strength and conditioning
coach at Miami said, “Devin Hester is one of the most freakish
athletes to come through here. With the caliber of athletes
we've had, that's a big statement. I call him the X-factor. He
has something that will change a game in a few seconds."
Bears’ special teams coordinator Dave Toub indicated, "He's
pretty advanced. He had good coaches at Miami. He's wellschooled in that area. He just needs to brush up on some
things. He's got to be very aware of the hang time in the NFL
and where the ball's being punted is probably a little different
than it was in college. His catching skills keep improving. He
improved over the OTAs and he keeps getting better now. His
ball reads are very good. I just can't wait to see him a game
situation. He's the Roadrunner."
Bears Depth Chart
QB Rex Grossman, Brian Griese, Kyle Orton
RB Cedric Benson (inj), Thomas Jones (inj), Adrian Peterson,
P.J. Pope, Andre Hall
FB Bryan Johnson (inj), Jason McKie, J.D. Runnels
WR Muhsin Muhammad, Bernard Berrian, Mark Bradley,
Justin Gage, Airese Curry (inj), Alex Bannister, Devin Hester
(KR/PR/CB), Rashied Davis (PR), Craig Bragg, Bryan
McClendon
TE Desmond Clark, Gabe Reid, John Gilmore, Tim Day,
Cooper Wallace
K Robbie Gould, Josh Huston
DE Adewale Ogunleye, Alex Brown, Israel Idonije, Michael
Haynes (DT), Jamaal Green, Mark Anderson, Khari Long
DT Tommie Harris, Ian Scott (inj), Terry Johnson (inj),
Alfonso Boone, Dusty Dvoracek
MLB Brian Urlacher, Jeremy Cain
OLB Lance Briggs (W), Hunter Hillenmeyer (S/M), Joe
Odom (S), Leon Joe (W), Brendon Ayanbadejo (S), Dwayne
Slay, Brandon Marshall, Jamar Williams
CB Charles Tillman, Nathan Vasher, Ricky Manning, Dante
Wesley, Alfonso Marshall, Abraham Elimimian, Carlos
Hendricks
S Mike Brown (SS), Chris Harris (FS), Danieal Manning
(FS), Todd Johnson (SS/FS), Cameron Worrell, Brandon
McGowan (SS) (inj), Dion Byrum, Donnie McCleskey
Cincinnati Bengals
QB: Carson Palmer’s return is going well with no setbacks,
but he’s still working hard to shake the rust off his game. On
Friday, following a slow start, Palmer completed four of his
last five passes featuring a six-yard touchdown flip to WR Tab
Perry. Offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski said they’re
evaluating Palmer weekly. They gave him about 40% of the
snaps last week and they would decide whether to increase his
reps over the weekend. "I’m going to do whatever I get
cleared to do," Palmer said. "If the doctors think I need more
reps and give me more reps, I’ll do it. If they want me to back
off and say I need more rest, I’ll do it. I’m just going on what
they say." Despite the optimism surrounding Palmer and his
steady progress, neither he nor the team are making any
guarantees that he’ll be in the starting lineup when the Bengals
open the season at Kansas City. "I'm still not completely
healthy," Palmer said Friday night. "I'm still not back as far as
timing and rhythm are concerned. The more reps I get, the
better I feel. I need to be more athletic in the pocket and get
back to the technique I've always had and always relied on. It
will take time, but I'll get there." Palmer said he probably
won’t play until the August 28 game against Green Bay. He’s
wearing a black brace on his left knee, but did not appear
tentative or restrained during practice.
With Palmer sidelined, Anthony Wright worked with the firstteam offense and Doug Johnson with the second team during
the team’s mock game Saturday. Wright went 23-of-33 for
291 yards with one touchdown and three interceptions, two of
which were tipped and should have been caught by Chad
Johnson. Doug Johnson finished 16-of-30 passing for 130
yards with no touchdowns or interceptions. Wright may have
locked up the backup job, but he did have the benefit of
working with Chad Johnson and T.J. Houshmandzadeh while
Johnson did not. Wright struggled in the team’s scrimmage the
previous night completing only seven out of 17 passes.
Johnson went 5-of-11 with one touchdown and one
interception on Friday night.
RB: Rudi Johnson looks great in camp. He’s down to 218
pounds and appears to be even stronger throughout his upper
body and shoulders. His knee is healthy and he’s breaking
tackles like usual. As a result of his workout regimen, he
appears quicker getting to and through the hole. During the
mock game the offense mostly threw the football, but Johnson
still had one of the most noteworthy plays breaking through
for a 21-yard gain off the left side. He ran eight times for 41
yards. Backup Chris Perry remains on the PUP giving veteran
Kenny Watson an opportunity to work as the third down back
– a role he previously held before Perry was drafted. “It hurt
me watching everybody play. Now I'm back and ready to
make some plays." Watson said, "It's important for a guy like
me… The more you can do, the better chance you have to be
on the field. Whatever they put me out there to do, I'm going
to take advantage of it."
Quincy Wilson and rookie tailback DeDe Dorsey also broke
long runs, thanks to dominant offensive line play at times.
Dorsey also worked as a kickoff returner with Reggie McNeal
and Bennie Brazell, as special teams coach Darrin Simmons
looks for a top backup to No. 1 kickoff returner Tab Perry.
"We're all trying to earn a spot," Dorsey said. "For us rookies,
special teams is where it's going to be at. Tab's the guy, but if I
can, I'll come in and take his place." Rookie free agent FB
Naufahu Tahi broke a bone in his foot on Friday and will be
out for a few weeks.
WR: The mock game was dominated by big passing plays.
Chad Johnson had 142 yards on 11 catches, despite letting two
balls go through his hands for interceptions. T.J.
Houshmandzadeh added seven catches for 107 yards. Chris
Henry did not participate, but rookie Reggie McNeal has three
catches for 20 yards. McNeal said he’s finally adjusted to the
extra running that comes with his new position in the pros.
McNeal is a project, but his presence gives the Bengals the
ability to call trick plays much like the Steelers have done with
Antwaan Randle El in the past. While Henry didn’t play
Saturday night, the team got plenty to see from him the
previous night. On Friday, Henry dominated the team’s
scrimmage catching five balls for 117 yards, including a 44yarder, and a 10-yard TD. His play caused Carson Palmer to
draw comparisons between he and Randy Moss. Henry simply
had his way against whoever tried to cover him making plays
with his 6-foot-4 frame, jumping ability, and sure hands.
Marvin Lewis wasn’t overly thrilled, but he did offer Henry
some reassuring words following his troubled offseason. "He
has faced some adversity," Lewis said. "He’s learning to deal
with it. And in dealing with that, he is becoming a more
mature person and accepting responsibility for what has
occurred. He gets the opportunity to defend himself, and that
will happen." Receivers coach Hue Jackson added, "I've never
had a football problem with Chris… I never anticipated it
would be, but I also never anticipated it would be the
other…He's a talented player who is working his way back
into shape and he's trying to earn the respect of his teammates
by being out there every day and fit in and do his job. That's
all he can do. Chris has to learn to do the right thing in society.
Chris' problem is not on this team as a player. Chris puts
himself in jeopardy away from here. That's what's gone on.
Other than that, his talent will always show up. That's why we
drafted him. I'm not in awe. It's like, 'OK, but I expect more.'
I'm not surprised by anything he does."
Besides Henry, Tab Perry and Bennie Brazell also stole the
show. Perry caught a 6-yard TD from Palmer on the opening
drive. After the TD, Perry and fellow wideouts Chad Johnson
and T.J. Houshmandzadeh drew a 15-yard penalty following
their celebration. Perry stood on the back line of the end zone
and "bowled" the football toward his three teammates, who
acted like bowling pins, falling backward simulating a
"strike." "I didn't see it," head coach Marvin Lewis said, "but
from what I understand… it was pretty good, though." Brazell
had one catch where he ran 52 yards only to pull up with a
cramp in his leg. He appeared to be fine afterward giving the
fans a "thumbs up” as he left the field. HC Marvin Lewis said
his injured receivers are healing well. Kelley Washington
(hamstring) and Antonio Chatman (hip) are expected to be
ready soon.
Defense: It didn’t take rookie MLB Ahmad Brooks long to
make some plays in training camp. On Tuesday, August 1,
Brooks was literally a human highlight film on his own. He
intercepted a pass from Anthony Wright, then not long after
that, he grabbed Quincy Wilson on a sweep and rode him out
of bounds crashing into a photographer. "I was thinking they
were going to slow down," said the AP photographer. "But
they just kept coming." Brooks continued to hustle saying
afterwards, “I'm just trying to get better. I'm trying to take my
game from college to pro practice. Hopefully, I can do it in a
game. It's imperative for me to go out there every day and
compete hard. Every day, I've got to do good." In Saturday’s
practice Keiwan Ratliff intercepted two passes then broke up
several more during the mock game in the afternoon. Ratliff
returned on interception 33 yards for a score, while Patrick
Body had another interception. Ratliff is engaged in an intense
battle with rookie Johnathan Joseph for the team’s nickel back
job , but the team’s other corners – Rashad Bauman, Greg
Brooks and Body - are also playing well. "Keiwan isn't giving
anything up, and Rashad didn't even have a ball thrown at him
today, so he's doing something right over there," defensive
coordinator Chuck Bresnahan said. "Greg Brooks is playing
his butt off. And Pat Body is doing some good things. They're
all competing, and it's making us a better team." Coach
Marvin Lewis is pleased, too. "Keiwan did some good things
today," Lewis said. "We have a real battle between Keiwan
and Johnathan. Rashad Bauman is probably having his best
camp, and Greg Brooks ... a great competition between those
four guys."
(3RB), Quincy Wilson, DeDe Dorsey, Terrence Whitehead
FB Jeremi Johnson, Naufahu Tahi, Chris Manderino
WR Chad Johnson, T.J. Houshmandzadeh, Chris Henry,
Antonio Chatman (KR), Tab Perry (KR), Kelley Washington,
Reggie McNeal (QB), Benny Brazell, Ethan Kilmer
TE Reggie Kelly, Tony Stewart, Darnell Sanders, Ronnie
Ghent, David Jones
K Shayne Graham
DE Justin Smith, Robert Geathers, Bryan Robinson (inj),
Jonathan Fenene, Frostee Rucker, Eric Henderson
DT John Thornton, Sam Adams, Matthias Askew, Shaun
Smith, Domata Peko, Marcus Lewis
MLB Odell Thurman (susp), Brian Simmons (M/W), Ahmad
Brooks (S), A.J. Nicholson
OLB David Pollack (S/DE) (inj), Landon Johnson (W/M/S),
Caleb Miller (W), Marcus Wilkins, Hannibal Navies, Wyatt
Gayer, Kenny Kern
CB Tory James, Deltha O'Neal (WR/PR), Johnathan Joseph,
Keiwan Ratliff (SS/PR), Rashad Bauman, Greg Brooks,
Patrick Body
S Madieu Williams (FS/CB) (inj), Dexter Jackson (SS/FS),
Kevin Kaesviharn (FS/SS), Anthony Mitchell, Ifeanyi Ohalete
(SS), John Busing, Jeremy Modkins, Jereme Perry, Blake
Ferris
LB David Pollack didn’t play Saturday night because of a
hamstring injury. His injury is allowing Landon Johnson, the
team’s projected starter at WLB, to also get some work in
Pollack’s position. Johnson can play all three LB positions. As
for Pollack, the hamstring could be day-to-day or sideline him
for as much as three weeks. Other injuries of note include DT
John Thornton, who is getting some rest due to a hip
contusion. DT Sam Adams has been on the PUP list as he
works himself back into football shape. Their absence has
allowed backups Shaun Smith and rookie Domata Peko to run
with the starting defense.
QB: Charlie Frye is tired of hearing that he has a weak arm.
He recalls a particular play where he connected with Dennis
Northcutt, "I threw that ball 66 yards in the air," Frye said, "so
I don't want to hear anything about the arm strength thing."
Since the opening of camp, Frye and Northcutt have been on
the same page, especially on the deep balls. "The thing I'm
happy about is we're taking more shots down the field," Frye
said. "It makes it a lot easier when you don't have to go 14
plays, 80 yards every time." HC Romer Crennel wanted to see
his young offense get into a rhythm after struggling a bit in
camp. He had them play against the 2nd and 3rd string
defense, but it didn’t work as he had hoped. "We threw
interceptions, fumbled snaps, can't make FG's -- it's hard to
win doing stuff like that," Crennel said. "We've got a lot of
work to do and a short time to try to get something done with
it." Crennel described the offense as "sluggish". If that’s not a
bad sign, then perhaps the battle for the backup QB is shaping
up that way. Neither Ken Dorsey nor Derek Anderson have
looked good in camp. Dorsey isn’t a good practice player and,
while Anderson’s arm is impressive, his lack of mobility and
inability to secure the ball don’t bode well for a No. 2
quarterback. Sean Jones and Antonio Perkins intercepted
Dorsey on Tuesday, but Crennel didn’t seem too concerned
saying, "Maybe he could have made better decisions, but I
don't think it would be fair to say he's struggling."
Special Teams: In last Friday’s scrimmage, kicker Shayne
Graham went 6-of-6 on field goals (27, 32, 35, 39, 42 and 46
yards). He was less perfect in Saturday’s practice, missing
wide right from 48 yards and hitting the left upright from 36
yards. Starting punt returner WR Antonio Chatman has missed
practices and the scrimmage with a groin injury. In his
absence, CB Keiwan Ratliff, WR T.J. Houshmandzadeh and
CB Deltha O’Neal have handled punts. WR/KR Tab Perry
also joined in on punts during a practice. He remains the top
kickoff returner; however the backup KR role is up for grabs.
RB Kenny Watson appears to be the most likely candidate.
Several rookies have also been regularly practicing on kickoff
returns: WR Bennie Brazell, WR Reggie McNeal, and RB
DeDe Dorsey.
Bengals Depth Chart
QB Carson Palmer (inj), Anthony Wright, Doug Johnson, Erik
Meyer
RB Rudi Johnson, Chris Perry (3RB) (inj), Kenny Watson
Cleveland Browns
RB: Rookie Jerome Harrison continues to draw the attention
of the coaching staff. "He's done some nice things," Crennel
said after practice. "He's gotten everyone's attention with his
ability to make cuts and his acceleration through the hole.
There are some things that he has to work on and he's working
at it. Pretty soon, the story will be told. We'll play the games
and find out." The Browns are looking at Harrison as a thirddown or change-of-pace back behind starter Reuben
Droughns. "He kind of reminds me of some of those third
down backs," said Romeo Crennel on Thursday. "We had a
player named David Meggett (former Giants and Patriots
running back) who was a third down back with explosiveness
and quickness. When you see him make some of those cuts
and that acceleration, it kind of reminds you of Meggett." If
Harrison continues to play this way in the games, he could
beat veteran Lee Suggs for a job. Not taking the competition
lightly, Suggs has been on a mission in camp using his 3rd
spot on the depth chart as motivation. "Anything other than
first is a disappointment," Suggs said, "but that's how they
chose to make it, and I have to go with it. I was ready for it."
Suggs would do well for himself if he could simply stay
healthy. If the season began today, he’d be the team’s third
down back, unless he’s traded by then. "I'm out to prove them
wrong," Suggs said. "I hope I stay here, but if not, maybe there
will be an opportunity somewhere else."
WR: The Browns didn’t sign Joe Jurevicius during the offseason because of his blinding speed. They signed him
because they needed a red zone presence at the position and
they weren’t sure how quickly Braylon Edwards would return
from his torn ACL suffered during his rookie season.
Jurevicius probably has the best hands on the team and it
doesn’t hurt that he’s 6’5” inches tall. "I kind of look at
myself as a security blanket," Jurevicius said. "I don't like
being the guy that's out there in the spotlight." Jurevicius
knows it’s only a matter of time before Edwards returns to full
health and claims the No. 1 job. Meanwhile, rookie Travis
Wilson is catching up to the rest of the group after missing the
beginning of camp. He had an excellent day of practice on
Friday, catching Romeo Crennel’s eye. "One day is not going
to do it for him, but I was encouraged by what I saw today,"
said the head coach. “He’s working and trying to impress us...
If he continues to run correct routes and block the correct
people, then, he can make some progress.” Crennel continued
on Wilson pointing to a couple particular plays he made that
got his attention. “I saw the one where he jumped over the
(defensive back) and took the ball away from him. I thought it
was a good play on his part and he made another good catch at
practice. I talk about opportunity and he had some
opportunities today. At the beginning when we had the team
together, most of the young guys were on the field. They were
trying to take advantage of the opportunities that were given
and I think Travis did. He showed some of the things he did in
college as far as going up for the ball and taking it away from
guys. I was glad to see him step up and make some plays,"
Crennel said.
TE: What Kellen Winslow lacks in common sense; he makes
up for with confidence, or is it hubris? He commented last
week that he probably will never be 100% again after
sustaining a severe knee injury last year in his infamous
motorcycle escapade, but he didn’t stop there. “I hate to be
brash but I think my 90 percent is better than every tight end
out there…It's all hype right now,'' he said. “We have to get on
the field and do what we do best. Right now it's just all hype.
I'm sick of talking about what I'm going to do. It's time to just
get on the field and do it.'' One of the best ongoing battles in
camp has been between Winslow and rookie linebacker Leon
Williams, who know each other from their days at the
University of Miami. "We're just battling," Williams said.
"Pushing off, holding, whatever, playing dirty, whatever it is.
We just try to get the job done." Winslow's feistiness is no
surprise to Williams. "Kellen never changes," Williams said.
"I love that about him. He's going to be that same guy every
day out here." Williams is a fourth round draft pick who is
currently backing up Andra Davis, but he ran with the first
team last Tuesday as Davis was temporarily moved to the
other inside spot. Fellow rookie and second round pick
D'Qwell Jackson and Chaun Thompson are competing for the
starting job next to Davis, but Williams, who didn’t start at
Miami, is playing well. "Eventually," Winslow said, "I think
he'll be (starting), most definitely." Backup tight end Darnell
Dinkins was sidelined during Friday’s practice with an ankle
injury.
Defense: Corner Daylon McCutcheon and right offensive
tackle Ryan Tucker both opted to undergo knee surgery to fix
some ongoing problems they are having so they (hopefully)
can be ready in time for the season opener. Corner Antonio
Perkins missed Friday’s practice with a hamstring injury.
Another corner DeMario Minter never made it to the practice
field in camp because of a knee injury. With the injuries at
corner stacking up Jeremy Perry is getting a chance to make
an impression. "It's like going through a tunnel with no lights,"
said the aspiring Perry. "You just keep going forward...
Injuries and stuff always give you an opportunity. I know I'm
at the bottom of the cornerbacks, so I'm just trying to prove
myself." Meanwhile, first round pick LB Kamerion Wimbly
expects to make an immediate impact with the team as a pass
rusher. "I'm getting more comfortable every day," Wimbley
said. "The confidence is getting there. I'm starting to react
without thinking. Each day gets easier."
Other: Having already lost LeCharles Bentley the Browns
were dealt a crushing blow when replacement center Bob
Hallen left the team for medical and personal reasons. He is
expected to be lost for the season; leaving the Browns to
scramble by acquiring Ross Tucker from New England. Either
he or Alzono Ephraim will get the nod; making it tough going
for the Browns skill position players.
Special Teams: Kicker Phil Dawson has been working with
long snapper Ryan Pontbriand and holder P Dave Zastudil.
Dawson noted, “There’s a lot of things you can’t necessarily
practice until you’re in a game, so we’ll use the four preseason
games to get where we need to be. I try to peak when week
one gets here. Dave and I are working on certain situations
every day to try to see how we respond. Hopefully, by opening
day we’ll be ready to go.” In the team’s scrimmage, Dawson
missed wide left from 49 yards and kicker Jeff Chandler
missed wide left from 50 yards. Back at the teams’ lodgings
for training camp, Dawson is the team champ in ping pong.
Rookie RB Jerome Harrison, who has drawn comparisons to
Dave Meggett and Greg Pruitt, is getting some work on
kickoff returns. He noted, “Of course, you want to get on the
field as a running back first, but if it’s as a returner, that’s OK.
I just want to play.”.
Browns Depth Chart
QB Charlie Frye, Ken Dorsey, Derek Anderson, Darrell
Hackney
RB Reuben Droughns, William Green, Lee Suggs (3RB),
Jerome Harrison (3RB), Chris Barclay
FB Terrelle Smith, Corey McIntyre, Lawrence Vickers
WR Braylon Edwards (inj), Joe Jurevicius, Dennis Northcutt
(PR), Frisman Jackson, Travis Wilson, Joshua Cribbs
(WR/RB), Brandon Rideau, Carlton Brewster, Brent Little,
Glenn Holt
TE Kellen Winslow Jr, Steve Heiden, Darnell Dinkins, Paul
Irons
K Phil Dawson, Jeff Chandler
DE Orpheus Roye, Alvin McKinley, Nick Eason, Simon
Fraser
NT Ted Washington, Ethan Kelley, Babatunde Oshinowo,
Ja'Waren Blair
ILB Andra Davis (L), DQwell Jackson (R), Chaun Thompson
(R), Leon Williams (L), Mason Unck
OLB Willie McGinest (S/DE), Kamerion Wimbley (S/DE),
Matt Stewart (S), David McMillan (W), Nick Speegle (S),
Charlton Keith
CB Daylon McCutcheon (inj), Gary Baxter, Leigh Bodden,
Antonio Perkins (inj), Pete Hunter, DeMario Minter (inj),
DeMarcus Rideaux, Ralph Brown
S Brian Russell (FS), Brodney Pool (FS), Sean Jones (SS),
Antwaan Harris, Justin Hamilton (SS)
Dallas Cowboys
QB: The Cowboys held their first intrasquad scrimmage on
Saturday. Unofficially, Drew Bledsoe finished 12-of-17
leading the team to field goals. Tony Romo completed 9-of-18
passes leading the offense to three scores – two touchdowns
and a field goal. Romo threw a touchdown to receiver J.R.
Tolver. "It was good to get out there and move the ball,"
Romo said. "And it's always encouraging when you do it
against the first unit, too, as the No. 2 (unit). So I think we're
showing progress here and we'll take it into next week." Third
stringer Drew Henson completed 12-of-17 passes and led the
team to two touchdowns, including a 11-yard strike to rookie
Skyler Green. He also led the third team offense on a
touchdown drive capped by FB Lousaka Polite’s 4-yard
plunge. "We moved the ball, we scored a couple times when
my group was in there," said Henson, who struggled in
practice earlier this week. "We kicked a bunch of field goals
and scored a few touchdowns as an offense. So I think as
tough as it's been on us the last three or four days in practice,
today we were able to move the ball a little bit and make a few
more plays than we had this week." Overall, the offense
scored on seven out of nine 10-play series. Henson’s play even
drew a pat on the rear from HC Bill Parcells, a gesture that’s
not easily earned. "That's a big compliment," Henson said. On
Romo, Parcells, said, “I’ve got to decide where he is…I think
he is ready to play a lot. I see a guy that’s pretty smart. It looks
like in practice he’s making less and less mistakes. It’s time to
go forward.” During the Saturday scrimmage, there were still
far too many dropped passes. Receivers Terry Glenn, Patrick
Crayton, tight end Anthony Fasano and running backs Keylon
Kincade and Tyson Thompson all came up empty handed at
times.
RB: Julius Jones had trouble finding room to run in the
scrimmage Saturday, but the same can’t be said for Marion
Barber, who ran very well with the second-team offense.
Barber broke off a few nice runs, including two that ended
with collisions involving free safety Keith Davis. After
running 20 yards down the right sideline, Barber was blasted
by Davis out of bounds drawing a flag from the officials.
Barber got even a few plays later when he took a screen pass
for almost a 30-yard gain. Davis had Barber lined up again
near the sidelines, but this time Barber lowered his shoulder
and knocked Davis backwards while staying on his feet.
Barber also scored on a 6-yard touchdown run.
WR: During one practice last week, the entire offense was out
of synch. Terrell Owens short-armed a pass then missed
another ball over the middle as two defenders closing in on
him. Patrick Crayton made a catch a few plays later, which
prompted a fan to jeer, "Patrick, show T.O. how to catch the
ball." Owens was sidelined for a couple of days with a balmy
hamstring. An MRI taken on Saturday revealed no structural
damage. "I'm not worried at all," said Owens, who has never
had a hamstring problem before. "I know it'll get well. I know
my body responds very quickly to treatment." Owens missed
three days of practice in a row. Also in Saturday’s scrimmage,
rookie Sam Hurd had a 31-yard over-the-shoulder catch that
was the play of the day. Hurd also had a 26-yard reception.
“If you look at his size, he has great hands,” Owens said.
“He’s been making some plays throughout camp. The upside
and potential is there.” An undrafted rookie from Northern
Illinois, Hurd is working closely with Owens in camp. Hurd
spent an extra 20 or so minutes running routes and catching
passes from Owens after practice on Thursday afternoon.
“There are some things he wants to work on. Obviously, he’s
struggled with some things,” Owens said. “Today he had a
deep ball, (and) he said he couldn’t get to it. He was running
wildly trying to track the ball. (I am) trying to get him focused
on the ball instead of losing your composure and rhythm.”
TE: Having one of the league’s best young tight ends didn’t
prevent the Cowboys from bolstering their lot on draft day.
They added Anthony Fasano, out of Notre Dame, in the
second round. Fasano has drawn numerous comparisons to a
former favorite of Parcells, Mark Bavaro. The move signaled
that Parcells plans to use more two TE sets this year. Parcells
also felt that Fasano had a good chance to make an immediate
impact having been coached by Charlie Weis in college. "My
expectations are that it should be a quick transition," Parcells
said. "He made a couple of mental errors yesterday (Monday).
You know, we're getting into that information overload time
of camp, particularly for the young players, but I expect him to
make a quick transition to pro football. You couldn't ask for a
situation that's better for him. He's playing the same exact
position for the Cowboys that he played for Notre Dame. I'd
say it's 90 percent the exact same terminology. I couldn't see
how it could get to be an easier transition. ... I do think, of all
the rookies, he should make the quickest transition." Parcells
said Fasano is a complete player that can block, run and catch.
The Cowboys waived injured Brett Pierce, but they plan to
place him on injured reserve once he clears waivers. Last, but
not least, backup tight end Tony Curtis had a 27-yard catch
during Saturday’s scrimmage.
Defense: The Cowboys didn’t want to play with fire and allow
Roy Williams to enter free agency following this year. They
agreed to terms with Williams on a four-year extension
reportedly worth $25.2 million with $11.1 million guaranteed.
In Saturday’s scrimmage, the offense fared much better, but
the defense did manage to record seven sacks. Rookie
linebacker Bobby Carpenter and defensive end Chris Canty
had two sacks each, while Greg Ellis, linebacker DeMarcus
Ware and former Carroll High School linebacker John Saldi
had one sack apiece. Corner Terrence Newman had the hit of
the day when he blindsided reciever Terrance Copper, forcing
an incompletion. Safety Keith Davis also tackled running back
Keylon Kincade for a 5-yard loss. Corner Jacques Reeves had
two huge pass deflections on receiver Terrance Copper. Bill
Parcells also gave linebacker Rocky Boiman an earful for a
takedown in what was not supposed to be a full contact
scrimmage. Defensive end turned OLB Greg Ellis repeated
last week that he is not happy about moving to OLB this year,
but added that he’ll make the best of the situation. "For me to
do something I've never done at this point of my career, it's
not a happy situation for me," Ellis said. "It's one I would like
not to be in, but I'm in it and I'm just going to do what they tell
me to do and try to make plays. Before I talked to you guys I
had to make sure I was ready to accept this challenge.
Honestly, I am ready and able and trying to accept it and excel
at it."
Special Teams: The most accurate kicker in NFL history has
missed quite a few FGs in practice recently. Mike Vanderjagt
is not pleased, "I'm a perfectionist. I don't think missed field
goals are acceptable, regardless of the situation. Whether it
was a good hold or not, or if it's in a game or practice. If I put
a good foot on it, I think it should go in.” The cause of the
problem could be backup QB Tony Romo, who is also the
holder. Vanderjagt responded to that idea, "We're in a
transition, and because (Romo) is a quarterback, he doesn't
have much time for me." During one practice that Vanderjagt
missed, kickers Shaun Suisham and Tyler Fredrickson went a
combined 2-of-8. On the topic of kickoffs, Vanderjagt noted,
"Yeah, I have not kicked off in a long time. I think I'll
probably do some of that next week. I really don't think it's a
problem at all. I'm going to do it the best that I can. If it's not
what they want, then they'll get someone else." HC Bill
Parcells noted, "If I use him as kickoff guy then there's no
impact on the roster. So that's why I want to use him. Ideally,
I'd like them inside the five with a nice four-plus hang time.
You're going to get pretty good coverage if you have that. But
the bottom line in this business is what you're forced to settle
for usually.” The recently acquired PK/P Frederickson could
be a possible kickoff specialist. Rookie WR Skyler Green, CB
Terence Newman, and WR Jamaica Rector have been
practicing punt returns.
Cowboys Depth Chart
QB Drew Bledsoe, Tony Romo, Drew Henson, Matt Baker
RB Julius Jones, Marion Barber III (3RB), Tyson Thompson
(KR), Demetrius Summers
FB Lousaka Polite (HB/TE)
WR Terrell Owens, Terry Glenn, Patrick Crayton (PR),
Terrance Copper, Skyler Green, Jamaica Rector
TE Jason Witten, Anthony Fasano, Ryan Hannam, Sean Ryan
K Mike Vanderjagt, Tyler Fredrickson
DE Kenyon Coleman, Marcus Spears, Chris Canty, Jay
Ratliff, Jason Hatcher, Junior Glymph, Jason Davis
NT Jason Ferguson, Montavious Stanley, Samuel Taulealea
ILB Bradie James (M), Akinola Ayodele (S), Scott Shanle
(J), Ryan Fowler, John Aldi
OLB Demarcus Ware (W), Al Singleton, Bobby Carpenter,
Kevin Burnett (S), Greg Ellis (DE), Rocky Boiman (inj)
CB Terance Newman, Anthony Henry, Aaron Glenn, Jacques
Reeves, Quincy Butler
S Roy Williams (SS), Keith Davis (FS), Marcus Coleman
(FS/CB), Pat Watkins (FS), Willie Pile (FS), Justin Beriault
(SS)
Denver Broncos
QB: Jake Plummer said he hopes to throw for more
touchdowns than a year ago (18), but he wasn’t sure he could
do so without throwing more interceptions (7). With all due
respect, Jay Cutler is the player everyone is watching. Cutler
has shown good athleticism throughout camp scrambling for
first downs and generally throwing the ball well. He’s
struggled at times like any rookie quarterback, but he’s happy
with his progress. “I feel pretty good. We have been doing
some two-minute stuff, which is a little different. We’ve been
putting some combinations and stuff together when we are out
there by ourselves. Other than that, seven-on-seven and the
running game, everything’s been pretty good so far.” Mike
Shanahan seems to agree when asked about Cutler, “He’s very
sharp. He picks things up quickly and it’s not his first week.
This is the fourth time he’s been through it. He picks it up as
quickly as anyone. He’s very, very sharp, very accustomed to
the passing game and very impressive to where he is at this
time.” When Cutler was asked about his grasp of the offense,
he answered, “I feel really good about it right now. The only
problem right now is just the two-minute drills because we
have to put stuff together out there on our own. When we are
in team and in seven-on-seven and on our run plays and
things, I feel fine.” Bradlee Van Pelt is in danger of losing his
job, especially if Shanahan decides to keep only two
quarterbacks as he’s done in the past. Cutler is working more
and more with the second team offense at Van Pelt’s expense.
RB: In the surprise move of the NFL preseason, Mike
Shanahan promoted rookie undrafted free agent Mike Bell to
the first team. Tatum bell is running with the second team
while Ron Dayne is now listed 3rd despite opening camp as the
starter. "I think all of our guys are able to carry the whole
load," HC Shanahan said. "You just have to evaluate who you
think is the most effective for your team." "Mike's having a
heck of a camp," Shanahan said. "He really has stepped up and
been very impressive." Shanahan told the press not to read too
much into the depth chart shuffling, and acknowledged that
either Dayne or Tatum Bell could exit camp as the starter.
"I've been very pleased with Tatum, he's had his best camp
he's had this year, and Tatum could win the job before the
season starts," he said. "So far Mike deserves a chance to start
at that position and that's why he's got it."
Tatum Bell openly expressed frustration over Mike Bell’s
promotion. Broncos elevated undrafted rookie free agent Mike
Bell from third string to the starting running back position this
past weekend, ahead of Bell and Ron Dayne. Tatum Bell said
he has nothing against Mike Bell and praised the rookie for
performing well in camp, but he was upset. "I'm (ticked) off,
to tell you the truth," Bell said. "I don't think they trust me…I
don't know what it is. I don't know if it's coach Shanahan or
B.T. (running backs coach Bobby Turner), it's somebody up in
the front offices that makes the decisions that I think doesn't
trust me."
Cedric Cobbs has not been consistent, but he had a great day
on Saturday. He ran the ball well up the middle getting to the
second level of the defense – even knocking Hamza Abdullah
on his backside one play. The team cut Marty Johnson last
week, then claimed Rashaun Woods off waivers, only to
waive him when he failed the physical. After all that, they
signed Damien Nash, who was waived by Tennessee on
Monday after reporting to camp out of shape.
WR: Rod Smith suffered a “minor” hamstring injury on
Wednesday, July 26th during morning practice. Smith broke
across the middle on a deep cross pattern, but Plummer threw
the ball to the outside as if Smith was running a corner (route).
Mike Shanahan talked about it after the practice. "Rod Smith
is smart to know that with a hamstring, there is nothing you
can do about it except rest it, and we might have to get him an
extra day. Instead of being two days up, it might have to be
three. I really don't know how bad it is," said Shanahan. A
Broncos trainer said “it was just a tweak, but it could be a little
more serious than that. I don't think it will be too long,
knowing Rod." While Smith missed Friday’s workout, Javon
Walker returned to action. Darius Watts continues to shine at
times only to drop a couple passes at other times. Nothing new
there. David Terrell has been playing well of late. “He is doing
better. He is one of those guys who just needs to be more
consistent with everything he does. Today he had a great day.
He caught everything near him and I told him that that is what
you have to do every day. That is what we expect and
regardless of wherever he has been or whatever he has done,
you have got to respect that. It is tough as a receiver. You are
running, and even when you are not in the play, sometimes
you have to run 40 yards as hard as you can and then you have
to come back to the huddle and do it again. So those guys are
tired, but there is no excuse for losing concentration, busting a
play, or dropping a ball. That is where the mental toughness
has got to come in," Shanahan said.
David Kircus is having a good camp, but he has dropped too
many balls, too. Kircus can run like a deer and his hands have
improved during camp, but he’s still a long shot to stick with
the team. Rookie Brandon Marshall is showing his unique
skills. His vertical jump is astounding and once he refines his
technique and adopts to the pro level, he could be special.
Another player making plays is Brian Clark. He’s shown some
flashes and made a great catch from Cutler in Saturday’s
practice. There are reports that Atlanta, Seattle and Baltimore
could have interest in WR Ashley Lelie, who is holding out in
hopes of forcing a trade, but it doesn’t look like any deal is
imminent.
TE: It’s still early but the team seems content replacing Jeb
Putzier with rookie Tony Scheffler and holdover Nate
Jackson. Scheffler is a better than advertised blocker, but it
will take time before he’s up to speed in that area as a rookie.
His hands are one of the biggest reasons the team drafted him.
Nate Jackson missed several workouts with a sprained ankle
giving Scheffler more playing time and an inside track on the
pass-catching role vacated by Putzier. Scheffler is adjusting
well to badly thrown balls often making tough catches look
easy. Jackson simply needs to be on the field more to have a
fighting chance in this competition.
Defense: The Broncos lost defensive tackle Gerard Warren
over the weekend for two to four weeks with a dislocated left
big toe. Warren had his toe yanked back in place before being
carted off the field. LB T.J. Hollowell was also carted off the
field after injuring what appeared to be his calf. DE Courtney
Brown, no stranger to the infirmary, needed treatment on his
left knee. "It's inflamed a little bit more than I thought it
would," said Brown. "I'm just basically listening to the
trainers. It was no one thing that happened. It just started up in
practice." Ebenezer Ekuban is taking a crash course on playing
defensive tackle. He’s sliding inside for the first time in his
career and hopes to be part of the nickel package from that
spot. He’s running with the second team, behind rookie Elvis
Dumervil, but he remains one of the team’s best pass rushers.
As camp drags on, the defense has been itching to do some
hitting. In Friday’s afternoon practice, linebacker Ian Gold
slammed rookie tailback Mike Bell on the turf prompting
safety John Lynch to run up to Gold, look down at the
flattened Bell and ask, "Is he asleep, is he asleep?" The battle
at right cornerback continues between Darrent Williams and
Domonique Foxworth, but lately Karl Paymah has been
getting some run, too. "Karl has made plays and made some
strides," Foxworth said. Williams is slightly ahead showing he
can be a major playmaker and that he plays hard on every
play. Foxworth is solid but not as spectacular as Williams.
Special Teams: Kicker Jason Elam discussed what he does to
get ready for the season, “There is no secret to it. I just try to
just be in good general shape. Other than that, it’s just Godgiven ability that I got a leg swing that allows me to be a
decent field-goal kicker… That’s just knowing your role, and
I’m on the team to kick field goals, and I’ve got to do what
I’ve got to do to keep my body in shape and fresh. There is no
reason for me to go out and run routes and do tackling drills.
That’s just not what I’m here for.” During a recent practice
near one end zone, Elam kicked the ball out into the parking
lot and through a windshield. QB Jay Cutler, P Micah Knorr,
and K/P Paul Ernster have been practicing holding for kicks,
although QB Jake Plummer remains the starting holder. Elam
commented, "I want Jake. You always want to work a good
rapport with someone, and Jake and I have that. Plus, he's very
good at holding. He's such a great athlete and he has such
great eye-hand coordination.” HC Mike Shanahan isn’t happy
about punter Todd Sauerbrun’s suspension, “Of all things,
ephedra. What it does is make you lose weight. He's the only
guy on the team where I don't care if he's fat. I don't care if
he's 30 pounds overweight. All you've got to do is punt the
ball and kick it into the end zone.'' Rookie WR Domenik
Hixon continued to miss valuable practice time with a foot
injury. He was expected to compete on kickoff and punt
returns.
Broncos Depth Chart
QB Jake Plummer, Jay Cutler, Bradlee Van Pelt
RB Mike Bell, Tatum Bell, Ron Dayne, Cedric Cobbs,
Damien Nash
FB Cecil Sapp, Kyle Johnson, Rashon Powers-Neal
WR Rod Smith, Javon Walker (inj), Ashley Lelie, Darius
Watts, Brandon Marshall, David Terrell, Charlie Adams, Todd
Devoe, Domenik Hixon, Brian Clark
TE Stephen Alexander, Tony Scheffler, Nate Jackson, Chad
Mustard, Landon Trusty (IR)
K Jason Elam
DE Courtney Brown (inj), Ebenezer Ekuban, John
Engelberger, Kenard Lang, Elvis Dumervil, Randy Garner
DT Gerard Warren, Michael Myers, Demetrin Veal, D.J.
Renteria, Amon Gordon, Antwon Burton, Bryan Save
MLB Al Wilson, Nate Webster, Keith Burns
OLB Ian Gold (W), D.J. Williams (S), Raymond Wells,
Louis Green (W), Patrick Chukwurah, Cameron Vaughn,
Kevin Harrison, T.J. Hollowell (inj)
CB Champ Bailey, Darrent Williams (PR), Dominique
Foxworth, Karl Paymah, Roc Alexander (KR), Willie
Middlebrooks
S John Lynch (FS), Nick Ferguson (SS), Sam Brandon (FS),
Curome Cox, Hamza Abdullah, Tyler Everett
Detroit Lions
QB: Head coach Rod Marinelli began camp with Josh
McCown as his No. 2 quarterback, but in the past two weeks
second-year quarterback Dan Orlovsky has emerged to make
it a competition. Orlovsky earned some snaps with the second
team and Marinelli was asked if he has a shot at the backup
job. "He's got a chance," Marinelli said. "He's doing a good
job of competing, a very good job." Marinelli insisted that the
job is not settled. "Maybe I should say it again," Marinelli said
Thursday. "Two and three are still competing." Orlovsky is
always around. "I just think the guy really loves football -- a
gym rat," said Marinelli. "He's always around here, hanging
out, watching tape." Keep an eye on Orlovsky in dynasty
leagues, he could emerge in the long run as a “player of
interest”.
RB: Kevin Jones was limited in practices this past week with a
quad contusion. He was held out of goal-line drills on Friday.
Another player who is creating a stir is rookie Brian Calhoun,
the Lions third round draft choice. Calhoun’s versatility has
Marinelli and offensive genius Mike Martz thinking of many
ways they could use him. Marinelli offered up these comments
on Calhoun: “He does a lot of little things – he can catch the
ball; you move him outside and he catches the ball; he runs
with it. He’s good, we just have to get guys into preseason
games and see how they react.” On whether the Lions might
use him immediately or develop him for down the road,
Marinelli said, “I want to see how far he is. Let’s see how he
performs in games and see what he does under pressure; how
well he picks up blitzes; all those things – protection schemes
– that’s important. Anytime a guy is up there, you hold
somebody else’s career in your hands with protections and all
those things. So we’ve got to prove that we can take care of all
of those details.” Basically, Calhoun’s chances for extended
playing time this year lie squarely on his ability to pass
protect, one of the most difficult transitions most college
backs have to make as a pro.
WR: At Saturday’s practice (open to the public), it became
apparent that Roy Williams is the most popular Lion. He
received quite a roar after several plays. He made three
outstanding catches, one which he stretched out in the end
zone to snare. "Pretty good catches," Williams said, judging
his performance. "I should have had more, but Dre' (Bly)
sticks his hand in there and knocks them out." Mike Williams
couldn’t get off the field last Tuesday, while Charles Rogers
couldn’t get on the field on Wednesday. The Lions staff
challenged Williams to go several plays in a row, in pads, in
the stifling heat as they worked outside. On Wednesday, they
were not in pads, but Rogers didn’t get a single rep. Marinelli
cautioned reporters from jumping to conclusions saying,
"Don't read more into it than there is.” Marinelli then added
that reps are earned, not given. On Thursday morning, Rogers
rotated in with the first team, but when they switched to the 2minute drills, Rogers wasn’t on the field. The first team was
Roy Williams, Corey Bradford, Mike Furrey and Eddie
Drummond during the drill. The second-team consisted of
Glenn Martinez, Mike Williams and Brett Fischer.
The Lions gave Drummond a four-year deal worth $6 million
with $2 million guaranteed. One of the reasons he returned to
Detroit instead of leaving for Chicago was Mike Martz. More
than anything else, Drummond wanted a chance to be more
than a return guy. With Mike Martz, he thought he’d get a
chance to play receiver. The first time he met Martz, he liked
what he heard. "He didn't BS me at all," Drummond said. "He
told me man-to-man, 'I'm used to players like you, your size,
your speed, how you move around. I'm going to give you an
opportunity to play receiver. You've just got to prove it to me.'
I've been doing everything possible since that moment to earn
a spot on offense.”
TE: In what might be a surprise, Casey Fitzsimmons began
camp as the Lions starting tight end. In the second week of
training camp, Fitzsimmons remained atop the depth chart.
For his part, Marcus Pollard offered up his praise, too. “With
years you gain more experience and you get comfortable in
your abilities and what you're comfortable doing," Pollard
said. "I think Casey's right there now. He's excited about
getting an opportunity to play, with the potential to make a lot
of plays in this offense. I think it's driving him. A lot of us are
still making our errors, but Casey, he's just a rock. He's a
smart guy, very confident in his abilities, and the coaches see
the same thing. When you’ve got those two things going,
you're going to get a lot of playing time and going to get a lot
of balls." Fitzsimmons is taking it in stride. "I knew coming
into camp that I'd be running with the ones.” Tight ends coach
Pat Carter is working with Fitzsimmons on his footwork and
hand placement to improve his blocking. Indeed, Mike
Martz’s offense has everyone excited. "I love it," he said.
"You really keep the defense on edge. They show their hand a
little bit sooner too because they can't really be moving around
because you have them on edge. It gives us an advantage in
the passing game and in the run game."
Defense: It didn’t take long for LB Ernie Sims to make his
presence felt. On one of his first plays in camp, Sims bolted
across the field in pursuit of Brian Calhoun and clubbed the
rookie across the shoulder pads with his right forearm. "It
always feels real good to get a lick in," Sims said. "I couldn't
really explode on him like I really wanted to. To get a little
forearm in on him, it felt good." Sims also had an interception
towards the end of the session. It was a good start for his first
practice. Sims is expected to start at WLB, but the team isn’t
going to just give him the starting job. The same goes for
second round pick FS Daniel Bullocks, who will have to
surpass Terrence Holt to start. "I want them to earn it," said
head coach Rod Marinelli. "And that's important after
everything I've said, let's just let them come in and see how
well they do and earn the spots because the guy in front of him
might be playing better, who knows. We want to play the best
Lions, or they may have a great opportunity to get into the
rotation. It might be that we have a chance to rotate a guy in
(for) a series to be fresh. Once these guys go in - sometimes
when you have a first round pick, you just hand it to them and
he never understands what it takes to earn a job." Defensive
tackle Shaun Rogers scared the team when he slumped to the
ground last week with an injured shoulder, but a MRI revealed
only a mild separation of his left shoulder. He is considered
week-by-week. Rookie LB Anthony Cannon is day-to-day
with an injured finger. Corner Fernando Bryant is day-to-day
with a hamstring injury. The Lions signed DT Lynn
McGruder, a former Buc, on Friday, August 4.
Special Teams: WR/KR/PR Eddie Drummond has a few
camp aches and pains (groin pull), and missed last weekend’s
scrimmage. There is speculation that he might see a little more
work on offense this year, and consequently a little less on
returns, kickoffs in particular. Drummond recalls his first
meeting with new OC Mike Martz, “He didn’t B.S. me at all.
He told me man-to-man, ‘I’m used to players like you, your
size, your speed, how you move around. I’m going to give you
an opportunity to play receiver. You’ve just got to prove it to
me.” He also noted, "I'll still be there [on returns], but there
might be times they shift me in and out. I still want to do punt
returns. I think receiving will help me with my special teams
because last year, I was always on the sideline cooling off, just
waiting for punts or kickoffs. You get over there and get cold.
This will help me." The most likely candidate to spell him on
returns is rookie RB Brian Calhoun. Two more remote
possibilities are undrafted rookie WRs Shaun Bodiford and
Devale Ellis. Special teams coach Chuck Priefer commented
on their chances, "If they return a couple for touchdowns in
preseason, what are you going to do? Remember a guy named
Andre Coleman? He was 169 pounds and scored six
touchdowns in three years. These kids are lightning fast. I
agree they're long shots, but that's why you play."
Others: Five days into training camp, injuries are already
taking their toll. OT Rex Tucker, starting on the right side,
crumpled to the ground and clutched his left knee during
Tuesday afternoon's practice. He was carted off. Team
officials said he suffered a knee sprain and would undergo an
MRI, but the team says he’s “week to week.” The Lions
waived offensive tackle Courtney Van Buren last Thursday.
He was signed to compete for playing time at right tackle after
sitting out the 2005 season. Meanwhile, OG Damien Woody
left practice Friday, Aug. 4, because of a hand injury and
could be out for two weeks. Backup TE Dan Campbell, LB
Teddy Lehman, and backup WR Scottie Vines remain on the
PUP list.
Lions Depth Chart
QB Jon Kitna, Josh McCown, Dan Orlovsky, Joel Klatt
RB Kevin Jones, Brian Calhoun (3RB/KR), Arlen Harris,
Artose Pinner
FB Shawn Bryson (3RB), Cory Schlesinger, Matt Bernstein
WR Roy Williams, Corey Bradford, Mike Furrey, Glenn
Martinez, Charles Rogers, Mike Williams, Eddie Drummond
(KR/PR), Scottie Vines, DeVale Ellis, Brett Fischer, Shaun
Bodiford
TE Marcus Pollard, Casey Fitzsimmons, Dan Campbell, Sean
McHugh, Cole Downer
K Jason Hanson, Matt Prater
DE James Hall, Kalimba Edwards, Cory Redding, Jared
DeVries, Bill Swancutt, Claude Harriott, Val Barnaby
DT Shaun Rogers, Shaun Cody, Marcus Bell, Tyoka Jackson,
Damian Gregory, Cleveland Pinckney, Lynn McGruder
MLB Boss Bailey, Levar Woods, Matt Grootegoed
OLB Ernie Sims (W), Ted Lehman (S) (inj), James Davis
(W), Alex Lewis (W/S), Paris Lenon (S), Donte' Curry (S),
Anthony Cannon (S), James Hargrave
CB Dre' Bly, Fernando Bryant, Keith Smith, Stanley Wilson,
Jamar Fletcher, Alton McCann, LaMarcus Hicks, Antonio
Malone
S Kenoy Kennedy (SS), Terrence Holt (FS), Daniel Bullocks
(FS), Jon McGraw (FS), Idrees Bashir (FS), Vernon Fox,
Harrison Smith, Marcus Demps
Green Bay Packers
QB: Brett Favre strained his right calf during evening practice
on Tuesday, July 25th. The injury was never considered
serious. HC Mike McCarthy downplayed it as well. “He just
got banged in the back of his leg,” McCarthy said. “It was
during the blitz drill. We’ll see him in the morning. We only
have one practice tomorrow so I think we’re OK.” Favre made
several nice plays during the week and second year
quarterback Aaron Rodgers also has shown great improvement
compared to last year. In a two-minute drill during the team’s
recent scrimmage, Favre led the team on a 75-yard touchdown
drive that culminated in a 4-yard TD to Donald Driver. It was
Favre and Driver who connected on a 48-yard pass just three
plays earlier. Favre went 3-of-4 for 64 yards and connected
with rookie Greg Jennings for a two-point conversion.
Rodgers looked solid playing with the second team
completing 6-of-8 for 27 yards, but he was also intercepted by
Marviel Underwood during the two-minute drill.
RB: In Saturday’s scrimmage the Packers running game
seemed to struggle a bit, but not according to Mike McCarthy.
"Running the football is a commitment, running the football is
a four-quarter journey," McCarthy said. "It's not very often
you come out in this league ripping people with the run
game," he added. “I didn't look at it like the run game
struggled, and we had the run at the end there that [starting
RB] Samkon [Gado] scored on…The biggest thing running
the football is you don't want negative runs…I thought we got
off to a solid start." Indeed, Samkon Gado scored from 10
yards out to cap one drive, but he was stuffed on 4th and 1 on
another. Ahman Green remains a couple weeks from returning
to the field while backup Najeh Davenport was sidelined
again, this time with a calf injury. Noah Herron continues to
play well in practice and in Saturday’s scrimmage.
WR: For Robert Ferguson, this year truly is a “make or break”
year. "It's my sixth year. I think it's just time for me to go out
and show what I'm capable of," Ferguson said last Tuesday.
Entering camp, Ferguson is the starter at split end opposite
Donald Driver. Wide receiver coach, Jimmy Robinson, says
the receivers have been no better than average so far in camp,
but after Driver, Ferguson is the one player who is making a
move. Ferguson has never looked better since he added five
more pounds to check in at 215 pounds. As long as Ferguson
stays healthy (which has historically never been long), he
holds solid potential as a late round fantasy pick. However, the
more intelligent move might be to hold out for rookie Greg
Jennings. The team’s second round pick has passed Marc
Boerigter and Rod Gardner on the depth chart already. On
Saturday night, he looked like a younger Donald Driver.
Jennings even had Favre gushing to a reporter in an interview
about his skills and impressive play. The longest play during
the scrimmage Saturday was a 64-yard pass from fourth-string
quarterback Brian Wrobel to rookie Cory Rodgers, who was
caught from behind by Ahmad Carroll before reaching the end
zone. With Jennings playing so well, the pressure is on
Boerigter and Gardner just to make the roster. Of Boerigter,
offensive coordinator Jeff Jagodzinski said, "He's been
inconsistent to this point." Boerigter’s main problem has been
dropped balls. If the team only keeps five receivers, he may
find himself sixth behind Driver, Ferguson, Jennings, Rodgers
and Gardner.
TE: Bubba Franks missed several practice sessions this week
due to what HC Mike McCarthy called “camp swelling.” The
injury isn’t considered serious and he’s expected back at
practice in a day or two.
Defense: A.J. Hawk didn’t make a big splash in the team’s
scrimmage Saturday night, but nobody is concerned. Hawk
said he’s just adjusting to the pro game, "It's something that's
pretty new so it takes a little longer to get comfortable with it,"
Hawk said. "I'm learning every day. Watching the older guys.
Just listening to my coaches." In Friday’s practice, corner
Charles Woodson suffered a minor hip injury and left practice.
In an earlier practice, Favre was nearly intercepted by
Woodson when he overthrew William Henderson on a short
pass. During 11-on-11 drills, Mike Hawkins dropped what
would have been a nice interception over the middle on a
bullet thrown by Favre. Overall, the defensive backs have
struggled in the 1-on-1 drills with everyone sharing the
limelight getting burned at least once. Nick Barnett was the
lone linebacker in the Packers dime package that featured
Aaron Kampman, Cullen Jenkins, Corey Williams and Kabeer
Gbaja-Biamila in the front four. The extra corners were
Ahmad Carroll and Jason Horton. Rookie linebacker Abdul
Hodge served as the linebacker in the second string dime
defense.
Special Teams: The Packers ended last weekend’s scrimmage
with each kicker attempting five field goals. Each missed
twice, Billy Cundiff from 39 and 52 yards and Dave Rayner
from 39 and 49 yards. Overall they’ve looked okay in practice,
with Cundiff still holding a slight edge. But neither one has
been especially Longwellesque, so the Packers are keeping
their options open. Free agent kicker Paul Edinger was in for a
workout last week, although was not signed. Quite a few
different players have practiced on returns, including CB
Ahmad Carroll, RB Najeh Davenport, RB Samkon Gado, WR
Robert Ferguson, rookie WR Greg Jennings, rookie WR Cory
Rodgers, and even WR Donald Driver. The one that is getting
the most hype is CB Charles Woodson on punt returns. HC
Mike McCarthy said, "If he's your lead punt returner, you
expect him to be a weapon. He's a very talented football player
and always has been. He's an exciting player when the ball's in
his hands. So, that's the way we're going to get him the
football." Special teams coordinator Mike Stock adds, "I think
he can do it well. And, I think these 10 other guys (on the
return team) will be happy about it, too, if that happens that
way.” Woodson himself however thinks it will play out
differently, “When the season comes [Greg] Jennings
probably will be doing a lot of it. Don't put it out there like I'm
making a decision on what's going to happen. But I just got a
good feel for him just watching him. Jennings looks pretty
comfortable doing it. He's square on the ball when it's coming
down. He's got a good feel."
Packers Depth Chart
QB Brett Favre, Aaron Rodgers, Ingle Martin
RB Ahman Green (inj), Najeh Davenport, Samkon Gado,
Noah Herron (FB), Arliss Beach, Shermar Bracey
FB William Henderson, Vonta Leach, A.J. Cooper (TE), Ben
Brown
WR Donald Driver, Robert Ferguson, Greg Jennings, Rod
Gardner, Marc Boerigter, Cory Rogers, Will Blackmon
(KR/PR) (inj), Chad Lucas, Leo Bookman, Vince Butler,
Calvin Russell, Chris Francies
TE Bubba Franks, David Martin, Donald Lee, Zac Alcorn,
Tory Humphrey
K Billy Cundiff, Dave Rayner
DE Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila, Aaron Kampman, Mike
Montgomery, Kenny Peterson, Corey Williams, Dave
Tollefson, Jason Hunter, Montez Murphy
DT Ryan Pickett (NT), Cullen Jenkins, Kenderick Allen,
Colin Cole (NT), Johnny Jolly, Jerome Nichols
MLB Nick Barnett, Abdul Hodge
OLB A.J. Hawk (W), Ben Taylor (S/W), Roy Manning
(S/M), Brady Poppinga (S), Tracy White (S), Kurt Campbell,
Tim Goodwell, Kevin Schimmelmann
CB Charles Woodson, Al Harris, Ahmad Carroll, Michael
Hawkins, Jason Horton, Patrick Dendy, Jerron Wishom
S Nick Collins (FS), Marquand Manuel (SS), Marviel
Underwood (SS), Tyrone Culver (FS), Jeremy Thornburg, Tra
Boger, Atari Bigby
Houston Texans
QB: One of the biggest differences under Gary Kubiak’s
watch is that QB David Carr is being held accountable. He’s
just one of the guys now as opposed to being treated
differently by the previous regime for fear of breaking his
confidence. Previously, Carr says he never knew where stood
with Capers’ staff. That’s no longer the case with Kubiak.
"The truth is nice," Carr said. "It doesn't feel good at first,
because the first six days of OTAs, he was on me every time
we got together for a team meeting. It kind of bites you. But at
the same time, you know it's going to make you better." So
far, Kubiak and offensive coordinator Troy Calhoun are happy
with Carr’s progress picking up the system.
RB: Kubiak has made it perfectly clear to the team’s running
backs; he wants a running back with quick feet, good vision
and the ability to make one cut and go. "We preach a one-cut
philosophy," Kubiak said. "We tell (our running backs) you
get one cut and no more. That's it. We don't want to wiggle.
We want to go downhill and try and make a play." How does
this affect the Texans’ RBs? It means that second-year RB
Vernand Morency must be more disciplined. With Domanick
Davis out for most of the past week with a sore knee, the team
split the reps amongst Morency, veteran Antowain Smith and
rookie Wali Lundy. Davis sought a second opinion on his
balky knee after experiencing some problems during the first
week of camp. The Texans re-signed free agent fullback Nick
Luchey on Thursday, after releasing him on July 23rd.
WR: Andre Johnson continues to make strides and looks as
good as ever in camp. The addition of veteran Eric Moulds is
helping everyone including Kevin Walter, who signed with the
Texans after playing for the Bengals for three years. Walter is
having a great camp. Barring an injury or surprise, he should
be the team’s No. 3 receiver behind Johnson and Moulds.
Receivers coach Kyle Shanahan said Walter will have a
prominent role in the Texans’ offense. “He's a consistent
receiver who can make every catch," said Shanahan. "He's
talented enough to separate and he can beat man coverage.
He's also as tough as anyone."
TE: After three years or heartbreaking injuries, Texans tight
end Benny Joppru is healthy and making plays in training
camp. The former Michigan Wolverine has excellent hands,
but he’s been on injured reserve essentially since he was
drafted in the second round a few years back. On Saturday,
Joppru made a finger tip grab prompting some kudos from his
quarterback. Carr said, “Jopp’s going to be a good player. Talk
about a guy with a chip on his shoulder.” If he stays healthy,
you might be looking at the best tight end on the Texans
roster. Keep that in mind as you watch the Texans preseason
games. Ben Steele fractured his leg during Tuesday morning's
practice last week and will miss the entire season.
Defense: Rookie DeMeco Ryans worked with the first team
defense during most of Saturday’s practice. He seems to be
emerging as the team’s starter at MLB ahead of veteran Sam
Cowart. “I’m still working on it,” Ryans said. “It’s kind of
difficult at times because there is a lot going on. Each day, I
try to get better with one call here and there. By the end, I
should have it all down. I don’t take it all in at one time
because it’s just too much to memorize at a fast pace.” DT
Travis Johnson reported to camp in better shape than a year
ago. Of the lighter Johnson, Kubiak said Friday: "I was very
impressed. Travis can be a dominant football player. He was
in college and at times he was here. But it's about consistency
and doing it all the time. We just told him we don't want to
wait anymore." On Saturday, both starting corners Dunta
Robinson (ankle) and Phillip Buchanon (hamstring) sat out of
practice. Chris McKenzie hurt his shoulder and the team
placed him on injured reserve along with LB Wali Rainer
(broken ankle). CB DeMarcus Faggins broke his foot and will
be out a minimum of 6-to-10 weeks. The Texans signed free
agent cornerbacks Kevin Garrett and Earthwind Moreland last
week to help offset the depth issues at corner.
Special Teams: Kicker Kris Brown discussed his preseason
goals, "It's just a matter of getting my leg in shape, getting
ready to endure a 16-game season. I'm getting the work in
during camp to get myself prepared for the season, but at the
same time I'm not doing too much so that my leg is not
shocked before the season even starts." Special teams
coordinator Joe Marciano discussed the teams’ goal for Brown
for the regular season, "We want to get Kris in at least six
times a game. It's been documented if the kicker gets on the
field six times a game, you are going to win. If we're not using
him, we're not scoring. The kicker is the leading scorer of
every team." HC Gary Kubiak discussed the time frame for
the return of WR/KR Jerome Mathis, “I don’t think you’re
going to see Jerome any time soon. I think Jerome is going to
be a decision from a PUP (physically unable to perform)
standpoint, it could be about week five or week six before a
decision is made about him as far as coming back this year. He
has a ways to go.” The two leading candidates to return punts,
CBs Phillip Buchanon and Dunta Robinson, both missed time
last week with minor injuries. WR Derrick Lewis, RB Wali
Lundy, RB Chris Taylor, WR Kendrick Starling, and WR Jake
Schifino have all been working on kickoff returns.
Texans Depth Chart
QB David Carr, Sage Rosenfels, Cody Pickett
RB Domanick Davis (inj), Antowain Smith, Vernand
Morency, Wali Lundy, Chris Taylor, Damien Rhodes
FB Jameel Cook, Quadtrine Hill, Nick Luchey
WR Andre Johnson, Eric Moulds, Kevin Walter, Derick
Armstrong, Jerome Mathis (PR/KR) (inj), Derrick Lewis,
David Anderson, Nick Narcisse, Jake Schifino, Richie Ross
TE Mark Bruener, Jeb Putzier, Benny Joppru, Owen Daniels,
Patrick Hape, Scott Weaver, Ben Steele (IR)
K Kris Brown
DT Anthony Weaver, Robaire Smith, Seth Payne, Travis
Johnson (inj), Alfred Malone
DE Mario Williams, Jason Babin, Antwan Peek, Jeff
Charleston, Phillip Alexander
MLB DeMeco Ryans, Sam Cowart, DaShon Polk, Dave
Moretti
OLB Kailee Wong (inj), Morlon Greenwood, Shantee Orr,
Barrett Green, Charlie Anderson (inj), Kenneth Petway,
Saleem Rasheed, Wali Rainer (IR)
CB Dunta Robinson, Phillip Buchanon, DeMarcus Faggins
(inj), Dexter McCleon, Lewis Sanders (FS), Kevin Garrett,
Tramon Williams, John Walker, Earthwind Moreland, Chris
McKenzie (IR)
S Glenn Earl (SS), C.C. Brown (SS/FS), Jason Simmons (FS)
(inj), Ramon Walker (SS), Michael Stone
Indianapolis Colts
QB: While Shaun King’s play on Saturday wasn’t Manningesque, it was good enough to earn the play-of-the-day honors.
With no time on the clock, King rolled to his right to avoid the
pass rush and found former Purdue receiver Brian Hare in the
back of the end zone for a 14-yard yard score. King is fighting
for a roster spot and the chance to compete with Jim Sorgi for
the backup job. "Every play (matters), especially if you're a
free agent and trying to make the team,'' said the undrafted
rookie Hare. “You know one bad day could make or break
you. You've got to be on top of your game every day in
practice.'' Hare described the play as "a normal jump-ball drill
you do every day in practice.'' King agreed noting that practice
ended perfectly. "We actually work on that in quarterback
drills,'' he said. “Do a little scramble drill and (throw it) high
in the back of the end zone. It's (the receiver's) ball or
nobody's ball.”
RB: The battle for the starting job is one of the hottest in
fantasy football this year. Dominic Rhodes entered camp with
a slight advantage over rookie Joseph Addai given his
experience with Tom Moore’s offensive system. “Dominic
deserves it. He has the most experience. He has played, he is a
1,000-yard rusher and number two behind (former starting
RB) Edgerrin (James) last year. That’s where it is and we’ll
see what happens," said HC Tony Dungy. Rhodes might want
to count the days he’s able to hold onto the job. Team
observers have said that Addai is clearly the more impressive
of the two backs. His ability to catch the football helps
tremendously as does his own experience in a complex offense
(from his playing days at LSU). “The biggest thing about
Joseph so far, I think everyone on the staff has talked about, is
composure. We do a lot of things on offense and he’s run with
the first group, been in with (starting QB) Peyton (Manning),
had some plays changed at the last second, and none of that
has flustered him. He did a good job in pass protection in the
two drills that we had. He understands how to play the
game. He has tremendous speed. He’s a little bit better in the
hole than we thought. He’s made some people miss in the hole
in his first three days, but more than anything, he doesn’t seem
to get flustered and that’s going to help him," Dungy said.
Count Peyton Manning among those impressed with Addai's
hands. "I think that's one reason that (Colts' President) Bill
(Polian) drafted him. He loved his running game, but he
knows in this offense our backs are going to be called on to
catch the ball on swing routes. I think Bill saw that he caught
the ball well, or he wouldn't have taken him. His hands have
been a nice bonus in his game." While Peyton likes Addai’s
hands, it’s his blocking ability that ultimately will dictate how
much playing time he earns. “Pass protection is critical for us
and all of those guys know it. That’s one thing where Edgerrin
was really underrated. I think he was a tremendous
protector. So, they have big shoes to fill, but the positive is
you want to be in the game and that’s the situation. You have
to be able to protect and they know that," Dungy said.
"Certainly we have high expectations. We are going to put a
lot on those guys. We are not going to call different plays
because Edgerrin James is not here. Edgerrin has spoiled us
for a long time with some of the things he's been able to do.
For us to be the kind of team we need to be, we have to be
able to run the same plays and make the same checks and call
multiple plays in the huddle and to have that flexibility.
Dominic has been here for a number of years. He's getting
more repetitions than he's ever had. With Joseph we don't have
a lot of patience with rookies. We put a lot on these guys.
That’s what the mini camps and summer schools are for. He
has responded brilliantly up to this day as far as his real intent
to learn the offense. There is a real difference between
learning the offense and memorizing it. Some guys just
memorize the scripts but that’s not really learning the offense.
You learn it by understanding why we do things. Both of those
guys are doing a good job of getting comfortable with what we
are doing. We expect big things out of the running game this
year."
Over the weekend, the team signed RB Tony Hollings.
WR: Besides Rhodes, Brandon Stokley is another veteran
who could reprise a much larger role in the offense this year.
Two years ago, the team used the three receiver set as its main
formation and Stokley produced a career year. Last year, the
team drifted back to more double tight end formations and
Stokley’s role was greatly reduced. This year, it looks like
Stokley is in luck as the team expects to use more threereceiver formations again. Manning is also aware of Stokley’s
precipitous drop in the stat columns last year. "Brandon is a
great teammate. Brandon is the number three receiver in the
slot. He is probably a number one or two on many other
teams. We're lucky to have guys like (#1) Marvin (Harrison)
and (#2) Reggie (Wayne) that make so many plays. Brandon is
an unbelievably unselfish guy and at the same time, very
competitive. He loves football and everything about it, with
the blocking and the mental aspect. He understands how
important that is. He is my roommate here in camp, so he is
one of my buddies. Last year was probably a frustrating year
because he came off this 10-touchdown, 70-catch season and
had one touchdown last year. That's our fault. That's my fault
and (OC) Tom Moore has made it a point to get him involved,
because when he gets the ball in his hands, big things happen.
That’s been a point of emphasis for us, to get the ball in
Brandon's hands to hopefully make us more explosive."
The 5-foot-9, 188-pound Gerran Walker was waived by the
Colts after signing as an undrafted free agent following the
draft.
TE: Corey Roberts remains on the reserve/left squad list. The
Colts originally placed a waiver claim on linebacker Dale
Robinson, but later withdrew their request, before the
paperwork was processed by the league when Roberts was
forced to leave the team for personal reasons. The Colts were
able to get a roster exemption for Roberts. They will retain his
rights through the 2006 season.
Defense: The Colts already had the lightest pair of bookends
in the NFL with Robert Mathis (240 lbs.) and Dwight Freeney
(268 lbs.). Now, DT Corey Simon lost 25 pounds and wants to
shed another 10 to 15 before the season is underway. When
Simon was acquired before last year, he was grossly out of
shape. "He's had the whole offseason and a season behind him
to know what we're doing, to play with our guys and to get
himself ready to run the way we run,'' Dungy said. "I think
he's going to have a lights-out year.'' DT Montae Reagor will
miss two weeks with a sprained ligament in his knee. “He’s
got a sprained ligament in there. It’s going to be awhile, it’s
going to be at least two weeks,” Dungy said. “He’ll miss this
first preseason game for sure, but it’s not anything that should
jeopardize the beginning of the season.” In the secondary,
there is a battle brewing at corner where Marlin Jackson
splitting reps with incumbent Jason David. Definitely not shy,
Jackson was asked if he can overtake Jason David for the
starting spot. "In my mind, yeah, it can happen," Jackson said.
Dungy commented, "Marlin's doing fine. He obviously knows
a lot more about our defense this year. That's going to help
him." Jackson then went on… “I'll just say I want to be on the
field. I'm champing at the bit to be on the field so much more."
With the dearth of injuries at safety, Jackson may end up
moving back and forth in practice between safety and corner.
Rookies Antoine Bethea and Antwan Marsh were held out of
practice last Wednesday after "getting banged in the knees,''
according to Dungy, while starting S Bob Sanders (shoulder)
and S Mike Doss (calf) were already held out of practice. On
Jackson moving from cornerback to safety, "That's something
we'll talk about,'' Dungy said, adding, "we're hesitant to move
him if we can help it.'' Over the weekend, the Colts signed
former Texans safety Jammal Lord. They also placed S
Antwan Marsh and TE Corey Roberts on the reserve-left
squad list.
Special Teams: Kicker Adam Vinatieri has quickly
acclimated according to HC Tony Dungy, “He has been
tremendous in terms of getting to know the routine, the
system, the players and working himself in. We expect him to
make big kicks and I think that’s why he came.” Vinatieri
ended last week’s scrimmage with a 37-yard “game-winning”
field goal. There have been minor rumors that kicker Shane
Andrus could make the final roster to handle kickoffs,
however special teams coach Russ Purnell alludes otherwise,
“Adam’s a very capable kickoff guy. If Adam had a tired leg
or was injured, Shane has proven that he can kick off… He’s a
good kicker and a hard-working kid.” Vinatieri is also
planning on kicking off, "Absolutely. I'd be disappointed if I
wasn't the kickoff guy. I'm only 33, not 43.'' Veteran WR
Terrence Wilkins is hoping to land the return specialist role,
“I’m glad that they’ve given me this chance to come back
here. Mr. Polian called me… and said that they’d like to bring
me in to return kicks. The offense is pretty much the same as
when I was here before, but they’ve added several wrinkles to
it since then. That’s what I’m trying to learn and pick up on
now.” His primary competition, rookie CB T.J. Rushing, has
missed time with a groin strain. Rookie WRs Jamie Goodwin
and Gerran Walker were dark horse candidates, but both have
been waived. Competition that still remains is WR Dan
Sheldon, WR Ashlan Davis, and CB Tanard Davis.
Colts Depth Chart
QB Peyton Manning, Jim Sorgi, Shaun King, Josh Betts,
David Koral
RB Dominic Rhodes, Joseph Addai, Kory Chapman, Vashon
Pearson, Tony Hollings
FB James Mungro
WR Marvin Harrison, Reggie Wayne, Brandon Stokley,
Aaron Moorehead, Terrence Wilkins (KR), Ed Hinkel, Brian
Hare, Jamie Goodwin
TE Dallas Clark, Bryan Fletcher, Ben Utecht, Ben Hartsock,
Joey Hawkins, Corey Roberts (res)
K Adam Vinatieri
DT Corey Simon, Montae Reagor, Vincent Burns, Darrell
Reid, Tom Johnson
DE Dwight Freeney, Raheem Brock (DT), Robert Mathis,
Josh Thomas, Jonathan Welsh, Javor Mills, Marcus West
MLB Gary Brackett (W/M), Rob Morris
OLB Cato June (W), Gilbert Gardner (S/W), Freddie Keiaho,
Keith O'Neil, Deryck Toles (W), Tyjuan Hagler (W), Brandon
Hoyte, Kyle Killion, Kendyll Pope (susp)
CB Nick Harper, Jason David, Marlin Jackson (CB/FS),
Kelvin Hayden, Tim Jennings, Von Hutchin, T.J. Rushing
S Bob Sanders (FS), Mike Doss (SS), Matt Giordano (FS),
Dexter Reid, Antoine Bethea (FS), Daryl Dixon (FS), Tanard
Davis, Jammal Lord
Jacksonville Jaguars
QB: Byron Leftwich enters this year still searching for that
elusive breakout season. It looked like he was well on his way
a couple times in the past two years only to be sidetracked by
injuries. This year, despite the retirement of Jimmy Smith,
there is growing optimism on the Jaguars that this is his year.
In Friday’s scrimmage, Leftwich completed 6-of-11 for 36
yards but he was intercepted on a perfectly thrown ball on a
slant pass to Ernest Wilford, who promptly bobbled the ball
before it was picked off by David Richardson. Backup David
Garrard went 3-of-5 for 14 yards in the scrimmage.
RB: Maurice Drew shined in the Jaguars first scrimmage last
Friday night. The second-round draft pick and former Bruin
broke a 31-yard run, then followed it up with a 3-yard
touchdown run a couple of plays later. "He showed some of
that explosive quality that he has," coach Jack Del Rio said.
"He's got that ability to get out in the open field and then
really get going. You got a little taste of that." Drew finished
with 39 yards on four carries to lead the team. When asked
about the run, he was more upset that he was tackled. "I
should have scored," he said. "I’ve got to work on my speed, I
guess." Fred Taylor started the game despite a strained
hamstring. He ran for 9 yards on three carries. Greg Jones ran
four times for 19 yards, and LaBrandon Toefield ran five
times for 18 yards. Running back Alvin Pearman fumbled –
something that plagued him last year as a rookie. Both Jones
and Toefield are having strong camps, but one has to wonder,
will all of these backs make the team? Will the Jaguars decide
to deal one of them to a team searching for RB depth?
Toefield, Taylor’s backup three years ago, is running well in
camp now that he’s finally healthy, while Jones is reportedly
back in “collegiate form.” JDR is pleased, too. "I think his
feet are as alive and active as they have been since he's been
here. He was outstanding last night. He made some terrific
cuts. He ran with power and determination." he said. Del Rio
agreed when asked if he’s regained the form he lost after a
serious knee injury during his junior year at Florida State. “I
think that's fair,” said Del Rio. Still, the player to keep an eye
on is Drew.
WR: Matt Jones missed much of the week's practices with a
moderate ankle sprain. The team put him in a walking boot as
a precaution and he wasn’t on the field during Friday’s
intrasquad scrimmage. Fred Stamps was a bright spot on
Friday night catching a 35-yard touchdown pass from Quinn
Gray. Reggie Williams was the only other receiver with a
catch longer than 10 yards in the scrimmage. The team hopes
Williams and Jones will emerge as consistent playmakers this
year. Ernest Wilford played brilliantly down the stretch last
year and caught 7 touchdowns. He’s competing with Williams
for a starting job opposite Jones, widely considered the team’s
new No. 1 receiver with Smith’s retirement. Asked if he’s
feeling any pressure, Wilford calmly responded, “There's no
pressure - it's a challenge… I love challenges. So I'm just
trying to go out there and work as hard as I can to be the best
player I can be. We all have to step our game up. From the
starters to the backups, we all have to take our game to another
level and I think that's what we are doing in this training
camp. Everybody is coming in executing the offense and
finishing the plays."
TE: The Jaguars love what they’re seeing out of rookie
Marcedes Lewis. Not only does he give Leftwich another
king-sized target, but he has incredibly soft hands, too. Lewis
is taking it in stride. When asked about his first NFL training
camp, Lewis said, “It's been real good… You know it's been
good when the week flies by. I didn't even know that today
was Thursday. Everyone is out there working hard and
looking forward to the season. We are adults. Jack always says
that he is going to treat us like adults and it's on us to be ready.
Everyone respects things and handles things as they come."
Defense: The Jaguars were thought to be clamoring for a
high-profile free agent to bolster their LB corps, especially as
Akin Ayodele left via free agency, but the team opted to stay
out of the free agent frenzy and waited until the third round
before selecting Clint Ingram. Entering camp, Pat Thomas is
penciled in as the starter at WLB. His primary competition
comes from Nick Greisen, but Jorge Cordova, rookie Brent
Hawkins and Ingram are all in the hunt. Even Brian Iwuh is
competing for a spot. Iwuh has been a hit, no pun intended, at
camp. He has impressed the coaching staff amidst the tough
competition. “Nobody, but nobody, has been more impressive.
He's competing for more than a roster spot. He's flashed
enough to make that statement. The competition is intense.
He's a good run-and-hit guy. He has explosiveness in his play.
He reminds me a little of Takeo Spikes.” said LBs coach Mark
Duffner, who also coached Spikes in Cincinnati.
Special Teams: Kicker Josh Scobee showed his strong leg
during last weekend’s scrimmage, connecting on field goals of
47 and 50 yards into the wind. HC Jack Del Rio reiterated that
Scobee is definitely their kicker, unless of course he screws
up, “We know he's our kicker. What he's got to do is continue
to play well and kick well. He's got a great leg and great
mechanics. That's the one position on this team that doesn't
have direct competition. However, there's still a level of
performance, a standard, he has to stay at, or we would have
guys in here quick." RB Maurice Drew was a little rusty early
in camp, dropping several punts, but he’s progressing well.
Special teams coordinator Pete Rodriguez assessed his status,
"He's got explosive speed and he's strong. He's not the kind of
guy that's going down with an arm tackle. He's still
inconsistent with mechanics and fundamentals; he's a typical
rookie." Drew himself also feels he’s adjusting, ““Returning
punts on special teams is all about being comfortable. When
you are comfortable you can do a lot of things. Right now I
am trying to work at it and have fun.” Don’t dismiss WR Chad
Owens, last year’s return specialist hopeful. HC Jack Del Rio
commented, "He's having another solid camp. I think he
learned from his experiences last year. We all do. He's no
different than anybody else. He's more comfortable this year.
He's working hard, and he's doing a nice job."
Jaguars Depth Chart
QB Byron Leftwich, David Garrard, Quinn Gray
RB Fred Taylor (inj), Maurice Drew (KR), Alvin Pearman
(3RB/PR), LaBrandon Toefield (SD), Rich Alexis
FB Greg Jones (SD), Derrick Wimbush (KR)
WR Matt Jones, Ernest Wilford, Reggie Williams, Cortez
Hankton, Randy Hymes, Troy Edwards, Felton Huggins, Kyle
Brown
TE Kyle Brady, Marcedes Lewis, George Wrighster, Brian
Jones, Todd Yoder
K Josh Scobee
DE Reggie Hayward, Paul Spicer, Bobby McCray, Marcellus
Wiley, Brent Hawkins, James Wyche
DT Marcus Stroud, John Henderson, Anthony Maddox,
Martin Chase
MLB Mike Peterson, Nick Greisen (W), Tony Gilbert
OLB Daryl Smith (S/W), Pat Thomas (W), Jorge Cordova
(W/S), Clint Engram, Brian Iwuh
CB Rashean Mathis, Brian Williams, Terry Cousin, David
Richardson, Scott Starks, Demetrice Webb, Trestin George
S Donovan Darius (SS) (inj), Deon Grant (FS), Gerald
Sensabaugh (SS), Chris Roberson (FS/CB), Nick Sorenson
(FS) (inj)
Kansas City Chiefs
QB: Everyone knows Trent Green will start, but this year he’ll
have a new backup because Todd Collins left via free agency.
One of those players competing for that spot is former
Canadian Football League QB Casey Printers. In 7-on-7 drills
against the Minnesota Vikings, his first taste of NFL action,
Printers did an admirable job reading the defense and checking
off his receivers. The Vikings were blitzing, though not at full
speed, but Printers still made the read and got it to the hot
receiver. There were times when he wasn’t as sharp, but in his
first real exposure to live action, the team was pleased with his
performance. Coming out of Canada, Printers reputation is
that of a quarterback who runs first and passes second. “I only
escape the pocket when I have to, contrary to what people
say,” said Printers. “It’s a matter of getting a feel for it.
Defenses won’t just allow you to run. But I’m out here
learning.” The Chiefs are content with Printers at this point
knowing he’s mobile in the pocket and he has a rifle for an
arm. “I had a lot of fun out there,” said Printers. “It was my
first crack at it. Obviously, I have a lot of things to work on…
It’s about making plays when I get opportunities... I’m going
to get better. The game is coming to me and I’m not trying to
force the ball down the field.”
RB: Priest Holmes was placed on the PUP list and the Chiefs
acquired former Vikings RB Michael Bennett last week to
strengthen their backfield and give them a “proven” veteran
behind starter Larry Johnson. Kansas City’s GM Carl Peterson
tried to downplay Holmes going on the PUP list saying, “This
is not an indication that Priest is not coming back… He's
comfortable with that and we're comfortable with that."
Peterson then continued, "We'll continue to monitor his
physical well being. I've had conversations with him and he's
right now where he is. But the doctors have still not given him
a release to have contact." On last Thursday, Bennett went
through his first practice and said he’s happy to be with the
Chiefs – even in a secondary role to Johnson. "My thing is I'm
going to come in here and do the best that I can and if that's
going to be my role then I'll have to take it," said Bennett,
adding that he still runs a 4.2 or 4.25 40-yard dash time. “I've
been in this game going on six years and I've had a lot of
success. So my thing is just to basically come in here and learn
the offense. I've got to learn a whole new offense, so it's kind
of like being a rookie again. I'll just put everything together
and get out on the field.” Bennett said it’ll take a few days to
come up to speed. “It normally takes three to five days to kind
of get the base stuff down,” he said. “That's why you have the
OTAs and mini-camps, to just prepare you for training camp.
Right now it's the early stages and the first day of officially
being on the Chiefs and again, I'm just very happy to be here
and looking forward to the opportunity."
WR: Many felt the Chiefs needed to upgrade their receiving
corps during the offseason, but they return essentially
unchanged from a year ago with starters Eddie Kennison and
Samie Parker and Dante Hall working out of the slot. “I'm not
worried about it, Eddie's not worried about it, and Dante's not
worried about it,” Parker said when asked about the
threesome. "We know what we have here, and we know we'll
get the job done." Of course, Kennison has made it clear he’s
not thrilled about his current contract and that he would like
the Chiefs to give him an extension or re-work his contract to
reflect his stature as the No. 1 receiver. It doesn’t help that
he’s 33 years old, but coming off a career year. “Age is mind
over matter. If you don't mind, it doesn't matter,” said
Kennison. "There's no person walking the face of this earth
who's going to tell me that just because I'm 33 years old, I'm
too old to play this game. That's what they say. I've heard it a
lot. Eddie Kennison will prove them wrong. I'm in great
shape. I've worked hard. I'm ready to have another big
season." The player who is making an excellent value play at
the moment is Parker, who had 36 catches for 533 yards and
three scores in 2005. Entering his third season, Parker thinks
it’s his time to blossom. "I missed four games last year, and
the year before that I missed maybe eight, but I put up good
numbers when I played, and there's no telling what I could
have done in those games that I didn't play," said Parker. "I'm
just looking forward to staying healthy and having a big
season." Here’s some sage advice: consider Parker around
rounds 13 to 15 in your league draft. Add him for depth
knowing he has some upside and he still hasn’t shown his full
potential.
TE: Pro Bowl tight end Tony Gonzalez was allowed to leave
camp over the weekend to attend the Hall of Fame induction
of former teammate and close friend Warren Moon, who
played with the Chiefs in 1999-2000. "I give Warren a lot of
credit for my success in this league because he really showed
me how to relax and have fun," Gonzalez said. "My first two
years in the league, I was really trying too hard, trying to have
everything perfect. I was so serious about everything. When
Warren got here, he showed me you could play the game,
work hard and still have some fun. I remember during that
first season he was here; we went out to Las Vegas for a short
trip on a Monday after a game. He was probably the oldest
guy in the league at the time and I was probably the youngest.
We went out there and everybody knew him and they were
calling out to him. Then, we were back at Arrowhead for
practice Wednesday morning and he got right back to work. It
really showed me that I needed to relax a little bit and have
some fun." Gonzalez enters camp in the last year of his
contract, but he doesn’t appear to be worried about it. "I'd be
lying to you telling you I didn't think about it, but I'm not
worried about it like a negative thing, not by any means," said
Gonzalez. "My cap number is really high and it would kind of
hurt the team for me to play under that cap number this year."
Defense: Defensive tackle Lional Dalton had to leave practice
last Wednesday with a sprained knee. HC Herm Edwards
described his injury as a slight hamstring pull and Dalton did
not play against the Vikings. One veteran who looks to be in
excellent shape is newly signed CB Ty Law. He is in better
shape than a year ago, weighing in at 204 pounds. Playing
corner in Edwards’ cover-2 scheme, Law may be the perfect
fit and just what the Chiefs have been needed for far too many
years now – a cover corner that also brings something to the
table in run support. The Chiefs could have a new pair of
safeties in the starting lineup when the season rolls around,
too. Rookies Bernard Pollard and Jarrad Page have been
impressive. Sammy Knight and Greg Wesley have their work
cut out for them if they want to remain in the lineup. Edwards
and defensive coordinator Gunther Cunningham like Knight’s
experience, but are concerned by his lack of foot speed,
especially when receivers are able to get behind him. Knight’s
never been a speed merchant, but even the Chiefs LBs can out
run him. Wesley doesn’t seem to be the hitter he once was
either. That gives the rookies an opportunity to earn
significant roles immediately. Pollard and Page can run and
they love to hit. Edwards recently spoke about Page. “A lot of
people questioned why we should take another safety,”
Edwards said. “He’s a good football player. He’s a very gifted
guy. If you watch him in practice, he always makes plays on
the ball. We’ve got him in nickel, we’ve got him in dime, he’s
playing safety. So he’s at a lot of positions, and he’s going to
play a lot of football for us.”
Special Teams: New special teams coach Mike Priefer likes
what he sees in kicker Lawrence Tynes, “He's ready to take
that next step. He's got a great mentality. He's hard on himself,
which is a good trait to have. But he also knows when it's time
to just learn from it and move on. He has very few technique
flaws for a young kicker." Tynes appears less stressed this
year, and the change in head coaches is a factor, "Edwards
isn't in my ear chiming in if I make one or if I miss one. He
leaves me alone. He doesn't get involved with it. He talks to
you, and he's never negative. Coach Vermeil was never
negative with me, but obviously with the media he was. That's
Edwards' prerogative to say something to you guys if I miss
one, but I don't think he'll throw me under the bus." Herm
Edwards discussed his thoughts and approach with kickers,
“He [Vermeil] fired more kickers and punters than anyone. So
I leave them alone. At the end of the day, I like to pat them on
the back. I understand their dilemma. They've got the hardest
deal of anyone on this team. They get one play to get it right,
and what they're trying to do isn't easy." Punter Dustin
Colquitt will again handle holding on kicks for Tynes this
year. WR/KR/PR Dante hall discussed his role for the
upcoming year, "I will say this – two years ago when Johnnie
Morton went down and Eddie (Kennison) went down, I had to
start and it about wore me out," Hall said. "To return a kick 35
yards and have to go right in the huddle and do three or four
plays at a hot tempo.... I'm really comfortable with my role
now. Not too many return guys play 30 to 40 percent on the
offense and go right in and rotate with the starters. So I love
it."
Chiefs Depth Chart
QB Trent Green, Damon Huard, Brody Croyle, Casey Printers
RB Larry Johnson, Michael Bennett, Dee Brown, McKenzi
Smith, Quentin Griffin, De'Arrius Howard, Derrick Ross,
Priest Holmes (inj)
FB Ronnie Cruz, Travis Wilson, J.R. Niklos
WR Eddie Kennison, Samie Parker, Dante Hall (KR/PR),
Craphonso Thorpe, Jeris McIntyre, Jeff Webb, Nate Curry,
Chris Hannon, Terrance Metcalf, Scott McCready
TE Tony Gonzalez, Kris Wilson (HB), Jason Dunn, Aaron
Golliday, Bob Docherty
K Lawrence Tynes
DE Jared Allen, Eric Hicks (inj), Tamba Hali, Carlos Hall,
Jimmy Wilkerson (DT)
DT Ryan Sims (NT), Lional Dalton, Ron Edwards, Junior
Siavii, John Browning (inj), James Reed, Alex Guerrero,
Shane Burton, Steve Williams
MLB Kawika Mitchell, Rich Scanlon, Boomer Grigsby
OLB Derrick Johnson (R), Kendrell Bell (L), Keyaron Fox
(S/W), Kris Griffin, Nick Reid, William Kershaw, Brandon
Guillory
CB Patrick Surtain, Ty Law, Lenny Walls, Benny Sapp, Chris
Johnson, Julian Battle (inj), Alphonso Hodge, Marcus Maxey,
Justin Perkins, Jerald Brown
S Sammy Knight (SS), Greg Wesley (FS), Bernard Pollard
(SS), Jarrad Page (FS), Gabriel Helms
Miami Dolphins
QB: Let’s look at the Dolphins quarterback play during the
last week of training camp. On Day 4 of camp, Daunte
Culpepper, Joey Harrington and Cleo Lemon were boosted by
the play of their receiving corps. Kelly Campbell hauled in
two long touchdowns to help their cause. During 11-on-11
drills, Culpepper lost the football on his first attempt then
followed that by a botched flea-flicker and miscommunication
with No. 1 receiver Chris Chambers on his pass route.
Harrington was intercepted by safety Yeremiah Bell on a
terrible pass as he threw the ball into coverage during a red
zone drill. Chambers bailed out Culpepper on another play as
he wrestled the ball away from corner Michael Lehan while
crossing the goal line following a long throw. On Day 5,
Culpepper looked much better in the morning, even though
backup TE Justin Peelle dropped what would have been a long
touchdown. Marty Booker dropped one during the evening
practice. Culpepper also had a pass batted down by DL
Vonnie Holliday. Lemon was intercepted by corner Eddie
Jackson while 4th string QB Brock Berlin connected with
Cliff Russell for a 25-yard touchdown. During 2-minute drills,
Harrington hit Marcus Vick, who made a diving catch over the
middle, to keep that drive alive. Culpepper even made a block
on Holliday when the team ran a reverse to Chambers showing
that he’s confident running on his surgically repaired knee.
On Day Six, Culpepper caused a stir when he scrambled for a
touchdown; despite the fact, the defense knew better than to
hit him once he left the pocket. They pulled back as Culpepper
motored past them into the end zone. Harrington avoided a
sack by Yeremiah Bell, but still couldn’t make a play as he fell
on his backside. He got some work with the first team in 11on-11 drills hitting Marcus Vick for two completions in a row
before having a pass batted then intercepted by Channing
Crowder. Lemon completed a nice 20-yard pass down the
sidelines to Jamall Broussard, who made a leaping grab.
During Day Seven, Culpepper worked with some reserve
receivers. He was intercepted by Eddie Jackson in the
morning, but later he completed a nice pass to TE Randy
McMichael and he was sacked by Yeremiah Bell to kill a
drive during a two-minute drill. He bounced back quickly
throwing a ball to rookie Derek Hagan in a tight spot for a 20yard gain. In the same practice, Lemon completed a nice pass
to Jason Willis, while Harrington’s struggles continued as he
missed open receivers and seemed rush in his delivery.
Harrington completed a 40-yard touchdown during 11-on-11
work, but even that was under thrown and Willis had to come
back for the ball to snatch it away from Jackson who had his
mind on scoring six the other way. On Day 8, Culpepper and
Harrington did some scrambling and both had problems
overthrowing their intended targets on occasion. Culpepper
overthrew McMichael in the end zone on one play, while
Harrington flew the coop trying to hit RB Sammy Morris but
missing by three feet. Brock Berlin made an impressive string
of touchdowns during red zone work including an over-theshoulder lob to TE Teyo Johnson.
RB: No news is good news. Ronnie Brown is working hard
and taking advantage of his opportunity to be the Dolphins
featured back in his second season as a pro, but the rumor mill
has the Titans’ Chris Brown interested in playing for the Fish.
More succinctly, Brown’s agent is the one stirring up
commotion. Agent Ryan Morgan has let it be known that the
Dolphins are among the list of teams that Brown wouldn’t
mind going to if a trade does happen. Back in camp, on Day
Six, the play of the day came on a gadget play when
Culpepper handed off to Sammy Morris, who pitched it back
to Culpepper, who threw a deep ball to Marty Booker. It
wasn’t exactly smooth, but the result is what mattered – a 35yard touchdown as Booker jumped over defensive backs Deke
Cooper and Eddie Jackson for the score.
WR: Marty Booker hopes to take advantage of the added
attention defenses are bound to give Chris Chambers this
season. "That's the price you pay for being a good receiver.
You start to get double-teamed," Booker said of Chambers.
The Dolphins No. 1 receiver was limited during this past week
in practice following a mild hamstring injury. He worked on
the sidelines with a trainer for a day and then returned to
practice on Saturday sporting a red, no-contact jersey. Marcus
Vick made the best catch in Thursday’s practice as he dove to
snare a Harrington pass over the middle for a 15-yard gain.
Vick has been extremely impressive with his route running
considering he played quarterback his entire collegiate career.
On Friday, Wes Welker contributed a diving catch between
two defenders for a 50-yard gain. On Saturday, rookie WR
Devin Aromashodu executed a one-man tip drill to make a
touchdown grab over Eddie Jackson.
TE: In Thursday’s morning practice, Justin Peelle let the ball
slip through his hands in the end zone on a long pass from
Joey Harrington. The backup tight ends haven’t been overly
impressive during camp as far as catching the football. Keith
Heinrich had a drop during seven-on-seven drills.
Defense: On Monday, the Dolphins finally came to terms on a
six-year contract with safety Jason Allen, their first round
draft choice. Second year DE Matt Roth is getting comfortable
in his second training camp. “You come in there and you got
these studs that have been proven; they've been in tons of Pro
Bowls [six] and have Super Bowl rings [five]," said Roth. "It's
definitely hard at first to get along and try to break their group
and earn their trust and confidence…But after a while you just
become one of the guys and learn from them." Meanwhile,
fellow DE Jason Taylor missed his fifth consecutive day of
practice on Saturday. Taylor has a back injury, the severity of
which remains unclear. LB Zack Thomas says he is fully
recovered from offseason shoulder surgery. "At first I wanted
to know how it felt to get hit," said Thomas, who was limited
in the team’s minicamp. "When you take FB Fred Beasley on
with your shoulder, you know you're ready to go." Thomas
added seven pounds of muscle during the offseason and he
reported to camp weighing 229 lbs.
Second year DT Manuel Wright has shed his image as being
soft after losing weight. Clearly, he’s feeling more part of the
team this time around. He’s working behind Keith Traylor
hoping to earn more snaps this year. "They treat me with a lot
of respect, they all call me by my little nickname," Wright
said. "It's like ... not lovey-dovey, but it's like, you can tell I'm
part of the family now." In Friday’s morning practice Will
Poole was tooling around in a gold cart with his leg still in a
brace as he recovers from a torn ACL that sidelined him all of
last year. Fellow second-year corner Travis Daniels sprained
his ankle last Wednesday. He was listed as day-to-day after
missing several days of practice. Saban said,” He may be a
few days, but it's still day to day. We'll get the swelling out
and we'll see."
Special Teams: Kicker Olindo Mare has been connecting on
quite a few long field goals in practice, including a 64-yarder
the other day. Practice also includes a drill of kicking without
the ball. Kicker Ola Kimrin noted, "I do it for timing and to
work on my leg swing. But, yeah, it probably looks pretty
dumb." HC Nick Saban has eased up on his practice
requirements for the kickers, "I would make them run routes
on the scout team and all that, but all they did was miss field
goals and lose games and punt bad. Finally I said these are
guys who have a special job to do that's a little different, and
the mind-set they need is a little different." Return specialist
WR Wes Welker will need to stay on top of his game during
camp. He’s part of a crowded WR group, and surprisingly is
not necessarily a lock to make the final roster. That’s even
truer for QB/WR Marcus Vick, who’ll need to impress during
camp at wide receiver and on kickoff and punt returns in order
to stick around.
Dolphins Depth Chart
QB Daunte Culpepper (inj), Joey Harrington, Cleo Lemon
RB Ronnie Brown, Sammy Morris, Travis Minor, Kay Jay
Harris, Gerald Riggs Jr., Ricky Williams (susp)
FB Fred Beasley, Darian Barnes
WR Chris Chambers, Marty Booker, Wesley Welker
(KR/PR), Derek Hagan, Devin Aromashodu, Kelly Campbell,
Marcus Vick (QB), Kendall Newson, Fred Gibson, Jamal
Broussard (KR), Eric Kimble, Frank Murphy (KR)
TE Randy McMichael, Justin Peelle, Keith Heinrich
K Olindo Mare
DE Jason Taylor (OLB) (inj), Kevin Carter (DT), Matt Roth,
David Bowens, Ben Ishola
DT Keith Traylor (NT), Vonnie Holiday, Jeff Zgonina,
Manuel Wright (NT), Fred Evans, Josh Shaw, Kevin
Vickerson, Steve Fifita, Rodrique Wright (inj)
MLB Zack Thomas, Lester Towns
OLB Channing Crowder (W/M), Donnie Spragan (S),
Sedrick Hodge (S), Derrick Pope (W), Keith Newman, Sam
McGrew, Trent Bray, Travis Harris
CB Travis Daniels, Will Allen, Renaldo Hill, Andre
Goodman, Eddie Jackson, Shirdonya Mitchell
S Travares Tillman (SS), Deke Cooper, Jason Allen (FS),
Yeremiah Bell (SS), Norman LeJeune, Michael Lehan
Minnesota Vikings
QB: Mike McMahon is projected to be the Vikings backup
quarterback behind starter Brad Johnson, but he understands
that nothing will be given to him in training camp. He faces
competition from J.T. O’Sullivan. “One of the tough things
about being a backup," said McMahon when asked about
O’Sullivan "is when you do get in there, a lot of times it's not
the way you had hoped it would be. We had a lot of injuries in
Philadelphia. And we had a lot of stuff happening off the field
with Terrell Owens that hurt. But you still have to perform.
So, yeah, I look at J.T. as competition. There's a good chance
they aren't going to keep four quarterbacks, so I could be
going home if I don't perform." Neither player has looked
especially sharp in practices, but HC Brad Childress isn’t
worried yet. "Backups are backups, and they are fighting to be
starters," he said. "They are trying to get their best foot
forward. They are going to get a chance to get on the field in
the preseason, but I don't have a concern because I think it will
all sort itself out." Rookie Tarvaris Jackson is all but assured
of the No. 3 job, which leaves McMahon and O’Sullivan to
vie for the backup job with the loser likely to be cut. In one
practice, the Vikings dedicated much of their session to red
zone offense and defense. They started at the 5-yard line with
the No. 1 offense going against the No. 2 defense for three
plays. Then they swapped as the No. 2 offense worked against
the No. 1 defense. The No. 1 offense scored one touchdown in
three plays, a five-yard pass from QB Brad Johnson to TE Jim
Kleinsasser. The starting defense didn’t allow a score, as CB
Antoine Winfield made an excellent tackle to stop the final
attempt.
RB: Brad Childress removed all doubt as to who the team’s
starting running back is confirming that Chester Taylor is their
featured back. Mewelde Moore will be the primary backup, at
least right now. “(Moore is) the second running back,"
Childress said. "He has to be able to run it between the tackles,
and you know that he has skills to be a pass receiver. You can
extend him and move him out of the backfield, but he's a
backup right now. Right now Chester Taylor is the starter."
Taylor injured his left leg in Friday’s practice forcing him to
sit out both practices on Saturday. Taylor dubbed it "a little
strain" in the groin area. He said he’d return to practice when
the trainers gave him clearance. "It's up to the trainers.
Whenever they say I'm ready to come back, I'll come back."
Taylor removed doubts about his conditioning by showing up
to camp in good shape. Before the injury setback, Taylor was
seen running all over the place in practices, taking handoff
after handoff and hauling in plenty of passes. If Taylor can
stay healthy, he could blossom behind the Vikings much
improved offensive line. Meanwhile, Mewelde Moore should
have a decent role in the Vikings offense, even as a backup.
He’s at his best on third downs but hasn't proven durable
enough to be considered as an every-down back. With Taylor
sidelined, Moore and Ciatrick Fason got plenty of work on
Saturday. Fason had one of the niftiest moves of camp, juking
corner Fred Smoot by faking to his left and darting right.
Fason gained an extra seven yards on the play. Smoot gave
some kudos to Fason on the move – then returned the favor a
few plays later, nailing Fason on an outside run.
The team is ecstatic with the addition of fullback Tony
Richardson during the offseason. Newly elected Hall of Fame
quarterback, and former Viking, Warren Moon said during a
conference call, "He was one of those great leadership, great
locker-room guys… One of the hardest workers on the team,
he has really made himself into an all-pro player over the last
three or four years." Brad Johnson agreed, praising Richardson
for his work in camp. "That has probably been one of the most
important moves that we made in this offseason," Johnson
said, "especially in this system… He's going to get the job
done and be a force for us. He's a great pickup."
WR: So far, Troy Williamson has been practicing alongside
Koren Robinson with the team's starting unit. During 7-on-7
drills, Brad Johnson said Williamson did a nice job catching
passes over the middle as well as making some nice grabs
along the sideline. "I thought Troy Williamson did a good job
of catching the football," added HC Brad Childress. "He had a
couple of tries inside that I thought were in traffic. I was
pleased to see that." Williamson admitted the team's coaching
staff recently uncovered a problem with his hand-eye
coordination. "Everything is with my eyes, pretty much,"
Williamson said. "I know that if I can get my eyes on the ball,
I can just let my hands do the work. It will all work out.”
Travis Taylor is working in the slot as the team’s No. 3
receiver. Offensive coordinator Darell Bevell recently praised
Taylor’s work. "He is a savvy receiver and has a great feel of
how to use his abilities to get open," said Bevell. "This is a
great offense for me," Taylor said, "There is a lot of stuff
across the middle, a lot of driver routes, a lot of crossing
routes. It's going to be tough for a lot of teams to play [manto-man] defense against us." Elsewhere, Kevin Kasper was
knocked out of Saturday’s practice with a bloody nose and the
team released Dez White just a week after signing him.
TE: Jermaine Wiggins is a happy camper playing in Brad
Childress’ version of the West Coast offense. "This is
definitely TE-friendly," said Wiggins. "I'm going to have the
opportunity to make plays, and I'm going to have an
opportunity to do a lot of good things." Last year, the tight
ends had a well-defined role with Wiggins catching passes and
Jimmy Kleinsasser primarily blocking. That is expected to
change this year in the new scheme. New offensive
coordinator Darrell Bevell expects both of the TEs to
contribute in multiple ways. What does that mean? Kleinsasser
could catch more passes while Wiggins might be asked to
block a bit more. So, temper Wiggins’ enthusiasm and don’t
overpay for him on draft day. He’ll see the ball, but probably
not as much as he was targeted in that past few seasons under
Mike Tice.
Defense: On Saturday, safety SS Tank Williams was carted
off the field with an injury to his left knee. It occurred while
backpedaling during 7-on-7 drills without any contact. He has
been diagnosed with a fractured knee and is lost for the
season. Dwight Smith was signed just before camp after being
released by the Saints. He was to compete with Williams
during camp for the starting position, but now will be counted
on. DT Pat Williams started camp on the PUP list after
reporting to camp overweight and not passing the players’
conditioning test. HC Brad Childress had a chat with him on
Friday to set clear expectations for the veteran. "I think he
understands where I'm coming from," Childress said. "And I
understand where he's coming from. So he's got his nose to the
grindstone." DT Manase Hopoi missed Tuesday's practice
(Aug 1st) and had an MRI on his foot after experiencing
swelling. LB Napoleon Harris is hopeful that a move back to
MLB will rejuvenate him this year. "He's real focused, has a
lot of confidence," CB Antoine Winfield said. "He's our leader
at the middle linebacker. We're expecting big things out of
him this year." Rookie corner Charles Gordon underwent
surgery on Monday after suffering cartilage damage in his left
knee. He’ll miss the rest of the preseason and the Vikings
signed former Titans corner Tony Beckham on Saturday. First
round pick LB Chad Greenway left the field with a team
doctor on Saturday. He was shaken up and evaluated for a
possible concussion. Greenway later said the trainers were
"just being cautious" but weren't sure whether he had suffered
a concussion.
Special Teams: Kicker Ryan Longwell has consistently done
well during practice on kickoffs, an area in which the Vikings
struggled in recent years. Special teams coordinator Paul
Ferraro indicated that punter Chris Kluwe is progressing as the
holder on kicks, “He’s doing well. There are some little
technical things here and there in terms of getting the ball
exactly where Ryan [Longwell] wants it and the lean of the
ball and that kind of thing. But for somebody that hasn’t done
it before, I think he’s doing a really nice job at this point.”
Ferraro also discussed the punt returner situation, "Mewelde
[Moore], as of right now today, is our punt returner. He
certainly did a good job and was at a high level a year ago
with that. But we're working some different people back there.
[FS] Darren Sharper is taking some, [WR] Travis Taylor has
taken some, we have some rookies in camp that will be in the
preseason games getting an opportunity. So Mewelde is our
number one guy." Regarding kickoff returns he noted the
following, “We're just going to have to see where it goes with
preseason where Koren Robinson goes with the offense and
where the competition goes with the kick return situation. It's
obvious what he brings to the table, but that's something we're
going to continue to evaluate with the other guys we're giving
some reps too." RB Mewelde Moore, WR Kevin Kasper, WR
Jason Carter, and WR Troy Williamson have practiced on
kickoff returns. CB Charles Gordon was in the mix, until a
knee injury sidelined him for at least the remainder of the
preseason.
Vikings Depth Chart
QB Brad Johnson, Mike McMahon, Tarvaris Jackson, J.T.
O'Sullivan
RB Chester Taylor, Mewelde Moore (PR/KR), Ciatrick
Fason, Joe Echemandu, Wendell Mathis
FB Tony Richardson, Richard Owens, Steven Jackson,
Brandon Jones, Joey Goodspeed (inj)
WR Koren Robinson, Troy Williamson, Travis Taylor,
Marcus Robinson, Billy McMullen, Aaron Hosack, Ryan
Hoag, Kevin Kasper, Josh Davis, Jason Carter
TE Jermaine Wiggins, Jim Kleinsasser (FB), Richard Angulo,
Jeff Dugan
K Ryan Longwell
DE Erasmus James, Kenechi Udeze, Darrion Scott, DeQuincy
Scott, Ray Edwards, Jayme Mitchell, Khreem Smith
DT Pat Williams (NT), Kevin Williams (DE), Spencer
Johnson (DT), C.J. Mosley, Eric Taylor, Manase Hopoi, Ross
Kolodziej
MLB Napoleon Harris (M/S), E.J. Henderson (M/W), Rod
Davis, Kyle McKenzie
OLB Chad Greenway (W), Ben Leber (S), Dontarrious
Thomas (W/M), Heath Farwell (S), Marcus Lawrence
CB Antoine Winfield, Fred Smoot, Devonte Edwards (KR),
Cedric Griffin, Dustin Fox (FS), Will Hunter, Ronyell
Whittaker, Tony Beckham, Ahmad Treaudo, Charles Gordon
(inj)
S Darren Sharper (FS), Dwight Smith (SS/FS), Willie Offord
(SS), Greg Blue (FS/SS), Tank Williams (IR)
New England Patriots
QB: Reports circulated that Tom Brady was “mad as hell”
about the Patriots impasse with veteran WR Deion Branch,
whose holdout continued into the second week of training
camp. When pressed by the media, however, Brady
backpedaled smoothly. Brady made his point, but didn’t want
to further create a rift between the front office and Branch or
even himself. Brady has been wearing a brace on his left leg
during camp. The presence of the brace led to speculation that
Brady had a knee injury, but Brady explained that it’s simply
something he wears as a preventative measure. “Just trying to
be more proactive and take care of myself,” said Brady of the
brace. “You see all these quarterbacks’ left knees get hurt,
Carson Palmer and Brian Griese. The last thing you want to do
is hurt your knee.”
RB: Corey Dillon is playing it forward, so to speak. Instead of
approaching rookie first-round pick Laurence Maroney as
competition, Dillon is taking the young back under his wing in
training camp. Dillon was asked why he wasn’t making him
carry his equipment or giving him grief. Dillon said he doesn’t
belief in hazing; that all Maroney needs to do is buy breakfast
for the other backs. "He said that?" Maroney asked, glancing
over at Dillon, who was smiling back at him. "When did he
say that? I didn't hear that. Does McDonald's count?" Maroney
then added, “He's a cool dude, a really cool dude," he said
talking about Dillon. "He's fun to be around. You can learn a
lot from him." Dillon also talked about not giving up his job
without a fight. After playing last year at 235 lbs., he’s in
better shape than a year ago. “I concentrated in the offseason
on getting my weight down and cutting down my body fat," he
said. "Hopefully, it will work out. You've got to be cognizant
of that… The heavier you get the more problems you tend to
have. This offseason, that was my whole goal, to get a little
leaner and a little stronger. I have no personal goals, no total
(yardage) I want to achieve," Dillon said. "Just come out here
and help the team." For now anyway, everyone is content.
WR: There is no change on the Deion Branch front as the
team and Branch remain in a stalemate. Branch has
accumulated $126,000 in fines (and counting) through the
weekend. Maybe some of those fines will be forgiven if
Branch and the Patriots reach an agreement but the two sides
remain far apart in negotiations. In Branch’s absence,
newcomer Reche Caldwell has been making an impression
with Tom Brady. On the first play of one session, Caldwell ran
past Ellis Hobbs to pull in a long pass from Brady. Caldwell’s
fast start had Brady singing his praise, "He's very athletic, he's
smooth, he's fast, he's got good hands, he's quick, he's
smart...he's really going to be an asset for us this year. I'm
glad he's here. He's an exciting player." Caldwell seems most
likely to assume a major role with Branch incognito and first
round pick Chad Jackson beginning camp on the PUP list,
especially since Andre’ Davis, David Givens and Tim Dwight
all departed via free agency. “Reche can take advantage of that
opportunity,” said Brady, who worked extensively with him
during the offseason. “He’s very exciting and is going to be a
really great playmaker for us this year.” The team is taking it
easy with Troy Brown, but he may once again play a major
role if the other players don’t pan out.
come on strong recently. Both players have been getting the
ball deep on kickoffs; however Gramatica’s tend to be low
returnable line drives while Gostkowski gets more height and
hang time. HC Bill Belichick reminds us that it’s still early,
"You're talking about a three-man operation. We've got two
snappers out there and two kickers. There's a timing element
and they're just getting into the routine of kicking twice a day.
I would say that after the player has been in camp for seven or
eight days, that's a good break-in period. I'd say everyone at
that point is pretty much up to speed. Then you're talking
about volume. Until we have to make a decision, I would let
that competition play out. We've all seen players go at
different rates. We see that in all sports. Some guys start fast
and level out and some guys start slow before hitting their
stride." Rookie CB Willie Andrews continues to be a slight
favorite among a very crowded group of returner candidates
that includes: CB Ellis Hobbs, RB Kevin Faulk, RB Laurence
Maroney, WR Reche Caldwell, WR John Stone, WR Chad
Jackson, WR Bam Childress, WR Matt Shelton, WR Kelvin
Kight, CB Vernell Brown, WR Reche Caldwell, and WR Troy
Brown.
Patriots Depth Chart
TE: The Patriots signed veteran TE Walter Rasby a week ago
to give them added depth at tight end for training camp. It’s no
secret the team plans on utilizing more two-TE sets this year.
Still, Rasby isn’t much of a receiver and he’ll be hard pressed
to make the roster, but he did make a nice one-handed shoestring catch during practice over the weekend.
Defense: The team didn’t like to see Tedy Bruschi break the
scaphoid bone in his wrist last week during practice. The
injury will sideline him for the entire preseason and could cost
him regular season time if it requires surgery. Bruschi’s
absence opens the door for veteran Barry Gardner to spend
time working with the first unit. Gardner watched a lot of
Bruschi on tape during the offseason. ``He's a smart guy and
he's been in the system, so he understands where to fit and
what the defense expects from him," Gardner said. ``I've tried
to feed off that." If Bruschi is out for a long period, the team
once again will use versatile veteran Mike Vrabel on the
inside as well as outside, where he’s spent all of camp thus far.
“You’re never going to be told around here that you’re
‘firmly’ at one position, at least I’m not,” Vrabel said. “I
recognize I could be at a lot of different spots. The past couple
of days I’ve been outside. I expect that to change throughout
the preseason. I’m probably going to end up at different spots
throughout the year. But it’s been a while since I played
outside linebacker, going back to Week 5 of last year. So there
was some rust I had to work out.” On Thursday, defensive
captain Richard Seymour took the field for the first time in
camp. A tight quadriceps kept Seymour from practicing
previously. Seymour remained on the PUP list, but reiterated
that he expects to be at full strength for the regular season.
Safety Mel Mitchell will undergo surgery for a torn biceps
tendon suffered during Thursday’s practice, which will
sideline him for the 2006 season.
Special Teams: Kicker Martin Gramatica has consistently
been making field goals throughout camp. Rookie Stephen
Gostkowski started off camp missing some easy kicks, but has
QB Tom Brady (inj), Matt Cassel, Corey Bramlet
RB Corey Dillon, Laurence Maroney, Kevin Faulk (3RB),
Patrick Cobbs
FB Patrick Pass (3RB), Heath Evans
WR Deion Branch, Reche Caldwell, Chad Jackson, Troy
Brown, Bam Childress, Erik Davis, Michael McGrew, Zuriel
Smith, John Stone, Rich Musinski, Keron Henry, Matt Shelton
(IR)
TE Daniel Graham, Ben Watson, David Thomas, Garrett
Mills (HB/FB), Matt Brandt, Walter Rasby
K Martin Gramatica, Stephen Gostkowski
DE Richard Seymour (DT), Ty Warren (DT), Jarvis Green,
Marquise Hill, Ifo Pili
NT Vince Wilfork, Mario Monds, Dan Klecko, Johnathan
Sullivan, Le Kevin Smith
MLB Tedy Bruschi (inj), Monty Beisel, Chad Brown, Larry
Izzo, Don Davis, Barry Gardner, Fred Roach
OLB Rosevelt Colvin (W/DE), Mike Vrabel (S/I), Tully
Banta-Cain (S), Pierre Woods, Jeremy Mincey
CB Asante Samuel, Ellis Hobbs (KR), Randall Gay, Chad
Scott, Eric Warfield, Hank Poteat, Willie Andrews, Antwain
Spann, Vernell Brown
S Eugene Wilson (FS/CB), Rodney Harrison (SS), Tebucky
Jones (SS/FS), James Sanders (SS), Artrell Hawkins (SS),
Guss Scott, Mel Mitchell (IR)
New Orleans Saints
QB: Drew Brees said he’s ready to play after making it back
from offseason shoulder surgery. "There is no doubt in my
mind that I can go right now," Brees said. "But I'm going to
build gradually, listen to my arm and listen to my body and
build it up from there." He said his shoulder is "85 to 90"
percent healthy adding, "I reached my limit as far as where I
could go with rehab. To pick up that last 10 to 15 percent is
what camp is for." He’s been feeling well enough to scrap the
limitations he placed on himself when camp opened. Brees
said he would not hesitate to throw 120 passes per day. "Now
I'm at the stage where I can almost just walk out on the field
and just start playing. I'm not saying every day I'm going to go
out there and throw 125 balls. I don't think any healthy-armed
guy would throw 125 to 150 balls. That'd be hard, but every
other day is fine.” During Wednesday’s practice, Brees
completed 7-of-9 passes during a full-speed scrimmage
against the starting defense. Brees exhibited good velocity on
balls over the middle, nice touch on his deep passes and even
good accuracy on throws to the sidelines. Head coach Sean
Payton plans to play Brees for a quarter in their preseason
opener at Tennessee on Wednesday. Backup quarterback
Jamie Martin reported to camp last Wednesday. He was
excused for the first five days of camp to help his wife cope
with her battle with breast cancer.
RB: Reggie Bush knows that expectations are sky high for
him after signing his $62 million dollar contract with over $26
million guaranteed. As he took the field for his first practices,
Bush was the focal point of the fans who cheered with
approval nearly every time he touched the ball. Bush looked
good making several would-be tacklers miss as he broke off a
few nice runs. “It was a good day, I thought it was pretty
productive,” he said. However, Bush knows that he won’t be
able to make those jaw-dropping moves with regularity if he
doesn’t seal the deal and prove his ability to pass protect. "I've
always taken pride in those kinds of things," Bush said after
Saturday’s practice. "A lot of what I do is just natural, Godgiven gifts, you know. But something like pass-blocking,
that's really something you have to want to be good at. It isn't
something that just happens. You've got to work at it and,
when you do it well, there's a real sense of accomplishment. I
don't know, maybe that's why I like it so much." In Saturday’s
scrimmage, Bush carried the ball eight times for 30 yards and
he caught four receptions for 19 yards. Despite a procession of
quick whistles, Bush was able to display his agility and
acceleration during another practice as he finished with about
35 yards rushing on seven attempts and about 30 yards
receiving on five catches. Coach Payton and QB Drew Brees
both thought Bush looked explosive. Payton added, "We all
kind of saw that gear that everybody talks about Reggie
having. He looks good on a college field; I think he looks
pretty good on an NFL field, too." Meanwhile, Deuce
McAllister is waiting for live tackling to test his surgicallyrepaired right knee. Payton has not allowed the defense to
wrap up RBs and WRs fearing injury.
WR: The more things change, the more they remain the same
with the Saints receiving corps. Last year, Joe Horn seemed to
fall off his Pro Bowl perch as the younger Donte’ Stallworth
finally showed more of his explosive potential. Yet, while
everyone assumed that Stallworth would be starting for the
team as camp got underway, it was Devery Henderson lining
up at his No. 2 spot instead. Ironically, the only “sure thing”
seems to be Joe Horn at the No. 1 spot again. "In Devery
Henderson's case he's working hard, and he keeps going and
going. There's things he's working on and improving. There's
some things he does real well. I thought he came off a pretty
good offseason. In Donte' Stallworth's (groin) case it's hard
because he's injured," HC Sean Payton said last Friday.
Henderson is trying to make the best of his fresh start with the
new regime. He’s running better routes and he’s working hard,
but the dropped passes remain an issue and he’ll need to be
more consistent if he’s going to keep Stallworth out of the
starting lineup.
"Devery just had to get his confidence back. The big thing was
he was letting the dropped balls linger. I told him that he had
to get amnesia, so I had to stay on him a little bit." With help
from the coaches, Henderson seems to have snapped out of his
funk and he’s now doing what he did all spring — catching
the football. Meanwhile, the staff is leaning on Stallworth to
pick up his pace in practices. "He's made some progress,"
Payton said regarding Stallworth. "I'm trying to get more
consistency and see him try to get better. He's made some
progress. With a number of guys we just need to see them
keep getting better. He's getting better. We need to see him get
better. We need to see (starting WR Joe) Horn and he's been
working hard. I think Joe's having a pretty good camp. I'm
looking for consistency. If you're a receiver you need to be
able to catch the football. Linebackers need to be able to
tackle. Your receivers need to be able to catch. He's been
working hard at it. We'll see how it goes. We'll see his
progress."
TE: Ernie Conwell is running with the first team so far in
camp while free agent addition Mark Campbell is mostly
running with the second team. Zach Hilton remains in the mix,
but he’s mostly running with the third team. Tim Euhus and
Nate Lawrie are also in the mix for a roster spot.
Defense: As expected, veteran LB Anthony Simmons, who
was AWOL when training camp began, announced his
retirement citing family issues and a flare up of an old wrist
injury that kept him out of the league last season. The Saints
made a couple of roster moves signing DT Joe Minucci to a
contract while waiving DT McKinley Boykin. Also, according
to reports, there are several veterans who may be on the roster
bubble this preseason. Those players include safety Steve
Gleason, WR/KR Michael Lewis and reserve RB Fred
McAfee. "I think that they're competing against the down-theline receivers and defensive backs," head coach Sean Payton
said. "I see Gleason as a guy that, although he primarily plays
specials teams, he's comfortable playing safety as well. In
Michael Lewis' case, he's had a great career as a returner. For
him it's more how does he come off this injury? Fred's case is
the same way; he's had a long career. Those guys know each
year that they're competing against the other guys on the
roster. We'll see how it unfolds. That phase of it (special
teams) is going to be important to us, as it is to any other
team."
Special Teams: The Saints’ scrimmage on Saturday turned
out to be a showcase for the kickers. John Carney went 6-of-6
on field goals (32, 35, 37, 37, 46, and 46 yards), while rookie
Connor Hughes went 2-of-2 (37 and 49 yards). One task for
Carney in camp is to adjust to a new holder, "I'm just trying to
dial some things in and working with a new holder, Jamie
Martin. So, as always, it's a matter of getting a lot of reps with
the new holder and just getting into rhythm." Return specialist
WR Michael Lewis had arthroscopic knee surgery last year, a
follow-up clean out procedure a month ago, and still hasn’t
been able to practice. HC Sean Payton said the following
regarding rookie RB Reggie Bush’s role on returns, "We've
got an idea of what we want to do, we'll move forward. We're
not ready to announce it." If Lewis isn’t ready for the regular
season, then Bush may be very involved no matter what idea
they have now. Payton indirectly hinted that punt returns
could be a more likely option for Bush, "Well I think probably
there are greater collisions on kickoff returns. Guys are
running further. The life expectancy of kick returners isn't
long.” The experiment of QB Adrian McPherson trying punt
returns continues, “"They asked me if I had ever done punt
return. I said that I had never done it, but I could catch. It
might not look good, but I can catch the ball."
Saints Depth Chart
QB Drew Brees, Jamie Martin, Todd Bouman, Adrian
McPherson, Jason Fife
RB Deuce McAllister (inj), Reggie Bush (KR/PR), Aaron
Stecker (3RB/KR), Ray Hudson
FB Mike Karney, Fred McAfee. Jamar Martin
WR Joe Horn, Donte Stallworth, Devery Henderson, Bethel
Johnson, Chris Horn, Mike Hass, Michael Lewis (KR/PR),
Chase Lyman, Jamal Jones, Lance Moore
TE Ernie Conwell, Mark Campbell, Zach Hilton, Tim Euhus,
Nate Lawrie, Billy Miller, Marcus Colston, Wesley Dukes
K John Carney, Connor Hughes
DE Charles Grant, Will Smith, Tony Bryant, Rob Ninkovich,
Tommy Davis
DT Brian Young, Willie Whitehead, Hollis Thomas, Rodney
Leisle, Brandon Villareal, Joe Minucci
MLB Alfred Fincher, Colby Bockwoldt (W/M), Cie Grant
OLB Scott Fujita (S), Tommy Polley (W), Jay Foreman,
Terrence Melton (W), E.J. Kuale, Bobby Iwuchukwu, James
Allen (S) (inj)
CB Mike McKenzie, Jason Craft, Fred Thomas, Joey
Thomas, Josh Lay, Grant Mason, Anwar Phillips, Ray
Williams
S Josh Bullocks (FS), Bryan Scott (SS/FS), Jay Bellamy (SS),
Roman Harper (FS), Steve Gleason (FS)
New York Giants
QB: All of the Giants backups - Tim Hasselbeck, Jared
Lorenzen and Rob Johnson - are in the mix for the No. 2 job.
Each player had had his moments prompting head coach Tom
Coughlin to say, “They do different things well on different
days… Tim has been pretty consistent. We’ve had some
flashes there, and some flashes out of Jared. Rob had a couple
nice balls here today. There is no question that it is very
competitive right now, and it’s going to be interesting.
Naturally, the competition, I hope, is going to bring out the
best in those three and we’ll be able to make a difficult
choice.” In one morning practice, Hasselbeck made several
nice throws, especially on one deep ball over the middle to
Amani Toomer. Hasselbeck also threw a pretty pass to David
Tyree down the seam on the right side.
RB: One of the biggest changes in camp from a year ago is the
transformation of 2nd-year RB Brandon Jacobs from a shy
rookie to a confident, almost brash participant often seen
jawing with defenders on the field. The contact in camp so far
has been limited. There is no tackling, just “thud” hits. For
veteran corner Frank Walker, that’s probably a good thing.
Jacobs took a handoff in one practice and sprinted through the
secondary as the 5-10, 198-pound Walker playfully acted like
he was going to tackle the 6-4, 265-pound running back.
"Yeah, right," Jacobs yelled as he jogged past Walker. "You
ain't stupid." Jacobs said, "I told Frank, 'I love you to death,
but realistically, you're not coming up like that.'" Tom
Coughlin likes what he’s seeing of his young back. "He's
learning, growing, trying to understand how best to protect
himself and to get into the best situation to be most effective…
We've seen some improvement, but we're going to have to see
how things go when things turn bad." Other players have
noticed the improved RB depth. "I think it's very important to
have depth at the running back position should something
happen or just to give me a blow," RB Tiki Barber said. "Last
year, I didn't think Brandon or Derrick [Ward] were ready for
that, but I think they've made strides this offseason." On
Sunday, the Giants backup RBs were sidelined after Jacobs
turned up an irregular heartbeat and Derrick Ward broke the
fifth metatarsal (outside bone) in his foot. Jacobs underwent a
stress test on Monday to further evaluate his condition. As for
Ward, the severity of his injury is unknown and the team
wasn’t sure when he’d return to the practice field.
WR: On Wednesday last week, Plaxico Burress did not
practice. He sprained his ankle the day before and spent most
of the day’s morning session with his ankle wrapped and
elevated. “It’s a little sore, that’s all - nothing to get overly
excited about,” Burress said. "I woke up this morning and it
was a little sore and stiff. I told the trainers I couldn’t go. I
might (practice this afternoon). It just swelled up overnight. It
was a little stiff.” Tim Carter worked with the first team in
Burress’ absence. Burress returned to the field on Thursday
and caught the first two passes by Eli Manning. Amani
Toomer made a terrific catch of a Manning throw in the right
side of the end zone. The receiver drawing the most attention
so far in camp has easily been Tim Carter. On Friday, Carter
made a spectacular catch on a Manning throw that covered 31
yards during a one-minute drive drill. Carter has been catching
everything thrown his way. "I definitely think it’s my best
camp, mainly because of consistency," Carter said. "I’m more
consistent about everything. I’m focused on the details and the
small things, but also the major things, the ability to make the
plays I need to make." Meanwhile, rookie Sinorice Moss has
hardly practiced because of a strained quad muscle. “I don’t
feel good about that,” Carter said about his new teammate.
“He’s a very talented player and he’s a great addition to the
team. I think he’s going to contribute. As far as me getting
better during this camp, I’m definitely happy and excited
about that.” On Friday night, Carter continued his fine play
when he leaped high in the end zone to snag the ball away
from two defenders, Corey Webster and Will Demps, to end a
hurry-up drill by scoring.
TE: After missing almost a week due to a concussion suffered
in a collision with safety Will Demps, Jeremy Shockey
returned to practice on Sunday. "Yesterday I felt pretty much
what you would call myself again," Shockey said. "Every day
I feel better. I was trying to get in there a couple times and
they wouldn't let me in. I'm anxious to go against the defense.
We have to find a happy medium between the two, and I think
we did that this morning." On Friday, Coughlin was asked if
Shockey’s situation was similar that of Sinorice Moss’, but
Coughlin said, “Shockey has done it before… He’s a veteran
player. He’s been in the system. Moss has no idea, he’s just
learning on a daily basis. It’s a situation where the more he
misses the more difficult it is going to be. Jeremy has been out
enough now to need to get back in the harness as well.” Asked
if he was upset with Demps for the play that resulted in his
concussion, Shockey stated, “I was upset at Will at first, but
he was going for the ball. I looked at the play and it was really
the ground – Mother Nature – that caused it.” For his part,
Demps didn’t feel like he owed Shockey an apology either.
"We were both going for a play," Demps said. "It is what it is.
It's a mild concussion. It's football."
Defense: Giants fans need not worry about DE Osi
Umenyiora’s play falling off this year. "He's becoming a
complete player," said Luke Petitgout, who goes up against
Umenyiora every day in practice. "He's not just flying off the
ball. Well, he is, but he's not a one-dimensional player."
Umenyiora said, "Everything is different now, I know that…
Your peers voted you to be amongst the best in the entire
NFL, so you have to walk with a certain swagger. That said, if
you want to continue to be there, you have to forget about
everything you've accomplished." Petitgout agreed adding,
"You can see him maturing as a player. The experience and
intelligence along with his physical ability. Anybody can just
run around. I expect big things out of him this year." But
nobody expects more out of Umenyiora than himself, noting
that he coined the phrase "Get your Osi up!" as a rallying cry
for the defensive line last year. On Thursday, Michael Strahan
left practice after experiencing tightness in his back. LB
Carlos Emmons missed a couple practices with a burner and
safety Gibril Wilson sat out one afternoon practice with a hip
flexor. LaVar Arrington also missed practice over the
weekend because of soreness. “He’s got a couple of different
areas,” HC Tom Coughlin said. “We thought we’d see if we
could get him for tonight.” Arrington said his absence is
“nothing to be alarmed about.” During Friday’s evening
practice, the secondary turned in some strong play knocking
down several balls and coming up with an interception when
Corey Webster picked off an Eli Manning pass intended for
Plaxico Burress.
Special Teams: Kicker Jay Feely rooms with LBs LaVar
Arrington and Brandon Short. Off the field they spend their
free time playing chess. Dating all the way back to their days
at Penn State, Short has beaten Arrington in every game
except one. Feely is the chess rookie, “I’ve never played
before this. By the end of camp I’m going to be beating both
of them.” RB Chad Morton, CB R.W. McQuarters, and WR
Michael Jennings practiced reverses and laterals on kickoff
returns. Rookie WR Sinorice Moss, who could possibly
challenge Morton on returns, missed time with a quadriceps
injury. HC Tom Coughlin noted, "It's a situation where the
more he misses the more difficult it is going to be." One of the
most explosive returners for the Giants is WR Willie Ponder;
however two fumbles kept him in Coughlin’s doghouse last
year. He discussed the matter, "It's been kind of tough. I'm not
going to sit here and lie to you. My role was reduced. I didn't
really know why. It's up to the coaches. I was sat down, my
time was reduced, maybe it was because of the fumble against
Minnesota. They don't want no fumbles. I can't drop the ball.
I'm going to break out of the doghouse or I'm going to stay in
the doghouse. Either way, I'm going to work hard. I'm a quiet
guy. I'm going to continue to work and work and work."
Giants Depth Chart
QB Eli Manning, Tim Hasselbeck, Rob Johnson, Jared
Lorenzen
RB Tiki Barber, Brandon Jacobs (SD), Derrick Ward (inj),
Chad Morton (PR), Little John Flowers, James Sims, Ryan
Grant (inj)
FB Jim Finn
WR Plaxico Burress, Amani Toomer, Tim Carter, Sinorice
Moss, David Tyree, Willie Ponder (KR), Anthony Mix, Harry
Williams
TE Jeremy Shockey, Vishante Shiancoe, Boo Williams, Tony
Jackson, Darcy Johnson
K Jay Feely
DE Michael Strahan, Osi Umenyiora, Justin Tuck, Mathias
Kiwanuka, Eric Moore, Willie Evans, Thomas Carroll
DT William Joseph, Fred Robbins, Damane Duckett, Barry
Cofield, Jonas Seawright, Ahmad Childress, Junior Ioane,
Marcus Green
MLB Antonio Pierce (W/M), Gerris Wilkerson, Kevin Lewis,
Chase Blackburn
OLB Lavar Arrington (S) (inj), Carlos Emmons (W), Reggie
Torbor (S), Brandon Short (S), Nick McNeil
CB Sam Madison, Corey Webster, R.W. McQuarters
(FS/PR), Frank Walker, Curtis Deloatch, Jason Bell, Brandon
Williams, Gerrick McPhearson, E.J. Underwood, Kevin
Dockery
S Gibril Wilson (SS), Will Demps (FS), Quentin Harris,
Charlie Peprah (SS), James Butler (inj)
New York Jets
QB: Chad Pennington has taken control of the quarterback
competition. According to one source, he has won the starting
job even though head coach Eric Mangini didn’t make a
formal announcement and rebuffed the reports that Pennington
was named the starter. During the team’s scrimmage on
Sunday, Pennington looked poised and accurate working with
the first team offense. He finished 12-of-14 for 117 yards.
While many doubted how strong Pennington would rebound
from this last shoulder surgery, there is no doubt that he’s
looked good in camp. Some are even surprised by the arm
strength and accuracy that he’s displayed in practice thus far.
He’s easily distanced himself from Patrick Ramsey. "We're
surprised at the progress he's made," said a team official. "No
one expected him to be this far along this early." In an earlier
non-contact scrimmage Pennington also established himself as
the offensive leader. He split time with the first team with
Brooks Bollinger, but he looked sharp, completing 6-of-7 for
38 yards with a TD to Laveranues Coles. He also completed a
two-point conversion to Tim Dwight. Meanwhile, Ramsey
didn’t do much with his opportunity completing 7-of-12 for 60
yards. He was sacked twice and had two delay-of-game
penalties.
RB: The mystery with Curtis Martin continues to linger and
fuel speculation that he may indeed retire. Martin remains on
the PUP list, but he’s been working out on the side of the
practice field. Mangini continues to say Martin will practice
when he's ready, but he’s not given any indication when that
will be. Meanwhile, the Jets are probing the market, according
to sources, just in case Martin won’t be ready for the season
opener, if at all. Martin continues to say he wants to play this
year, but there are rumors that he might not fit into the Jets’
plans. In the mean time, the team is using Martin’s absence to
get a better read on what they have in Cedric Houston, Derrick
Blaylock and rookie Leon Washington. "I think both Derrick
and Cedric have shown some good things in different areas,"
Mangini said, complimenting Houston for his blocking and
Blaylock on his improved route running. He also liked
Washington’s awareness noting that he’s “paying attention at
the meetings." Blaylock missed most of 2005, but he says he’s
ready to bounce back with a strong year. "It's not about what
Blaylock can do to show the fans what he can do," he said,
"it's about what Blaylock can do to help this team win."
Houston said he wouldn't mind a "running back-bycommittee" situation if it comes down to that. "We're just
going out and practicing so hard," he said, "you can't tell who's
out here and who's not." Meanwhile, as the Jets poke around
the league, one person close to the team said they have
expressed interest in Titans RB Chris Brown. The Titans need
to grant Brown permission to speak with other teams first, so
for now any such talk is in a holding pattern.
WR: Two players have drawn attention in the first week or so
in camp. The first is Jerricho Cotchery, who has an outside
shot of displacing starter Justin McCareins if he continues to
have a strong showing in camp. "I'd say I've made a lot of
improvements over the last year," said Cotchery, who has
opened eyes by catching difficult passes in traffic the last few
days. "The coaching staff has challenged me a little bit. That's
helped me out a lot." One positive factor working in
Cotchery’s favor is the presence of wide receivers coach Noel
Mazzone, the former offensive coordinator at NC State where
Cotchery played. "I gained a lot from him," Cotchery said of
his previous time with Mazzone. Will Mazzone be helpful to
Cotchery now? "I think he will be," Cotchery said. "He knows
how I approach the game and he knows my abilities. He
knows what it takes to get certain things out of me."
Meanwhile, rookie Brad Smith is also drawing praise from the
coaching staff with numerous highlight reel catches. Mangini
commented, "Each day is a little bit better… Each day you
capitalize on the opportunity and it's not, 'Well, who is that
guy?' It's, 'Did you see what he did?' or 'He's really making
progress here.'" On one play Smith made an impressive
touchdown catch from Brooks Bollinger as he adjusted his
body after initially trying to catch the ball over his left
shoulder only to make the catch over his right shoulder while
falling down on the sideline. "I know they expect me to make
plays in any kind of way," Smith said. "That's how it was in
college, so I don't know if they'd be surprised." The team
hopes the 6’2” Smith can become the same type of playmaker
he was in college. Smith was the first quarterback in Division
1-A history to pass for more than 8,000 yards and run for more
than 4,000. He’s still a work in progress and he’s dropped a
few balls, but his upside is huge. For now, he’s competing
with Reggie Newhouse for the No. 5 WR. His quarterbacking
skills may come into play at some point, too. In practice,
Smith had a few chances to throw passes on reverses. "I
definitely like that," Smith said. "When I have the opportunity
to throw, I need to make the right decision with it."
TE: Sixth-round draft pick, tight end Jason Pociask is out for
the year after injuring his shoulder. He was placed on injured
reserve. Last year’s starter (before he was lost for the season)
Chris Baker watched video of Antonio Gates during the
offseason in an attempt to improve his own skills. "I'm not
Antonio Gates, but I think I can do a lot of things in the
passing game that I haven't done here in the past with an
expanded role," said Baker, who averaged almost 15 yards per
catch last year. Baker is competing with Doug Jolley for the
starting job re-enacting the same competition he won last year
during training camp.
Defense: Jonathan Vilma is learning a new position as the
team shifts to a 3-4 defense this season. Vilma’s been studying
hard to learn his new duties at inside linebacker. “It doesn’t
surprise me that Jon would do that extra work and try to study
and give himself any edge he can,” said Eric Mangini, adding,
“Jonathan is a great example of what you can do if you take
the coaching, if you study, and if you work the technique.”
Also making a shift is 310-pound lineman DeWayne
Robertson, who will slide over to nose tackle instead of lining
up in the guard-tackle gap as he did a year ago. Robertson will
now line up over the center. “Nose tackle is a great position,”
he said. “I’m having fun learning how to play it.” The Jets lost
corner Drew Coleman to a season-ending knee injury on
Sunday. Earlier they signed Bruce Thornton, who was
released earlier in the week by the 49ers. The Jets also waived
defensive back Jovon Johnson.
Special Teams: Kicker Mike Nugent has been looking strong
in camp. He hit a 58-yard field goal between narrowed
uprights in practice, and hit a 50-yard field goal into the wind
at the end of a scrimmage. He is now the only kicker on the
roster, as the camp leg D.J. Fitzpatrick was released. Leading
punt return candidate WR Tim Dwight started off practice by
muffing a punt, however he looked good thereafter and by the
end of the day had won over the crowd of fans. Down at the
other end of the punt return depth chart is rookie RB Leon
Washington. He’s shown good hands and has impressed HC
Eric Mangini. The kickoff return depth chart is still a question.
CB Justin Miller, WR Tim Dwight, WR Jerricho Cotchery,
and RB Derrick Blaylock are all candidates for the upper
spots.
Jets Depth Chart
QB Chad Pennington, Patrick Ramsey, Kellen Clemens,
Brooks Bollinger
RB Curtis Martin (inj), Cedric Houston, Derrick Blaylock,
Leon Washington, Stacy Tutt (QB/WR), Nick Hartigan
FB B.J. Askew
WR Laveranues Coles, Justin McCareins, Jerricho Cotchery,
Tim Dwight (PR), Brad Smith, Reggie Newhouse, Dante
Ridgeway, Maurice Avery, Deqawn Mobley, Phil Silva, Chris
Baker
TE Chris Baker, Doug Jolley, Joel Dreessen, Jason Pociask
(IR)
K Mike Nugent
DE Shaun Ellis, Kimo Van Oelhoffen, Trevor Johnson, Dave
Ball, Darrell Adams
NT Dewayne Robertson, Sione Pouha, Monsanto Pope, Matt
McChesney, Titus Adams, Brennan Schmidt
ILB Jonathan Vilma, Brad Kassell, Anthony Schlegel
OLB Eric Barton (W) (inj), Victor Hobson (S), Bryan
Thomas (DE), Matt Chatham (S), Darrell McClover, Craig
Bailey, Blake Costanzo, Alonzo Jackson
CB David Barrett, Andre Dyson, Justin Miller (KR), Derrick
Straight, Ray Mickens, Andrew Davison, Roosevelt Williams,
Lamont Reid, D.J. Johnson, Drew Coleman (inj), Rayshun
Reed, Bruce Thornton
S Erik Coleman (SS) (inj), Kerry Rhodes (FS), Rashad
Washington, Eric Smith (SS), James Taylor, Andre Maddox,
Jamie Thompson
Oakland Raiders
QB: Head coach Art Shell likes what he is seeing from Aaron
Brooks. Shell said he is beginning to see signs that Brooks is
mastering the job and showing the kind of leadership he was
hoping to see from the team’s new quarterback. "Aaron is
taking big strides," Shell said after Tuesday morning's practice
in Napa. "The light bulb is going off. He understands what
we're doing." Shell said he plans to give Brooks some freedom
to call plays at the line, especially during 2-minute drills and
no-huddle situations. Brooks talked about how his first camp
as the Raiders quarterback is going. "My leadership qualities”
carried over from New Orleans he said. "I'm good with handson communication. My skills speak for themselves. The
communication factor from player to player and player to
coach is probably one of my best attributes. A team like this
needs that." Shell agreed: “If you perform, the team will
eventually come toward you. The guys are looking at Aaron as
a guy that can be a leader on this team. But you have to do
your job. You can't just come in and say, 'I'm the leader
because I'm the quarterback.'”
RB: You can count LaMont Jordan among the happy campers
under new coach Art Shell. "Coach said we're going to run the
ball, we're going to run the ball, we're going to run the ball,
and two more times, we're going to run the ball," Jordan said
as he oozed confidence in the team’s newly installed offense.
"As a running back, you want to hear that." Shell expanded on
that a bit saying, "This is the Al Davis system… I grew up in
this system. It allows you to run the football with power.
We're going to come downhill at you, attack the flanks, just
run the football. And then, play-action and strike from
anywhere on the field. "That's the way it's always been." Shell
has implemented an inside the tackles philosophy that has
Jordan excited. "Last year, we did a lot of sideways stuff,"
Jordan said. "That was not our identity. I didn't like it, the
offensive line didn't like it. I never really did make the
adjustment and say, 'Hey, this is what we're going to do, so
this is what we have to do.' Now, we're going to play attackthe-defense style of offense. I think this offense is definitely
geared more toward my running style." For his part, Jordan is
donning more of a Raiders-like mentality going into this
season. Jordan took boxing lessons during the offseason,
bought a black “Scarface” shirt and he even grew a beard and
shaved his head – all part of his new image. “I've been a little
bit too nice," Jordan said. "A couple of my boys told me that
when I was in New York, I ran a lot angrier. I was an angry
man, and I have to get back to being that angry guy that I was
... to being a violent running back. Scarface is an angry guy,
too, when he needs to. I won't go psycho, but, hopefully, I will
go crazy on the football field with the football."
WR: The Raiders aren’t paying much attention to Jerry
Porter’s attitude and injury problems. When asked about
Porter’s antics, the legendary Al Davis quipped, "He has lost
his way a little bit, but he is a good guy." Davis answered
whether the Raiders would accommodate his trade demands.
“If someone offers us the (draft) choice we want or a
representative player and the $4 million bonus he took from us
this year, we'll respond," Davis said. "They got to get it done.
(Porter's) agent has known this since the draft (in April).
Before the draft, he knew what he had to do. He couldn't get it
done." Meanwhile, the team is moving on and fourth-year WR
Doug Gabriel is taking Porter’s place with the first team
offense opposite Randy Moss and Alvis Whitted is now
involved in three-receiver sets. "We think we have a good
receiving corps, and Doug is one of those guys," Shell said.
"He can make plays, so we're just looking to see that he gets a
chance to show what he can do."
TE: After missing several days of practice, Courtney
Anderson returned to practice last week. He also caught a
touchdown pass from Aaron Brooks in Sunday’s Hall of Fame
game against Philadelphia on the team’s opening drive.
Defense: Not long after Art Shell was named the team’s head
coach, he called DE Tyler Brayton into his office to let him
know that he was moving back to defensive end. "I said,
'Tyler, you're a defensive end,'" Shell said. "He said, 'Thanks a
lot, coach. I really appreciate it.' He said, 'I'll show you what I
can do from that position.' It's good to have him there."
Brayton had been moved between DE and OLB in the Raiders
hybrid defense the past couple of season, which seemed to
limit Brayton from playing up to his physical abilities. Some
players adapt to change better than others, while some players
were never meant for a different position. Hold that thought,
because rookie Darnell Bing appears to be adjusting to outside
linebacker very well after playing safety during his college
career at USC. "Darnell is making the adjustment very well,"
said Shell. The Raiders hope that putting Bing closer to the
line of scrimmage will help him make better use of his
mobility and speed. Meanwhile, LB Kirk Morrison was back
on the field after missing two days because of a hamstring
problem. Corner Duane Starks aggravated his back and he is
temporarily sidelined again. LB Robert Thomas missed
practice with a calf injury.
Special Teams: Kicker Sebastian Janikowski may have
finally gotten a good night’s sleep following the HOF game.
After struggling all last year, and early in camp this year, he
was perfect on all three FG attempts (24, 50, and 51 yards) in
the game. By comparison, last year he missed all three 50+
yard attempts for the season. Return specialist CB Chris Carr
didn’t fare as well in the game. His one kickoff return went for
only 14 yards, and his two punt returns went for seven and
negative one yard. WR Doug Gabriel did a little better on his
two kickoff returns, averaging 22.0 yards. Two rookies saw
the other action on punt returns. WR Burl Toler averaged 2.5
yards on his two returns, while CB Dennis Davis fair caught
his opportunity. Special teams’ practices have been intense
under new coordinator Ted Daisher. Carr described them,
“He's basically just stressing the fundamentals. Most returns
that go wrong, people are just on the wrong side, or they got
lazy and did the wrong thing. They seem real adamant if
people aren't doing their jobs, they're going to put somebody
else in, so I think everyone is real confident more lanes are
going to open up."
Raiders Depth Chart
QB Aaron Brooks, Andrew Walter, Marques Tuiasosopo,
Kent Smith
RB LaMont Jordan, Justin Fargas, Rod Smart (KR), ReShard
Lee, DeJuan Green
FB Zack Crockett (SD/3RB), Joe Hall
WR Randy Moss, Jerry Porter (inj), Doug Gabriel, Ron Curry
(PR) (inj), Alvis Whitted, Johnnie Morant, Carlos Francis
(KR), Kevin McMahan, Rick Gatewood, James Adkisson
TE Courtney Anderson, John Paul Foschi (FB), Randal
Williams, Marcellus Rivers, O.J. Santiago, John Madsen,
Jacob Brown
K Sebastian Janikowski
DE Derrick Burgess, Tyler Brayton, Bobby Hamilton, Grant
Irons, Lance Johnstone, Bryant McNeal, Ryan Riddle
DT Warren Sapp (inj), Tommy Kelly, Ed Jasper, Terdell
Sands (NT), Anttaj Hawthorne, Kenny Smith, Donnell
Washington
MLB Kirk Morrison (I/W), Danny Clark (I)
OLB Sam Williams (S) (inj), Thomas Howard (S), Robert
Thomas (S/W), Darnell Bing (S/W), Isaiah Ekejiuba, Henri
Crockett
CB Nnamdi Asomugha, Fabian Washington, Stanford Routt,
Tyrone Poole, Duane Starks
S Stuart Schweigert (FS), Derrick Gibson (SS), Michael Huff
(S/CB), Chris Carr (PR), Calvin Branch, Keyon Nash
Philadelphia Eagles
QB: The Eagles opened their preseason in the Hall of Fame
game Sunday night against the Oakland Raiders. Donovan
McNabb played just one series hitting all three passes for 29
yards as Brian Westbrook capped the 61-yard drive with a 1yard touchdown run. "We came with a different attitude,"
McNabb said. "This is something that's serious for us. We
were prepared to come out and have a good showing."
McNabb returned to action following a sports hernia surgery
that doomed his 2005 season, one of the main reasons the
Eagles finished 6-10. McNabb is as competitive and
enthusiastic as ever going into the season. He said, “The
majority of guys that are out there with me are guys that have
played in game situations. So we don’t have to worry too
much about butterflies and guys second-guessing themselves.
But, we will have some guys rotating in there with the first
group. Rookies like WR Hank Baskett or WR Jason Avant if
he continues to get healthier to work in there with us. It will be
something to try and calm them down but I think they will be
able to learn from the rest of us.”
RB: Brian Westbrook also looked good in his preseason debut
after missing the last four games in 2005 with a sprained foot.
Westbrook rushed for 32 yards, had a 1-yard TD and caught a
14-yard pass in his brief appearance. "I think as an offensive
unit we're out there trying to prove we can run the ball,"
Westbrook said. "We've certainly committed a lot of time to
the running game and we did it out there in the first preseason
game." Later in the game, RB Bruce Perry was taken off the
field on a stretcher after he initially lost all feeling to his arms
and legs. Perry quickly regained feeling and gave the crowd
the old “thumbs up” as he was taken off the field. He was
later diagnosed with a concussion. Eagles coach Andy Reid
said Perry had X-rays taken of his neck and they were
negative. A CT scan also came back normal and Perry was
expected to travel with the team back to Pennsylvania. "He
had some loss of feeling in his arms and legs initially and the
feeling started to come back," Reid said. "I don't know how far
along he is now." Reid said that veteran Correll Buckhalter
was experiencing tenderness in his knee last week after he was
held out of practice. "A little bit of swelling," Reid said.
"Again, we know there are going to be ups and downs with it
and we've just got to be smart with it. He got some great work
in yesterday." Rookie FB Jason Davis underwent surgery on
his broken hand. He had pins and screws inserted. Ryan Moats
remained out of practice all week with a sprained knee
ligament. Earlier last week, Westbrook was held out of
practice for two days because of a stomach virus. With injuries
reducing the number of players available, veteran Reno
Mahe’s chances of making the team improved. "I'm one of
those guys you call a 'bubble guy,' so I never know what is
going to happen," Mahe said. "You never feel safe… It's been
good to get more reps and give them more film so they see
that you're doing everything to make this team… The bad
thing is - ugh! - your body," he added. "Your body is saying,
'No more.' "
WR: One of the players generating talk is undrafted rookie
receiver Hank Baskett, who earned a start in the Hall of Fame
game opposite Reggie Brown. Baskett has been making big
catches and taking full advantage of the opportunity he is
getting in practice and in the game. He’s 6-4 and 220 pounds.
Obviously, his size is impressive, but he uses his strength well
to gain separation and he’s not as slow as his size might
suggest. With Todd Pinkston still sidelined while recovering
from the Achilles injury that placed him on IR last year,
Baskett is progressing nicely. “I’ll tell you what; he’s a big,
strong, physical receiver that’s had a solid camp. And, we’ll
see. I talked about that just a little earlier. We’ll see if he can
bring what he does from practice into a game, so, what a great
opportunity for him," assistant head coach/offensive
coordinator Marty Mornhinweg said. As camp moves forward,
Baskett will probably fall back to Earth a bit, but he’s worth
keeping an eye for those of you in dynasty leagues. The
Eagles removed Jeremy Bloom from the PUP list on August 1.
Defense: The Eagles rewarded Pro Bowl safety Brian
Dawkins with a two-year contract extension on Sunday. "It's
nice to get this out of the way and it's time to get the season
going," Dawkins said. "I'm looking forward to being here
another two years. It's a good thing for me, absolutely, and for
the organization." The Eagles were also happy to ink firstround pick DT Brodrick Bunkley for a six-year deal. Bunkley
was the 14th overall pick in this year’s draft. Andy Reid said
DE Darren Howard was held out of practice last week due to
inflammation and swelling in his knee. "Until we get that out,
we won't bring him back out here," Reid said. "He's had that
before and we just will work with it and get it taken care of."
Reid also said incumbent LB Dhani Jones remains ahead of
LB Greg Richmond in the battle at strongside linebacker. On
the opposite side, WLB Matt McCoy is working hard to keep
his new starting job. “I think anytime you go in the first
preseason game, the first thing you want to do is you would
like to find out about the younger guys," defensive coordinator
Jim Johnson said Thursday. "I see execution in practice; the
older guys have been here. And, I know some guys I want to
see haven’t really been around, how they are going to play. It
will be interesting to see how Matt McCoy plays. It will be
interesting to see how some of our young linebackers, that
haven’t had much scrimmage time in a game situation, how
they react. I think all preseason games - that’s one of the first
things - you want to find some surprises. Guys that are o.k. on
the practice field and then all of the sudden they get into game
situations and they become playmakers. That’s the first thing.
And then, you always want execution, I’ll be surprised if we
don’t execute, especially that first group, defensively, handle
all the situations, because we are cutting things down quite a
bit for a preseason game. But, the main thing is making sure
that we find some players that can help us this year.” Another
player the coaches want to see in action is former first-round
pick DE Jerome McDougle. “He’s doing good, he’s right in
the mix. He’ll be playing sometimes in nickel situations and
with the first group at times. So, we’ll kind of rotate. He’s
doing well. He’s come back in great shape, best shape I’ve
ever seen him in. (He has a) great attitude, best attitude I’ve
ever seen so we’ll see how he goes this Sunday night. We
expect good things out of him," Johnson added.
Special Teams: For a guy that’s supposed to be taking it easy,
kicker David Akers is hitting some very long kicks. He made a
63-yard FG in practice, and then set a HOF Game record
Sunday by making a 55-yarder (his only attempt in the game).
Akers is also coming to terms with the fact that he’ll likely
have a new holder this year, punter Dirk Johnson, ''I'd be lying
if I said I didn't want the guy [Koy Detmer] who has been
holding for me for six years out there. But Dirk's also held a
lot in practice, and we're in the fourth year now [with Johnson
at least in camp]. We've come to know each other, but we
haven't done it in game situations where you have to know
how the wind is going to play and how he's going to hold it.
But he's a very talented athlete, a [Division II] All-America
safety in college, so I have no doubt we'll be successful
together.'' Starting punt returner RB Reno Mahe averaged 6.0
yards on his two returns in the HOF Game. CB Dexter Wynn
had an eight yard return. Starting kickoff returner RB Bruce
Perry averaged 23.3 yards on his three returns, before
suffering a concussion on a hit later in the game. Wynn had a
22-yard return, while Safety J.R. Reed continued his
comeback with a 19-yard return. Time might be starting to run
out for rookie WR Jeremy Bloom. He finally returned to
practice last Tuesday, but tweaked his hamstring injury that
same day and has not practiced since. He did not make the trip
for the HOF Game.
Eagles Depth Chart
QB Donovan McNabb, Jeff Garcia, Koy Detmer, Timmy
Chang
RB Brian Westbrook, Ryan Moats (inj), Bruce Perry (KR)
(inj), Reno Mahe (PR), Correll Buckhalter (inj)
FB Josh Parry, Thomas Tapeh, Jason Davis
WR Reggie Brown, Todd Pinkston (inj), Jabar Gaffney, Greg
Lewis, Jason Avant, Hank Baskett, Darnerien McCants,
Jeremy Bloom (KR/PR), Carl Ford, Justin Jenkins, Bill
Sampy, J.J. Outlaw, Derrick Fenner, Jermaine Jamison
TE L.J. Smith, Matt Schobel, Steven Spach, Andy Thorn,
Jonas Crafts
K David Akers
DE Jevon Kearse, Darren Howard, Trent Cole, Jerome
McDougle, Juqua Thomas
DT Mike Patterson, Darwin Walker, Sam Rayburn, Brodrick
Bunkley, Ed Jasper, Keyonta Marshall, LaJuan Ramsey
MLB Jeremiah Trotter, Mark Simoneau (W/M), Omar
Gaither (W/M)
OLB Dhani Jones (S), Shawn Barber (W), Matt McCoy (W),
Chris Gocong (S), Jason Short (S), Dedrick Roper (S), Greg
Richmond, Torrence Daniels
CB Sheldon Brown, Lito Sheppard (inj), Roderick Hood
(KR), Donald Strickland, Matt Ware, Dexter Wynn, Joselio
Hanson, Mark Clark
S Brian Dawkins (FS), Michael Lewis (SS), Quintin Mikell
(FS), Sean Considine (SS), J.R. Reed (FS/KR), Scott Ware
(SS)
Pittsburgh Steelers
QB: It didn’t take Ben Roethlisberger long to get acclimated
in camp. He’s already pronounced himself fit for the Steelers’
first preseason game. Big Ben went on to say that Head coach
Bill Cowher would have to "hold me back" from playing
against Arizona. Cowher merely stated that the decision
wouldn’t be made until the game is closer (this week). For his
part, Roethlisberger had a good week of training camp, but he
was coping with fatigue at times. Cowher said he’s fine and he
was open to giving him a morning off if he needs it.
RB: The main story playing out this week is who will win the
team’s role of goal-line back. Cowher said, at this point, the
race is wide open. In Saturday’s practice, Willie Parker and
Verron Haynes both saw action with the team’s goal-line
package. Obviously, if Parker nails down the goal-line job,
then his fantasy value increases significantly. Otherwise,
Haynes remains a certifiable sleeper, especially if Duce Staley
continues to miss football games due to injury. Last year,
Haynes served as the team’s third down back. Adding goalline duties to his repertoire would give his value a definite
boost and make him a good candidate for RB depth on your
fantasy roster (especially in a basic scoring league). "We'll
take a look at all those guys," Cowher said. "Verron, Duce,
Cedric [Humes], even Willie. Jerome had been the guy the last
couple years so there's open competition right now." In one
series of goal-line plays, Parker got two carries. He was
stopped for no gain on the first and he gained three yards on
the second. Both runs were between the tackles. Haynes was
stopped for a two-yard loss on third down, and then failed to
score while diving to the one yard line on fourth down. Staley
took the field with the second unit. He gained one yard on first
down, and then Charlie Batch threw a four-yard TD to the
fullback, which happened to be OLB James Harrison on that
play.
On Parker, Cowher was quoted, “He's having probably as
good a camp as anyone here.” Offensive coordinator Ken
Whisenhunt then chimed in, “He did such a good job for us
last year and he's really shown, especially in this camp, that
he's a strong inside runner… So we wanted to give him an
opportunity.” Parker said he told the coaches he wants a
chance to stay on the field when they get close to the goal line.
"If you're a running back," Parker said, "and you don't like
goal-line [plays] and scoring touchdowns, I think you're in the
wrong position or profession." Meanwhile, Duce Staley was
working more as the team’s lone back on third downs during
11-on-11 practice. "That's a sign from coach Cowher telling
me I got to learn a little third down," Staley said. "I take the
good with the bad and third down is not bad. In the shotgun,
you have to watch the blitz pickup, that's something we've
been working hard on the past three years. I look forward to
the challenge."
WR: Hines Ward tweaked his hamstring over the weekend,
but it’s not considered serious and Bill Cowher described his
status as day-to-day. Rookie Santonio Holmes received a bit
of good news following his legal problems from earlier in the
summer. Holmes had a charge of disorderly conduct in Miami
Beach, Fla., dropped in exchange for a $250 donation. Holmes
plead not guilty to charges that he blocked traffic and refused
to obey a police order at 3:30 a.m. on May 27 in the South
Beach section of Miami Beach. In Saturday’s practice Nate
Washington was one of the top performers. He came down
with a deep pass from Ben Roethlisberger between corners Ike
Taylor and Ryan Clark on one play in particular.
Defense: Joey Porter remains on the sidelines watching his
teammates practice, but Cowher said that Porter is beginning
to “look very comfortable” and the team will continue to
assess his progress during the next week. Undrafted rookie
Lee Vickers was moved from defensive end to outside
linebacker this week. Vickers played multiple positions in
college at North Alabama. Cowher said that safety Zach Baker
(hamstring) and linebacker Mike Kudla (hamstring) would
miss a few weeks of practice as they recover from their
injuries.
Special Teams: Kicker Jeff Reed was successful on all five
field-goal attempts (20, 30, 35, 40 and 50 yards) against a live
rush in practice the other day. The 50-yarder grazed the
upright, but was still good. Camp leg kicker Mark Brubaker
fared just as well, making all five from those same distances.
Rookie WR Willie Reid has looked great returning punts,
utilizing his speed, good hands, ability to avoid defenders, and
more speed. Rookie WR Santonio Holmes and especially CB
Ricardo Colclough have had problems hanging onto the ball
on punt returns. WRs Cedrick Wilson, Isaac West, and Nate
Washington have also been practicing on punt returns. WR
Quincy Morgan and CB Ricardo Colclough have been
working with the first team unit on kickoff returns, while the
rookie WRs Willie Reid and Santonio Holmes have worked
with the second unit. Colclough has also been mishandling
kickoffs. Bill Cowher is watching!
Steelers Depth Chart
QB Ben Roethlisberger, Charlie Batch, Omar Jacobs, Shane
Boyd
RB Willie Parker, Duce Staley, Verron Haynes (FB), Cedric
Humes
FB Dan Kreider, Doug Easlick
WR Hines Ward, Cedrick Wilson, Santonio Holmes, Quincy
Morgan, Nate Washington, Willie Reid (KR/PR), Sean Morey,
Lee Mays, Walter Young, Marvin Allen
TE Heath Miller, Jerame Tuman, Charles Davis, Jonathan
Dekker, Isaac Smolko
K Jeff Reed, Mark Brubaker
DE Aaron Smith, Brett Keisel, Travis Kirschke, Rodney
Bailey, Shaun Nua, Orien Harris
NT Casey Hampton, Chris Hoke, Scott Paxson
ILB James Farrior, Larry Foote, Rian Wallace, Clint
Kriewaldt, Mike Kudla
OLB Joey Porter (inj), Clark Haggans, James Harrison,
Andre Frazier, Arnold Harrison, Lee Vickers
CB Deshea Townsend, Ike Taylor, Bryant McFadden,
Ricardo Colclough (PR/KR), Chidi Iwuoma, Anthony
Madison
S Troy Polamalu (SS), Ryan Clark (FS), Tyrone Carter (FS),
Mike Logan (SS), Anthony Smith (FS), Zack Baker, Mike
Lorello
St. Louis Rams
QB: St. Louis Rams QB Marc Bulger has already won over
his new head coach, Scott Linehan. "I don't know what it is
about him, maybe because he's not 6-foot-5, but that guy is the
best-kept secret in the NFL in my opinion," Linehan said of
Bulger. "People don't really talk about this guy. I think this
guy is going to have a great year. Not just statistically, but as a
guy who's going to take his game to a new level, leader of the
team and the offense, and just playing winning football for
us." It’s obvious from Linehan’s comments that Bulger is well
on his way to being full strength and he has suffered no
setbacks so far in training camp.
RB: Marshall Faulk’s surgery on his right knee didn’t go as
planned according to Linehan. Surgeons were unable to repair
Faulk's posterior cruciate ligament because it was too
damaged to continue the procedure. "There wasn't much left of
the ligament," Linehan said. "If he wants to have a chance to
ever play again, he's probably going to have to have a
complete reconstruction." Last Wednesday, the Rams signed
veteran Moe Williams to a one-year contract to give them
more depth behind Steven Jackson. Of course, Williams is
familiar with Linehan’s offense as the two were together in
Minnesota. Williams will compete with Tony Fisher for the
backup job. The team began working him slowly into the mix
as he took limited reps in Thursday.
WR: Linehan said he plans to excuse veteran Isaac Bruce
from most of the morning practices when the team begins their
“two-a-days”. He expects Bruce to still put in “mental reps”,
but indicated he would extend the same courtesy to some of
the other veterans on the team. The Rams new coach has also
been impressed by the play of backup WR Shaun McDonald.
"I think he really showed to me in today's practice with the
receiver corps. He made some really nice catches. He's a
different type of receiver than the other guys. He's more of a
slot type receiver. He can play outside, he does a good job
there because he's got speed. He has that initial body
quickness that it takes to beat safeties and linebackers with
those in and out moves and quick feet. He has range. I think
he's really done a nice job there. In the return game, we've
really been throwing it more than anything. You kind of find
out who your returners are when the live bullets step the line."
On August 3, the team released Joshua Tinch.
TE: It’s still early in camp, but rookie Joe Klopfenstein is
leading fellow rookie Dominique Byrd in the battle to be the
team’s starting TE. "I think Joe's been the most consistent,"
Linehan said. "He's certainly what we were looking for. Tight
ends are blockers and receivers, but they're blockers first. I
have no problem with Joe's ability to be a really good
receiving tight end, and he's shown positive signs as a blocker.
He just has to be consistent."
Defense: The Rams linebacking corps seems to be taking
shape in camp. OLB Brandon Chillar moved into the starting
lineup at SLB displacing veteran Dexter Coakley, who is
returning from a season-ending injury suffered last year. Free
agent addition Will Witherspoon is set at MLB while veteran
Pisa Tinoisamoa is on the weak side. Ron Bartell limped off
the field on Thursday after spraining his ankle during team
drills. It was his first full week of practice at the new position
after moving over from corner. "It's sprained, but how serious
it is, I don't know," said Linehan. "He's been doing a good job
with the change. Ronnie is still pretty green but he's willing.
He's learning how to work." LB Drew Wahlroos suffered a
broken bone in either his wrist/hand during Thursday's
practice. First round pick CB Tye Hill showed toughness after
aggravating a shoulder sprain he sustained at the NFL
combine. In Saturday’s scrimmage he collided with newly
signed RB Moe Williams. Just a few minutes later, he was
back in the mix. "I've never questioned his toughness or his
ability to get back out there, I was more happy that it wasn't
anything more serious," said Linehan. "He got back out there
quick."
Special Teams: Recently signed RB Moe Williams discussed
his likely participation on special teams, “At this stage in my
career, I’m going to do whatever it takes to let me make the
team. I’m a realist and I know this is a business. The younger
guys are looking good out there as far as the running backs.
Special teams is what kept me in the league for five years
before I was ever even on the offensive side of the ball, so I
know I’m going to try to get on special teams and hopefully
there’s a spot for me.” Rookie WR Marques Hagans, who had
already been working on punt returns, is now also practicing
on kickoff returns.
Rams Depth Chart
QB Marc Bulger, Gus Frerotte, Ryan Fitzpatrick, Dave
Ragone
RB Steven Jackson, Tony Fisher, Moe Williams, John David
Washington, Antoine Bagwell, Marshall Faulk (IR)
FB Madison Hedgecock, Paul Smith
WR Torry Holt, Isaac Bruce, Kevin Curtis, Shaun McDonald
(PR), Dane Looker, Brad Pyatt, Marques Hagans, Clinton
Solomon
TE Joel Klopfenstein, Dominique Byrd, Jerome Collins,
Aaron Walker, Alex Holmes, Landon Trusty (IR)
K Jeff Wilkins, Remy Hamilton
DE Leonard Little, Tony Hargrove, Brandon Green, Clifford
Dukes, Victor Adeyanju, Matthew Rice
DT Jimmy Kennedy (NT), La'Roi Glover, Claude Wroten,
Brian Howard, Jason Fisk, Jeremy Calahan, Tim Sandidge
MLB Will Witherspoon (W/M), Tim McGarigle
OLB Pisa Tinoisamoa (W), Brandon Chillar (S), Dexter
Coakley (S) (inj), Raonall Smith, Jon Alston, Drew Wahlroos
(S) (inj)
CB Tye Hill, Jerametrius Butler, Travis Fisher, Fakhir
Brown, DeJuan Groce, Kevin Timothee
S Corey Chavous (SS), Oshiomogho Atogwe (FS), Ronald
Bartell (FS), Jerome Carter (SS), Dwaine Carpenter (FS)
San Diego Chargers
QB: If the first week or two of training camp are any
indication, then Philip Rivers is progressing nicely and ahead
of schedule. He’s throwing the ball accurately and not
repeating mistakes. Even head coach Marty Schottenheimer
said Rivers was “a little ahead” of where he expected him to
be at this point. "Philip Rivers might be a little bit ahead,”
Schottenheimer said. "He understands this offense completely
and he understands how the pieces fit together. He has had a
very good camp." RB LaDainian Tomlinson is also excited by
Rivers’ play. “He’s coming along just fine and he’s ahead of
all the predictions to where he might be. But Philip is a very
smart guy so it is really not surprising where he is right now.”
Rivers was a star in Saturday’s scrimmage along with WR
Malcolm Floyd. The two teamed for two touchdown passes on
the same drive (the first was nullified by penalty). Floyd beat
Antonio Cromartie with a double move for the one that was
called back, then later he burned rookie Cletis Gordon on a
corner route. “It was good to get back out here. Last time I
was out here it wasn't too happy when we left the field,”
Rivers said, referring to the season-ending loss to Denver. “I
thought we had a good day – made some mistakes, did some
good things. I think we're growing. I think we're on pace.
We'll be where we need to be.”
RB: LaDainian Tomlinson missed a day of practice last Friday
with a sore neck after colliding with DE Igor Olshansky in
practice on Thursday. "I don't know what happened; I was just
playing football," Olshansky said. "It's a physical game, things
happen. But it's not purposely." Tomlinson added,
"Everything's good… It's not real serious anyway. It doesn't
hurt to go out and practice. People made it to be a big deal but
it wasn't really a big deal at all."
WR: Malcolm Floyd (as mentioned above) and second year
WR Vincent Jackson continue to have strong camps. Floyd, at
6-5 and 225 pounds, caught Philip River’s first NFL
touchdown pass during the final weeks of the 2004 season. He
is not eligible to go back on the practice squad, so the
coaching staff has a tough decision to make with this group if
Floyd makes the roster. He added 25 pounds of muscle during
the offseason to help his chances (of making the team). “He's a
good young prospect,” HC Marty Schottenheimer said. “The
only issues we've had were some of the bumps and bruises
he's had.” With the release of Rashaun Woods, Floyd might be
safe. He is the leading candidate for the fifth and final receiver
spot. “It makes you feel good, but you've still got to take it one
day at a time,” Floyd said. “You've got to keep the body
healthy. I worked hard in the offseason… I was here every
morning.” Meanwhile, Jackson has a vision of his own. It
involves the near future and the word potential. “That's a good
word and a bad word,” Jackson said, “That's an in-between
word. I'm looking forward to showing it. You want to get over
that 'Could-be.' “I see limitless possibilities. I know I'm going
to make plays this year. I'm a mismatch (for defensive backs).
There are a lot of things I can do.” Jackson appears to have an
inside track on the No. 3 job, but he still needs to beat out
Kassim Osgood, which may not be an easy task. The Chargers
claimed Gerran Walker off waivers from Indianapolis and Eric
Parker was held out of team workouts on Saturday, August 5,
but he was able to participate in individual drill work.
TE: Antonio Gates did not participate in team workouts last
Thursday, August 3, due to a hamstring injury. He was able to
participate in individual drills though.
Defense: The key battle on the Chargers defense is shaping
up at free safety where free agent addition Marlon McCree is
the current leader. “I'm a good field commander while I'm out
there,” said McCree. “Cornerbacks like to hear you. They
don't want to have to think. They're great athletes, and they
play the toughest position on the field. It makes their job a lot
better. They can play a lot more aggressive. It makes your job
as a safety better, because if (the corner) can drive and get to a
ball and tip it, you're there to get an interception. To be a
safety you have to be a guy who can run the defense. That's
what I've been able to do in the places I've been.” DT Luis
Castillo likes what he’s seeing, too. “They look good,”
Castillo said. “They're really talking a lot back there.” That’s
good news to the Chargers front office. They signed McCree
largely because they felt the secondary lacks experience and
leadership. McCree could still be moved to strong safety, but
for now he’s running with the first team at free safety. McCree
said he can play both positions, also noting that you can be the
“quarterback of the secondary” from either slot. “I played
strong last year, and I was that guy,” he said of his time at
Carolina. “I played free safety in other places, and I was that
guy. It doesn't matter as long as the safety is loud and uses
hand signals when appropriate.” In Saturday’s scrimmage,
safety Terrence Kiel intercepted a pass in the end zone that
was nullified by a penalty called against Quentin Jammer (one
of two against him during that practice). The defense was also
aided by sacks from linebacker Shaun Phillips and DE Igor
Olshasky. Also, on Saturday, Donnie Edwards (back) and
Shawne Merriman (hamstring) missed practice. Merriman was
able to go through individual drills but not team workouts.
Safety Bhawoh Jue (knee) has missed a little practice time and
so has LB Stephen Cooper (hamstring), WR Eric Parker
(ankle) and LB Randall Godfrey (veteran rest) for various
reasons.
Special Teams: Kicker Nate Kaeding is off to a great start in
camp. After he made a 60-yard field goal against the wind, HC
Marty Schottenheimer was practically gushing, "I tell you
what, that was huge. I just loved it. It almost brought tears to
my eyes, to be honest with you. He's an outstanding kicker, we
all know that. I put it downwind; I didn't know we were going
to go back to 60. I think it was just a spur-of-the-moment
decision. He nailed them all." Kaeding is more proud of his
recent consistency, “I know there's a good majority of guys
that have as strong a leg as I do, if not stronger. My thing is
consistency. We kicked 12 field goals before practice and
eight with the team there and I didn't miss a single one of
them. I'm more happy being 20-of-20 than I was making the
60-yarder.” Right now he’s in the zone and he knows it, “My
confidence is 10 million times better than it was this time last
year. As the season progressed last year my confidence got a
lot better, but right now I feel like I can't miss, which is a good
feeling.” That same day, kickoff specialist candidate Kurt
Smith went 4-of-5 on field goals, with a long of 42 yards. The
Chargers claimed rookie WR Gerran Walker off waivers from
the Colts. He could compete for a backup role on returns.
Chargers Depth Chart
QB Philip Rivers, A.J. Feeley, Charlie Whitehurst, Brett
Elliott
RB LaDainian Tomlinson, Michael Turner, Darren Sproles
(KR), Tyrone Gross, Bryson Sumlin
FB Lorenzo Neal, Andrew Pinnock, Shawn Willis
WR Keenan McCardell, Eric Parker, Kassim Osgood,
Vincent Jackson, Malcolm Floyd, Mark Simmons, Sean
Coffey (inj), Robert Ortiz, Gerran Walker
TE Antonio Gates, Aaron Shea, Brandon Manumaleuna,
Ryan Krause (inj)
K Nate Kaeding, Kurt Smith
DE Igor Olshansky, Luis Castillo (NT), Jacques Cesaire,
Derrick Robinson, Chase Page (inj), Patrick Massey
NT Jamal Williams, Ryon Bingham, Brandon McKinney,
Alvin Smith
ILB Donnie Edwards, Randall Godfrey, Stephen Cooper,
Matt Wilhelm, Carlos Polk, Tim Dobbins
OLB Steve Foley (W), Shawne Merriman (S), Shaun Phillips
(S), Marques Harris (W), Jonathan Pollard
CB Quentin Jammer, Drayton Florence, Antonio Cromartie,
Raymond Walls, Markus Curry, Cletis Gordon, Steve
Gregory, Anthony Mims
S Marlon McCree (FS), Terrence Kiel (SS), Bhawoh Jue
(SS/FS), Clinton Hart (FS/SS), Hanik Milligan (FS), Andre
Lott (FS), Richard Yancy
San Francisco 49ers
QB: Mike Nolan was asked recently if he sees a developing
relationship between OC Norv Turner and QB Alex Smith
mirroring that of Turner and another top overall pick, Troy
Aikman. “You could say I'm full of it, but if I had to be a
betting man, I would say it's going to go right where it went
with QB Troy [Aikman], but we'll just have to let that
happen,'' Nolan said. ``I just see the compatibility that is there.
They communicate well and there is a mutual respect for what
the quarterback has to do and what Norv does.'' For his part,
Smith has been improving each day in camp after poor play
dominated his first few practices as camp began. One big play
came last Friday when Smith threw a pass 60 yards hitting
new No. 1 WR Antonio Bryant in stride during the team’s
morning practice. In his second camp, Smith is also leaning on
veteran QB Trent Dilfer for advice. Smith knows how much
Dilfer helped Seahawks QB Matt Hasselbeck and he hopes
Dilfer can do the same for him. What is Dilfer’s evaluation of
the young signal caller? "I could not be more impressed. I
talked to Matt last week and I told him, 'He is every bit as
good as you are’,” said Dilfer, who continued, “Alex doesn't
have Matt's instincts yet -- Matt played behind (Brett) Favre,
he played for years under (head coach Mike) Holmgren – but
Alex will develop those. This kid has great presence, he's
tough, smart as a whip, he gets it."
RB: Frank Gore and Kevan Barlow continue to battle for the
team’s starting RB job. Gore’s main drawback has been his
extensive history of injuries. Otherwise, during the summer,
Gore has looked great and he continues to work hard with
hopes of knocking Barlow out of the starting job. So far,
Nolan hasn’t named a starter and he’s letting the two compete
for the betterment of the team. "I want to see who that guy is,"
Nolan said when asked about the depth chart at running back.
"I'm wide open. There's no reason not to be." Last Wednesday,
in the morning practice, Alex Smith connected with Frank
Gore along the sidelines in a play that was reminiscent of
Gore’s touchdown run in Jacksonville last season. Nolan said
that he didn’t think Gore could handle more than 20 carries a
game, but Gore scoffed saying that he could handle "as many
as my coaches want to give me." Meanwhile, Barlow isn’t
taking anything for granted. In fact, he’s working harder than
ever to retain the job. "I'm going to play 100 percent for these
guys," Barlow said last Tuesday. "I'm going to do the best I
can do regardless of if that's a positive play or if that's a
negative play.”
WR: Antonio Bryant has easily been the most impressive
receiver in camp so far. As mentioned above, he connected
with Alex Smith on one play last week that covered 60 yards
in the air for a “touchdown.” Practice observers note that not
only is Bryant getting open, but he's running good routes and
not dropping the ball. The last two issues became a source for
discontent in his stops in Dallas and Cleveland. Meanwhile, #2
WR Arnaz Battle continues to miss practice time due to
swelling in the same knee that caused him to miss eight games
in 2005. Battle’s absence has provided Bryan Gilmore with
more practice reps. Gilmore seems to be taking advantage of
it, too. He previously played for receivers coach Jerry Sullivan
in Arizona and Miami and he is currently the favorite to win
the #3 job. “We didn’t have much speed last year in the wide
receivers corps, so (Gilmore) gives us some things that we
didn’t have last year,” head coach Mike Nolan said.
“Obviously, Antonio Bryant gives us some of the same
things.” Under Sullivan’s tutelage, Bryant seems to be turning
the corner. It’s good to see Smith looking for Bryant, too.
“Chemistry is something you want to get with players, so the
more you're throwing to him the better, and he's throwing to
Antonio a lot. So, naturally, that chemistry is coming along
better and better," said Nolan.
TE: Rookie Vernon Davis is adjusting to the NFL slowly, but
surely. He’s found a great mentor on the team in what would
otherwise seem like an unlikely source – the team’s long
snapper Brian Jennings. Davis remained on the field after
practice with Jennings last week as the two worked on
everything from routes to blocking assignments. Jennings also
serves as the team’s emergency tight end. "He just goes with
me every day after practice and works with me," Davis said.
"Pass protection, run blocking, running routes. He knows this
stuff. It's a privilege to have him teach me some things."
Coach Nolan seems intent on working Davis into the offense
slowly. "My objective is to get him to the point where he can
be in there," Nolan said. Meanwhile, in Saturday’s red zone
drills Eric Johnson score on back-to-back touchdown catches.
The defense also came up with some stops as Mike Adams
leaped to knock down another would-be touchdown.
Defense: Rookies Manny Lawson and Parys Haralson are
gunning for a starting role in a defense that hopes to replace
two of its best pass rushers from a year ago. Julian Peterson
and Andre Carter started on the edge last year, but both
veterans departed via free agency. "Now I'm trying to fill both
of those spots," Nolan said Friday. "The two rookies are both
doing a good job. I see both of those players as competing for
the possibility of being the guys at both of those spots."
Corner Shawntae Spencer switched to the left side this spring
and the coaching staff is optimistic about him being a big
contributor this season. "He's getting better all of the time and
competes very well," coach Mike Nolan said. "He works
extremely hard in the offseason and pays the price. You'd like
him to get a little bigger than he is; he is a little light. But he's
got the height. He's good for the team." In other news, the
49ers signed DL Lance Legree to a contract.
Special Teams: Luis Berlanga, the Mexican kicking
sensation, was still having problems getting a work visa. The
49ers already had Andrew Jacas, the Jamaican kicking
sensation, on the roster as a camp leg to spell Joe Nedney.
Jacas has a slim chance of making the final roster as a kickoff
specialist. Special teams coordinator Larry Mac Duff notes,
"He has a legitimate chance to be a kicker and/or a kickoff
specialist in the league. He's a guy who has very good leg
strength. He is in the developmental stages. With all young
kickers, they need to find their mechanics that will help them
be successful.'' For most teams, the kickoff and punt returner
positions are intertwined with certain offensive and defensive
positions when it comes to final roster decisions. That is
particularly true for the wide receivers for San Francisco.
Brandon Williams, Antonio Bryant, Arnaz Battle, Otis Amey,
Bryan Gilmore, Rasheed Marshall, Jason McAddley, Delanie
Walker, and Derrick Hamilton are all wide receivers and all
have experience on special teams’ returns. Several of them
will be gone by September. Williams remains the early
favorite for KR/PR duties. The only serious non-WR
candidate for returns is RB Maurice Hicks on kickoffs.
49ers Depth Chart
QB Alex Smith, Trent Dilfer, Jesse Palmer, Shaun Hill
RB Frank Gore, Kevan Barlow, Maurice Hicks, Michael
Robinson (QB/WR)
FB Chris Hetherington, Moran Norris
WR Antonio Bryant, Arnaz Battle (inj), Bryan Gilmore,
Brandon Williams, Derrick Hamilton (inj), Rasheed Marshall,
Jason McAddley, Otis Amey (PR), Marcus Maxwell, C.J.
Brewer
TE Vernon Davis, Eric Johnson, Delanie Walker, Billy
Bajema, Terry Jones, Onye Ibekwe
K Joe Nedney, Andrew Jacas, Luis Berlanga
DE Bryant Young, Marques Douglas, Jerry DeLoach, Melvin
Oliver, Lance Legree
NT Anthony Adams, Isaac Sapoaga, Ronald Fields, Bobby
Payne
ILB Derek Smith, Jeff Ulbrich, Brandon Moore, Renauld
Williams, Zak Keasey
OLB Manny Lawson, Corey Smith (S), Parys Haralson (DE),
T.J. Slaughter, James Maxwell, Andre Torrey
CB Shawntae Spencer, Mike Rumph (inj), Walt Harris,
Derrick Johnson, Sammy Davis, B.J. Tucker
S Tony Parrish (SS) (inj), Mike Adams (FS), Mark Roman
(FS), Keith Lewis (FS), Chad Williams (FS), Marcus Hudson
(FS), Vickiel Vaughn (FS)
Seattle Seahawks
QB: In the team’s first scrimmage last week Matt Hasselbeck
completed 4-of-6 passes for 43 yards including a TD to WR
Maurice Mann. He didn’t throw any interceptions. Backup
Seneca Wallace was 5-of-11 for 40 yards, but looked much
better working in the red zone where he was 5-of-6 for 53
yards with a 20-yard TD. Hasselbeck and Wallace got all the
snaps during the red zone work, while David Greene was 3-of4 for 18 yards and Gibran Hamdan was 3-of-5 for 45 yards
splitting snaps in the regular scrimmage work. "David and
Gibran and Travis are battling," Holmgren said about the
battle for the No. 3 spot. "Travis will not get as many reps as
the other two guys, which is the unfair part of it. But that's just
the way it is." On Wallace, Holmgren said, “He works so hard
passing the ball; he wants people to know he’s a fine passer so
he doesn’t always cut it loose… He wants to stay in there and
throw it. But I know he’s a fine passer. And when he plays in
a game, his legs are a big weapon for us, too.” Wallace wants
to show he’s not just a runner who can throw, but he’s also a
good instinctive quarterback. “I feel good about it,” Wallace
said. “I feel good about everything. Every year you have to
step up a part of your game and this year I wanted to focus on
poise in the pocket and being comfortable getting the ball to
the right receiver.”
RB: After last year’s tremendous season, it’s difficult to
imagine what Shaun Alexander might do for an encore.
Alexander likes to keep things simple. "I never want to be
done," Alexander said. "Every year, I have had the same goal:
to get a little bit better." Does that mean he’s shooting for
more than 28 touchdowns? "You say 29, and we can try to go
for it," Alexander said. He also rushed for 1,880 yards and led
the Seahawks to the Super Bowl. "He wasn't Super Bowl
MVP last season. He didn't get 2,000 yards," running backs
coach Stump Mitchell said. "So there are still a lot of goals."
Nobody said it would be easy, but Alexander faces more
challenges than he did a year ago. For example, Mike
Holmgren prefers a 60-40 pass-to-run ratio, so Alexander
might have to make due with fewer opportunities than he had
last year. "I have been working hard this summer and hard
through this training camp to get a little bit better," Alexander
said. "Whatever that is, we're going to be happy with."
In the team’s scrimmage last week, Alexander didn’t
participate, but the player of the day amongst the backs was
Marquis Weeks, a rookie free agent from Virginia. Weeks
rushed for 44 yards on seven carries, breaking a 25-yarder for
the longest run of the day, most of it coming against the firstteam defense. Weeks led all rushers. Ran Carthon scored a TD
while Leonard Weaver rambled for 20 yards on four attempts.
Maurice Morris ran four times for 8 yards. What many
described as the “hit of the day” came on a play when secondyear fullback Leonard Weaver snagged a Hasselbeck screen
pass. Weaver turned and steamrolled first-round pick Kelly
Jennings drawing a roar from the crowd. "I could have easily
hit him lower," Jennings said, not wanting to think about it
again. "I'm not afraid to tackle him." It wasn’t exactly a fair
fight given that Weaver holds a 73-pound advantage over the
rookie corner, but Weaver didn’t really know who it was, only
that he made the play. "I guess I had to say, 'Welcome to the
NFL,' " said Weaver.
WR: Nate Burleson continues to emerge as a potential star in
the Seahawks offense this year. He’s being used much
differently in Seattle so far when compared to the role he
fulfilled with the Vikings. He hooked up with starting QB
Matt Hasselbeck on several deep passes during the OTAs this
summer and that pattern has spilled over into the practices at
training camp. Burleson is considered a good runner after the
catch and, so far, he’s living up to that billing with the
Seahawks, too. "We know he's a good player. Now he has to
adapt to the ways we do things. You see it all the time when
you acquire players from other teams. There will be something
in the technique that he's used to that he has to change. We are
big on after the catch, and he certainly has the ability to do
that, he's shown that in practice. He, (OLB) Julian Peterson,
the guys we've brought in from other teams, they're working
hard to do that," said Holmgren last Thursday. The team’s
other starting receiver, Darrell Jackson, remains out for a
while longer as he comes back from offseason knee surgery.
"I've got to talk to Darrell today. He's on a program to get his
leg strengthened. His knee is pretty good, but his muscles in
his quad and so on have to be stronger so he doesn't re-injure
anything. He's right on schedule. We're setting a target date of
a third preseason game." Holmgren doesn’t expect Jackson to
play until the team’s final exhibition game at San Diego on
August 26.
D.J. Hackett expects to miss 2-to-3 weeks with a strained right
hamstring. He injured it while catching a pass in the end zone
on the final play of Wednesday's practice on July 26. In the
Seahawks scrimmage, it was Taco Wallace (of the FBG AllName team) with the top performance. He caught four balls
for 61 yards with two TDs. Nate Burleson caught three balls
for 42 yards including a 20-yard TD. Rookie Ben Obomanu
reeled in three balls for 35 yards. Maurice Mann had three
catches for 32 yards with a 17-yard TD from Hasselbeck. With
Jackson out, Burleson moved from split end to flanker as he
and Keenan Howry worked with the first team last Friday. The
move allowed Bobby Engram to remain in the slot. The
second-team offense went with four wides as Ben Obomanu
and C.J. Jones lined up on the outside and Peter Warrick and
Taco Wallace manned the inside spots. On Saturday, Bobby
Engram and Nate Burleson turned in eye-catching receptions
during the morning workouts, both coming on slant patterns
over the middle.
TE: The team waived TE Matt Henshaw and signed free agent
Matt Murphy to a contract last Wednesday. Holmgren expects
starting tight end Jerramy Stevens will be able to return to
practice as early as this coming week.
Defense: Last year’s standout rookie, LB Lofa Tatupu is
shining in training camp. He reported to camp at a lighter
weight and he says he feels better than ever. He continues to
have a nose for the football and he seems to be involved in
every play. "I'm a little quicker on my feet coming in," Tatupu
said. "I lost weight. I'm down to about 238 right now and I feel
better. But I think more than that my heightened awareness is
showing itself. I know more about the game, more about
offenses." New addition OLB Julian Peterson is off to a
fantastic start with his new team, too. Peterson sprinted around
the field, making plays on one screen pass near the line and on
two long runs into the secondary. He also rushed the passer as
a defensive end on third downs. Peterson said he’s finally
feeling like his old self again after rehabilitating himself from
a torn Achilles tendon suffered in October 2004. Doctors told
him it would take 20 months to be fully recovered. "What do
you think? I think I looked pretty good out there," Peterson
said, "On that one pass, I felt like I haven't gotten that high in
a long time... No worries at all. I felt like my old self." Safety
Ken Hamlin still has not engaged in any real contact during
camp so far. Nicknamed “The Hammer” for the big hits he
laid out during his first three years, he’s returning from a
fractured skull and blood clot near his brain after he was
involved in a street fight last October. "I'm not full throttle,"
Hamlin said. "I really can't go all out against my teammates."
Corner Jimmy Williams twisted his ankle on Thursday
morning and limped off the field. On August 3rd, the team
waived DL Darrell Wright.
Special Teams: Kicker Ryan Killeen is a camp leg to help
Josh Brown carry the load, but he’s also hoping to build his
resume and catch some other team’s attention. He didn’t help
his cause when he wasn’t even close on his first two field goal
attempts in Saturday’s scrimmage. Kicker Josh Brown
connected from 40 and 50 yards. WR Peter Warrick has set his
sights high for his punt return comeback year, "I'm trying to
make it to the Pro Bowl. That's my goal." Special teams coach
Bob Casullo noted, “We're hoping Peter Warrick is the old
Peter Warrick we all know and love. And he's showing signs
that he's back to that." WRs Bobby Engram, Keenan Howry,
Nate Burleson, C.J. Jones, and Ben Obomanu are all potential
backups on punt returns. Casullo commented, "We've got guys
that can catch the ball and run with it and they understand the
scheme that we're trying to run. That's a hell of a lot different
than in training camp last year, when we didn't have
anybody.” On kickoff returns, Casullo believes that improved
blocking will lead to a much better year for RB Josh Scobey,
“I'm pleased with Scobey. He took some hellacious hits. He
was not perfect, but he was better than average. Now
hopefully we can keep him and move forward with him." Also
practicing on kickoff returns has been RB Maurice Morris, RB
Marquis Weeks, FB Leonard Weaver, WR Keenan Howry,
and WR C.J. Jones.
Seahawks Depth Chart
QB Matt Hasselbeck, Seneca Wallace, David Greene, Gibran
Hamdan, Travis Lulay
RB Shaun Alexander, Maurice Morris, Josh Scobey
FB Mack Strong, Leonard Weaver, David Kirtman
WR Darrell Jackson (inj), Nate Burleson, Bobby Engram,
Peter Warrick, D.J. Hackett (inj), Ben Obomanu, Keenan
Howry
TE Jerramy Stevens (inj), Itula Mili, Will Heller, Caleen
Powell, Matt Murphy, Mike Gomez
K Josh Brown
DE Grant Wistrom, Bryce Fisher, Darryl Tapp, Joe Tafoya,
Ronald Flemons, Kemp Rasmussen, Chris Cooper, John
Syptak
DT Marcus Tubbs, Chartric Darby, Rocky Bernard, Craig
Terrill, Russell Davis, Ron Smith
MLB Lofa Tatupu, Niko Koutouvides
OLB Leroy Hill (W), Julian Peterson (S), D.D. Lewis (S/W),
Kevin Bentley, Isaiah Kacyvenski (S), Cornelius Wortham,
Lance Laury, Evan Benjamin
CB Marcus Trufant, Kelly Herndon, Kelly Jennings, Jordan
Babineaux, Jimmy Williams, Kevin Hobbs, Gerard Ross
S Michael Boulware (SS), Ken Hamlin (FS) (inj), Oliver
Celestin, Mike Green (FS)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
QB: Chris Simms seems to be doing everything that HC Jon
Gruden expects of his fourth year pupil in training camp. He
had a strong offseason during team workouts and that seems to
be spilling over into training camp. "Well, I don't want to say
too many positive things because it's so early in camp, but he's
doing a great job with our offense right now. He's throwing
the ball tremendously. He's seeing things. He's handling a lot
of situational football extremely well. He's picking up right
where he left off last year, as a very good young quarterback
who's getting better. He's emerging, I think, as a player at that
position," said Jon Gruden, who later lavished more praise on
Simms following back-to-back long balls in Sunday’s
practice. "QB Chris Simms threw the ball great," said Gruden.
"We had some very good work in the passing element from an
offensive standpoint. Defensively, we've got to do a much
better job than I saw in that period.” Even though CB Torrie
Cox was the one beaten on both long passes, he “has had a
great camp for us,” according to Gruden.
Backup Jay Fielder remains sidelined giving sixth round pick
Bruce Gradkowski plenty of reps, but Gruden said that isn’t
the only reason he’s seeing extra snaps. "He's earned them
[reps]," Gruden said. "He's doing a good job. I do know this:
When training camp is over and we get going in the regular
season, I'm not going to be able to get him a lot of reps…This
is it, baby. You're going to have to respond. And if you do
respond, we'll keep giving you the work." As for Fielder, "It's
coming. Every day I get out here it's improving," said Fiedler.
"I took a day off (Friday). That really helped get it fresh, and I
definitely took a step forward."
RB: There has been talk of Cadillac Williams becoming more
versatile in his second year as the team hopes to use him more
in the passing game. Last year, he frequently left the field
while Michael Pittman served as the third down back.
Likewise, Mike Alstott took almost all the snaps once the team
got inside the 5-yard line. Williams only caught 20 passes for
81 yards as a rookie. Over the weekend, Williams also
dropped a pair of balls in the same practice – one of which
was a swing pass out of the backfield. Gruden all but admitted
that he misused his star RB as a rookie. “We'd like to get him
more involved in the passing game," Gruden said. "We'll try to
get him the ball a little bit more than we did a year ago…He
might carry the ball 500 times. I don't know." Williams is
down for whatever. “I do feel I'm better. I am cutting and
sprinting better. I just feel a lot swifter this year. I know that
might be because I feel better confidence. I feel like I am
going to dominate." Backup RB Derek Watson suffered a neck
injury after colliding with LB Jamie Winborn on a play, but he
was seen on the sidelines later in the day as the special teams
practiced.
WR: Two players who are making things happen during the
last week are David Boston and Chas Gessner. Boston has
slimmed down to 219 pounds this year and he reportedly ran a
4.52 during a workout in front of the team this offseason. He
is only practicing once per day to prevent unnecessary wear
and tear on his problematic knee that sidelined him in each of
the past two seasons in Miami. So far, Boston has looked
explosive running patterns. He could push Ike Hilliard for the
No. 3 spot. "We've got some tough decisions to make,"
receivers coach Richard Mann said. "But that is a good
problem to have." For what it’s worth, Chris Simms seems to
like throwing to Boston, too. The two connected three times
on deep passes during practice on Saturday. Ike Hilliard also
knows the competition is at an all-time high for him, too. "My
spot is not solidified by any means," Hilliard said. "Everybody
brings something different to this offense and it's going to be
interesting. I'm sure it's going to be hard on the coaches and
the staff. Going into the preseason games, we'll see who
makes enough plays to be around…And hopefully I'm a part
of that group."
Gessner, an undrafted free agent from Brown, is working hard
just trying to get noticed. In Thursday’s morning practice,
corner Ronde Barber jumped Gessner’s route and intercepted
the pass, but Gessner never quit on the play and ultimately he
popped the ball out of Barber’s hand, which was then
recovered by fellow rookie WR Maurice Stovall. "Hey, man,
how about that guy?" Gruden said. "I call him the Golden
Goose. He hates that name, but Chas has made a lot of plays.
We're going to see a lot of him in the preseason." At 6-5 and
220 pounds, Stovall is also hard to miss out there, especially
when he stays on the field every day after most players flock
to the locker room to get out of the heat. Stovall has been
staying on the field to catch extra passes and work on his route
running. His goal is clear: to become an all-around receiver.
TE: The expectations for second-year TE Alex Smith
continue to grow as word leaks out about his improvement.
Gruden has put together packages specifically to take
advantage of his unique skills. For his part, Smith is enjoying
a strong camp and Gruden is excited for what he brings to the
table. "Not a lot has changed with him. He's a businessman.
I'm really proud to have him here. He's what a Buccaneer
football player is all about. The guy takes it very seriously.
He's got talent, that goes without saying. But he's just much
more confident, comfortable with how we're going to do
business here and what we're asking him to do. He's going to
make a lot of plays for us, I believe that," Gruden said.
Defense: The Bucs are pleased with the play of rookie corner
Alan Zemaitis during the first week of camp. He intercepted
two passes during the last week, then added a third over the
weekend during 7-on-7 drills when Blue Adams deflected a
Simms’ pass in the end zone into Zemaitis’ hands. Free safety
Will Allen underwent surgery to repair his broken thumb. He
is expected to wear a hard splint and return to practice in about
a week, but his status for the Aug. 11 preseason opener against
the Jets is uncertain. Another player making a move is free
safety Kalvin Pearson, the leading tackler on special teams last
season. Pearson began practicing with the first-team defense
with Will Allen sidelined. Then there is the Bucs reclamation
project from last year, NT Chris Hovan. "I came from an
organization that didn't care about defense, that put it on the
back burner," said Hovan. "Think Tampa Bay and what comes
to your mind? Defense, of course. We may have an offensive
coach -- and I'm glad we do -- but [Tampa Bay] and this team
was built on defense, and I count my blessings every day just
to put a Buccaneers helmet on." On Saturday, August 5th, the
Bucs released CB Reuben Houston.
Special Teams: Kicker Matt Bryant is off to a great start in
camp, and HC Jon Gruden is very happy, “He’s pretty good,
isn’t he? Yeah, I like Matt Bryant. He’s a football player more
than a kicker. He’s doing a great job. We’ve got a
combination, a battery of [holder Josh] Bidwell and Bryant,
and [long-snapper Dave] Moore helps too. That’s a battery
we’re confident in, and [Bryant] is putting it right through the
uprights, man. He’s got a strong leg. He’s getting the ball up
quick. He’s making field goals and kicking off well, so we’re
really happy with him.” Camp leg Xavier Beitia is also having
a solid camp, and is hoping other teams are taking notice. RB
Michael Pittman has no doubts who will be the Bucs’ kickoff
returner this year, “It’s my job. It’s my job and I’m not going
to lose it. I’ll be here all season doing it. I asked to do it last
year. I went to Coach Rich Bisaccia and he had to go to Coach
Gruden and ask if I could do it, and Coach Gruden gave us the
green light. I think with my speed and the guys blocking for
me upfront, I’ll have an opportunity to break one. I’m going to
hit a small gap full speed and those guys on the other team
aren’t going to want to tackle me full-speed. They’d rather
tackle a receiver.” WR Mark Jones is equally focused on
keeping his starting punt returner role, "I have to set myself
apart. Even when I'm tired, I have to take it serious because
that's what's keeping me here. I can't be slacking off out
there." Bisaccia is sold on Jones, "The guy just does not allow
the ball to touch the ground, period. He really makes great
decisions back there. That's why he's so valuable to us."
Other: The Bucs have been without RT Kenyatta Walker for
three days as he continues to rest his injured knee. OL Toniu
Fonoti is also out indefinitely with a sprained right ankle.
Buccaneers Depth Chart
QB Chris Simms, Jay Fiedler (inj), Bruce Gradkowski, Tim
Rattay, Luke McCown (inj), Jared Allen
RB Cadillac Williams, Michael Pittman (3RB), Earnest
Graham, Derek Watson
FB Mike Alstott, Jerald Sowell, Rick Razzano
WR Joey Galloway, Michael Clayton, Ike Hilliard, David
Boston, Maurice Stovall, Mark Jones (KR), Edell Shepherd,
J.R. Russell, Paris Warren, Ben Nelson
TE Anthony Becht, Alex Smith, Dave Moore, Tim
Massaqoui (inj), T.J. Williams (inj)
K Matt Bryant
DE Simeon Rice, Greg Spires, Dewayne White (DT), Julian
Jenkins
DT Anthony McFarland, Chris Hovan (NT), Ellis Wyms, Jon
Bradley, Anthony Bryant, Kevin Lewis
MLB Shelton Quarles, Barrett Ruud
OLB Derrick Brooks (W), Ryan Nece (S), Jamie Winborn
(S), Marquis Cooper (S), Wesly Mallard (W), Jermaine Taylor
(W), Charles Bennett, Anthony Trucks
CB Ronde Barber, Brian Kelly, Juran Bolden, Torrie Cox,
Alan Zemaitas, Justin Phinisee, Dwight Ellick
S Jermaine Phillips (SS), Will Allen (FS) (inj), Donte
Nicholson (SS), Kalvin Pearson (SS), Steve Cargile (SS), Eli
Ward (FS), Blue Adams, Jahmile Addae
Tennessee Titans
QB: The Titans were able to get a good look at both of their
quarterbacks during this week in camp. Billy Volek sat out
Thursday’s morning practice to rest a sore arm giving rookie
Vince Young a chance to run with the first team. "If the arm
gets sore and tired then it makes sense to rest him," said head
coach Jeff Fisher of Volek. "There is a lot of throwing going
on and he's taking the majority of the reps. Billy has been
doing a lot of throwing, so we decided to rest him. We may do
that again. Vince stepped up and had a good morning. He
needs to do that, so he can get more reps with the number
ones. It was great learning experience in the heat (for Young).
When you're tired, you've got to concentrate and focus on not
how you're doing, but what you're doing." Fisher then talked
about Young’s performance, “Vince stepped up and had a
good morning.” Indeed, he did. One on play he threw a deep
ball to WR Roydell Williams for a touchdown over the
outstretched arms of top corner Pacman Jones. On Saturday,
Young didn’t fare quite as well. He failed to complete a pass
and he was intercepted on another. "It happens," Young said
of the interception. "These guys are great, phenomenal athletes
on both sides of the ball. Interceptions are going to happen. As
long as they happen out here at practice, right now I'm just
playing the game, getting better as the days go on."
RB: Rumors continue to circulate that Chris Brown wants to
be dealt to a team where he can make the best use of this
talents, or more specifically, get the most playing time.
Ironically, he’s listed as the team’s starting running back,
something that Jeff Fisher continues to reiterate to anyone who
is willing to listen to him. That hasn’t stopped Brown’s agent,
Ryan Morgan, from propagating the story. Morgan said the
Dolphins are one of the teams his client would like to play for,
but until the Titans grant him permission to pursue a deal, the
issue is a dead in the water. Meanwhile, LenDale White did
not practice on Saturday due to an injured toe. An MRI
revealed that he has bone spurs around the toe that have
aggravated and irritated the injury. White was expected back
on Monday. On Saturday, rookie Quinton Gaither drew the
biggest cheer of the day when he ran downfield and over
fellow rookie safety Calvin Lowry. One fan yelled out,
"smash-mouth football." Ganther can play fullback, too. He
filled in for Troy Fleming (swollen knee) and Ahmad Hall
(concussion) also on Saturday. Fisher liked what he saw and
said Ganther would continue alternating with the fullbacks and
running backs. "As it relates to his opportunity, it's not a bad
thing. He's strong, heavy, can catch and is a contact player ...
You take those assets there and use them the best you can, I
think this will help him," Fisher said.
WR: Starting WR Drew Bennett is entering the final year of
his contract, but he says that it doesn’t bother him. “I haven’t
thought about it that much. I know it’s the last year of my
contract and everything, but I’m looking to get back on the
field, be successful and win some football games. I really
haven’t thought about anything contract-wise, as far as where
I’m going to be next year or what’s going to happen this year.”
Free agent addition David Givens joins the starting lineup
opposite Bennett. "My role is definitely to come in and make
a lot of plays," Givens said. "Definitely in the passing game,
make plays. In the run game, I'll definitely be there to block. A
good run game always opens up a good pass game and vice
versa. I'm definitely going to be blocking and I'm here to make
big plays so that's the bottom line."
Tulloch has impressed the coaching staff with his hard-hitting
ability. Tulloch’s athletic ability and football acumen might
allow him to contribute immediately as a rookie. "Stephen
Tulloch knows how to use his pads," said Fisher said. "That’s
becoming more and more evident each day."
Whoever comes next on the depth chart is anybody’s’ guess at
this point. Jeff Fisher knows there is no shortage of players
competing for the spot and he was none too pleased when
Tyrone Calico was not able to practice on Saturday, August 5.
"We're running out of time for Ty," Fisher said. "He's been a
little inconsistent catching and has yet to really finish a
practice full speed." One player the team is hoping to get back
from injury soon is Brandon Jones. "He's very close. I don't
want to say days or weeks, but somewhere in there,'' Fisher
said. "We'll be able to start to get him back and ease him back
into practice. I don't think he is ready to work twice a day yet.
But he's one of the first guys we've had, I think, on PUP
(physically unable to perform list) that had an ACL the year
before and come back and work at camp.” Jones is ready to
come off the PUP, but he’s been limited to rehab work and the
team plans on working him into practice at least once per day
in the next week if all goes well. Courtney Roby, Roydell
Williams and Bobby Wade are all in that mix, too. Wade is
one of the players that has caught Fisher’s attention during
OTAs and in training camp. Wade can also return punts. "He
had a great offseason," said Fisher of Wade. "He is fun to
watch and he loves to play. He is competitive, and he is
always smiling. He is very creative. He's got a lot of ability
inside to get open, and that's the kind of receiver we need. He
has been very generous with his time. He came out and
worked out (QB) Matt Leinert (before the draft). He was doing
those things for us during the offseason. He really just loves
the game." It’s unlikely the team will keep six receivers, so
one or more of the receivers above could be on the street,
which is just another reason why Calico needs to get on the
field and out of the infirmary.
Special Teams: Kicker Rob Bironas was good on 9-of-10
field goals in a recent practice. In another practice he was
perfect on field goals, all in the 35 to 45 yard range, while
working with two different holders, P Craig Hentrich and WR
Drew Bennett. HC Jeff Fisher noted, "Rob is kicking well.
We're going to bring some help in here at some point. We just
have to massage the roster a little." If Bironas continues to
kick as well as he has, the Titans may not need to bring in
anyone else. The various kickoff and punt return practices
have mostly featured three key players: CB Adam Pacman
Jones, WR Bobby Wade, and WR Courtney Roby. Jones is
expected to be the primary kickoff returner while Wade is
expected to be the primary punt returner. The two appear to be
enjoying working together and have snuck some laterals into
their practice.
TE: The Titans suddenly became particularly thin at tight end
after Erron Kinney underwent arthroscopic knee surgery last
week and Bo Scaife was sidelined with an injured quad. That
left the team with only Ben Troupe and Jamie Petrowski
prompting them to re-sign Ben Hall on Thursday. Greg
Guenther missed some practice time with an injured hip
flexor.
Defense: Pacman Jones doesn’t mind the fact that first round
pick Vince Young has generated so much excitement this
summer. After getting the same treatment last year, Jones
doesn’t mind the cameras being focused on someone else for a
change. "Last year when I first got in, it was a whole lot of
pressure, everybody's eyes on me," Jones said. "I'm a little
back in the cut now. Everybody's eyes are on Vince. I'm just
happy to be out here and on time. If I'm here on time, I feel
pretty good and hopefully everything will be good enough."
Rookie fourth round pick LB Stephen Tulloch was picked
mostly to help on special teams immediately. Yet, so far
Corner Michael Waddell is expected to be out until at least
October as he recovers from a patella tendon injury suffered in
the spring. On Friday, the team announced they have released
linebacker Moses Osemwegie.
Titans Depth Chart
QB Billy Volek, Vince Young, Matt Mauck, Cody Hodges
RB Chris Brown, LenDale White (inj), Travis Henry, Jarrett
Payton
FB Troy Fleming (inj), Ahmard Hall, Quinton Ganther
WR Drew Bennett, David Givens, Bobby Wade, Tyrone
Calico (inj), Courtney Roby, Brandon Jones, Roydell
Williams, Jonathan Orr (inj), Sloan Thomas, Jason Anderson,
O.J. Small, Tramain Hall
TE Ben Troupe, Erron Kinney (inj), Bo Scaife (inj), Greg
Guenther (inj), Jamie Petrowski, Ben Hall
K Rob Bironas
DE Kyle Vanden Bosch, Travis LaBoy, Antwan Odom, Bo
Schobel, Copeland Bryan, Sean Conover, Tim Thompson
DT Albert Haynesworth, Randy Starks, Rien Long
(inj), Jared Clauss, Jesse Mahelona, Daleroy Stewart, Marcus
White, Wayne Dickens, Jeff Littlejohn, Chris Herring
MLB Peter Sirmon (M/S), Stephen Tulloch
OLB Keith Bulluck (W), David Thornton (S), Cody Spencer
(W), Robert Reynolds (S/M), Jared Newberry (S), Marcus
Randall, Terna Nande, Spencer Toone
CB Pacman Jones, Reynaldo Hill, Andre Woolfolk, Rich
Gardner, Michael Waddell (inj), Cedric Holt
S Chris Hope (SS), Lamont Thompson (FS), Vincent Fuller
(FS), Donnie Nickey (SS), Calvin Lowry (SS), Cortland
Finnegan (FS)
Washington Redskins
QB: It didn’t take long for Mark Brunell to rekindle his
connection with TE Chris Cooley in the team’s first
scrimmage. During 7-on-7 drills Brunell completed several
passes to Cooley over the middle. "His rhythm and timing was
really good," offensive coordinator Al Saunders said of
Brunell. "This is the first stage where the quarterback is
working with receivers he hasn't really worked with before. I
liked the way he got rid of the ball." Young Jason Campbell
and veteran Todd Collins are competing for the backup spot.
Campbell finished 4-for-7 for 48 yards while Todd Collins
went 3-for-5 for 37 yards. Campbell was lucky enough to face
the Ravens starting defense. "Their defense was kind of teeing
off, but that was a good experience for all of us to have,
especially going against their defensive backs," Campbell
said. Saunders added, "Jason had a good 7-on-7 and made
some good decisions. He's a work in progress and has a long
way to go. We expect he'll be better next week than he was
this week." On Campbell’s second 10-play segment, he
completed 3-of-4 passes hitting receiver Mike Espy for 21
yards and tight end Robert Johnson for 19 yards to set up a
rushing touchdown for Jesse Lumsden. "I felt comfortable
during that drive," Campbell said. "I wasn't rushed, I felt
relaxed and had fun."
RB: In Saturday’s scrimmage it was Jesse Lumsden who saw
plenty of action. The big Canadian looked good as he finished
off one drive with a 12-yard touchdown run. Clinton Portis
had a little fun last Wednesday when he completed a bomb to
WR Richard Smith on a halfback option pass. The Redskins
like their 1-2 punch of Portis and Ladell Betts, but Al
Saunders had the following comparison that he offered up.
"RB Ladell Betts is better than a lot of people think," he said.
"RB Clinton Portis is more like RB Larry Johnson, where
Ladell is more like RB Priest Holmes. It will be fun to mix
and match those guys… They'll be on the field at the same
time. Sure, there are times they won't be, but there will be
some down-and-distance circumstances where our best players
are those two guys. Both are accomplished receivers and
excellent blockers. It adds another dimension to the utilization
of our personnel."
WR: Taylor Jacobs might be the odd man out in the
competition for roster spots amongst the receiving corps. With
newcomers Brandon Lloyd and Antwaan Randle El joining
Pro Bowler Santana Moss in the starting lineup, the
competition for Jacobs boils down to one of the last two roster
spots with veteran speedsters James Thrash and David Patten
and several other free agents. "When they bring in so many
guys, it's like, 'Where do I fit in?'" Jacobs said. "I just have to
find somewhere in myself to boost my own confidence," said
Jacobs, 25. "Since I've been here, things just haven't worked
out for me. I've had some hard times; I've had some decent
times when I played well on special teams. I know I've got
talent. I'm not second-guessing myself. I'm just trying to get
the ball rolling." Count Mark Brunell among those who
believes in Jacobs... "He's got great ability, he's got speed,
strength, he runs great routes and can catch," said Brunell.
"The only thing that Taylor lacks is just a lot of time on the
field. If and when he gets on the field, he's going to have quite
a career."
Brandon Lloyd has been working with receivers coach Stan
Hixon to round his game into tip-top shape. Hixon likes his
speed and route running, but cautions that Lloyd is far from a
polished player at this stage. "He's a really good route-runner,
but he knows and I know that there are some things he needs
to get a little better at to take it to the next level," Hixon said.
"And he knows that we're going to keep harping on it." David
Patten has been out of practice with viral meningitis, but he
was expected to return to practice as soon as Monday, August
7. Santana Moss didn’t play in Saturday’s scrimmage, noting
“I was OK with [not playing]… When it's 7-on-7, that's our
chance to go against their No.1s and as a receiver, you're only
about getting in and out of routes and looking at the different
coverages. This is camp and this was like another practice for
us."
TE: There is no shortage of speculation when it comes to how
Chris Cooley will be utilized in 2006. With Al Saunders
calling the plays, everyone is quick to point out that he’ll be
used more like Tony Gonzalez was in Kansas City (Saunders’
last stop). To confound those of you wondering if Cooley is
indeed an H-back, a TE or a fullback, Saunders offered up this
dandy during morning practice last Thursday. Saunders called
a running play for Cooley. A what? “That kind of surprised
Chris a little bit. But it's like we tell our guys – the more you
can do, the more you'll be involved,” said Saunders, who also
said he will use Cooley more downfield as well as on the
intermediate routes where Cooley is already extremely
effective. During last Wednesday’s practice, TE Calen Powell
strained his quad and was unable to finish.
Defense: It didn’t take long for Sean Taylor and Marcus
Washington to make big plays. In Saturday’s scrimmage,
Washington intercepted a pass and returned it 39 yards, while
Taylor laid a huge hit on Baltimore’s Mike Anderson. The
starting defense, minus linemen Cornelius Griffin, Joe
Salave'a and Phillip Daniels, played the first 10-play segment.
Andre Carter stopped Anderson for a short gain on the first
play, Taylor rocked Anderson on the fourth play and
Washington intercepted Steve McNair on the fifth play. All
were nice plays, but when Taylor laid the wood on Anderson,
it really got the crowd and the Redskins players on the sideline
stoked. "He's a beast," Washington said. "He comes in going
100 miles an hour and is going to lay the Ridell [helmet] on
you. That's the way he plays and I wouldn't have him any
other way."
Special Teams: Kicker John Hall got off to a shaky start in
last weekend’s scrimmage. He missed field goals from both 45
and 46 yards. Tyler Jones would normally have been brought
in for the 37-yard attempt that surfaced later in the scrimmage,
but special teams coach Danny Smith wanted to give Hall
another shot at making good. Hall made good. HC Joe Gibbs
didn't sound overly convincing in support of Hall, "You never
want to miss field goals. Don't get me wrong there. But I think
we have a lot of confidence in him." Hall does not seem
overly concerned, "Obviously you don't want to go 1-for-3.
But I made my last one, and I'm moving on. Guys miss field
goals. It's no big deal. I hit them all solid. That's why we're out
here, we're working on things. It's nothing to get your undies
in a bundle about." Coming off of another injury plagued
season, he slightly modified his conditioning program this
year, "I pretty much did the same stuff. I added some yoga to
it, just to try to get more flexible again." Many expected
veteran punter Derrick Frost to lose his job, but he is definitely
ahead of rookie David Lonie in the competition right now.
WR Antwaan Randle El, WR Santana Moss, WR Taylor
Jacobs, WR Ataveus Cash, CB Kenny Wright, and WR Steven
Harris have been practicing punt returns.
Redskins Depth Chart
QB Mark Brunell (inj), Jason Campbell, Todd Collins
RB Clinton Portis, Ladell Betts (3RB), Rock Cartwright,
Nehemiah Broughton (FB), Jesse Lumsden, Joe Rubin
FB Mike Sellers, Manuel White
WR Santana Moss (PR), Brandon Lloyd, Antwaan Randle El
(KR/PR), David Patten, Taylor Jacobs, Jimmy Farris, Andrae
Thurman, Mike Espy
TE Chris Cooley, Christian Fauria, Robert Johnson, Jared
Hicks, Buck Ortega, Dustin Denning, Brandon Sebald
K John Hall, Tyler Jones
DE Philip Daniels, Andre Carter, Renaldo Wynn, Demetric
Evans, Manaia Brown
DT Cornelius Griffin, Joe Salave'a, Cedric Killings, Ryan
Boschetti, Anthony Montgomery, Kedric Golston
MLB Lemar Marshall (S/W), Robert McCune (S/M)
OLB Marcus Washington (S), Warrick Holdman (W), Rocky
McIntosh (W) (inj), Chris Clemons (W), Khary Campbell
(S/M), Kevin Simon, Spencer Havner (S)
CB Shawn Springs, Carlos Rogers, Kenny Wright, Ade
Jimoh, Dmitri Patterson, Christian Morton, Chris Hawkins,
Dennard Wilson
S Sean Taylor (FS), Adam Archuleta (SS), Pierson Prioleau
(SS), Curry Burns (FS), Reed Doughty (SS), Bobby Godinez