Head Coach
Scott Linehan
Friday, December 15, 2006
(Opening statement)
“We haven’t decided yet about what we’re doing on the O-line spot. We’ll probably still consider using Adam (Timmerman) as a backup, or possibly inactive this game. I want to see after he felt after today and meet with him a little bit more when we get done. So that hasn’t been determined yet. There’s a chance, too, that we’ll have (Jon) Alston up too for the special teams and backup at linebacker this game as well.”
(On G Adam Timmerman)
“He got some time in today. With our tempo and everything like that, I didn’t have a chance to actually visit with him, see how he feels today. We’ll discuss that. We may go into the weekend too just to see how he feels compared to last week.”
(On making the decision as to whether Timmerman plays on Sunday)
“You certainly take the personal things that guy has done and the sacrifices he’s made to help this franchise and all those things. This is really nothing about him at all, it’s just what I feel is the best thing to do for our team at this point in the season; and also to be able to give him a chance to get back to being healthy. It hasn’t been an easy road to get back from those broken ribs. It’s been difficult for him. I think the performance level he’s used to performing at …”
(On LB Jon Alston’s capabilities on special teams)
“The thing when we drafted him was we knew he had the ability to maybe be a linebacker or safety, both, but initially he was going to be a very effective special teams player, and I believe he will be. He has great speed. His ability to run is his greatest asset. That’s one of the biggest characteristics of a special teams player is being able to run down the field, avoid blocks, get off blocks, and make plays. That’s what he did in college, and we fully expect him to do that during his pro career. I think it’s about time that we get him started on that.”
(On Timmerman being available in limited situations)
“That, or mainly a backup role. Hopefully not play him. Emergency. It’s not so much as a backup, but as an emergency; a guy we know can go in and play. We’d like to get him 100 percent.”
(On how the center and right guard positions will look on Sunday)
“We’ll announce it on Sunday. Lets put it that way.”
(On having to game plan around Raiders’ DE Derrick Burgess)
“I think everybody’s got a guy like him. He’s kind of a similar thing that you do, what people do to Pisa (Tinoisamoa) because he gets in that wide-tilt, rushes up the field. He’s hard to block, so you have to be aware of him. You have to game plan all the players they have on defense. They’re playing great defense actually. Kind of hidden within their record. He’s a guy that if you don’t take caution with him, you’re going to be in trouble. They’ve got (Warren) Sapp in the middle, and they’ve got some guys that are…their linebackers can really run. One of the reasons they’re doing so well is that their secondary’s doing so well, and the corners aren’t letting guys get open, so it’s allowing them to sack the quarterback with just a four-man rush.”
(On if the Raiders play mainly man or zone coverage)
“They’re a combination of both, but usually your single high-safety look a lot, where they get eight people up in the box and they mix up man and zone pretty well. They’ll play some different coverages if they think you’re throwing the ball, but that’s Raider defense. It’s been that way since the 70’s, so things haven’t really changed.”
(On Raiders’ DT Warren Sapp)
“Sapp’s having a really good year. They’re system was a little bit different. They’re toying around a lot with the 3-4, which was probably not his style of a defense, although he can play any defense. Now they’ve got him back where he looks like he did when he was at Tampa. He’s the classic three technique. He plays the run really well, but he can really rush the passer from the tackle spot.”
(On Sapp lining up like he did at Tampa)
“He’s gone back to that alignment and it’s been pretty effective for him.”
(On Raiders’ CB Chris Carr)
“He runs hard. He’s very quick, so what he does is he makes people miss. Makes a lot of tackles. He runs hard. Has a lot of energy. That’s what…you’ve got to be fearless, but you’ve got to have some talent too. You’ve got to have a style about you, and he’s got the ability to make big plays because of how he hits the return. He’s dangerous.”
(On making adjustments on special teams this week)
“We’ve toyed around with some personnel changes. We’ve just really worked hard on some of the things we talked about early that we were deficient at as far as running to the ball, and not breaking down and staying in our lanes.”
(On having LB Isaiah Kacyvenski back out on special teams)
“Those are the kinds of things…having guys back will give us some stability, I think a lot of stability in our special teams.”
(On if RB Paul Smith’s stingers are still bothering him)
“We did another MRI. It didn’t show anything different, but he’s having a lot of discomfort actually going down both sides of his…into his arms. When you get those they’re very painful, and you’re week. So there’s a pretty good chance he won’t be active on Sunday.”
(On DE Victor Adeyanju’s chances of playing Sunday)
“Outside. We put his game pad on that cast just to kind of see how he’d respond. I’d say for sure next week, if not this week. We’ll see. You never know. If something happens, if we decide to go one way and something happens between now and Sunday, I think he would be available. I wouldn’t hesitate to have him in there, I’m just not sure if this is the week to do it.”
WR
Torry Holt
(On going against the Raiders defense)
“I think it’s going to be a great challenge. (Nnamdi) Asomugha has seven interceptions and he’s playing very well and playing at a Pro Bowl level. (Fabian) Washington is playing with a lot of confidence. I think he has four or five interceptions. Their defense is sixth overall in the NFL, so once again we have our hands full. Coming off of Chicago, who I think we faired pretty well against, and coming up against Oakland who’s pretty tough. They’re definitely going to present a challenge for us for four quarters, so we have to be ready.”
(On why the Raiders cornerbacks have been successful this year)
“The overall thing that I noticed when I watched them was that they’re confident. They’re playing man coverage and they’re confident in their technique, their speed, and all of their abilities. They’re putting themselves in position to make plays.”
(On G Adam Timmerman playing injured)
“It just speaks volumes about Adam and his commitment to the game and his commitment to this football team. To go out and constantly fight through injury and still try to come out and help this football team win ballgames have earned him a lot of respect from me. I think a lot of the guys in the locker room have noticed that and have the same amount of respect that I have for him.”
(On how to be successful against the Raiders cornerbacks)
“You have to trust your technique and trust what you’re taught and execute the gameplan. I think we have a great gameplan coming up and we have to go out and execute it. We need to use our fundamentals, technique, releases, and all those things at the line of scrimmage to try to give ourselves an opportunity to win on the outside. Nnamdi Asomugha is big, strong, physical, and fast, so he poses a different challenge than Fabian Washington who’s quick, smooth, plays off technique, but he’s very quick. He’s playing with a lot of confidence and he poses a challenge. It will be a great challenge for us on the outside as receivers, so we definitely have to be ready on Sunday.”
(On the Raiders having three or four Pro Bowl caliber players)
“I would definitely have to agree with that. Nnamdi Asomugha is a Pro Bowl caliber player, Warren Sapp has 7.5 or 8 sacks, and Derrick Burgess has 10 or 10.5 sacks. Those guys are playing at a very high level and that’s why their defense is sixth in the league and number one against the pass. It’s going to be challenging for us.”
(On expecting a lot of different looks from the Raiders defense)
“I think he’ll throw some different things at us. Watching film on them last week against Cincinnati, I noticed that they switched up some things, so I’m expecting the same thing out of those guys this week against us. But he’s going to do what they do and that’s close the middle and play man. He’s also going to throw a few wrinkles in there and trust his guys to go out and make plays.”
G Adam Timmerman
(On his consecutive games played streak)
“A little bit more has been made about it this season, but I try not to think about it to the point where it makes me make a bad decision. That’s really about it. It’s something that has taken a long time to build up and I’d hate to see it end. I think it’s something where you have to make a wise decision and we’re going to take it that way.”
(On what normal activities cause him pain because of his cracked ribs)
“Probably sneezing was one of the worst things, which kind of sounds funny. I don’t know what it was, but I think anybody that has had cracked ribs would agree. Even the deep breaths were painful because you’re playing a game and breathing heavy. Other than that, during the week, trying to get a punch or bearing down hurt, but it was manageable.”
(On asking himself if it’s worth it to play hurt)
“I haven’t really thought about that too much, but it really is. I want the guys to know that I’m with them whether we’re 1-15 or 15-1. I’m going to be there for them. It’s the way I am and the way I have been. I just want to be there and be with the guys. I want to be with my fellow offensive linemen, Marc (Bulger), the backs, the receivers, and the guys in the huddle. For me the whole team concept is just such a part of me that I want to be out there.”
C/G
Richie Incognito
(On the differences between each side of the offensive line)
“It’s a big difference with the right side versus the left side. I played left tackle in college and played left guard the beginning of the year and all through camp, so I was kicking out to my left and now I’m kicking out to my right. It’s just footwork and hand placement. Like I said, it’s the little things that I’m trying to overcome this week.”
(On this season being fun after not being able to play in a game for so long)
“It’s been a lot of fun. Just being around the guys again, being in the locker room, and working hard has been a blast. Win or lose, we put a lot of time and hard work in and we go out and have fun on Sundays.”
(On matching up against Raiders DT Warren Sapp)
“I’m definitely looking forward to that matchup. We match up very well against each other. He starts off everything with a power move, and that’s what I shut down, so I’m looking forward to it. It’s going to be a good matchup. He’s got some moves and some power. He’s been around a long time and he’s going to mess with you with his alignment, he’s going to work everything off of power and get you leaning. He’s a good ball player; he’s still got it.”