Head Coach Scott Linehan
Tuesday, August 15
(On today’s practice) “Another perfect day in St. Louis. We got a lot of situations worked and reworked; we’re really starting to work on special situations of the game and we’ll continue to do that as we get closer and closer to the season. Obviously, with the games involved, we’ll get them worked in games. I was very happy with the workmanlike approach in today’s practice. Orlando’s [Pace] probably going to be good to go and do some things tomorrow. He probably could have done some things today, but we didn’t force it; he’s going to be fine. We limited Leonard [Little] a bit. He has a slight strain in his quad that’s kind of nagging. Jamal Brooks had a little bit of a toe issue, but it’s just a sprain. Everyone else seems to be getting through it. It’s general camp issues, nothing big to report.”
(On RB Paul Smith, who sat out of today’s practice) “Well Paul’s the one. He’s got a calf. He probably could go some, but he’s gone so hard and been through so much in these practices. He played a lot of fullback in the game and special teams, so we’re trying to give him a little time off and try to let that calf come around a little bit. His calf just has a little strain.”
(On CB
Tye Hill practicing with the ones and whether or not it was an effort to rest CB Travis Fisher) “A little bit, and to get Tye some more work. I’m trying to do that with all the rookies actually, move them in occasionally with the first group. I think more than anything it’s just getting him some more snaps. I felt like after last night’s practice he needed a few more looks at some of the things he made mistakes on in last night’s practice.”
(On whether or not T
Orlando Pace missing practice was totally precautionary) “Totally precautionary, he’s fine. It’s just a little bit of soreness and we thought it was just a good opportunity to work Todd [Steussie] a little bit more over there.”
(On how healthy the team as a whole has been thus far) “There’s the old ‘knock on wood’ theory, I just think it’s the way we condition and train. I think that has more to do with it than just luck. Some of it is luck, but I think our guys came into camp in great condition. That’s why we’ve maintained a pretty healthy group.”
(On who he expects to step up at fullback with Paul Smith and Madison Hedgecock both sidelined with injuries) “We’ve been working our tight ends primarily in that spot. If we got in a game, we would do something maybe with one of the other tailbacks or one of the tight ends certainly. Lucky for us, right now we don’t have that dilemma, but that’s what we would do and that’s what we’re doing in practice.”
(On whether or not the ability to fill in at fullback is a helpful trait for a tight end to have in terms of making the roster) “Yeah, it’s basically an H-back spot. You go from being a tight end or a second tight end basically to an H-back, which is kind of a universal position. You can be a fullback one play or a receiver or a slot or a wing or whatever. I think those things certainly enhance their ability to be evaluated right now.”
(On whether or not he expects T Pace to play in Saturday’s game) “It’s too early to tell. I’m sure he could if we decided to [play him]. I don’t think it’s anything that serious at all. He could have done something today, but we just decided not to do it.”
(On what DE Victor Adeyanju has done to stand out) “He’s showing a lot. He’s a very passionate kid. He’s also got some ability to close. He came from one side of the field to the next, really showed his ability to close on a runner. Plays with a great motor. I think he’s a little more instinctive than maybe we gave him credit for. I think he’s shown that he understands the game, for a young player, quite well.”
(On Redskins RB Clinton Portis’ situation making him realize the negative things that can happen in the preseason) “That, unfortunately, is part of the game. We ride that fine line, when we evaluate how much we think we need to play, versus how much we don’t play our definite starters and proven veterans. There is a fine line where you’ve got to look at some things to get yourself ready for that game. It’s unfortunate, I feel bad for him, but I think until they change the rules of the game it’s just going to be part of the game.”
(On Dolphins LB Junior Seau’s career) “I was with him his last year, obviously. Junior’s most impressive trait was he brought an infectious leadership attitude to the field. You knew who the leader was as soon as you got out there. He still had some great ability, even in his last year of his career when we were there. Played the game like it was for real every time he stepped on the field. It was unbelievable. We’d be in no pads, and Junior would be tackling the running back or quarterback. He just didn’t know any other way how to play and that’s probably why he’s going to be a Hall of Famer sooner than later.”
(On what P Matt Turk brings to the team) “Another veteran, but a real, real good punter in my opinion. I think he had a great camp last year. He had a little bit of an injury. We decided to go with the younger kid that Nick [Saban] was familiar with, that punted for him at LSU. You get caught in that. Sometimes it just doesn’t fit, whether it’s a business decision or you just want to go with…but in our case, we needed an established type of punter who has been in lots and lots of games who brings a lot of ability too. He’s got great hang time ability, as you saw the other night, he did a nice job putting the ball down in deep. Punting is all about field position. Being able to change field position, and Matt’s one of the best at it in the league I think.”
(On recruiting DE Anthony Hargrove out of high school to play quarterback) “I never foresaw him playing defensive end in the NFL at the time, so it shows you that I don’t know what I’m talking about. He’s just a great athlete. They utilized him in their offense down there. We were going to recruit him as a quarterback slash athlete, he ended up going to Georgia Tech. We certainly saw his ability to play somewhere on the field for us, and he says ‘You and me, we go way back,’ and I say, ‘Only if you would have signed at Louisville, we go way back.’ I said, ‘You didn’t do me any good at the time.’”
(On Turk making the team over Andy Groom) “It’s still early, but he’s certainly the front runner. That’s a no-brainer, we brought him in for that spot, but Andy’s done good. He had an excellent first week, two weeks of camp, and you can never relax in this business.”
T
Orlando Pace
(On if he was scared when he went down in practice) “I think so. When I went down, it looked a lot worse than it actually was. Leonard [Little] picked me up so quickly, I didn’t have a chance to check myself. Everything worked out. The x-ray was negative.”
(On where the injury occurred) “Ankle, knee and hip. It’s kind of the whole right side. They are nagging injuries and hopefully we’re rehabbing them now.”
(On who landed on him and caused the injury) “I think [Anthony] Hargrove. I think he was making a play and doing a roll or something and caught the back of my leg. He was just playing hard. It was just one of those things that happen in training camp. It’s football. We just have to move on.”
(On his reaction immediately following the injury) “You just hope it’s nothing serious. You don’t want a (bad) knee or bad ankle. Once the x-ray came back and everything was negative, I was happy looking at that.”
(On if there was any swelling) “Not a whole lot. I think there were a few bruises. That’s the biggest concern.”
(On if he was concerned that the injury was serious waiting for the x-ray results) “They asked me if I heard anything snap or anything like that and I said ‘No,’ so I figured that was a pretty good sign and I wasn’t too worried after that.”
(On if he will play Saturday against Houston) “I don’t know. We’re taking day-by-day to see how it feels. I worked out today and it was a little sore after I did the workout, so we’ll see how it feels tomorrow.”
(On the workout he participated in during practice) “I was getting my Tour de France workout. That was it.”
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