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A quick update injury-wise from yesterday. We seemed to come out pretty well. Madieu Williams will probably be limited early, he has a foot strain. Marvin White had a hip flexor. I think that's it. As for the guys who were out last week: Reggie Kelly should be back this week, Anthony Schlegel has a chance to be back, John Thornton will be back, and Herana-Daze Jones has an opportunity to be back. The only two guys with a little longer shots of being back right now are Willie Anderson and Caleb Miller. Otherwise, we're good to go.
Q: You're starting to get guys back. That must be an encouraging sight:ML:
I think we have been since the Kansas City game. I think that's when we started to turn the corner, and obviously we've made some moves and put some guys on IR. But we have been getting guys back, and healthier. That's where we are right now. I think as we go into Arizona week we have the opportunity to be as close to full strength as we've been.
Q: Were the running problems at Baltimore due to footwork and technique?ML:
Yesterday, we got our butt kicked. They were more physical than we were at the point of attack, and you can take your pick at which guy and which time. I thought collectively, up front, we didn't play very well. We need to get that corrected and get that done better. We have to have our (running) backs on track more often, and our guys up front, our fullback, tight ends, etc. We left some yards out there. A good thing was that we were able to make first downs, and the quarterback did a good job at not putting the ball in jeopardy. We took what they gave us, made plays, and were able to move the football. Obviously, we'd like to score touchdowns, which we didn't, but we were able to move the football effectively enough to get the points we needed.
Q: What does 'the back get on track' mean?ML:
It means the backs need to stay on their tracks. That's part of what they do as backs. They're the ones who make things go.
Q: The run defense did a good job against Willis McGahee:ML:
Yes. Dexter Jackson did a good job of tackling. We just have to keep working at it. Hit the right spots, and right gaps, and tackle.
Q: It seems like Baltimore did a good job getting pressure with a four-man rush:ML:
Their four-man rush is not quite the same four-man rush as a lot of other teams. They have interchangeable guys. They rush four, they rush five, they rush six, and they got some pressure. We had some errors a couple of times. But we were able to throw the football because sometimes they leave guys uncovered. Some of the things they do are a little unorthodox. Carson (Palmer) was able to get the ball to the free guy a few times, and that makes it work.
Q: It was a heads-up play when Bobbie Williams grabbed that Palmer fumble and took off running:ML:
That's probably an offensive lineman's dream. You have the ball in your hands and you have the chance to run over some guys, he ran over a guy, and the poor guy never came back. It was a good, heads-up play. Just our luck that only the fumbling player can advance a fourth-down fumble. So we lost eight or nine yards of field position there. That's just the way our season is going. I thought he had a chance to make the first-down play there for a second.
Q: Antonio Chatman finally gave the team a punt return that was over 10 yards:ML:
It was good. We've worked hard at it, and we have to keep working. Darrin (Simmons) and the group of guys that are out there continually work hard at it. We'll try to do some different things to give us the chance to get started. If we give Antonio a little bit of opportunity, he can make people miss. If you stop them on defense, and you return more punts, you have more chances. Secondly, if you can get them backed up, you have a fair chance to return the football. The guys up front have to have the confidence to get their guy blocked, and it becomes the kind of open field play you want.
Q: A lot of the young guys made plays yesterday:ML:
You're right in saying that, but, although they are young and sometimes inexperienced, we're in the time of the year when it's time to grow up and play. You're no longer rookies now. It's time to go. You're being counted on to play. You have to make sure you understand the ins and outs, and the changes that occur within the game. You have to be in the right spots and make plays. Chinedum Ndukwe continues to make plays and Frostee Rucker continues to come up with game-changing plays. Marvin White was a little dinged up there in the end, but didn't want to give up his chance to play.
Q: Chris Henry was good with the football in his hands. How did he play without the football?ML:
We want him to improve on the perimeter, and keep after that.
Q: Any early observations on Arizona?ML:
I saw some of their game yesterday against the Lions. They played aggressively on defense. They have a formidable front, a very athletic front. They have some guys who can rush the passer. They do a good job with their pad level. They have some playmakers in the secondary. Obviously with Kurt Warner as the QB, he's been to the mountaintop, and had some tremendous highs. They have a very physical group of WRs. It'll probably be the prettiest group of wide receivers you'll see on both sides of the football, that you'll see in the NFL. We need our guys to come out and be the best group. It's a great-looking football team. As I said, they do a good job of getting after you. It's another 3-4 group, similar to what we see in Pittsburgh.
Q: What are your feelings like after a win?ML:
You go right away to the next thing and look at things you need to do better. Obviously, I wasn't happy with the way we ran the football yesterday. I was happy with the way we took care of the football. We want to eliminate some of the pre-snap penalties. We want to eliminate those things at all times. We do a lot of things with our cadences. That's quite an advantage for us. We have to keep it an advantage rather than a disadvantage.
With Daniel Coats and Nate Lawrie playing yesterday at TE, we bring in some new guys. They hung in a very physical football game and kept their heads up and kept playing. We have to keep going that way.
We suited up six receivers yesterday, and they all had a role in the game. On special teams, we continue to make strides. I'd like to eliminate the penalty though. We had a foolish penalty. I can see why it was called. We have to keep cleaning those things up. When we had the ball on the ground on the kickoff, we have to understand we can't advance it. It's good to shoot a ball backwards, but make sure we get it. Things like that. We did well executing on the onside kickoff. Those are things we need to keep going. Our punt team we did a good job. It was Kyle's (Larson) best game, even though he didn't have many opportunities.
Q: Blue Adams is racking up penalty yards at a rapid rate:ML:
He's playing aggressive. Nobody feels worse about it than him.
Q: We saw what Dexter Jackson did in Buffalo. He spent an entire play talking to Buffalo's bench:ML:
Let me correct you. When the official told him that it was a foul on them, and he would get it next time, he allowed one of their coaches to get under his skin. Please quit making your quick judgments from 7,000 yards away up in the press box.
Q: He's not in the huddle:ML:
We practice half the time without huddles.
Q: Yeah, but he's drifting back out with two seconds left before the snap and he's way out of position:ML:
He wasn't out of position.
Q: But in Baltimore, Dexter showed that when he's disciplined and concentrating, he can be a playmaker:ML:
He played well yesterday. He also played well in Buffalo.
