Head Coach Mike Smith, July 27
Q: How did everything go out here for day two?
A: “You are always concerned after the first day of a two-a-day that there are going to be some guys who are sore. I thought it went well, it was the first time we actually had pads on so it’s a new sequence for not only the players, but the coaches. I thought for the most part we handled it well. It was a little bit longer there at the end, and I thought the intensity dropped, but you’re going to have your ups and downs. I felt they came back and finished strong.”
Q: Any medical updates?
A: “Well, Von (Hutchins) will be going to see someone to get a second opinion. There’s really not anything new in terms of where we are at. We just want to know the severity of his foot injury. He will be seeing someone on Monday and we will have more information after that.”
Q: Is it a sprain or a break?
A: “Right now it has been diagnosed as a sprain, but we need to get a foot specialist to look at it. Jamaal (Anderson) has a sore hamstring and we want to take precaution because it’s a mild hamstring pull. We don’t want to put him in a situation where he is not going to be ready to go.”
Q: How important are Ben Hartsock and Ovie Mughelli to the offense?
A: “People think that the offensive linemen are the only people blocking on run plays but the tight ends as well as the fullback are very important in our running game. Our receivers are important as well. Ovie Mughelli has done a nice job during training camp and Ben Hartsock has been our tight end on the line scrimmage. If you block as a wide receiver you are going to get more opportunities to touch the ball because we will be driving down the field.”
Q: How do you feel about Michael Turner tomorrow with the pads on?
A: “I think it will give him security when they get to go out their tomorrow and pop the pads. We will do that tomorrow morning during our nine-on-seven periods.”
Q: What do you think Thomas Brown is capable of?
A: “I’m really impressed with Thomas Brown and I think he has a great work ethic. Even though he is short in size I don’t think he is a little back. He’s got good size and he’s going to get the opportunity to show what he can do at this camp.”
Q: Coach, how is John Abraham feeling?
A: “Well, we feel for John Abraham and his family. His grandfather past away and he probably won’t be with us this evening, but that’s his call. He will be with his family to take care of all of that. As an organization we send him and his family condolences because it’s a tough situation when something like that happens.”
RELATED LINKS:
- COVERAGE: Click here for complete coverage from 2008 Russell Falcons Training Camp
- SOUNDS: Head Coach Mike Smith mic'd for practice
- NOTEBOOK: Falcons ready to put on the pads
- TRANSCRIPT: Head Coach Mike Smith
- VIDEO: Head Coach Mike Smith | Tony Taylor | Ben Hartsock | Jerious Norwood
- BIRDSEED: J. Mike reviews and comments on Falcons news
- J. MIKE'S BLOG: Cornering the Market | Looking for Contact
- FALCON AL'S BLOG: J. Michael Moore and SPF50 | NFL Team Cam
- MOOKIE'S BLOG: Daddy Needs a Chiropractor
- TWIG'S BLOG: Screamers Found
- MOD'S BLOG: How Refreshing
