Head Coach Chan Gailey
Saturday, September 1, 2012
On when the Practice Squad will be announced:
It may take a day or two. There were some guys on some other teams that we were interested in so it will take a while to get them in here, but we do not practice till Monday so I think it will be OK.
On CB Terrence McGee looking healthy enough to practice Monday:
Yeah, he is. He is back to where he was going into the Pittsburgh game, which is a real positive that he bounced back that quickly. I think we will have him ready for practice on Monday.
On only keeping four wide receivers on the roster and if that will change:
I think you have been around Buddy (Nix) and me long enough to know that nothing is ever set. We are always looking for different ways to improve our football team. I doubt what you see today will be what shows up next Sunday.
On if OT Erik Pears will be able to play this week:
Yeah, I think he will. Yes. He will take some limited reps on Monday.
On what kind of role FB Dorin Dickerson will have, since he can play HB, FB and TE:
That is a yes answer. All of it. He will be a fullback, he will be split out and he will be a tight end. That is one of the things that attracted us to him, is his versatility. He can do all of that and he is fairly effective at all of it. He has some learning to do and some work to do, but he is an extremely versatile football player.
On his expectations for S Delano Howell:
It really is (too soon to start talking about expectations for a player). He made it because he was around the football. He has a nose for the football. He made a lot of tackles in preseason games. He is a physical player and we needed to keep a young safety that we can develop. We did not know if we needed to go get one or if he was on the team. It looks like he is on our team, so it worked out well.
On if things happened that threw off the numbers of each position he would keep on his ideal roster:
The injury to Brad (Smith), Tarvaris (Jackson) not being here but a short amount of time—all of that played into it. You deal with what you are having to make a decision with at that time. A month from now it may be different but today that is where we are and where we need to be. I have a hard time going into a game without a third guy that can take a snap. We did not know if we would have Brad this week or not.
On LB Chris White coming back from injury to make the roster:
He is getting better, I see, every week. He is getting stronger. He is getting quicker and he is getting more comfortable getting back playing again. He had his best game the other night, which was big for him and for us. We all know how good of a job he did on special teams last year.
On the status of CB Ron Brooks:
He had surgery Thursday or Friday. They said that it went extremely well and we will see where this takes us from here.
On if Brooks injured his foot:
Yeah.
On if Brooks is a candidate for the new injured reserve rule:
He is.
On what went into the decision to only keep four receivers:
You cannot pick out one thing and say this is why we did this. We felt like there are minimums at every position that you have to keep. There are always minimums. And then you look at the best football players for your team long term and what you are planning to do long term. It was not one single reason that we kept all three quarterbacks. There was not one single reason that we released all the wide receivers except for four. It was a lot of combinations that played into that decision and it is too hard to go into in a 20-second sound bite.
On keeping two kickers, Rian Lindell and John Potter:
(It is) very new (for me). I have never done this. Never been around it. So it is a new deal for me, but he (John Potter) earned it. I did not give him anything. He earned it.
On if the team has enough numbers at wide receiver:
We have enough to play. If you have a couple you can go play. We have enough to play.
On where the first team offense is at:
Everybody else, I think, was a lot more worried than I was. I think I had seen improvement and the little things getting better each week. I have a great deal of confidence in our offense about getting the job done. I do not put any expectations, numbers or goals out there. We just are trying to score one more point than the other team each week. I think our offense is on the right track.
On his thoughts on the New York Jets:
They create a lot of problems defensively because of their multiple blitz packages. Their offense, they have added the (Tim) Tebow package so you have to spend time doing that. You do not know exactly what it is, you have an idea, but you do not know exactly what it is. So there are a lot of unknowns going into our first ball game. I think probably the things that we know the most about are their defense and their kicking game because they have the same people there.
On how OT Chris Hairston has done this preseason:
He has done a very good job. We have put him in some tough situations having to play both sides and he has handled it extremely well. He got his weight down so he is quicker now than when he reported to camp. He is a very intelligent football player, or he could not flip from side-to-side. We feel very fortunate to have a guy like Chris.
LB Chris White
Saturday, September 1, 2012
On coming back from injury and making the roster:
It was definitely tough. It is not easy coming back from an ACL surgery. I fought through it in camp. It was definitely tough to fight through it but I am glad I got through it. It is a lot better now.
On what made him standout during camp:
Linebacker play, I felt like I could have done better sometimes but I felt like I dug in at some points and special teams definitely helped me a lot.
On how rewarding it is to come back from a serious injury:
It is definitely rewarding. I definitely appreciate things a lot more this year than last year. I was a rookie and really did not understand how tough it is in this league. Coming back from ACL surgery, I definitely appreciate it a lot more.
On how long of a day yesterday was for him waiting to see if he would make the team:
It was definitely long. All I did was play Xbox all day. I just waited for a phone call or not a phone call. So it was definitely a long day.
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S Delano Howell
Saturday, September 1, 2012
On if yesterday was a long day and being the team's only undrafted free agent to make the roster this year:
Yesterday was definitely the longest day of my life. Waiting for 9 p.m. to see if I made the cut or not. It was a great experience just being able to come in here and compete for a job. Even as a free agent, having an opportunity just like anyone else to make the team. I am definitely blessed to be here.
On if he feels honored to be an undrafted free agent who made an NFL roster:
Most definitely. The work is not done yet. I want to be able to contribute, have a good season and show that I belong to be here. I definitely do feel honored and good to be an undrafted free agent who made the team.
On what he did in the preseason that made an impression on the coaching staff: I think I was a consistent tackler and understood the defense. I still have a lot to learn and a lot of improvements to make.
