HEAD COACH JEFF FISHER
(on if everything has gone according to plan for the first week of camp)
I think we're Ok. We're not ready to play yet, but I think we're OK. This is that time where the little nagging pulls and strains start to appear, but we're working through that. Overall, we're OK. We gave Cortland (Finnegan) the day off because he was a little tight here and there. So now, all of the sudden, you're down to four corners in the heat, so that has an effect. But overall, I think we're where we need to be. We've gotten a lot in. We've got some situation stuff we have to cover. We're going to finish up tomorrow at 1 p.m. in the sun, in the heat, and have a pretty physical practice. Then, we'll rest up tomorrow night and Sunday.
(on if the players are ready for their day off)
They're OK. They're all right. When you get out there in the pads and the heat, it's training camp. There's no way to avoid it. You have to work through those things. I think from an acclimation standpoint, we've done a great job, and that's a tribute to their work during the offseason and over the summer.
(on if the players will be in full pads during Saturday's practice)
Yes.
(on if Cortland Finnegan will practice Saturday)
I think he's got a chance to go tomorrow.
(on Kenny Britt sitting out of Friday's practice)
He's got some hip flexor tightness. You don't want to risk those things. We've got a number of guys that are just tight, so we're just trying to be proactive there and just back them down so they can remain full speed when they practice.
(on if he cautions the players about controlling their tempers at practice)
I think they're doing a pretty good job policing themselves. Yeah, we've talked about it. We talk about it at camp, and if things get out of hand, we address it. But they've done a pretty good job policing themselves.
(on if Lavelle Hawkins is performing as well as he did in OTA's)
Yeah, he has. The good thing about Hawk now is that Hawk is at all positions. He's lining up, and he's not making any mistakes. And he's in a position now – what a difference a year makes – where he's helping the other guys get lined up. So that speaks volumes of what he's done in the last year.
(on Vince Young becoming more of a vocal leader)
He's no different. I think he's a little more focused on the quarterback position. He's doing a really good job paying attention when the other guys are in, getting the mental reps when he's not in.
(on the rule change regarding the position of the umpire)
I had four plays specifically for them to sort out some scenarios that they'll have to work through. I'll be communicating with the league office and with the officiating department. It's different. The league stresses players' safety to the nth degree. But we made this decision during the offseason to move the umpire back because of safety reasons. They went down exactly 100 times last year. We had some season-ending injuries, some concussions, so it's time to address the issue. There are going to be some issues that we have to work out, and I'm confident that we'll be able to get through most of them through the preseason.
(on his main concerns about the rule change)
Spotting the ball, because the umpire typically is responsible for getting that ball spotted in a hurry-up offense. And now he's going to be back 15 yards, and when do you allow the offense to go? At this point we've agreed that he'll go back on the other side of the ball inside two minutes in the first half of the game to assist in the spotting. But if you get outside two minutes and you're down two scores, then it's going to become an issue. So some of those things need to be worked out. And there are things that are going to take place on the line of scrimmage that someone else is going to have to pick up, defensive holding for example.
(on if he is in favor of the rule change)
I'm in favor of safety. I've got confidence in the league and in the crews that they'll be able to adjust.
(on if he believes the defensive holding call will disappear as a result of the rule change)
Not necessarily. It won't got away. There may be fewer of them just because it's going to be difficult to see. But then again, if a defensive tackle gets turned, then one of the two – the referee or the umpire – will have a chance to see it, and he'll be called.
(on how the rule change will affect teams that run a no-huddle offense)
They're going to have to hurry up, and there will have to be some way to communicate to the quarterback that he's able to go.
(on adding a fullback to get the roster back to 80 players)
Yeah, Jed Collins. We worked Jed out once last year. But we worked a number of them out today. Obviously, we injury settled with Willie (Rose). We were just light at that position. We want to make sure that Ahmard (Hall) gets his reps but doesn't get all the reps.
