Q. How difficult is it to run training camp with a guy down?A. "Well, I'm very disappointed for Harry (Douglas) personally, but in terms of building our team for 2009, injuries are something that's going to happen. As I told our players this morning, one man's misfortune is another guy's opportunity. That's what we've got to keep in mind. Somebody else can step up and have an opportunity to perform. Personally for Harry, it's a tough situation but injuries do happen in this League."
Q. On working on developing the roster considering injured players.A. "We've been very fortunate. Injuries are something you have to deal with and as a team, and as a coaching staff we will. We're doing everything we can to put our best fifty-three guys out and that's what we're working towards."
Q. How does the wide receiver unit look now?A. "It makes some guys have to get crossed trained and we always talk about cross training. Some young guys are going to get over loaded. Basically, where they were once learning one position, their going to have to step up and learn multiple positions. I think there will be a learning curve. "
Q. Does Troy Bergeron have an opportunity now?A. "Yes, it's an opportunity. For Troy, he'll be a guy that's going to be asked to expand his role in terms of what he needs to learn position-wise."
Q. How did practice go today?A. "I thought it was very good. We went one time yesterday and had a two-a-day today. They came out and they were very fresh. Our whole team had the night off. Our veterans were excused from staying in the dorms. They had an opportunity to go home if they so decided, and I thought they came back and worked very hard this morning."
Q. There are some soldiers here that have traveled the world, and they say this ranks up as one of the best experience they've ever had as a soldier. What are your thoughts about the soldiers coming to visit?A. "Some of them came last year, before they were getting ready to ship out to Afghanistan. I'm looking forward to visiting with them at lunch today but; we're very proud of them. If it's a big experience for them to come out, it's a big experience for us because these are the people that are out defending our country."
Q. Are you excited about the scrimmage tomorrow?A. "Very excited. This is the first time that we are going to play football. What I mean by that, is that we're going to go out there and tackle. The defenders are going to get out there and tackle and take guys to the ground. The only person that won't be live will be our quarterback. It's as close to real football as we're going to get prior to preseason games. It's a fun night for the guys because we're putting a little scoring system together like we did last year, and its very competitive. The defense won last year, but it was by one or two points. It came down to the end with someone coming up and making a play. We certainly hope it will be competitive this year."
Q. As a coach you try to limit the distractions and limit the injuries, yet you got both this week. How do you stay focused?A. "When you get into training camp mode, I think it's real easy to get focused. You're not worried about what day it is, you're worried about what is going to happen at the next practice. You live one day at a time, one moment at a time. That's how I think you have to approach it at training camp whether you're a player or a coach, because the dynamics can change very quickly. We have to understand that."
Q. What color jerseys will they be wearing at the scrimmage?A. "It will be just like they are out here. They know not to hit the quarterback. If we need to do that, we'll bring the jerseys out if somebody gets close. Just like we do out here in practice, the quarterbacks are going to wear the same color jersey and they know not to touch the quarterbacks. There's a halo around them."
Day Six -- Thursday, Aug. 6, 2009
8:30 a.m./3:45 p.m. Practice**@FalconsJMoore "Words of the Day"
RELEASE:Falcons add Ferguson, Booker to receiving corps * NEWS:Team examines options in Douglas' absence * TRANSCRIPT:Smith talks to media about moving on after Douglas injury * VIDEO:Head Coach Mike Smith | Brian Finneran * ONE-ON-ONE:Discussing some rules changes * BLOGS:J. Michael Moore's blog posts from Aug. 6, 2009
