Q: What about your receiving corps? They surprised a lot of people last year:
A: More things are expected of that group. Greater consistency, greater productivity. Obviously the loss of Domenik did not help. He was a very stable force there. He could play all the positions. The young guys have to continue to improve. I talked to you the other day about Ramses. They've got to be part of a receiving group in terms of the depth and quality that we want. It's got to be an everyday thing for him as well. I think it doesn't help any that Hakeem is out one practice a day and now Manningham is out with whatever he has, soreness in the groin area. When they miss a practice, they really don't understand that they're not just missing a practice, they miss opportunities for the team to continue to move along with the guys who have proven on the field that they can play. It's a group we are expecting a lot from.
Q: Is there a concern with O'Hara's ankle, that it's more than just swelling?
A: Well, I think they're going to look at it, do all the tests, and find out what it is. It's always a concern.
Q: Is this something new for Manningham?
A: I guess so, yeah. I'm not aware of anything in the past along those lines.
Q: Will Nicks be limited to one a day for the duration?
A: Yes. That's what they're saying. Unless he can prove that he's not going to get sore and there won't be setbacks. He seemed to do well with one practice yesterday.
Q: What about Beckum?
A: Beckum started to feel a hamstring, so we backed him off. Don't think he pulled it, but it's still sore.
Q: DeOssie has the back flaring up again?
A: Well, DeOssie did what he had to do. I don't know if he…no report was made on him. It's a constant thing but so far it hasn't held him out of anything.
Q: Is there a reason you're keeping the one-a-day guys to the the afternoon? You used to split them up:
A: Well, for (these first two days) I did it. I didn't want, this early in camp, to take those guys with the one a days and have one follow the other right away. The afternoon practice, then the next morning. I sort of held it that way and I sort of made a general statement so the training room would know whether or not, and the coaches would know how to play them there. As we go forward with the one practice a day thing, we may have a chance to do some maneuvering. I'll look at it by practice, and calculate how many times they've been involved in the first time and how many times they've been involved in the third down, that type of thing.
Q: How are the cornerbacks adjusting to Perry Fewell's new techniques?
A: Okay. They're doing alright. I think they've all shown at different times an aggressiveness. Obviously you saw a couple more catches out there by those guys. So it's been good. Technically, they're doing okay. They're doing well. Just little things here and there just with alignment, etc. that they have to be coached.
Q: One of the coaches said you guys might give up a few more catches but the goal is to give up less passing yardage:
A: Well, I hope we don't give up more. I don't think anybody wants that. I think what they're saying is if we shut down the big plays and stop the big plays, we would be much further ahead than we were last year.
Q: What have you seen from Bruce Johnson thus far?
A: He's been good. He's been spry and he's run well. He's jumped a couple routes and I told him he has done a nice job. I was kidding him about his punt return coverage drill yesterday, which wasn't much. But he has done pretty well.
Q: To me, he seems like he's guessing:
A: Well, he's reading the quarterback. In that situation, a zone situation, he's reading the quarterback well and he really shows an ability to break.
Q: A few of the new guys you brought in last year, Michael Boley, Canty, the injuries…you just hoping these guys do what you need them to do? You didn't see much of it last year:
A: I hope, I hope. The offseason and working in the spring and staying healthy through all of that, I'm hoping that's the answer. With Michael and Canty and some of those guys who really deal with the quality of their work.
Q: What does Boley give you? We haven't really seen his best?
A: He's very athletic, fast, and very good in coverage. He can play and does play on special teams. He's carrying a little bit of extra weight and hopefully that will be recognized in his ability to play the run.
Q: You like seeing him have extra weight?
A: He's always trying to do that, and you'd like it. He's always been trying to do that and trying to keep it there. He's always trying to keep it there.
Q: From the off the field standpoint, you haven't seen many distractions. What do you think that is a reflection of?
A: That's a reflection of our team, and our team's commitment and their focus. The realization of what camp is all about and just the idea of why we're here. We are here to work, prepare, and become the best team we can be. We have a short amount of time to do that, and we certainly don't need anything except their effort, their focus, and all of their time spent on being the best team they can be and not other things.
Q: When you see fire between guys like Beatty and Tollefson, what do you think?
A: It's good, it's fine.
Q: Why?
A: They're competing.
Q: What does Beatty have to show you?
A: Get better. Just keep getting better. Do a better job with assignments, consistency.
Q: Did Webster just cramp up at the end?
A: Yeah. Might have been post cramp.
Q: What's your message to Eli in terms of this season?
A: Take it to the next level. It's always the same. I chart all the previous year and we sit and talk about where he has to go and what would be the next level of improvement for Eli and we chart it. He sees it and his completion percentage and his reduction of turnovers, touchdown passes, all those things. They're point blank for him. I'll give that to him and the quality of play and the step he took a year ago. We expect it to take place again.
Q: What about his work with the wide receivers?
A: He's always talking about what he sees: 'Did he see what I saw?', you know. 'I expected you to make this kind of a reaction and you did something else. What did you see that I missed? Did you read the coverage? Did you know the other corner had dropped off.' He's always talking to all the receivers and he's taking a lot of responsibility with it because of our young guys.
