Head Coach Tom Coughlin

Saturday, May 10, 2008

Injury situation?

The big lesson for these young guys is it is not just straight ahead running.  You do have to work side to side and we had about four soft tissue injuries that are going to be frustrating, but are going to take time.  It is going to reduce their practice opportunities.  It is unfortunate but hopefully it is a good lesson for these guys.  The twisting, the turning, the stopping, and the starting that is what this game is about.  You do have to have cardiovascular conditioning, but you do have to also work in the short bursts and the change of direction and all those kids of things so that you don't have that kind of thing.  Each one of them is a little different case.  Woodson is just running really across the field, Manningham made a quick jerk for a ball.  It is unfortunate but that is what it is.

Who are the other two?

We had a couple yesterday.  Messam, the runner.  One of the guys fought his way through, nothing kept him out of practice.

They are all legs right?

They are all legs, yeah.

Is Manningham going to sit out the afternoon session?

I would imagine.  I haven't heard anything different.  I will have to wait, I will have to wait, I don't know that for a fact, but I will find out.

Will Jeremy Young who you switched to receiver now go back to quarterback?

Not necessarily.  We didn't do any more with him there.  He knew coming in that he was going to play both positions.  He actually did a pretty good job yesterday playing receiver too.

Do you like what you have seen so far of Kehl and Goff?

Yeah I have, but I mean they are in a position where they really need to put the pads on before you make some decisions there.  They are both two sharp, bright kids around all the special teams and have a little personality.  I have been having some fun with those two.

Kehl seems to have a personality, I don't know about Goff?

He is not there yet, but give him a little bit.  He is okay when he is in the meeting rooms.

Did Kehl look about as relaxed to you as any rookie you have seen here?

I don't know.  I don't know if that is the word.  He does have a smile on his face some of the time so I don't know what that means, probably his mother told him to smile.

What have you liked from Woodson so far?

Well he is just a young kid trying to figure it all out.  We really have not given him a whole lot, but when you stop and think about just the terminology it is tough.  The cadence is totally different, our alert system, our audibles, are all different.  Each time you have practiced he has done a little bit better with it.

Do you like bringing in a West Point guy in Owen Tolson?

Oh yeah well if, for example, you know that obviously they are past the football part of it, sure.  We love to have those guys.  They have the background, they have the discipline, they have been in strict regimentation routine, and they are obviously intelligent or they wouldn't be there, so yes.

Do you want to take two punters into camp?

I keep changing it, we keep talking about it.  The 80 number, the 80 number is a squeeze now, I am telling you it is a squeeze.  We will all do what we have to do, but that is a big change for us.

I guess you would like to bring two?

Yeah I would like to have 90.

Were you impressed by Tolson's kicks today?

Some.  Some of them, yeah.  It is really hard.  I think you have to understand that the first thing that these kids had to do was go in a bubble for two practices.  Everything is a little difficult in there.  The kickers, if you want to talk about them, it is banging the ceiling or not trying to bang the ceiling.  This is much better for everybody, just to be out here.

The odds of some of these kids making it to camp?

Yeah but we have opportunities.  We had them last year.  The opportunities will be there, opportunities to make our team obviously, so some of these kids will get that chance to go forward.  I just told them the main lesson today was that you can't miss practices and expect to make a team in the NFL.  You have to learn how to train to prepare and changing direction is a big part of it.  I quoted three practices, four soft tissue, only three guys missing time, but four soft tissue.

What have you thought about Terrell Thomas thus far?

He has been impressive.  He has done a good job.