Opening Remarks:"These are the people that most likely will not play Thursday. (CB) Sheldon Brown, and he is getting better, you've seen him out there doing some individual things and then doing some conditioning. He has a rib strain. (LB) Omar Gathier with a knee sprain, he has actually practiced and getting better so we'll just hold him out of this game. (FB) Leonard Weaver with a sprained MCL, again he is making progress. (T/G) Shawn Andrews, (G) Todd Herremans, (DE) Darren Howard, again you've seen Darren out there doing some work and getting better. (LB) Charleston Hughes with a foot contusion and then (LB) Tracy White with a rib strain. Everybody else will be suited up and ready to play. (TE) Tony Curtis, I would add to that.
"We signed Tony Curtis, a tight end, today and he's coming off a high ankle sprain and he's not ready to play right now. (LB) Curtis Gatewood, a linebacker, will be suited up and ready to go. What I'll do with the starters is I've got them down for three quarters and we'll just see how the game goes. And, with the quarterback situation, (QB) Michael (Vick) will have an opportunity to play Thursday, and then (QB) Kevin Kolb will be ready to go also, Kevin will take the fourth quarter there. We'll just see how we use Michael. Time is yours."
On how much he expects from Vick in Thursday's game: "I can only go off of what I've seen in practice and it looks like he's moving around pretty good but again, realistically it's been two years. We'll see how it works out and give him a couple shots in there and see what he can do."
On his feelings regarding showing the Wildcat offense during preseason: "I don't mind doing it."
On what the ultimate goal with Vick is in this first preseason game: "I'm really just going to take it play by play, see how he adjusts to the game speed. If I think that's a problem I'd probably discontinue the reps, but if I feel like he's adjusting okay then I'd continue to give him an opportunity there."
On when Vick will play: "He won't play in the fourth quarter."
On what Vick's mindset is right now: "He wants to get in. He's kind of set this as the goal, as did we, the third game. You've seen him out there conditioning after practice, he's conditioning before practice and so on. I think he's excited to get out there. I'm sure he'll have a couple butterflies with it being a couple years since he's been in, but I think he's excited to get back to doing what he does."
On whether RB Brian Westbrook will play three quarters on Thursday: "We'll just see with him. I've just got to see how that goes."
On where Vick will play given that QB Donovan McNabb is playing the first three quarters and Kolb is playing in the fourth: "Well, I can't tell you that. He'll be in there."
On why he is so open to having Vick play in the Wildcat during preseason:"I've just got to see how it works out. I think he's worked himself into good enough shape to where he can function in there and do okay. And then I've just got to see, it's been two years since he's been in there, so just like you've got to see, I've got to see. If he's okay with the speed of it then we can give him a couple snaps. If not, we'll back him off and get him back to practice and work there."
On who is the mastermind behind his version of the Wildcat offense: "We all throw in an idea here and there."
On whether Vick will talk to the media after Thursday's game: "I haven't even gotten there yet. I'll talk to (Director of Football Media Services) Derek (Boyko) about that as we get closer."
On how close Tony Curtis is to being able to play: "Well, there's a chance. He worked out with (head trainer) Rick (Burkholder) today, I haven't met with Rick on his progress here so I'll get back with him and see. We had brought him in to work him out before and he wasn't quite ready last week so we'll see. It may be a week to week thing."
On where he sees Gatewood fitting in: "You mean before he got here? He's a speed player and pretty good instincts. Looks like he has decent feet and he can move around a bit. We're kind of throwing him into the mix here with just a couple of days to prepare. I'll go up and talk with (defensive coordinator) Sean (McDermott) and see how he was picking things up, but it's a quick turnaround for him."
On what he likes about Tony Curtis: "I think he's big, strong, good line of scrimmage player. Those are the primary things. (He's a) decent receiver."
On how LB Joe Mays has been playing: "He's done some good things. I think he's played well. This is a big game for him. He needs to continue to progress. I thought he did that last week and I would expect to see that this week."
On why WR Kevin Curtis was wearing a brace on his left knee during today's practice: "He had a sleeve on. He had a little bit of soreness in the knee. I held him out yesterday just to see if we couldn't calm that thing down. He's feeling pretty good today."
On whether Vick will miss any meetings due to his bankruptcy court hearing Thursday: "It'll be close. He'll probably miss the one Thursday afternoon. He'll be here for the game."
On how Vick is progressing apart from football: "I think he's doing a good job. He's working at it. I think he's heading in the right direction. I think it's good that he's able to be around the team. We have some guys that can be a good influence for him and kind of take him under their wing."
On whether he had to remind Vick to be extra careful because of the recent *New York Post *article: "You know how I am. I handle those things in-house. He and I have talked and I'm not going to get into all that, but we've talked about that."
