Injury Report: "Alright, on the injury front, here. (DE) Ricky Sapp hurt his knee today out at special teams. So, he's going to have an MRI. (DE) Victor (Abiamiri) did not practice. (C/G) Nick Cole did practice; really the whole practice. (DE) Trent Cole did not practice because he has a sprained ankle. It doesn't look to be a major one, but he does have a sprain. (WR) DeSean Jackson has an upper back strain. So, he took quite a shot there, it happened when his head was down on it and he took a pretty good lick. So, he's pretty tender in the upper back, neck area, and then tomorrow he's getting his wisdom teeth taken out, so he's getting a double dose, here. (CB) Dimitri Patterson has a groin strain. And then, (LB) Ernie Sims just has a strain in the muscles in his forearm. He should be fine; he's been X-rayed and all, so he should be fine. And then (TE) Cornelius (Ingram) was back practicing today and ran around pretty good, but he's still a little tender. (G/T Todd) Herremans went off with a slight ankle sprain; it was a basketball ankle. He just stepped on someone's foot. It was on his off-surgical foot, there; not on his surgical foot. By the way, I appreciate you guys being here on time. I figured you would because it's above 90 (degrees). You got in here quickly."
On whether he is more careful with WR DeSean Jackson because of his lack of size: "You know what, he does a good job of playing angles on guys. He got caught in a tight spot, there and he just has to be careful about putting his head down. Normally when he (puts his head down) he gets down and out of the way and this doesn't happen to him. I don't presume it will happen again. But, no, to answer your question, no. He'll continue to return (punts). He would have returned the other night if he hadn't gotten hurt."
On whether he has made a decision about C Jamaal Jackson: "No, but he did practice today. He worked with the ones and he got in there and had a couple snaps that were just a little off and we'll get that worked out. But we're going to work him in there with the ones and let him get some reps, see how he feels and push him a little bit, there, and just see how he responds. He said he feels well and the doctors have given him the clear. So, we'll give him a little work."
On whether Jackson will return punts: "Yes."
On whether he doesn't want to use starters on kick and punt returns: "Well, (Jackson) loves that part of it. Both he and (CB Ellis) Hobbs enjoy doing the return stuff. I've kind of held Hobbs out and given (S Quintin Demps) an opportunity back there to do something, and (WR) Chad (Hall) an opportunity. But, both of them enjoy that part of the game, so I'll probably end up letting both of them do that.
On Cole playing RG: "Well, he's back now. So, that was his spot in there and you know, with the injury went over to the other spot. One of the great things about him is we can put him anywhere and you can plug him in. He's worked very hard at rehabbing that leg as much as he can and looked pretty good out there. But, I'm easing him back in. He's in a little different situation than Jamaal's right now; that he hasn't been out there at all. Jamaal's been kind of eased back in over the last few days, so we'll do that same thing here.
On whether he still considers the offensive line a work in progress: "I think the positive is that (G/C) Mike (McGlynn) went in and did a nice job at the center spot, so that gives us great flexibility. We know he can play guard, and then we know Nick can play the center and the guard spot. I think it's a good situation. I think they're all familiar with each other and how they play. It's just a matter of (QB) Kevin (Kolb) getting back on the same page with Jamaal. Every center is a little bit different, but that won't take but a second. You don't forget how to ride a bike right. That's familiar territory."
On how he felt after watching film from Friday's preseason game against the Chiefs: "You know what, I saw some good things. There were some good things – there are some great things that we can learn from that are going to help us down the road, in particular our first game. Are there things that we can work on, on both sides of the ball and special teams? Absolutely. But I did see some good things and I saw some good key things that will help us get better."
On not playing the starters in the final preseason game: "Yeah, most likely I'll go with the twos and threes. That's the way I look at it right now."
On whether he has given a second thought about playing certain players in the game on Thursday, given all the new faces and projected starting rookies: "No, I really didn't. After I looked at the film and evaluated – I think we'll be fine there."
On when he has to decide on the opening day starter at center: "Well, the one nice thing is I can wait until the last day if I want."
* On what he needs to see from Jamaal Jackson:*
"I just have to make sure I feel comfortable that he can play. It's just that. Stamina, obviously, build, stop the bull rush. We'll put him in situations where we give him all of these looks over the next couple of weeks."
On where S Macho Harris currently stands: "At free safety. He's competing for a spot now, and that's what he's doing, but right now he's working with the twos and threes at free safety, kind of mix him in between."
On why Harris was moved back to safety from the cornerback position: "A little bit of it, I think, was that I felt comfortable with (CB Trevard) Lindley, who did a nice job. I think Macho is a good safety, that's where he started for us last year, he can also help you out in nickel situations inside."
On how the young defensive players the team is relying upon has been able to handle the mental aspect of the game so well: "They're a smart group. The capacity there to learn and retain. And (GM) Howie (Roseman) and the scouts did a great job finding those kind of guys and bringing them in, knowing that there's a good chance they would compete for a starting position. Are they doing everything right? No. They're learning as they go, but very seldom do you see the same mistakes twice. They seem to learn from their mistakes and correct them and move on."
On his assessment of QB Kevin Kolb's performance through the preseason: "Great for him to get in there and get work with the ones and go through that process. Again, we're not giving him the full game plan, we're not really studying the opponent and all that, we're asking him to go out and play. I thought he did some very good things. I go back and I know everybody's making a stink about not punching it in the end zone. He had one called back and that type of thing; I don't want to make an excuse here for him, but I don't have a concern with him punching it in the end zone. So that'll take place here, and he'll be fine."
