Injuries: "(DE) Juqua Parker has some knee swelling and will not practice today. That's a day-to-day situation. (G) Shawn Andrews still has the lower back spasms and we'll continue to work on that and treat him. (S) J.R. Reed will not practice today. He has a hamstring strain and ankle sprain, but he is making progress, though, and actually feels a little bit better than what we anticipated. (RB) Brian Westbrook, obviously, still has the rib fracture. He won't practice today and we'll take that day by day. He was a warrior in that game, being able to play, and we've just got to get it calmed down a bit there. We'll see how things go as the week progresses. The rest of the guys, they will practice today and participate. (WR) Kevin Curtis, we'll give a little bit more to him this week than we did last and we'll just see how he does as the week progresses here."
Opening Remarks: "We look forward to the challenge of going out and playing the 49ers. It's a football team that's in the same situation that we are, as far as record goes. We've seen them be very explosive, both offensively and defensively. They do a lot of things defensively; different formations, different blitzes, fire zones, different coverages. They're going to give you a different look just about every snap, playing against them. Offensively, they've got a quarterback that's very mobile (J.T. O'Sullivan), has a strong arm and understands the game. (He's a) smart kid. They have a running back (Frank Gore) who's one of the best in the business and playing very well. (They have) a couple veterans at the wide receiver spot that are, likewise, doing well. Special teams, they're a very solid unit on special teams."
On what tone he'll try to set this week for the team: "I'm very honest with the guys, I think that's where you start. They don't want to hear you stand up there and tell them stories. You shoot them straight. They understand what needs to be taken care of. We've got good people in that locker room. They understand the situation, they're not happy about it and they know that all of us, and again starting with me, collectively we've all got to up the tempo here."
On whether he would be surprised by players openly questioning his play calling: "I haven't heard that. Yeah, I would."
On what he's seen in the running game over the last couple weeks: "We've got to do a better job. We need to make sure, me in particular, that I call the right plays for the players against the defense that I believe they're going to play. And then, they've got to be executed better."
On typically always having a good running game in past years, and whether it surprises him that the team isn't better this year: "There are a few things that we need to get better at. That's one of them."
On whether anything needs to be changed with the team: "I think you have to be flexible, but, at the same time, I think the players, they need to know what's expected of them each day. That doesn't mean there aren't subtle little changes that take place, but I'm not going to change drastically. This is what I know and what has been successful. Within that, you have subtle changes that you need to make for flexibility."
On whether he has thought of naming captains on the team: "The players know who the leaders are on the team. I don't think anybody has to say anything. They know and they don't have to walk around with a "C" on their chest, or anything else. When you're on a team, you know who the leaders are."
On his statement that the players "need to know what's expected of them," and whether he hasn't been seeing that in practice: "That wasn't the question. That wasn't the initial question. To answer your question, yeah I have seen it. (The question was) if I was going to change. I'm not saying that that's not what they were or were not doing. They're doing what I expect in practice and coming to meetings and those things."
On other coaches' tendencies to shake things up when the team isn't playing well, and whether or not that's his philosophy: "I would do it at certain spots if needed. That's not where I'm at right this minute."
On whether there's a correlation between the problems in the running game and Shawn Andrews being out: "I think (G) Max (Jean-Gilles) is doing a fine job. That's not the issue there."
On the overall mood of the team: "We've moved on from that game today. These are Monday questions that you're asking me. We came in and we hammered those things out. Now, if you let it linger what happened last week, then there's going to be a problem. This group is ready to get better, we all are, and continue to work hard, stay aggressive and come out and play better."
On the fullback position: "(DT) Dan Klecko will get a few more reps in there at fullback."
On whether something is being lost between practices and games: "We're addressing what we think are the problems. We've done a couple things where we've added a couple more reps here and there at certain situations. It's a matter of, as coaches, do we put them in the right position; the players? And, when there, that we execute a little better."
On Klecko getting more reps at fullback: "We've worked him in at practice in some of the base stuff. We're just going to increase that a little. We've done that each week; we've increased some of the things that he's been doing."
On whether Klecko is still primarily a defensive tackle: "Yeah, we'll see. He can do both, that's the nice thing."
On whether there was a reason WR DeSean Jackson didn't catch many passes in the second half vs. Washington: "That's my responsibility. I've got to make sure that happens."
On whether he and offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg are still sharing the play calling duties, and offensive assistant Mark Whipple's role: "Mark's doing a nice job and Marty and I are doing our thing."
On how Shawn Andrews' rehab is going: "There hasn't been a lot of improvement there. I'd like to tell you that there has, but there hasn't been."
On whether he hopes to eventually switch Klecko to fullback primarily: "We'll see. We're just going to use all of our personnel the best way we possibly can."
On whether he's concerned about Klecko getting tired, playing both offense and defense: "He'll be fine."
