[BigRedChief]

Saturday, August 9, 2008: Afternoon Practice
The Chiefs first practice since their preseason opener with the Chicago Bears was a beautiful one. The sky was partly cloudy and the temperature was 82 degrees. The wind was coming out of the northwest at five miles per hour. The humidity was at 32 percent. There were 91 fans in attendance.

Defense
Defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey was at practice today with a brace on his sprained left knee. Dorsey didn’t participate in any contact drills, however. When the defense moved to Ramer Field to practice with the offense, a trainer told Dorsey to take his brace off because he wouldn’t be doing anything for the rest of the evening anyway.
Linebacker Napoleon Harris didn’t practice today, either. His right knee was wrapped, and he had ice on it.
At 4:15 linebacker Donnie Edwards made his way to the field to encourage his teammates from the sidelines. He didn’t have a jersey on and didn’t participate in any drills.

Practicing with the first team during 11-on-11 was: defensive ends Turk McBride and Tamba Hali, defensive tackles Ron Edwards and Tank Tyler. Linebacker Demorrio Williams also saw some time with the first-string. Rookie cornerback Brandon Flowers also spent some time with the first-string. Defensive tackle Alfonso Boone rotated in during nickel formations along with a few other defensive players.
If either the defense or offense could win the 11-on-11 drill, the defense would have walked away victorious today. There were several interceptions including picks made by rookie cornerback Maurice Leggett who intercepted quarterback Tyler Thigpen’s pass, defensive tackle Alfonso Boone who plucked a short ball out of the air from quarterback Brodie Croyle and rookie linebacker Weston Dacus who took the ball from running back Jamaal Charles after Charles juggled the pitch from Thigpen.

Rookie cornerback Brandon Flowers went untouched up the middle with great blocking from his defensive line to make what would have been a sack on quarterback Brodie Croyle. The play would have been close because Croyle made a last minute pass to wide receiver Dwayne Bowe as Flowers got close. Rookie defensive end Brian Johnston swatted a ball out of the air and, a few plays later, made the sack on quarterback Tyler Thigpen.

Cornerback Patrick Surtain displayed great coverage when he forced a decent pass from Croyle to wide receiver Devard Darling incomplete. Another show of good coverage came from cornerback Tyron Brackenridge when he came around the top of wide receiver Kevin McMahan to make quarterback Damon Huard’s pass fall incomplete.
After a play, defensive tackle T.J. Jackson and defensive end Jason Parker got their cleats stuck together. They hopped around for a while until a staff member unhooked them.

Offense
Head Coach Herm Edwards joked with wide receiver Dwayne Bowe about a play during the game Thursday night.
"You woulda gotten a first down if you woulda run the right route," Edwards joked.
"I did," Bowe responded.
"No You Didn't…I watched the film," Edwards laughed.

The offense broke into positions after warm ups; the tight ends took passes from coaches, the running backs worked with the agility ropes and the wide receivers and quarterbacks worked on timing in patterns.
The tight ends worked on routes and after one 15-yard out-route where rookie tight end Brad Cottam didn't finish the route, tight ends coach Jon Embree yelled: "Run out of that one Brad, run out of it!"
Meanwhile, the running backs worked with running backs coach Curtis Modkins in the agility ropes and blocking. Modkins instructed the running backs to: "Make him work. Strike, get your hands out and work on him!" Running back Kolby Smith, who has missed significant time since a groin injury earlier in camp, worked on the drills with the running backs but did not participate in the 11-on-11 drills.

Offensive tackle Herb Taylor, who stepped in with the first-string with the absence of first-round pick Branden Albert, continues to get time with the first-string. Running back Larry Johnson took his first carry of the 11-on-11 drill right past Taylor as he busted the run for a big gain. Head Coach Herm Edwards forcefully reminded the players to: "Go fast men, go fast," after the run.

Quarterback Brodie Croyle looked sharp during 11-on-11, completing 10-14 passes. Croyle stepped up a couple of times with the pocket closing in around him to deliver some nice passes. Tight end Tony Gonzalez received one of those passes after a great throw from Croyle, who threaded the ball through nice coverage to complete a 20-yard pass. On another play, Croyle avoided a would-be sack to find wide receiver Dwayne Bowe for a nice 24-yard completion across the middle of the field.

Running back Jamaal Charles worked exclusively with the second-string for the first time this training camp. Running back Jackie Battle had previously been working with the second-string, but worked only with second-string on pass plays in this practice. Battle took handoffs along with running back Dantrell Savage with the third-string.

Special Teams
A kickoff return drill started special teams work at 3:38. Fifteen minutes were put on the clock for the unit’s designated practice time. Going south on Ramer Field the cover team was distinguished by wearing yellow skull caps. Special Teams Coach Mike Priefer instructed the wedge team on proper technique when protecting the returner. Running back Dantrell Savage and kick returner B.J. Sams split reps returning the ball. Kicker Connor Barth took the first reps; kicker Nick Novak, the second-string reps during the drill.

With 5:03 left on the clock, special teams began a punt return drill. Kick return specialist B.J. Sams, running back Dantrell Savage and cornerback Rashad Barksdale took turns returning the ball for a distance of 10 yards. A Juggs machine took the place of punter Dustin Colquitt. The juggs spit out punts from the 20-yard line. The drill was run at three-quarter speed. “It’s a great day to work on technique,” said Special Teams Coach Mike Priefer.

Kickers Nick Novak and Connor Barth each took three attempts at field goals. Both were 3-3. Novak kicked first and Barth kicked second. They kicked from the left 25, the right 30 and the left 35-yard lines.
Herm Edwards Press Conference
Head Coach Herm Edwards spoke briefly with media after practice. He talked about defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey participating in position drills and said that Dorsey will be coming back slowly and is still on a day-to-day basis. Linebacker Napoleon Harris and offensive guard Tre Stallings were also mentioned. Both are resting with sore knees.
Edwards also shared his thoughts on the team’s performance at Chicago. Edwards said the team still has a lot to work on but will be a “physical” football team. He further said that the team needs to get stronger mentally. “Mistakes you can correct. Mental you find out in practice,” he explained.

“There is a lot of positions still open, a lot of competition going on,” said Edwards. Player evaluations and solidifying the team is still an on-going process. “I’m not saying we won’t bring people in,” said Edwards who said that players will have every opportunity to make the team, but they must be the productive players that the team is looking for.
The offensive line was a topic. Edwards said that the line isn’t as strong as it could be and working on cleaning up penalties—after the line racked up multiple ones in Chicago— will be something that will take place. He said that offensive tackle Branden Albert will play when he is able and that if need be veteran players will be brought in to ensure the team’s success at that spot.

The kicking competition between kickers Connor Barth and Nick Novak is still close said Edwards: “They’re still battling.” There are three preseason games, which Edwards said is three opportunities for the kickers, and other players, to prove themselves. Getting the kickers more opportunities to show how they can perform is important in the next three games he said. When asked if the kicking competition is still close after the preseason if they will go with the veteran or rookie, Edwards replied, “I don’t know. You got to go with your gut.”

Extra Extra...
Two bursts of an air horn got practiced started at 3:28. The team used the north end of Ramer Field to run through line drills and stretching under the instruction of Strength and Conditioning Coach Cedric Smith.
Fans pulled defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey aside before practice to get an autograph while he was walking onto Ramer Field.
Special Teams Coach Mike Priefer played catch over the fence with 13 children during practice. Running Backs Coach Curtis Modkins was working with some of the offense nearby.
Vice President Denny Thum was present during practice today. He spent time talking to Director of Public Relations, Bob Moore and Associate Director of Public Relations, Pete Moris. He also spent time on the sidelines watching the practice.

After practice a group of players signed autographs for eager fans. Among them were: defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey; Defensive Coordinator Gunther Cunningham; safety Jon McGraw; cornerback Brandon Flowers; linebacker Donnie Edwards; quarterback Damon Huard; defensive end Tamba Hali; running back Larry Johnson; wide receivers Will Franklin, Jeff Webb, Devard Darling and Sergiori Joachim; tight end Tony Gonzalez.

After practice, newly attained defensive end Jonal Saint-Dic spent time hitting sleds by himself. Running back Larry Johnson, defensive end Tamba Hali, cornerback Brandon Flowers, safety Jon McGraw and running back Jamaal Charles signed autographs for fans.

Fans
Dave and Sharon Robinson from Inver Grove Heights, Minn., came to watch the Chiefs practice. Both were very impressed with how the Chiefs looked. This is the first time the Robinsons have attended the training camp in River Falls. Their daughter Kayla is a senior at UW-River Falls. The Robinsons said that the best thing about the Chiefs is the fact that they traded defensive end Jared Allen to the Minnesota Vikings.
This was the first time at Chiefs practice for Rick Losson from Kansas City, Mo. Losson, who is a season ticket holder, said, "I can't believe I never came up here before. This is awesome." He went on to say that he hopes the Chiefs keep coming up River Falls. Losson's favorite player is tight end Tony Gonzalez. Before he heads home, Losson said he would like Gonzalez to autograph his jersey. Losson wants to say hello to his wife Ashley and his daughter Jenny.

Denny Linblade from Lee’s Summit, Mo., is enjoying his stay in River Falls while watching the Chiefs training camp. This is his fourth year coming and he says it gets better every year. Linblade is predicting that the Chiefs will go 9-7 and just miss out on the playoffs. He said, “I think they are going to sneak up on some teams this year. It should be fun to watch.” Linblade’s favorite player is defensive tackle Tank Tyler.
Orville and Arsenio Black were among several fans that waited patiently for players’ autographs as the players walked from the practice fields to Ramer Field.

With more than half of camp and a preseason game over with, many fans like what they have seen so far. This is true for Mike and Beth Cupp, who rode their bikes to River Falls from Springfield, Mo. Mike commented that the win in Chicago should be used as a moral boost for the young players, and the whole team. The couple spent time at the Mall of America and checked out the NASCAR simulator. These season ticket holders are fans of quarterback Brodie Croyle and defensive end Tamba Hali.
Long time River Falls resident Ashley Mezler said she can’t remember a year without the Chiefs in town. She commented on how she usually catches at least one practice a year. “Its very good for this town to host a NFL team, it brings some life here,” said Mezler.

Optimist words were spoken this afternoon by Jerry and Patti Johnson of Poplar Bluff, Mo., about quarterback Brodie Croyle. Poplar Bluff is south of Kansas City, meaning the Johnsons had longer travel time to River Falls than what most fans endured. The two think Croyle will be able to build on a few early starts, to have an overall successful season. Jerry shot out an 8-8 prediction for the Chiefs record this season.

In attendance to watch the team practice was Dan with his son Cody Whittner, from Kansas City, Mo. Dan has enjoyed the amount of time the first team has seen live action this preseason. This is their third camp in a row and they plan on coming to River Falls again if the Chiefs do. They also plan on making it to a regular season game this year, preferably against a division opponent like the Oakland Raiders or the Denver Broncos.