Opening Statement: “I’ll start with this, Don Muhlbach will be back with us, but not as a long snapper. He will be helping us. He’s going to help us with coaching. He may do some stuff with (Executive Vice President/General Manager) Brad (Holmes) in scouting and kind of let him get a feel of what we feel like we can use him for, what he wants to do. This has been something that we’d asked him about when everything transpired about a month ago. We’ll be excited to get him back. He’ll be here today later this afternoon. That’ll be good. That’s one. Two is, Taylor Decker had a hand injury early in the week and it looks like he’s going to be down for a little bit. We’ll adjust from there and we’ll move forward.” On if he had seen he was named ‘Donkey of the Day’ by The Breakfast Club radio show after releasing Don Muhlbach on his birthday: “No, I didn’t. I mean, look, anytime things like that happen and then it’s on the guys birthday, you’re not going to look good. But no, I don’t look into any of that. I’m sure I’ve been the donkey for many different days before. So, I don’t know if any of that’s going to change. Anyway, we’re excited to get him back because we can use him. He can help us.” On if T Taylor Decker’s injury occurred during practice: “Yeah, no, it was a hand injury. He just – like he does and he’s done all camp, it was just in a pass protection. He threw the punch, threw the hand and the injury took place. It’s more on the finger. He’ll be with the doctor this afternoon and we’ll know, but I would say it didn’t look real good for this weekend.” On if T Taylor Decker’s injury requires surgery: “We’ll know for sure this afternoon, but I mean I think that it’s probably leaning that way.” On who will start at left tackle against the San Francisco 49ers with T Taylor Decker’s injury: “Look, we’re already – yesterday we started thinking about this and luckily, we’ve got a lot of flexibility because (Matt) Nelson has played a little bit. Certainly, we have (Penei) Sewell and then having Logan (Stenberg) be able to move up and bump (Halapoulivaati) Vaitai. So, we’ve got some options we’re going to play with.” On the benefits and drawbacks if T Penei Sewell played at left tackle on Sunday: “If that’s where we ended up going with it, that’s what he did play in college and it’s something he’s comfortable with. But he’s also getting pretty comfortable at right. So, that’s what we’re going to need to – it’s that fine balance between, who do you feel like is best to move to the left side versus, he’s a rookie and he’s getting better on the right side and let’s keep him there knowing that (Taylor) Decker will be back in a little bit. That’s kind of the balance that we’re playing with.” On if the potential movement of T Penei Sewell from right tackle to left tackle could cause any setbacks in his development: “To be honest with you, I think it’s too early to even say on all of that. Right now, we’ve got to figure out what we’re going to do for this one. It’s all about San Fran and what gives us the best chance to win. So, like I said, we’ll work those combinations and figure out what’s best for us.” On the Internet rumors surrounding RB D’Andre Swift: “I think that’s just Internet rumors that I don’t feel like I needs to comment on right now if I’m being honest with you.” On if RB D’Andre Swift is ready to go for Sunday: “He’s good. He’s ready to go for this game.” On if he was aware of any police investigations involving RB D’Andre Swift: “Not that I know of. Not to my knowledge.” On if he is starting to feel the excitement now for Sunday’s game against the San Francisco 49ers: “I’m starting to get pretty antsy now. I’m starting to get pretty excited because now, we’ve gotten a couple of days of work. We’ve got one more good day here, which is kind of our red zone day and so now, yeah, it’s starting to get – I’m starting to get pretty excited. I know the guys are, too. They’ve been locked in and I just go back to what we said early in the week, it’s about just staying focused on your job and handling what you’re supposed to do, read your keys and let’s play fast.” On his recollections of the September 11th attacks after flying in from a Monday night game against the Denver Broncos when he played for the New York Giants: “We actually did. We opened our season at Denver on Monday night and flew in. I think we arrived at 6:30 in the morning back in New York and I had just laid my head on the pillow when everything started, and my wife woke me up. That was when the first one had hit and it was – when you were there and we lived on, basically, on the Jersey side of the Hudson Riverbank. So, we kind of overlooked Manhattan and it was – you thought you were – we did, we thought we were under attack and it was pretty scary. You didn’t know where it was coming from and then you hear the Pentagon had been hit and it was just – you don’t know what to do. You’re trying to call people. Nobody’s got answers. Everybody is a little bit scared and it was tough. There were a lot of people I know, friends, people in the organization, the Mara Family, that lost a lot of close friends, family, everything. It was devastating, but I’ll say this, it was also probably the best of humanity, too, because to see the first responders and to see New Yorkers come together and everybody in Jersey and just that whole area come together and help each other out. If there was a positive to come out of it, it was that. People that – there’s so much about—time is money and you’re on the go, and to see them stop and help one another was pretty special.” On the country rallying from the September 11th attacks: “The whole country, yeah. They sure did.” On what the emotions were like playing in the first game after the September 11th attacks: “I was pretty emotional. I just – for me, I felt like it kind of hit home because we’d gone down there two days after the fact to try to help as a team. We were down there and there are things that you just – you won’t ever forget it. It was tough, it really was, but there again, it was a negative that turned into a positive with the way the country rallied I thought.” On what he saw from the September 11th attacks: “I wouldn’t say it was as much as what I had seen directly. I know this, those first responders had been up, some of them for three days straight and they’re running off fumes and they’re desperately trying to help people. The smell is what I’ll never forget, which is tough.” |
