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Asked during Thursday's post-practice press conference whether Tony Gonzalez is ready to play a full football game, head coach Dick Vermeil kept it simple:"Yeah, he’s ready."
Asked if he was relieved at the notion of his star tight end hitting the field, Vermeil replied: "Yeah, it is. Every day you go out there you just hope very much that somebody doesn’t get banged up. With the tempo at which we practice people are flying around the field. Over the years, I think working like this you experience fewer injuries than if you tip-toe around the field."
Other notes of interest. ...
Fullback Tony Richardson continues to work without difficulty despite practicing with a bulky cast on his hand.
"He’ll play Sunday with a limited cast," Vermeil said. "Not as big as the one he had on the practice field today. Other people have done it; he’s done it. He won’t be as skilled catching the ball as he normally would be but he can still play and do all his blocking."
Good news for owners counting on big things from Priest Holmes. ...
Which brings us to the next point. ... In an interview earlier today, Trent Green was asked if we can expect coaches to make good on preseason threats to lighten Holmes' load somewhat this fall.
"I hope so," the veteran signal caller replied. "When you look at the off-season there were a lot of people who wanted Tony Gonzalez to get the ball more and, of course, we feel he’s the best tight end in the league and we want to get him the ball more. But when you see the types of plays that Dante Hall makes and Marc Boerigter makes and obviously Priest makes -- then you’ve got your two starting receivers in Johnnie [Morton] and Eddie [Kennison] -- you’ve got to find ways to spread it around and keep everybody happy and also keep everybody on the defensive side back on their heels and not sure what’s going to happen.
"The game plan is going to be spread it around but when you’ve got a weapon like Priest in the backfield you’ve got to make sure he’s getting enough touches."
And before anybody out there panics, that last sentence is the one I'd consider the most relevant.
And finally. ...
Asked how Morton is faring now that he's moved back to the X-receiver spot -- his natural position -- after working on the other side last year, Green replied: "I think he is more comfortable in his natural position. Just the fact that he knows the system -- we have a very wordy system, numbered system. I think just hearing the calls in the huddle and going out and shifting and moving -- we do a lot of that before the snap of the ball -- and, I think, just his comfort level is a lot better."
Let's hope so. ...