Chiefs Head Coach Andy Reid
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OPENING STATEMENT: **"As far as the injuries go we really don't have anything for you. Everybody is fairly healthy and ready to go. We had a good workout today, a short 10-10-10 practice and we'll be ready to go. This was kind of the first leg for the Denver game and we look forward to the challenge of playing them. We know that they've got a good team and we have to have a good week of practice."
Q: Do you think Charcandrick (West) will be good to go for Monday?
REID:"I think so, yeah."
Q: What do you think about the way the AFC West Division is shaping up halfway through the year?
REID:"It's competitive, that's for sure. I paid attention to the Denver game because we play them and they were playing LA, so I saw both those two teams. We know Denver is a good team, whatever the score ends up being, they're a good football team and we have to prepare ourselves right. We'll do that. It looked like LA was doing a pretty good job too, and we just got done with Oakland, so we saw them firsthand."
Q: In your years around the game, the running backs that find a way to be durable and take lots of snaps, what's the one trait or characteristic that they all have?
REID:"That's a pretty good question because you've seen the guys that take hits and deliver hits, big guys, small guys. Its chance I guess, conditioning you probably put in there, but it's probably that last little second where they don't take on the extreme hit, leave their feet in the hole and so on. That would probably be it I guess. I don't know if there's one thing. They come in all different flavors."
Q: Is that like an ability for a running back to position themselves in a way, maybe even subconsciously, to avoid the big shot because he sees it coming?
REID:"I don't think so. They just have a knack for it I think. The obvious is it looks like some running backs take some big hits and other ones just kind of know how to edge it and still stay physical and everything else. It's a knack I think."
Q: Where does Kareem (Hunt) fall on that scale?
REID:"I think so far, knock on wood, he's done pretty good with that. He's got those quick feet and for a big guy he's pretty elusive. You don't see the giant crunchers on him. That's just not what has happened at this point."
Q: Is Steven Nelson coming back to practice?
REID:"There's a chance we get him back. We'll just have to see how all of that goes, but there's a chance on that."
Q: He has to wait until at least next week?
REID:"No, it would be Monday. Monday's the day that he could play."
Q: Because you have a Monday game that might get you off the hook?
REID:"Yeah that's right. I don't know if I was on the hook, but whatever it is, I got you."
Q: Is it reasonable to expect that he could play?
REID:"Potentially. We'll just have to see how he does as he gets out here and runs around a little bit."
Q:You've had issues in the last couple of weeks with Pittsburgh's running game and Oakland was able to throw the ball. What needs to be improved defensively?
REID:"We actually did pretty good against the run this past week when they did it and we can do a little bit better of getting pressure on them. There's all different kinds of areas and we can put them in better positions to do it. It's kind of a little bit of everything. You're able to step back here and look at things and you go, alright you're 5-2, you're in pretty dang good position. You had a couple hiccups here although we were close. Doesn't really count in this thing, but we were close. You're an inch away so you have to tweak things here and there. That's what you go about doing."
Q:Do you think sometimes the defense can get too cute with Justin Houston not rushing the passer?
REID:"I don't know if I would use the word cute. We use him in certain situations and it has been effective at times. I have full trust in Bob (Sutton) knowing how to do that and use him. This week, there wasn't a lot of the drop eight stuff. There wasn't much of that this past week. When we were in nickel most the time he was a rusher. So I would say no. It would depend on the team we are playing and what Bob draws up for it. And Justin (Houston) will get his numbers. They will come by the effort and the ability he has."
Q:When you drop eight,* *are you satisfied from what you get from your defensive line?
REID:"Again, that's not where we were at this week. We probably had less than a handful of drop eights this week. We have to get more push in there, both outside and inside. We can do a better job there."
Q:What have you missed from having Steven Nelson in the line up?
REID:"He is a good player. I'll tell you that we welcome him back, when he can do this thing. We welcome back his ability to cover. Not that the other guys haven't done a good job and that we won't need them, we need everybody. That is just how it goes, that is the NFL. But we welcome him back in there."
Q:Is there anything you can do to stress getting more takeaways going forward?
REID:"Those things kind of come to you a bit. You try to help put the players in position to do it, which we take pride in that as coaches. Then when you are given the opportunity to go make one, go make one. You go back to fundamentals and you work on that. You keep the rush up and the pressure on. When I say everybody has a little piece of this, that's what I am saying. We had some early and we have been in a little bit of a slump here the last couple games. We have to go through and work that out."
Q:How do you go about the defensive game plans?
REID:"Bob is the defensive coordinator. He does that. He lets me know what he is doing and we roll."
Q:Do you give him some input?
REID:"We talk."
Q:Do you spend the extra days more looking forward or looking back and evaluating?
REID:"You go back and you look at everything. That's what you do as a coach. Whether you are a head coach, offensive or defensive coordinator, special teams coordinator, you go back and you evaluate all of it. Just like you would during a bye week, it is just a little bit shorter period here. Whether you are winning or losing, you go back and analyze. Try to use that time wisely. At the same time, you give the guys a little bit of time off to rest up when most of the time they are cranking away."
Q:What have you seen from Jamaal Charles?
REID:"He has done some good things. I like Jamaal. I'm not telling you I am pulling for him on Monday. The other times I am pulling for him. He is a good kid and sure was a great player here."
Q: Are you surprised what he is doing when he is in the lineup?
REID:"Yeah, he has done a nice job."
