RIVER FALLS WRAP: Day Five

Jul 29, 2008, 7:10:44 PM

By Brock Ascher

Breakdown: This morning’s practice was a special teams only session, with punters, kickers, return specialists and coverage artists taking over the field. The afternoon practice, however, was non-discriminatory, as the whole team donned shells and worked on situational offense and defense. Head coach Herm Edwards described game situations and had his coordinators take it from there.

Weather Watch: Rain threatened early but never really materialized to allow special teams practice to progress normally. New players filtering through the University Center for lunch were pulled aside to put together their Arrowvision headshots.

Looking Ahead: Tomorrow brings even more of the same before Thursday shakes a few things up. Players have practice at 9:00 AM and 3:45 PM tomorrow before welcoming the Minnesota Vikings to River Falls for practice.

Plays of the Day: Rookie RB Jamaal Charles took a handoff, cut to his right and blasted through a hole for a 75-yard score during the team run period. Coach Edwards had his offense positioned on its own 25-yard line to start the series when Charles went to the house.

Coach Edwards set up the line of scrimmage 75 yards from paydirt and gave his charges 40 seconds to get into scoring range. QB Brodie Croyle led the first unit offense, hitting WR Devard Darling on a quick slant for a score.

Finally, QB Tyler Thigpen the second-unit offense during the two-minute period. The second-year signal caller from Coastal Carolina led the offense 50 yards down the field to the end zone. The series included a 25-yard scramble Thigpen and a 10-yard touchdown connection to rookie TE Brad Cottam to punctuate the drive.

Look Who’s Talking: “These last two practices – I know it, you know it, we got better“
-Head coach Herm Edwards addressing the team after practice

Reader Questions:
Who will fill the shoes left behind by the release of TE Jason Dunn?
-Matthew Miller

On the depth chart, three names are found below Tony Gonzalez’s: Brad Cottam, John Paul Foschi and Michael Allan. Cottam, a third-round pick this, is being groomed as the heir to Gonzalez’s TE throne. Standing 6-7 and weighing in at 269 lbs., he’s also a monster. Foschi and Allen are no little guys either, and all three are putting up quite a fight for the position. In the short-term, Cottam would appear to be the leading candidate to take over the duties in Kansas City’s two-tight end sets that call for a devastating blocker.

What is the likelihood that that every player drafted this year makes the team? Has that ever happened in NFL history?
-Jim Freemyer

As far as all 12 draft picks making the 53-man roster on Opening Day, it probably won’t happen. However, there is a high probability that all 12 will make the team in one way or another; be it on the active roster, the practice squad or even on one of the club’s reserve lists.

And it has happened before? Good question. Remember, the last time the draft had 12 rounds was in ‘92. To tell the truth, we’re so busy at training camp that we haven’t had time to fully research that one. However, we would tell you the Chiefs last 12th-round draft choice who became a regular starter for the club. That would have been RB Bill Jones (SW Texas State), who was a 12th-rounder in ‘89. That was the same draft class that was headlined by LB Derrick Thomas (fourth overall selection).

Who will be returning punts and kicks this year?
- Kieran Boyle

KR B.J. Sams, WR Kevin Robinson and CB Rashad Barksdale are likely the top candidates to handle the punt return chores. Robinson is coming off an injury as a senior at Utah State, while Sams is trying to regain his form from 2004 with Baltimore when had returned two putns for TDs with Baltimore. In terms of kickoff returns, RB Jamaal Charles joins Sams and Robinson in the derby for that contest. There might also be another name that emerges from the pack as there are a host of other young players who will likely get a long look in the preseason.

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