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Coach announces roster moves, gives first weekly injury report & previews Bengals contest

Opening Statement:
“First off, from a roster standpoint, we waived quarterback Sean Canfield and signed linebacker Ramon Humber. He’ll wear jersey #54 and he was out there today. On an injury note, it’s a pretty short list: linebacker Anthony Waters (ankle) was limited; running back Pierre Thomas (ankle) was limited; and lastly running back Ladell Betts (neck) did not practice.”

Are you thrilled with such a short injury report on December 1?

“One of the positives to this point of the season is that we’ve been able to gradually get guys healthy, factoring in the bye and then we had a short week for a Thursday game and then some extended time before we got into this week’s practice, so that’s encouraging.”

So you’re expecting Jeremy Shockey and Darren Sharper to play at this point?

“Correct."

Can you elaborate on how Pierre Thomas is coming along?

“We kind of targeted this game as a goal date. He moved around pretty well today and I was encouraged. He’s certainly turned a corner and is progressing. We’ll just keep monitoring where he’s at each day this week.”

Was the reason he didn’t practice last week just because you knew he wasn’t going to play in that game?

“There were a couple of things. There wasn’t any setback but as much as anything else, with the short week that we had we just wanted to continue the rehab process and we targeted this game. We’ll take it day to day this week and see where he’s at come game time.”

What has been different for you during this four-game winning streak than in the 4-3 start?

“You start with just some of the fundamental things. We’ve been better with ball security; we’ve gotten our share of turnovers. The ball was out in Thursday’s game when we had five caused fumbles and a sixth was listed because of the muffed punt. From that standpoint we’ve been better. I think we’ve been more consistent in our protections and in our ability to run the football. I think defensively we’ve done a real good job – especially in the red area, forcing teams to kick field goals. Overall, all the little things that allow you to play better we’ve been better with this last month.”

Your red zone offense probably isn't as good as you’d like it to be. What things do you go through to try to improve that?

“Number one, you start looking closely at your ability to run the football. What are your aggressive, or shot, plays once you’re in the red zone? Then really it’s staying on schedule, whether that’s a third down play or a first-and-10 call. You really look closely at your own personnel and if we’re doing the things that we want to do. And each week is different because of what we see defensively. You start by looking at your run options and your pass options. The things that can really prohibit you from having success are turnovers and penalties; those are the things that immediately can be drive-killers in the red area."

Full presser below...

Payton's Wednesday Presser

Dasidreidia

Love the question at the end about TOcho being on the team. Typical Coach to not give them a yes or no.