AJC > Sports > Falcons > Training Camp Blog > Archives > 2006 > July > 28
Friday, July 28, 2006
The hit parade has begun
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The first Falcons practice in partial pads ended on a bootleg run by D.J. Shockley to the sideline.
“Shock! Shock! Shock!” chimed a Falcons employee on the sidelines.
Shockley said the atmosphere doesn’t feel much different from the spring minicamp, but he does “feel the sense of urgency of getting ready, of being in a competitive enviroment.”
Nobody touched the former Georgia quarterback on that final play, but there were some pretty good hits during a spirited 2-1/2-hour workout that will be followed by full contact drills starting at 6 p.m. today.
Rookie fullback Jerious Norwood got, well, crocked by newly signed safety Chris Crocker and had to be helped off the field. The hit wasn’t why he left practice; apparently he was feeling ill.
Sitting out practice were Alge Crumpler and Ed Hartwell, who were pedalling on exercise bicycles while watching practice. Coach Jim Mora said it’s nothing serious, they just want to keep a limit on the early pounding for players recovering from injuries.
Yes, the coach was pumped to hear some cracking. He even postponed his customary post-practice run to chime in with some crispy talk about the morning proceedings. By now, the cool early breeze has been replaced by searing sun.
“It’s the first time since that shellacking by Carolina [the 2005 season finale]” to get in some licks, Mora said, right off the bat, looking like he wished he could have been in on it. “For a lot of guys, it was good to get the shoulder pads back on. You always want tough conditions for training camp. It’s good to build up for the pain of what’s going to come down the road.”
The King of Pain was clearly chomping at the bit to say that, as well as sprinkling in such appropriate football words like “nastiness” to confirm his mood.
Jimmy Williams’ first practice went fine. He had a pick in 7 vs. 7 drills, but left a lot of pigskin out for the plucking instead of tucking it safely in his chest.
“We preach ball security,” Mora said. “He’s not doing that yet… . He’s a bright-eyed kid who’s eager to listen and learn and he’s a hard worker.”
Then again, DeAngelo Hall does the same thing at times, but Mora was a bit more forgiving.
“D. Hall has some skins on the wall,” Mora said. “I’m going to cut him some more slack than Jimmy.”
Hope that’s enough meat on the bone for your football carnivores out there. I’ll have one more blog in the early afternoon.
Two-a-days begin
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
OK, for all you busting my chops yesterday, I’ll try not to be so cranky today. But that’s no guarantee. It’s a beautiful morning in The Branch! It’s so beautiful the Falcons are practicing twice today, in fact they’re going right now, then will workout again in the early evening.
They’re alternating with one daily practice, as they did Thursday, and two-a-days starting this morning. Weather has nothing to do with it. But you couldn’t pick a nicer day to start the grind. There’s just enough cloud cover up here to keep the sun away, at least for the moment.
I’ll get into some more nuts and bolts after I watch some of the workouts this morning, but the overall objective of this blog is to give you a bit of the picture from behind the scenes, and off the field, as well what happens on it. I know some of you are thirsting only for football, but our Falcons beat writer Steve Wyche is plugging away at his own blog for that purpose and is busy gathering news for his stories that appear on this site and in the paper.
I’m just the parachute-dropper, trying to give you a bit of the flavor of what it’s like to be here as a fan, watching things from a lay perspective. I get grumpy and ornery and wish they could lay off the circus atmosphere. Yes, it’s supposed to be fun, and believe it or not, I did have a lot of fun yesterday. Especially reading how some of you got so worked up over a different take on training camp than what you might have expected.
Hey folks, sometimes Grouchy is my middle name, especially when everything is amped up to ridiculous levels. DAVE-FMs speakers are too damn loud, and so is 2 Live Stews act. Not to mention tiresome. And making everyone walk through the makeshift Falcons gift shop to get to the practice field is just plain tacky. Surely I’m not the only one here who thinks that.
It’s a bit before 9 a.m., and already a good several dozen fans have trickled into the Falcons complex, including a group of adorable children from a church, all wearing the same t-shirt and holding hands. Since this is one of the final days before a lot of kids start school, this isn’t a bad way to see out the end of their summer.
