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Head Coach Gary Kubiak**
(on if there are any injury updates) "We had a little light workout today. So to update you, (G) Wade (Smith) is still not working with us, but is doing very well. I tell you all the time, he probably worked harder than the team with the trainers. (ILB Darryl) Sharpton was not back yet to work today. (WR DeAndre) Hopkins still has not passed stage five, so that's something we hope to get done here, hopefully will take place over the weekend before we get into Monday. (WR Alan) Bonner has not returned to the field, so nothing's changed there. Coming out of the game, (T) Brennan Williams' knee is swelling on us again. It's just been a reoccurrence every time we put him through some pretty stressful stuff, so we're dealing with that today. (OLB) Trevardo Williams got rolled up at the end of the game, got an ankle and a knee that's being evaluated. That's it for now."
(On NT Daniel Muir's status) "He's got a hand. It's getting X-rayed. Actually, a thumb I think and an ankle that's getting X-rayed, both."
(on what he feels best about during this preseason) "Well, I feel good about just the camp in general. I think I said this last night, the guys that have been out there working, we've had a really good camp. I think we're really going to improve our self. We're going to add some really new faces, young faces on this team. But I think it gives us a chance to ascend throughout the course of the season. I feel good about that. The thing I'm concerned about obviously is some guys that we're counting on huge have missed time. It goes back to (OLB) Whitney (Mercilus). Whitney is back to work today. Worked with the team, looks great. But the fact is he hasn't had a preseason. (RB) Arian (Foster) hasn't had a preseason and (FS) Ed (Reed) hasn't had a preseason, and (G) Wade (Smith) has missed a good period of time. I'd like us all to be working together, but that is part of it. Something we'll have to work through. That would be my biggest concern right now."
(on if there is anything new on the status of the backup quarterback situation) "Nope. None. I actually have so many other things going on today. I'll probably make that decision in all honesty when we start our preparation next Thursday when we get into our San Diego stuff. Until then, I'll probably keep doing what I'm doing."
(on if there is anything new on the status of FS Ed Reed) "No. There was a five-day process from when he had the injections and, I can't remember exactly what day the injections were, where he basically was sitting idle. That time is up. He'll be back tomorrow. We're hoping to do some field drills Monday and Tuesday with our extra days with him, with Kap (Head Athletic Trainer Geoff Kaplan). We'll probably make a quick decision early in the week, Monday or Tuesday, on his availability for San Diego. We're sitting here hoping and we'll see how that goes."
(on WR DeVier Posey returning to game action) "First, you're just glad that he's back at it. He had 14 good plays and a couple of catches, got tackled, got hit and all those types of things. Just to get him back to work and then he comes back today and I actually worked the guys that didn't play in the game pretty hard today. We did a bunch of individual stuff. He hopped right back in and went to work so that was encouraging to me. I think he'll probably line up against San Diego, he's probably in like his second or third preseason game but that's OK. We're going to have our group and he's going to have his role. How big that role is opening weekend? We're going to have to wait and see, but he's coming a long way."
(on if he feels better about the defense and giving up big plays) "Nothing was going to change from a couple of weeks ago through last night because we played a bunch of young guys. Yeah, that was a concern coming out of the preseason. We gave up some big plays defensively, but it's not going to stop what we do. We're aggressive. We play a lot of man-coverage. We count on K-Jack (CB Kareem Jackson) and J-Jo (CB Johnathan Joseph) to shut people down. I've got confidence in those guys. They've had good camps. Like I've said, it's not going to change our belief and what we do or anything. Offensively, I think the biggest thing I've been encouraged by the last two weeks is how we've run the ball. I know last night was a bunch of young guys, but still, it's a mentality. The New Orleans and the last game were much improved. We threw the ball much better throughout the course of training camp, I think than we have since I've been here."
(on how much he worries about OLB Whitney Mercilus being a first time starter and missing preseason games) "I don't know. We're going to find out. Hopefully it doesn't hurt him at all. There is nothing we can do. He gets the hamstring early in camp. If you bring him back too soon, then you can lose him for a long period of time. I think we probably could've pushed him around New Orleans time, there at the end, and could've played him last night, but it got to that point where hey we've made it this far. Let's make sure we have him ready to go against San Diego. A lot of it is up to him. He's been working hard. It's a lot like (RB) Arian (Foster) when we were going through it, 'When's he coming back? When's he coming back?' It's not like Whitney hasn't done anything. He's been working extremely hard with the trainers. Just getting back on the field with us is a big thing."
(on if he sees RB Arian Foster not carrying the ball as much against San Diego given that he didn't have any preseason carries) "Obviously I don't think (RB) Arian (Foster) is going to be a 30-carry guy opening night without camp. But he got good work last week. This is going to be a good week for him because we've actually got two extra days that can get us a couple extra padded practices before we start our week. Us opening on Monday should be beneficial to Arian. But we know (RB) Ben (Tate) is ready to go. He's had a great preseason and between the two of them, we've got to do it well. We obviously have to sit there and have a plan for Arian, being his first time out."
(on what he liked about the way Case Keenum and T.J. Yates handled the backup quarterback competition throughout training camp) "Character. Class. That's the biggest thing. To have two guys in the same room battling for the same job, understanding what's going on and they're like, I can't sit here and tell you they're best friends, I don't know. But I mean they're very close and they study together and they complement each other, their work habits. The room in general is just excellent and I think that's what has lent to the competition being so good and the result being so good because they are on the same page. One thing that they all know, we talk to players all the time, it's about your career and doing it. And these two guys have obviously taken a big step in their careers. They've both gotten better, so we're proud of both of them and we're going to be a better team because of it."
(on how much RB Cierre Wood did for his chances of making the roster with his performance against Dallas on Thursday night) "He made a big push. We played he and D.J. (RB Dennis Johnson) a bunch. They both did some good things. D.J. put the ball on the ground, which you can't have. I think Cierre has shown a lot of ability. There have been some inconsistencies there. We want him to be a better special teams player. But obviously he's a guy out there that as a free agent has NFL ability and we know that. So it's our job to find it. But he took a big step. It's going to make the decision very tough."
(on if he has extra concern given that WR DeAndre Hopkins has not passed the final stage of his concussion protocol) "No, I don't. I think it's a matter of us coming back from Dallas, everything we're trying to get done today. Our doctors with the cuts going, the doctors working with those situations. I think this is going to get done here in the next couple days and hopefully he's on the field Monday."
(on how difficult it is for coaches to make final roster cuts) "Yeah, it's just, it's no fun. I mean, you sit in your office and those guys come in there that—first off, it starts last night, to be honest with you, after the game in the locker room. Because the guys were excited. They played good. They felt good about themselves but they know what tomorrow is all about, so it's a rough night for a lot them. You just try to sit down with each one and be honest about their path. I haven't met with all of them yet today but the visits I've had have been good. I told them after the game, I think we have 75 guys that can play in the National Football League. So that's the biggest compliment I can give them."
