John Harbaugh grabbed his phone as soon as he heard news that Andy Reid's oldest son, Garrett, was found dead Sunday morning.
Harbaugh texted his former mentor and Philadelphia Eagles head coach to send his condolences. He and General Manager Ozzie Newsome will attend Garrett's funeral Tuesday morning in Broomall, Pa., before returning for practice.
"I just told him how sorry I was and that his beautiful son is in God's hands," Harbaugh said. "There's no greater family man, there's no greater parent than Andy Reid. I've learned so much from Andy about raising kids."
Harbaugh worked under Reid for nine years in Philadelphia. The two became extremely close, as did their families.
Besides his own parents, Harbaugh said he first went to Reid for advice on parenting when he and his wife welcomed baby Alison into the world. Harbaugh recalls infant Alison reaching up and yanking Reid's moustache.
Harbaugh also remembers Garrett, who was most recently working as an Eagles strength and conditioning coach. Garrett was around practices since* *he was just a 15-year-old boy. The two shared many moments together after games and practices.
"Just a great guy who was on a good track from everything I've heard," Harbaugh said. "It's a tragedy, but all things work for the good for those who love God."
McKinnie Plays Left Tackle With 1st And 2nd Team
In his first practice in 11-on-11 drills, tackle Bryant McKinnie spent time at left tackle with the first- and second-team offense. And he looked good in the process.
Outside linebacker Paul Kruger (among others) could not find his way around the mountainous tackle in 11-on-11 drills. McKinnie also more than held his ground in one-on-one lineman drills.
Another good sign is that McKinnie, who said he's 20 pounds lighter than he was at this time last year, made it through the entire sweltering practice, something a few of his teammates didn't do.
"He worked hard, he made it through the whole practice, which is something because football shape is something different than regular conditioning test shape," Harbaugh said.
"I thought he looked athletic, he looked like he was moving well. He's just got to stack them and go compete."
Michael Oher started the practice at left tackle with rookie Kelechi Osemele on the right side. Oher flipped to right tackle when McKinnie would enter on the first team. Harbaugh would like to keep Oher on the left side, but is going to start the best five linemen.
"It's not ideal, it's not the perfect scenario," Harbaugh said of switching Oher. "You want to be set at all your positions. But it's not always realistic either. It's training camp, it's football, and you have guys competing for spots."
Doss Returns, But Reed Among Those Out
Wide receiver Tandon Doss returned to the field after missing six practices due to a hamstring injury.
He only went through individual wide receiver drills, but it's a good turn of events for a player who was showing major improvements in his second year.
Cornerback Cary Williams also returned, as did tight end Ed Dickson, who had blurry vision after being poked in the eye during Saturday's practice.
One notable person missing was safety Ed Reed, who appeared to have a leg issue on Saturday but finished the practice. Harbaugh did not give an update on his Pro Bowler.
Others missing were linebacker Dannell Ellerbe, defensive tackle Ma'ake Kemoeatu, center Matt Birk, tackle Jah Reid, defensive tackle Arthur Jones, outside linebacker Courtney Upshaw, cornerback Jimmy Smith, running back Bernard Pierce, linebacker Darryl Blackstock, linebacker Josh Bynes, wide receiver Patrick Williams, outside linebacker Terrell Suggs, wide receiver David Reed and tight end Dennis Pitta.
Several Players Drop From Practice
More players didn't make it all the way through the hot practice.
Wide receiver Jacoby Jones, guard Marshal Yanda, linebacker Jameel McClain, running back Anthony Allen and defensive end Pernell McPhee ended early.
McPhee went to the sideline and stood with ice on his knee. Harbaugh did not have a reason for his departure, but said he did not pull him out.
Jones and Yanda were excused from the remainder of practice by Harbaugh, who said they had "done enough."
"We were kind of grinding today," Harbaugh said.
Highlights From The Field
- Osemele was extremely physical throughout the day. He buried outside linebacker Sergio Kindle in a one-on-one linemen drill, resulting in a big high-five from Offensive Coordinator Cam Cameron. Osemele took out three players (Chavis Williams, Asa Jackson and Nigel Carr) on one run play to the outside.
- Cornerback Corey Graham hauled in a leaping, one-handed interception in a goal-line fade drill.
- McPhee got a sack on Flacco while working with the first-team defense. McPhee read the snap perfectly and moved quickly into the backfield.
- Cornerback Lardarius Webb made a very nice diving interception, coming all the way around the back of the receiver to pick off quarterback Joe Flacco.
- Defensive tackle Haloti Ngata looked strong in contact* *drills, coming down the line once to whack rookie running back Bobby Rainey.
- The offense had trouble finding a rhythm in 11-on-11 drills and in the red zone. The secondary did a good job in coverage, even without Smith and Reed. The defense got in the quarterbacks' face, with Ngata, Kindle, Carr, and linebackers Albert McClellan and Ray Lewis getting sacks.
- Both Billy Cundiff and Justin Tucker were 5-for-5 on field-goal attempts.
