HEAD COACH JOHN HARBAUGH
Opening statement: "We're fired up for Sunday. What questions do you have?"
They asked Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon if QB Kyler Murray will play on Sunday, and he said, 'We'll see.' How does an opposing coach handle the uncertainty there?*_(Jamison Hensley)_* "We'll see. That's really all you can say. We'll be ready for whichever quarterback is playing, and we'll have the players play."
How familiar are you with Cardinals QB Joshua Dobbs, as he used to play for the Pittsburgh Steelers?*_(David Andrade)_* "Joshua Dobbs – he's been in our division. We played [against] him a little bit. [We've] seen him a lot. [He has] very talented arm strength. [He] can get out of the pocket and really run and cover ground. He has a bunch of yards out of the pocket – both scrambling and also with the quarterback-option-type stuff. He's definitely at the top of our list in terms of defending their offense."
What have you seen from the Cardinals' running game, obviously no RB James Conner the last couple of weeks, but they love to run the ball. Do you them as still an efficient running game?*_(Cordell Woodland)_* "Exactly to your point, a team who wants to run the ball is going to run the ball. They're going to call runs, and they're going to run it. We're going to have to stop it, and if we don't stop it, they're going to keep running it. That probably priority [No.] 1. [It's] quarterback driven, scrambles are a big deal, too, play action pass, screens – those are all things that they do well."
Did OLB Odafe Oweh aggravate his ankle more during practice since he went on the injury report yesterday?*_(Childs Walker)_* "We'll be seeing how he does if he's out there on Sunday. [I'm] really not commenting on injuries at this point in time in the season too much. He's not going to be out for any period of time. We'll see if he plays on Sunday."
What do you think of ILB Roquan Smith sprinting out to practice every day with it being almost a year since he was traded to the Ravens?*_(Brian Wacker)_* "It's his statement. Everybody has their way of doing it, and I think it's one of his things. He brings energy. Maybe it's his way of saying, 'When I step on the field, I'm 100 miles an hour. I'm full speed beginning to end, sideline to sideline, wall to wall.' That's the way he practices. It's the way he plays. As a coach, of course you love that. Other guys do it in different ways."
ILB Roquan Smith was wearing a cowboy hat this week. Do you have any Western gear picked out?*_(Jim Forner)_* "We'll see." (laughter)
S KYLE HAMILTON
On how he said Week One that S Geno Stone would be great this season and how he's doing right now: "Geno [Stone] is a good guy and one of my good friends on the team. It's cool to see him finally be able to showcase his skills that we've all known that he's had all along. It's just the way the roster has worked out the past couple years he's been called upon to come fill in, whether it be injury or when we need him in a spot or whatever, and he's done it. He's done really well. He's leading the league in picks, and I think he can get a lot more, so it's dope to see."
On how he would describe ILB Roquan Smith:"'Ro' [Roquan Smith] is talkative. It's a good thing. He's talkative on the field, which he loves to communicate, but he's also nonstop talking in the locker room, too. If you're coming in here tired, he's going to call you out and wake you up, but he's a great guy. He's a Georgia boy, [and] Georgia boys are raised the right way, and he's a cool dude."(Reporter: Roquan sprints onto the field every day for practice, have you noticed that, and what do you think of it?)"I have not noticed that because I'm actually out there with special teams, so Roquan wouldn't know that." (Laughter)"So, he's in here in the hot tub while I'm out there doing pump footwork, [but] I believe it. I believe that he sprints out there every day." (Reporter: It's every practice except for walk throughs, what do you think of that?)"I think it fits him. It's pretty Roquan of him to do so. But yes, he's our energy guy. If you're going to be the energy guy, you have to do it all the time."
On if he can tell that ILB Roquan Smith is more comfortable this year than when he first arrived here last year as a leader and a communicator:"Honestly, no. I feel like [Roquan Smith] came in this way. It's kind of weird, the first week he came here, he stood up in the [defensive room] while we were all in there [for a] meeting, [and] he kind of introduced himself, what his mindset was, and from then on, it was just 'Ro.' We just knew him like we've known him forever. It's cool to see how he integrated to the team and [how big a] part of the team he is and how he will be for a long time." (Reporter: What was Roquan Smith's mindset?) "He's going to attack the ball every play. He's going to be the same guy every day bringing the energy, and it's contagious. It's contagious, [his] infectious mindset is really changing our team for the better."
