(Bigby was a full participant today. How likely is it that he will play?)
Atari Bigby's body of work this week will be a big part of that decision. So far he has had two very good days as far as his rehab Monday and Tuesday and today. We'll see how he feels tomorrow, but if he can go through the full body of work he'll definitely have the opportunity to play on Sunday.
(How much would it mean to get him back?)
Atari Bigby is a starter. I think anytime you lose a starter for a number of games and then the starter comes back, it definitely adds to your offense or defense. So having Atari back would definitely be a boost for us. More importantly, we've just got to make sure he's healthy and ready to go.
(How is Clifton progressing?)
Very similar to Atari. I think it's important for Chad to work today and tomorrow and see where we are. That will be pretty much the plan for him. How much he will do on Friday is left to be seen, but if he can go through the full body of work that we have laid out for him, definitely feel that he'll be ready to go on Sunday.
(If he can't go, who will start at left tackle?)
We'll answer that as we go through. We're working T.J. Lang over there. I thought he did a nice job in the Minnesota game, but if we get to that we'll answer that question.
(Is Hall out this week?)
Yeah, Korey Hall suffered a calf strain in Monday's practice. The early diagnosis is that it will be a couple of weeks.
(So will Quinn Johnson be active?)
Quinn Johnson will be up this week, yes.
(How has he been developing?)
I think Quinn is definitely getting better. He does a good job with the opponent stuff for our defense. He spends a lot of extra time with Edgar Bennett, working on the fundamentals and technical things that we ask him to do here at the fullback position. I like what I see so far. It will be a good opportunity for him to play on Sunday.
(Did you have to talk to Greg Jennings at all about his comments about wanting the ball more?)
No, I'll just say this about the statistics: our self-scout phase is over. Our team statistics have been identified and analyzed. We know what the positives are. We know what we need to do as far as the other areas that we need to work on. We're four or five percent production is our goal in a number of those areas. We've talked about it and it's been addressed. When your team statistics are in order, your individual statistics will be in order. That's where I am at on that.
(What things emerged during the self-scouting you did last week?)
Frankly I have addressed those Monday, so I am out of the self-scout mode. We are focused on the Detroit Lions right now.
(When you signed Tauscher, Blackmon went to injured reserve. Are you a little light at cornerback?)
This will be a good opportunity for Underwood. He'll be up this week, so that's really the only adjustment we really made. The overall numbers aren't what they obviously were when we started the season, but I think adding Mark Tauscher definitely improves our 53-man roster and that was a big part of that decision.
(And Bush will get some work too at cornerback?)
Really he has been. Jarrett Bush has been working corner, dime and safety. We feel he has done a very good job. I think this is actually a better scheme for him at the corner position.
(You've talked about breaking the season into quarters; what are you looking for this next quarter?)
You break it into quarters really just to identify a course of action. But we're in a mindset of one game at a time. We have four games, two home games against division opponents. Everybody knows how important those games are. But just the ability number one, is win. It's all about winning. We want to win and we want to improve each game, each opportunity, and that's all we're focused on.
(What do you see that is different about Detroit?)
Their personnel is the first thing. Their personnel has changed a lot. I think their draft class is definitely going to make an impact on their football team. You can see that right away. That's the first thing you notice. Schematically, they're different. Offensively I think Scott Linehan does an excellent job. He definitely challenges you in your schemes and there's a lot of productivity so far on film from their offense. Defensively I think they're very well coached, both with Jim and Gunther over there. You can see the principles that they've used in the past that they're utilizing in their defense. I think they're trying to create an attitude in the way they play. I think they're a much improved football team.
(Is there such a thing as a law of averages where Detroit will eventually win in Wisconsin?)
No, I don't look at it that way. We're looking at their team on film, and we're preparing our team to play a game, and we're preparing to win the football game. I know what's happened in the past, but it really doesn't have anything to do with this game.
{sportsad300}(You expect to win every week, but are there certain games you just should win?)
This is the National Football League. You need to line up and prepare week in and week out. You don't just 'should win' any game. That's a terrible attitude to take into a game. That's not the attitude that we'll ever take into a football game. We're preparing to win, and we're preparing to improve as a football team. That's really all our focus is.
(So you don't think this team will take the Lions lightly?)
I won't take anybody lightly.
(Did you work outside at all today?)
We went outside for the team periods, yes. Just the opportunity to let the field dry a little more. There was a cell out there, a rain cell we were watching during the course of the morning. That's why we waited to go out.
(How much will you practice outside the rest of the week?)
We'll get out as much as I can, yeah.
(You've talked about Rodgers needing to make quicker decisions and get rid of the ball. Will he do that or is he the kind of quarterback that likes going down the field?)
We have a system of offense, whether we're throwing it short, throwing it long. Aaron Rodgers is a very coachable quarterback. The strength of his game is his decision-making. We've had some things we're going to improve on as we move forward. Those have been addressed, and I have full confidence that he's going to play at a high level. I think he's a very good football player, I think he's an excellent teammate, and he works every day to get better.
(You've only scored three points on opening drives this year. What do you do to work on that?)
We work on every situation of our game-planning, and that's one of them. We'll have a plan to start the game. Sometimes it goes the way you think it's going to go, sometimes it doesn't. We'll continue to plan and perform. Those things have all been addressed.
(How did Colledge move with the brace on his knee?)
He looks fine. He's practiced both Monday and today. He's worn a brace before in the past, so he has some history with it. But I don't think it's limiting him.
(Is Poppinga's illness significant?)
I don't think so. We have a number of guys that are sick, and it's that time of year. I don't have any information to think it's serious.
(Were you happy with practice today?)
I thought it was OK. It was a Wednesday practice. There's some things we'll need to clean up, and that's what we'll do here at 2:30.
