Opening statement:"Good to see you guys. [We] had a good day – a great day. This might be our last one around here, I've heard. We've had an unbelievable fall with the weather, and getting outside again has been really good for us. Guys are working hard, and all eyes are pointed toward Sunday."
How much fun was it to have Buck Showalter at practice? What was his message to the team?* (Luke Jones)"The gist of it … It was great having him out here. I had to grab him, basically, and pull him behind there so he would get up close and watch. Great guy. Great storyteller. He told about four stories. He got going. He acted like he didn't want to talk, and then he got in there and started telling some stem-winders. (laughter)* He had a message, and it was about the team and about competing. He's always got some good one-liners in there and some stories to go along with it. It was great. Guys appreciated it. I think he's trying to get tickets for Dallas still, if anybody has any tickets. (laughter) It's a tough ticket to get, I've been told."
John, you said in the beginning of the week that you thought CB Jimmy Smith would practice and that you weren't too worried that he won't play on Sunday. Does that still stand?* (Jeff Zrebiec)* "He was out here today. Obviously, it's a walk-through, so it's not as physical, but he was out here today. We'll just wait and see what the doctors tell us. His back tightened up a little bit. We'll just have to see how it [responds] – whatever the doctors say. He wants to play, and we'll know. The fact that he was out here today, I think, is a good sign."
We didn't see him out here today, but how did OLB Elvis Dumervil respond to getting back on the practice field earlier in the week? (Luke Jones) "He responded well. I don't think he had any problems after the two workouts. He looked good. He looked quick and explosive, which is what I was looking for. I know Elvis wants to play, and I know I want him to play. It will be up to the doctors whether they allow him to play or not, but he sure looked good in practice."
I'm sure you heard, but Ray Lewis went on television yesterday and questioned QB Joe Flacco's passion. What's your reaction when you hear this? (Jamison Hensley) "That's a passionate guy talking, obviously. I think everybody expresses their passion in different ways. You have a locker room full of guys and an office full of coaches, and everybody is different. Every personality is different. Every single guy does their thing in a different way, but every single guy here cares deeply and works very hard and wants to be great at what they do. That's how I look at it. I think, as a leader, you have to understand it. You have to understand no two people are the same. No two people react the same way, express themselves the same way. Everybody does it a little differently. Everybody has a different viewpoint, different opinion or different way about them. You respect that and you do everything you can to get to know the person and understand what they're about, who they are and where they're coming from. That's my response to it. I think that's important to understand when you're a leader in any organization."
