Another late day so time to do this quickly.

Practices are in pads from here on out. It means injuries of the season ending kind, unfortunately, can be expected at some point. It’s simply the nature of contact drills. Derek Kinder went down without contact today. It was his knee and it was X-rayed. Not much else right now.

Look, I’m very biased against Defensive Coordinator Paul Rhoads, so at this point, there isn’t much he can say in the pre-season that I won’t want to twist into something that mocks him or is just completely sarcastic. Hardly a revelation, but I was reminded of that when I read the piece on the defense today.

The second is tinkering with the defensive scheme and putting the Panthers’ best players in the best position to make plays.

To that end, the Panthers are using more five-man fronts and also bringing a safety into the box to have eight men committed to stopping the run.

“You change schemes and you tweak schemes and do things like that to address needs, but the No. 1 priority is the ability of the players,” Rhoads said.

“And the ability to stop the run starts with the front guys, and you can see that group looks like a Division I defensive line and we’ll stop the run just because of that. But we’re also trying to do some things to make sure we’re shored up in order to stop the run.”

Last year, the Panthers experimented with safety blitzes and bringing some safeties up into run support.

I suppose I should just be relieved that the idea of eight men in the box is actually being considered. My first reaction after the way the defense has been since 2003, though, was an eyeroll and something to the effect of, “Oh, now you think of that?”

Again, the defense (and especially the defensive coordinator) doesn’t get the benefit of the doubt from me that they will be that much better merely in training camp.
Speaking of not getting the benefit of the doubt, the offensive line also falls into that category.

Q: Every year we’re told the offensive line is improved and every year they struggle. Is that where we are again?

Zeise: Well, the line did improve some last year from the year before and now, with basically the same group back, you’d think it would improve again. But that’s just it — I’ve now covered this team for six seasons and the line has never been anywhere close to as good as it was my first season — 2002 — so I have learned to take a wait and see approach. Again, I think Jeff Otah will be good, I think C.J. Davis is solid and it looks like Joe Thomas is starting to live up to his pre-college hype. The center spot is struggling, but Chris Vangas is working hard to become more consistent. Jason Pinkston had a great spring and is talented, but he is still basically a first-year starter, so he could have some growing pains. The wild card to it all is Mike McGlynn — he must get healthy and prove he can play either guard or center at a high level. If he does, it really solidifies some things.

In Kevin Gorman’s blog notes from practice today (and there’s plenty of goodies), he is of the opinion that John Bachman at Center appears to be a “failed experiment,” and it will be Chris Vangas or Mike McGlynn when he’s healthy. Bachman has just showed no connection with any of the QBs as fumbled snaps was a big problem again today.

LaRod Stephens-Howling gets a piece today, and I like the goal RB Coach David Walker sets versus the 1,000 yards rushing.

Walker, however, would prefer if Stephens-Howling used a minimum average of 5.0 yards per carry as a benchmark, instead of a 1,000-yard season.

Bill Stull’s hurt thumb (banged it off of a helmet in practice) kept him out of practice today. Not broken, but with a couple stiches on the top. Stull not being out there contributed to the QB-Center exchange problems with Kevan Smith as the only scholarship QB out there. Well Maurice Williams went under center but he was recruited to be a WR.

Freshman RB Shariff Harris has continued to impress in practice, and Coach Wannstedt admitted that he won’t be going be moving Harris to the defense.

“I really thought that Shariff Harris did some good things today,” Wannstedt said. “He got a lot more opportunities today in practice and I really thought he did a heck of a job. He’s got more explosion, and he’s strong. He’s a big back who can run. The big thing is, as with most of these freshmen, he just needs to learn what to do.”

He had more praise for Harris after today’s practice.

On The Battle at Running Back:

Shariff Harris is more explosive and might be the strongest of all the backs we have. I thought Conredge Collins did some nice things. He can come out and make some plays. He is off to a good start. He is more mature, in better shape and he is hungrier.

On Depth at Tailback:

For the first time, we have a few guys back there. We are going to have to run the ball so that is a good thing. We have to go through the offensive line. It will take a couple days. Skill spots, you can form somewhat of an opinion before they put the pads on, but with the offensive line, it takes a couple days.

Of course, that still requires an offensive line to block and open up some holes for the running game to really matter.

Last year I didn’t go to football Fan Fest, but this year I’m pretty sure I’ll be there. This year it’s on a Thursday — was it on a weeknight last year or is this new? Doesn’t it seem like a better idea to have this on a weekend?

2007 Pitt Football Fan Fest is set for Thursday, August 23 from 6:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. at Heniz Field. Admission is free and open to all fans. 2007 Fan Fest will again offer fans the opportunity to get team autographs and get their first look at the 2007 Pitt football team.

Fan Fest will not only include the opportunity to get autographs but also the chance to purchase season tickets and official Pitt merchandise. Outside Heinz Field, families can enjoy games and activities while kids test their skills in the Jr. Panthers Training Camp. Also, on Art Rooney Ave and into the Gate A plaza fans can watch the one-hour Savran on SportsBeat telecast and see the Bendel and Benz live radio broadcast from 3:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.

I’m definitely most interested in the open practice.

They’re also giving every incentive to have you donate blood. If you do give blood, you’ll get a tour of the Pitt locker room, tickets to the Grambling State game, and a chance to win a few other things.

Have to admit, I didn’t have a chance to watch the Saints exhibition game last night. Read through everyone’s comments later so, I almost feel like I did see it. Despite a statistically mixed bag and harsh self-criticism from Tyler Palko —

“Tyler did a pretty decent job for his first time out there with a significant amount of snaps,” New Orleans coach Sean Payton said. “His first interception was my fault. I thought he hung in there.

“He needs to learn how to protect the football better. In his first night, there are some things he did OK and other things he needs to work on. Those reps for him will be valuable to learn from the tape.”

Palko finished with 172 yards and a touchdown on a 17-of-25 slate. He showed his grit with a team-high 47 yards rushing on four carries. He also threw two interceptions, including one in the endzone.

“When you don’t come out with the win, it’s hard to feel good about it,” the rookie out of Pitt said. “I’d probably give myself a C-minus or D. We didn’t win and that’s not a good thing.

“There were some things I was not happy with. When you turn the ball over twice and you don’t win, it hurts.”

— Palko seemed to have won some people and has support from within the organization.

“I thought Tyler did a fine job,” said Brees. “Every young quarterback is going to make mistakes. What I liked is the way Tyler responded. He keeps on improving, and he’s going to get better.”

Palko finished 15-of-27 for 172 yards and was sacked twice. Still, he had mobility and escape instincts to finish with 47 yards, turning losses into positive yardage.

The kid who threw for 66 touchdowns at Pitt, second only to NFL Hall of Famer Dan Marino, suggests he’s a work in progress. But with Brees and Payton in his corner, he appears to have a better than decent shot to hang around and do some good if opportunity calls.

In the NFL, you never know when that opportunity might arrive. Obviously, the number one prayer offered by all Saints fans is directed toward the continued health, and well being, of No. 9.

In the case of Tyler Palko, living in a climate of a savvy coach and quarterback, the rookie could not be in a better position.

And he knows it.

That was one of the reasons Palko signed with New Orleans. Palko being kept by the Saints was echoed by one of the Saints beat writers.

Tyler Palko is going to be the No. 3 quarterback. This is just a prediction. Nothing official. But the rookie from Pitt is a favorite of Coach Sean Payton so he would have had to play really poorly to blow his opportunity. On the contrary, though, Palko played well. He led the Saints to two scoring drives, including a picture-perfect 2-yard touchdown pass to Robert Meachem on a fade route. All in all, Payton had to be pleased with his effort. Payton won’t like the interception he threw in the end zone but he had to love the way the rookie competeted and led the offense. Those are the kind of things Payton wants to see out of his young signal caller. As Drew Brees said last night, he was benched three times as a young quarterback for throwing interceptions. Decision-making will come in time.

Some weren’t as impressed and don’t think much of Palko’s game.

Free-agent quarterback Tyler Palko took over for Brees in the second quarter, and while his name rhymes with the immortal Shane Falco of “The Replacements” fame, the kid doesn’t have much of an NFL future.

(See strength, arm.)

The writer of that comment (Larry Holder of the Sun Herald) provides a neat little lesson in information and quote manipulation. From the Sean Payton quotes (take a look at the top of the post for the full quote) earlier it seems that he was reasonably happy with with Palko’s performance in the bigger picture. Now, how did Holder treat it in his notes on the game?

Saints coach Sean Payton said Palko did a “decent job.”

“He’s got to learn to protect the football better,” Payton said. “He did OK. Those reps are valuable and he will learn from them.”

It’s not at all uncommon. It’s just something to watch. Always much easier in two or more paper towns.