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"He's doing fine. He's doing well. That is a little bit of a tough adjustment. It's something that the NFL is probably not the best place to learn on the fly, but it happens. He's doing well. He's a tough guy and he's working at it and doing a good job."
HEAD COACH TONY DUNGY (on if OG-Mike Pollak has enough work to play Sunday)
"I think he will by the end of the week if he doesn't have any regression. I think he'll be OK."
HEAD COACH TONY DUNGY (on if DT is a position where teams need as many as possible)
"It's always better. If you can have guys to rotate in there and play and stay fresh, it's good, especially for us. We're undersized, for the most part, playing against guys who are bigger than us every week. So, if you can keep that energy level up by rotating eight guys or nine guys in there, it's good."
HEAD COACH TONY DUNGY (on his reaction to Lane Kiffin's firing)
"I have known Lane Kiffin a long time. I didn't really pay too much attention to what was said (by Oakland owner Al Davis). Usually after someone gets fired, not a lot profitable is said. You have both sides trying to defend the issue. I've always said when a coach gets let go after one or one-and-a-half years, I don't think you really get a chance. I know we certainly made a lot of progress after the middle of my second year in Tampa. You don't always get a chance to get things going the way you want to in 12 games or 18 games. That's always a little disappointing and I feel bad for Lane because I have known him for a while. I wish he'd had a chance to have a little more opportunity to do the job. Shots are normal when there's a divorce."
HEAD COACH TONY DUNGY (on what it was like without OL Coach Howard Mudd)
"It's different. Usually you prepare your team for playing without players. That happens a lot and you have to be ready for that. You're not always thinking about going without a coach. So, it was a little different for us, but (Offensive Quality Control/Assistant OL Coach) Pete Metzelaars did a great job. He's been here, he's trained, and he teaches everything the way Howard did. It was an adjustment that our offensive line had to make, not having their coach here, but I thought they did a great job and I thought Pete did a great job. That is one of the things you don't really think about, 'How am I going to handle this coach's absence?'"
HEAD COACH TONY DUNGY (on the physical struggles of former players)
"It shows you what a tough game it is. I hope our players that are playing now look at these guys and realize you have to be thankful for your health and take care of yourself and do the best you can. Not that guys from our era didn't, but it's a rough, tough game and we shouldn't begrudge any of these guys the money they're making now. The other side of the coin is something I thought about when I was playing. We were the first generation on artificial turf and you always wondered what impact that would have down the road. I think our surfaces are getting better. I think that's going to help. But, the thing about it with these guys today, they're bigger, stronger and faster, and the collisions are heavier now than they were for us. It does make you wonder what is in store for some of these guys who are playing now."
HEAD COACH TONY DUNGY (on if he has any lingering problems from his playing days)
"Nothing, no. I was pretty fortunate. I didn't, probably, play long enough and came through it where I'm 52 years old now and I haven't had anything that really bothers me. I count those blessings every day."
HEAD COACH TONY DUNGY (on if QB pressures are just as important as sacks)
"I think it's always been that way. I remember (former Boston Celtic) Bill Russell saying, 'You don't have to block every shot, but if they think you can block every shot, it's a problem.' It's the same thing with that pass rusher. If you get there enough, obviously, those are big plays, but even when you don't get there, if the quarterback thinks you might, that makes a difference. With the great ones that's always the case. You're back there and you're always worried about them. I wouldn't say that a sack is overrated, but what's underrated is the effect that guys have even when they don't get a sack."
HEAD COACH TONY DUNGY (on if Houston's heat will be difficult with the Reliant Stadium roof open)
"That's about the only thing. Otherwise, it's just like playing a day game in an outdoor stadium."
HEAD COACH TONY DUNGY (on if referees are being taught to call holding differently)
"They are told, from what I understand and I probably don't have a great understanding of it, that it has to be a material restriction, something that really impacts a play, before they want it called. I know holding was way down last year in terms of the number of calls. So, I'm assuming that we just coached so much better that we eliminated a lot of those holding penalties. (NFL Supervisor of Officials) Mike (Pereira) says that holding calls are up this year. I don't know, but I do know that they don't want it called unless it really has an impact on the play."
HEAD COACH TONY DUNGY (on no flag being thrown unless the defender can make a play)
"That's the problem with stating (the rule) that way. My impression of what materially affected the play is different than yours, maybe. I had a conversation with Mike (Pereira) about a non-call in the Jacksonville game, and that was their contention, that it didn't materially affect the play. As we are talking about pass rushes and how close you get and are you there, do you almost get there? I think it can have a material affect on the play even if you wouldn't have gotten the sack. Everybody has a different opinion on that."
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