The Jacksonville Jaguars held their fourth day of two-a-day practices at Ferrell Fields. Quarterback Mark Brunell took part in both practices after sitting out Tuesday's single session because of a sore elbow. First-round draft choice Marcus Stroud practiced on a limited basis after suffering a fractured right hand on Tuesday.
"It'll affect his development," said Jaguars head coach Tom Coughlin of Stroud. "We're going to keep him down for probably a week so that he gets a chance to get started on the healing. It's one of those very unfortunate, dumb things that happen in camp when people get out of control. And that's a hard lesson to learn. It's unfortunate that there are so many things that you can't control. This is something you can and this got away from us."
Coughlin spoke about Minnesota Vikings Pro Bowl tackle Korey Stringer, who died earlier today. "That is a very tragic situation. It's very sad for Korey Stringer's family and the Vikings," said Coughlin. "But our schedule here is well thought out. We start out our very first night with a hydration lecture. Our trainers are very much involved in evaluating players as to who could possibly be getting into trouble and who isn't. We're very conscious of that. We're making absolutely sure that all the details of your preparation for heat exhaustion and those kinds of things are up to date and that your training staff is very much aware of who it is might be susceptible to that."
Jaguars second-year guard LeShun Daniels has been best friends with Stringer since grade school; the two also attended the same high school and college and played for the Minnesota Vikings in 1997. "My old offensive line coach (from Minnesota), Mike Tice, called me last night around 11:00 p.m., and told me Korey was hospitalized," said Daniels. "His body had shut down because of the heat. The heat index in Minnesota was around 125 yesterday. He called me and told me he would keep calling with his status. Then he called me back around 3:00 a.m. last night and told me that Korey had passed away. He was in the best shape he has ever come into camp at. He was 350 pounds and was working out and running. So I thought he would have been fine up there."
"I remember being teammates when I first got my driver's license," Daniels said of his friendship with Stringer. "My mom and dad got me a brand new Mazda 323. It was a 1989 model and a small car. Korey was about 280 pounds and I was about 240 pounds, and we were just two big guys in this little Mazda. We were just riding around all summer, working out and dreaming about making it to the NFL. That was our dream: to make it to the NFL. We did everything together. He was my best friend and my brother. There are a lot of things that go through your mind. It is tough just talking about it. I know his family will be taken care of, but losing a good friend is pretty tough."
