What’s your guess on how GM and MLF will handle the MarShawn Lloyd roster spot, with the cut down a week away. Active roster? IR? Other?

Depending on how long he’ll be out, one option would be to put him on IR at final cuts with the designation to return. Teams can do that with up to two players who won’t count against the initial 53, but those two would count against the total of eight players allowed to come back from IR during the course of the season.

Bob from Jensen Beach, FL

Insiders, if a player who will definitely be a part of the team is injured before cut-down day, what is the best way to keep him on inactive status to allow him to return when healed? How soon can he return?

Anyone placed on IR has to miss a minimum of four games before he can return to practice. If a team has more than two players it wants to put on IR at final cuts with eligibility to return, those players would have to be on the initial 53 and then put on IR the next day. That can lead to some roster gymnastics, which the Packers have done in the past with long snapper Matt Orzech, cutting him to open a spot on the 53 for a player going on IR, and then re-signing him once the other moves are official. Because vested veterans aren’t exposed to waivers, there’s no risk in losing such a player to another team if the club and player are in agreement on the maneuver.

Robert from Brookeville, MD

With kickers having so much excess capacity on kickoffs now I’m expecting some creativity to ensue. What about a hard squib kick that should reach the 20 if not touched? Could create some inadvertent contact and turnovers. Maybe used when a team is behind and has little to lose like an onside-lite. Any strategies you see emerging to fill this new(ish) scenario?

Remember, any kickoff that touches the ground prior to the 20-yard line – unless the kicking team has declared an onside kick – is treated like a kickoff out of bounds and the ball is brought out to the 40-yard line.

On Tuesday, Wes stated that the Colts were doing “mortar kicks” on kickoffs for most of Saturday. Since the kicking team cannot start running until a member of the receiving team touches the ball, what’s the point of kicking higher, shorter kicks? Shouldn’t the goal be to kick as close to the end zone without going into the end zone? I understand the advantage of height on punts, but don’t see it on kickoffs. Thanks for a great column.

The coverage players can begin running as soon as the ball touches a player, or as soon as it touches the ground in the landing zone. If you can kick it to an area in the landing zone where the ball will bounce before the receiving team grabs it, the coverage players get a head start.

Yeah, I’m disappointed in Lloyd’s injuries and excited after seeing glimpses of him carry/catch the ball, but reliability in protection is at least half of what gets running backs on the field. It seems his missed time hurts him more in this area than in carrying the rock.

I think we saw that with the breakdown Emanuel Wilson had in pass protection in the Indy game. He’d been out injured awhile, too, and those reps are valuable. When Ben Sirmans was asked about it, he made a point of emphasizing that Wilson came a long way in pass pro from his rookie year to last year, when he didn’t allow any sacks or pressures.

Good morning, Mike. Towards the end of his locker room interview, Emanuel Wilson talked about Chris Brooks and mentioned he can play the F or the H. Could you please explain this backfield terminology? Thanks.

The F is a traditional fullback spot as a lead blocker in the backfield. The H is that offset spot in the backfield – behind the quarterback but on his left or right side – often filled by a tight end.

George from North Mankato, MN

Is this the week the NFL refs come to town for the joint practices with the Seahawks? Could be a chance for Anthony Belton, Jacob Monk and others to gain some valuable insight as to what the zebras are looking for to air the laundry.

They’ll be here Thursday. An NFL officiating crew was at the joint practice in Indy, too.

Despite his missteps in the Colts game I’m excited about the prospects to be derived from Anthony Belton’s size, power and aggressiveness. I see that he’s been playing at RT. But given the stability at that position (and LT) into the foreseeable future, barring injury, would you agree that he will likely switch to guard eventually? Has he been repping at guard in practice?

He’s been working exclusively at tackle in training camp, but he was drafted with the idea he could play guard as well. It’s certainly not out of the question for the future.