1.   Berg spent the first two-thirds of last season with the Kings partly because injuries thinned the defensive corps.

2.   The U.S contingent has been thinned by injuries, most significantly to Point Given, and it has seen some recent lackluster performances.

3.   When injuries quickly thinned the team, Stoughton asked his front office to lace up.

4.   When Leak changed his mind and chose Wake Forest, and injuries thinned the Irish at quarterback last season, Godsey was installed as the third-string backup.

5.   With the wide receiver corps thinned by injuries, there was talk of moving cornerback LaShaun Ward, one of the faster players on the team, to wideout.

6.   He gives some insurance to a defensive corps thinned by injuries in the minors.

7.   The German ranks have been thinned by injury with Borussia Dortmund trio Andreas Moeller, Stefan Reuter and Lars Ricken all withdrawing because of muscle strains.