Bob cuts loose, a little.

Local reporter Bob Holtzman was working on a Bob Bradley feature and trying to get some examples of Bradley's sense of humor.

"He's intense, he's always prepared," offered Carlos Bocanegra.

"There's so many coaches that beat around the bush and hem and haw, but you always know where you stand with Bob," said Tim Howard. "You can talk to him about anything."

"He's definitely very serious - the way he works, the way he trains," Tim added. "Everything about him is very serious."

Bob H. asked about non-serious Bradley.

"It's nice when he has his guard down," said Tim. "We have a laugh as players and coaches all the time."

Bob H. pressed for specifics, wanting an example of a joke.

"He likes to laugh," said Tim. "Certainly when the coaches are together. I can't think of anything right now."

"He’s very serious about what he does," said Landon Donovan. "He makes jokes, but he's very work-oriented. At first it was a little hard, because Bruce [Arena] was more laid-back."

"I haven’t seen a lot of it yet, to be honest," Landon said about Bradley letting his guard down. "He’s been pretty rigid and serious. I don't expect that to change in the next month, because we're in a tournament. There will be a time when things loosen up."

However, I do have an example of a Bradley joke, one that took place less than an hour ago. Walking toward the Home Depot Center's main entrance, I saw Bob Bradley and Peter Nowak exit the doors and approach from a distance.

As any good reporter would, I wondered if it was worth stopping them, outside of official media time, for a quick question or two. As if reading my mind, Bradley stepped slightly in front of Nowak, putting his arms out to either side while still walking, as if Nowak was a ball rolling out of bounds and I was an opposing player.

"I've got to shield him from the media," said Bradley of his assistant coach.

I laughed. It was especially funny because Bradley knows full well Nowak doesn't talk to the media. He hasn't so far.

Unless they speak German.