Adam Gase – October 15, 2017
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Sunday, October 15, 2017
Postgame – Atlanta Falcons
Dolphins Head Coach Adam Gase (transcribed by the Atlanta Falcons)
On what changed between first and second half:
“We finished drives. That was really our biggest thing. [In the] first half we felt good as far as what we were doing moving the ball. The personal foul hurt us and set us back. The interception just kind of surprised me on the call they played. Jay [Cutler] stepped up in the pocket and missed the throw a little bit. It really just isn’t one of my favorite calls based on what they did.”
On the play of offensive line:
“The biggest thing we stressed all week was about starting and finishing and really that is what he did those last two drives against Tennessee Titans. We wanted to build off that, and that is what we really focused on. We were trying to put the rest of that game behind us and you saw that today. Jay [Ajayi] had some good runs, seeing the holes, breaking tackles, and fought hard for every yard he had. The receivers did as well, and we just stayed with it and executed the plays.”
On the decision to stay with Jay Ajayi in the second half:
“He makes it really easy to stay with because it is almost like throwing the ball, you know you are going to get some of these 10, 12, and 15-yard runs. He starts hopping around feeling how they are playing him, and he is hard to bring down.”
On the touchdown to Jarvis Landry:
“It was really supposed to be Kenny’s [Still] touchdown, and Jay just saw them all go with Kenny. I was just glad he kept his head up and saw him.”
On the mental toughness of team:
“That’s what it was. These guys are different cats. They have something in them where it doesn’t matter what the score is. They will battle. Today was the first time the offense kind of gave our defense a little hope. Once we came out and scored and our defense saw us get in the end zone, the sideline came alive quick.”
On how the team handled difficult times of season:
“They just move on. That is what they do. That is what the NFL is. You face adversity all the time. It is only going to get worse the deeper the season goes, and it will be different things. You just stay focused on your job, push through, fight, put it on the back burner, and do your job.”
On how it felt to get the offense going:
“It means a lot to me because those guys are battling with physicality, and we are on the sidelines as spectators for the most part. You do everything you can to try and put them in the best position possible. It’s their game, and we are just there with them to try to help and do everything we can. I think he knew how I felt about getting things going on offense because that is the side of the ball I’m in charge of, and I felt like we were letting the defense down. He knew I wanted to get it going, and that the offense wanted to get it going.”
On what he was most proud of with the play of the offense line:
“They just fought. They kept playing every play. They played through the whistle. It cost us one personal foul, but they were just trying to protect the running backs and wide receivers, and watching those guys finish every play. It is what we need every week.”
On his thoughts on going for it on fourth down three times:
“We hadn’t been on that side of the field very much, so I felt like, ‘What do we have to lose?’ I felt good about the plays we had in. I felt good about who we had the ball going to, and we might as well be aggressive.”
On whether the play of defense influenced his decision to go for it:
“I guess I just have a lot of faith in our defense, so once we crossed the 50 or are anywhere near it we will probably go for it.”
On being aggressive and taking more gambles:
“That’s really how we have done it the last year and a half. This year we just haven’t been getting past the 50. We have been very inept, and this was the first game where we were in position of fourth and three or less, so we just had to go for it.”
On the decision to stick with Jay Cutler:
“I don’t care what anyone says. I’m going to do what I want to do, and what is best for the team. That is how we operate. That is how we did it last year. I know the direction we are headed. I watch them in practice every day. I go through these steps with these guys. We are practicing well. Why are we not doing that well in a game? I feel like he is doing a lot of good things. We just got him in August, and we are a little bit behind from where I thought we would be. Hopefully, this is the first step. We put together two good drives in the Tennessee game. We had some good things going on today. We didn’t finish the drives in the first half, but in the second half, we did. The longer we keep going, the better we are going to get, and that is the goal.”
On the possible concussion for Mike Pouncey:
“I have to check with the trainers. I know he is in the protocol, but I can’t say for sure.”
On the play of Reshad Jones:
“He has been playing with everything he has. He wants to be an impact player every week. He wants to be the guy that makes the play like tonight or today that wins the game.”
