Ndamukong Suh – November 6, 2016 (Postgame)
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Sunday, November 6, 2016
Postgame – vs. N.Y. Jets
Miami Dolphins DT Ndamukong Suh (transcribed by Jason D. Silver and Armando Gonzalez)
(Talking about your defense, you guys got put in tough situations in the red zone a number of times. You hold them to a field goal which you needed to, had the touchdown at the end, but how do you feel you guys played when you got put into trouble there?) – “It’s a team game so if something bad goes, we need to figure out a way when we’re up to make a positive play and at least hold them to a field goal if they’re in the red zone, and go from there. At the end of the day, our job is to get out of whatever situation we’re in, in particular on defense, and get our offense the ball back.”
(What kind of view did you have of the DT Jordan Phillips interception and his ensuing run after that?) – “I had a great view of it. I was rushing inside and the ball was thrown and my man looked like a receiver and picked it out of the air. It looked like he wanted to be a hurdler for a second. I’m very proud of that kid. He’s come a long way since I was with him last year. (I’m) very proud. He’s got a lot more room to grow, obviously. (He’s) still young and it’s just a small bit of what he can do. (He’s) very athletic (and a) good kid.”
(You guys have fought back to 4-4 when it looked like this thing was spinning out of control. How’s this football team feel about themselves and you feel about what you can do going forward?) – “I think we understood where we were at. When we were what, (1-4) or whatever it was, we understood we were at home, which is a good situation, especially for how long we were (on the road) and we had a tough road ahead of us. (Head) Coach (Adam) Gase did a great job of understanding where our milestones were needed to hit to get to where we are right now. We hit them. We’ve got a lot more set for us. We just need to continue to keep grinding it out each and every single week.”
(Did this game play out the way you kind of expected it to play out all week long?) – “I think it was going to be, without question, a tough game. All division games are tough. But at the end of the day, there are places and times where during this game we could’ve finished this team and put them away. Unfortunately we didn’t, but we made breaks and we created plays and we got ourselves off the field and our offense did a great job of putting it in the end zone, making plays, and helping us as well.”
(Tell me about your last series. You get a big stop, a big tackle for a loss and then you get the sack and kind of end their day. Just the way you continue to play all season long how it determined this game.) – “I’ve got to give a lot of credit to my defensive line. There’s no question that ‘J.J.’ (Jason Jones) did an excellent job allowing me to get a one-on-one finally, and as well as ‘Cam’ [Cameron Wake]. Obviously they’re going to pay attention to him after having two sacks. I got my opportunity and when I did, I’m without question going to make the most of it. It’s very rare (not to be double-teamed), but that’s what my job is to do make big plays and help us get off the field.”
(You showed a hint of a sack dance I think, did you give that any thought?)- “No, it was just a little bit of emotion. I’m usually not too emotional, but it felt good. (I was) definitely excited. Like I said, the d-line is a huge help for allowing me to get back there.”
(Any chance we’ll see that sport coat on eBay?) – “You never know, I appreciate you guys liking it. The guys in the locker room when I first got here tried to give me a little crap, but you guys matter and you guys like it, so I’m happy (laughter).”
Cameron Wake – November 6, 2016 (Postgame)
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Sunday, November 6, 2016
Postgame – vs. N.Y. Jets
Miami Dolphins DE Cameron Wake (transcribed by Ted Leshinski)
(What did you think of RB Kenyan Drake’s kickoff return? Were you surprised? Had you seen any indications of that in training camp or in practice?) – “We knew he had it. But of all the times to do it, that was right on time. This game has had a lot of back and forth, a lot of ups and downs, but the guys found a way to win. That (kickoff return) was obviously a big part of that and I’m definitely happy he’s on our side.”
(Can a game like this help you guys keep building on the confidence you have from the two games before and catapult you on to the type of team that you want to be for the next half of the season?) – “I hope so. That (is the) recipe that we’ve been talking about, playing complementary football – offense doing their job, defense doing their job, special teams getting it done. The formula works. The guys have seen that for a few weeks now. Hopefully there was no doubt, but if there was, there shouldn’t be anymore. For guys to continue to go out and play, no matter what the situation is, there’s going to be some things that happen in the game that maybe didn’t go your way; but just keep fighting and find a way to win. I like the way that things are turning out.”
(The Jets had some success running the football early against you and you guys tightened that up and put some pressure on QB Ryan Fitzpatrick when he was in there. As a defensive front, do you feel like you’re getting better each and every week?) – “That’s the mentality. As a front, we have high expectations of ourselves – everybody, man to man. Each week we go in and, honestly, look at more of the plays that maybe we didn’t make then some of the ones we did. It’s a continuous strive for perfection. I think that’s been the goal from Day 1. So the more times we’re out there, the more we’re playing together, guys are finding a rhythm, playing off each other better, then we have success. So, again, that’s another part of the recipe that I talked about earlier. We just have to keep it going.”
(You had two more sacks this week. You’ve got to be feeling good about your health and the way that you’re playing?) – “It feels good. It feels good. Hopefully, again, the situation (being healthy) is always the most important and the coaches have been working with me closely in getting out there and playing at times as needed, and when I’m out there I’m doing my best to get my job done. And today, getting after the quarterback was one of the main things we had as a priority on our list. I think guys did a pretty good job with (that).”
(You go out to San Diego next week. You’re going to stay out there for the week and then play the Rams. How do you keep that from being a distraction or not to be something that takes away from your preparation in getting ready for two games that, like any other game, are very important to you?) – “I think it starts with the preparation from the guys on the inside. We live in Miami and nobody is foreign to that. There’s all kind of things that are possible (distractions). There’s South Beach, there’s Fort Lauderdale, blah, blah, blah. The reality is you have a job to do. Miami is not a vacation spot for us. Maybe for other people who are down here and we’re playing football and doing our job. (It’s the) same thing in L.A. When we go out there, I’m sure they have the same kind of things we have here in Miami, and we’ve got to focus on our job at hand and get after your opponent. I like to think that especially since we’re here in South Florida, when all the things that could be had are here, I couldn’t imagine L.A. has any more. Again, we’ve got to focus on our job the same way we did this week. So I wouldn’t expect that to be an issue.”
(Obviously you had a 1-4 start. We’ve seen on the field what’s been the key to the team’s turnaround. What behind the scenes has spurred the complete turnaround of this team?) – “I’ve been speaking about this – its consistency. Early on in the season, things didn’t necessarily go the way we wanted. We had spurts, quarters where the offense played lights out and then the defense wet the bed, so to speak, and vice versa. But that’s not going to get you wins at the end of the day. Being able to play complementary football, fighting to the end of the game, 60 minutes, four quarters, whatever it may be – playing together, hand in hand – that’s something we didn’t necessarily have in our favor the first few games. But now that formula that I spoke about, that’s the key to our success and we just got to keep going.”
(Do you feel like all of your goals are still ahead of you?) – “Sure.”
(How has the team’s confidence changed? QB Ryan Tannehill was at the podium a minute ago and said ‘I knew we were going to find a way even after we were down late.’ How has the team’s confidence evolved during the three-game winning streak?) – “I’d like to think that experience creates that. When you go out there and you keep fighting, keep fighting, keep fighting, and you make a play, it shows you that, ‘Hey, the game’s not over until it’s over.’ You don’t ever want to have a situation where you put your head down and say, ‘Oh shucks.’ If the ball’s still in play and the clock’s still running, you still have an opportunity. Whether it’s the play from RB Kenyan Drake or a lot of other plays that we’ve had, it’s still out there and you just have to keep fighting and find a way to win no matter what. And to be honest, I felt the same way. I never, from kickoff, thought we were going to lose that game. I think guys played that way and it showed.”
(When do you start looking at standings and playoff math?) – “I don’t. It doesn’t matter. If me or anybody says, ‘Well, playoffs are possible, so I’m going to play harder,’ what sense does that make? It doesn’t make a difference. I’m going to go out there and play as hard as possible no matter what the situation is. It doesn’t matter what the standings are or not. It has nothing to do with it. Beating the guy across from me and winning this down, that’s my focus. All that stuff, you guys can calculate. That’s not for me.”
Jordan Phillips – November 6, 2016 (Postgame)
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Sunday, November 6, 2016
Postgame – vs. N.Y. Jets
Miami Dolphins DT Jordan Phillips (transcribed by Armando Gonzalez)
(Learning from guys like the veterans on this team it’s got to be great for you as a young player.) – “It’s the best situation I could’ve been put into. I feel like we have possibly three Hall of Famers in our room and it’s an honor to play with them and I just try to play at their level.”
(When you first got here were you thinking it might be a while before you get a chance to make these kinds of impacts with all the guys that are already here?)- “No, they brought me here for a reason; it was just a matter of time before I got my chance.”
(The hurdle was it premeditated or did it just come to you in the moment?)- “I thought he was going to go low on me so I just jumped and luckily I didn’t get flipped.”
Byron Maxwell – November 6, 2016 (Postgame)
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Sunday, November 6, 2016
Postgame – vs. N.Y. Jets
Miami Dolphins Cornerback Byron Maxwell (transcribed by Sara Perez)
(We saw the chippiness between you and WR Brandon Marshall and then WR Jarvis Landry and CB Buster Skrine, did you guys get a taste for it early on?) – “Yes, you could definitely feel it in pregame, that it was going to be a tough game. We had a lot of mistakes out there. We could have played a lot better and did some things better. It could have had a way better mood outcome, relaxed win for us.”
(Was that fun?) – “Oh yes, it was a lot of fun. We were playing some ball, playing football. It was physical. It was football. You know (Jets WR Brandon Marshall) is going to get the rock. You know he’s going to get the ball thrown to him, so I was just ready to go.”
(Obviously, you were shadowing Jets WR Brandon Marshall all over the field, so that says a lot about this team’s confidence in you, right?) – “Yes. I do whatever the coaches ask of me. They said follow him, so I followed him. It helps out because you can just figure out what routes he runs. It’s kind of easier.”
(What were the best lines that you and Jets WR Brandon Marshall shared with each other?) – “I don’t really say anything. I don’t say anything. I don’t. He was talking. I’m here. I’m focused. I’m locked in. What you say doesn’t matter, to be honest with you. It’s like, ‘Alright, let’s go.’ Nothing is going to change. I’m going to still be here.”
(You say you were locked in, so does that mean you were not paying attention to what Jets WR Brandon Marshall was saying?) – “No, it doesn’t matter what he says. He can say what he wants to say, but I’m going to still be here. I’m still going to do my technique. I’m going to still do what the coaches ask of me. You can talk all you want. You’re really just blowing hot air, but whatever though.”
Bobby McCain – November 6, 2016 (Postgame)
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Sunday, November 6, 2016
Postgame – vs. N.Y. Jets
Miami Dolphins Cornerback Bobby McCain (transcribed by David Norwood II)
(You’re basically all you’re focusing on [with the interception] is, “Don’t drop it. Make sure you get your feet in.”?) – “Most definitely. It’s, ‘Don’t drop the ball. Make sure you get your feet in.’ It’s one of the biggest plays of the game at the time, so going out we kind of knew what was coming. But then at the end of the day, it was a great call, and we made a play to get off the field.”
(Were you surprised when you saw there were no Jets receivers anywhere around and the ball just float in your palms?) – “Yes, I definitely was. I was kind of nervous. I was like, ‘Hold on, is somebody coming from behind me?’ But at the end of the day, I caught the ball, made a play and got us off the field.”
(In this game after you had to leave the game for a little while, were you concerned that you weren’t going to [return]?) –”They had to take protocol. They had to take precautions. The NFL does a great job with that. But I was fine, came in here, passed all the tests, and I got up and played ball.”
Ryan Tannehill – November 6, 2016 (Postgame)
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Sunday, November 6, 2016
Postgame – vs. N.Y. Jets
Miami Dolphins Quarterback Ryan Tannehill (transcribed by Sara Perez)
(Can you describe the emotions? It seemed like a little bit of highs and lows for you guys. What was it like on the sidelines?) – “It was good. I thought we had good energy on the sidelines. Obviously, there were some frustrating points in the game. We didn’t make plays when we should have. Defense came up huge in the second half, so a lot of exciting there. (We) had some exciting plays by them. Obviously, the kickoff return there at the end was huge. There were some highs and lows, but I feel like we kept our good energy on the sideline, and we just knew we were going to find a way to win.”
(Offensively, you knew it was going to be tough going against that defense, especially running the football, but you guys kind of just stayed with it and stayed with it. When you went into this game, is that how you expected things to be?) – “We didn’t really know. We knew coming in that they were a good run defense, but so was Pittsburgh and so was Buffalo. We expected to come in and be able to run the ball. Obviously, we knew it was going to be tough – it’s not going to be easy – they have a really good front. We just kind of stuck with it. We didn’t have a lot of big runs, but we just kept sticking with it trying to make something happen. At the end of the game when we needed to get some first downs, we were able to do that.”
(Did it seem like in the fourth quarter that they were tired? I saw a couple of their guys calling out – calling out to the game – going to the sideline. Did it look like they were getting fatigued in the game?) – “I’m not sure. I’d have to ask the o-linemen. I think they did a pretty good job of playing us tough up front. I think at the end of the game, we finally got some movement and got Jay (Ajayi) free up to the safety. That’s what you want to do is get a big running back up to the safeties. We just kind of kept sticking with it, and when we needed a play, we made it happen.”
(You’ve always said that you try to take every game one at a time, but you have won three in a row now. You’ve come out of that 1-4 hole. Do you feel like you have momentum?) – “Yes, we have some momentum. I think we’re playing some good football right now. Obviously, today wasn’t as clean as we’d like it offensively, but we’re on the right track. We just have to keep progressing, keep getting better, keep pushing ourselves each and every day during practice and keep building on what we’ve done. Obviously, (there is) a lot of football in front of us, tough road trip coming up here in the next couple weeks. It’s going to be fun to see how we handle that road trip like a business trip and go out and play to win two games.”
(How about the change of emotions with the dropped snap, they go ahead, then all of a sudden the kick return, you go back 30 seconds, two touchdowns and you fall behind then you get right back on top?) – “That was wild. I don’t think I’ve ever been a part of a swing like that – I don’t think – at the end of a football game. Big credit to our kickoff return team just finding a way to make it work. I think Jakeem (Grant) on the one before ran around forever, and I think that played into effect of them getting a little tired on their coverage team. And the obviously, Kenyan (Drake) did a great job and the block team did a great job of giving him a crease. You have a fast guy (and a) crease like that, he’s going to take it to the house.”
(Grinding out a game like this where it was a dogfight for most of the way – you fall behind, you come back – what does that do for your football team – offense, defense, special teams, everybody?) – “When you face adversity and you find a way to persevere, I think it gives you a lot of confidence. The past couple weeks we’ve been down in games and there’s been no panic, there’s been no tremors on the sideline of, ‘Okay, here we go,’ or ‘What are we going to do now?’ It’s, ‘We’re going to be able to find a way to win the game.’ When you have that attitude, that mindset – whether it’s offense or defense – as a team if you have that mindset, you’re going to win a lot of games.”
(Were you aware that DT Jordan Phillips had soft hands and could jump like that?) – “I don’t know about the jump, but I knew he could catch. We’ve done some things last year where we put a d-linemen or an offensive linemen in to catch a punt or something, and he always looks athletic when he’s catching the football. I knew he could catch. I don’t know about the hurdle though; that was pretty impressive.”
(RB Kenyan Drake was just telling us that after the kick return touchdown he came back in here and actually threw up he was just so spent. Did you know that, and what did you say to him after he made that big play?) – “No, I didn’t know that at all, but that was a huge play for us. I congratulated him and told him, ‘Nice job.’ We needed that. It was a huge play. Whether (it is) a touchdown or a good return, when you get something like that – a big play on special teams, whether it’s early in the game or late in the game – it really does a lot for giving momentum on your side of the football. When you do that to go ahead and take the lead at the end of the football game, it’s huge.”
(You’ve won three games in a row in different ways. Does that lead you to believe that this is going to be the type of football team you’re going to be from here throughout?) – “I just want to be the type of football team that finds a way to win. I think at the end of the day, this team is willing to do whatever it takes to win, and you play to win the game, so I am more than happy to be a part of that.”
Mike Pouncey – November 6, 2016 (Postgame)
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Sunday, November 6, 2016
Postgame – vs. N.Y. Jets
Miami Dolphins C Mike Pouncey (transcribed by Jason D. Silver)
(That was a rollercoaster of emotions there in that final 10 minutes. Did you guys say anything on the sidelines or was everyone just kind of locked in?) – “We were all sitting on the sidelines saying ‘Hey, we have to go out there and we have to have a game-winning drive.’ That’s what it’s going to come down to is the last drive of the game and then he (Kenyan Drake) bust it wide open. It was nice man. It was a great feeling.”
(How big is it for every phase of this football team to have a game like it did today?) – “We complemented each other really well this week. When the defense was playing good and the offense wasn’t, they covered us up and then, at the end of the day, our special teams came through big time for us to win this football game.”
(How would you describe the confidence level of the team at 4-4 after three straight wins?) – “Well, that’s what we wanted to do. We wanted to go and make sure we were 4-4 going on a West Coast trip. We will be out there for 11 days. It’s going to be a true test for our football team to go out there and be out there for 11 days and try to win two games back-to-back.”
Adam Gase – November 6, 2016 (Postgame)
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Sunday, November 6, 2016
Postgame – vs. N.Y. Jets
Miami Dolphins Head Coach Adam Gase (transcribed by Michelle Stone)
(In a game full of big plays, was there one defining big play? Was it definitely that kickoff return by Kenyon [Drake]?) – “Probably. That was obviously a game changer for us. Probably that penalty, that offsides penalty, and us getting our guys another shot at returning it. Jakeem [Grant], it probably tired him out a little bit. He covered about 80 yards and gained four.”
(Are you glad – obviously Jakeem’s great, they kicked it away from him…) – “Well, we were having a big debate whether or not we were going to put Jarvis [Landry] back there because we thought Jakeem was pretty worn out. We were kind of hoping that would happen. It worked out for us.”
(The way that your team has played overall, the three-game win streak, three-and-one on the home stand, you’re back into the playoff race, these last three games, what can you say about them?) – “I think our guys did a good job of sticking with what we’ve been doing since the first week of the season. They know every week we come in and we’re 0-0 and our job is to be 1-0 at the end of the week. We played some tough games at the beginning of the season and no one got frustrated. We made changes where we needed to make changes. We got healthy in certain spots. That’s what made a huge difference. Guys have done a huge job. They’re been working extremely hard during the week and they’ve been making sure they’re prepared every week.”
(What does this say about the resiliency of your football team? You’re 1-4 and you climb back to .500 and, in this football game, where it was a tight game all day, you get that tough break late in the game and it looks like a momentum change, and you come right back with a touchdown on the kick return to really seal that deal. It says a lot about how your team has fought back in both situations.) – “I think guys are doing a good job of focusing on what’s happening in that moment, instead of dwelling on something that’s happened in the past in the game, or trying to look forward [thinking] we better make a play here, we better do this…that mindset of this play is the most important play for us right now. Guys have been doing that during practice and they’ve done it in games, especially the last couple of weeks. We’ve been down a couple of times. You don’t really feel any kind of swing there as far as a negative emotion. Guys are flatline as far as that goes, but the energy level is high and everybody is trying to do everything that they can to be the guy that makes the next play.”
(You knew going into this game that the Jets were coming in the number one rushing defense in the league. You knew it was going to be tough but you still stayed with it late in the game, in the fourth quarter, when you need to close the game out, it paid dividends with the two big runs by [RB] Jay Ajayi.) – “That’s always going to be our goal. He knows exactly how I want to call the game as far as I’m never going to go away from him. His job is to keep hammering it and wait until the fourth quarter. If teams can stay with him, and they can tackle him, then they’re probably going to win the game.”
(Defensively you gave up yards, but when it got into the red zone, other than that last touchdown, you were able to hold them to field goals and they did a pretty good job at that aspect of the game.) – “Vance [Joseph], he has a good package there in the red zone. It’s tough to go against. Obviously we practice against it all the time. That’s the key for us. We talk about it all the time. The odds are really irrelevant. You prevent touchdowns, you prevent explosive plays, and it’s going to put us in a good spot.”
(Can you put Kenyon Drake’s rookie year into perspective?) – “I think the last couple of weeks has really been his first opportunity. We’ve had him up. He’s been doing some things on special teams. We’ve had some specialty plays for him occasionally. We try to use him on third down every once in a while because we’ve got so many guys. We’ve had so many guys go in before, and we’ve used Jay so much on first and second down, it’s a chance for us to put him and Damien [Williams] in there. They know exactly what plays are theirs. We try to just keep those three guys as fresh as we can throughout the game.”
(You pile up the wins now, three-in-a-row. Are you finding, during the week now, that it’s becoming easier as far as the preparation because maybe guys are buying into what you’ve been doing?) – “I don’t think it’s ever easy to get ready for an NFL game. Every week you’re starting over, you’re grinding, there’s a lot of information to cram into a short week. The longer the season goes, the more guys’ bodies start getting sore. It’s tough sometimes to go out to practice and get after it.”
(I meant as far as guys buying into what you’re doing.) – “I guess I haven’t seen a change since we started. When we were losing games, I never saw a change in anyone.”
(Byron Maxwell, it appeared he was shadowing Brandon Marshall – was that the case? And was that decision made before or after Brandon’s comment?) – “I think what we did decide was a certain plan as to how to handle where Brandon was, but they did a great job of moving him around early. He was inside quite a bit and was working against our zone. He’s so tough to handle outside – you start putting him inside, in my experience, any time he went inside, that’s when he became an issue. He played tough and he made some really good plays. There were a couple of times where we had some penalties called on us on him. That happens. You’re trying to match his physicality, you’re trying to make sure that you’re doing everything you can to combat him. It’s a tough matchup to play against him.”
(And that was the strategy the whole week, going into the game?) – “Everything we do is done on Wednesday. We’re not going to change our game plan because someone says something.”
(Talk about the impact of [DT] Ndamukong Suh, especially today when you needed it in the latter part of the game.) – “Tough man to block. I know that. I’m glad he’s on our team. It’s impressive to watch. When you see an interior guy cause that much disruption, to be able to get his hands actually on the quarterback, that’s even a tougher assignment. Those guys will get pressure, but he finishes it.”
(Cameron Wake – the two strip sacks today, steadily coming on. I don’t know if you’re surprised by anything that Cam does, but what do you think of what he’s done the last few weeks?) – “He’s just trying to make sure that whatever he has in the tank, he’s putting it out there on Sundays. He’s not going to leave anything out there. He’s going to make sure that he shows up, and if he has an opportunity to win a game, he’s going to try do everything he can to be a part of the success of our defense.”
(Can you talk about [DT] Jordan Phillips, the interception in particular and his play in general. Is that a zone blitz where he was dropping into coverage?) – “Yes. It was. That was interesting. It was one of the few times I looked up as we were having so many issues on offense, I look up and I see him just dropping. I saw him catch it, and I thought, please score. We hadn’t been so hot in the red zone. That was a great play. If there’s one guy where a ball comes at you, he’s going to catch it. He has really good hands.”
(Were you surprised by his ability to do a vertical leap out there?) – “I was hoping he’d do whatever he could to score.”
(How about [CB] Bobby McCain – suspicion of a concussion, comes back in, gets the interception, playing inside against Brandon [Marshall] sometimes.) – “It’s a tough assignment. The one thing that we constantly talked to Bobby about was just to trust in Vance (Joseph) as a defensive play caller, to play your leverage, to do what you’re supposed to do, don’t try to go outside that box, and if they run certain routes, keep that coverage. That’s on the coordinator for calling the defense. We just want to make sure that he’s just doing his job play in and play out. Vance does such as good job when he calls the defense and if you could hear some of the things I hear during the game, it’s very impressive.”
