Ja’Wuan James – October 1, 2018
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Monday, October 1, 2018
T Ja’Wuan James
(On how the offensive line can improve.) – “We’ve just got to do a better job of consistently doing stuff. In the game, late in the game, where we had to pass the ball the whole time, we were just trying to come back; but we have to consistently keep the pocket consistently good so we can give Ryan (Tannehill) time and consistently switch guys off and things like that. That’s what they’re getting us on. There’s a lot of different twists.”
(You’ve got some bad luck with the group with G Josh Sitton out and we don’t know how long C Daniel Kilgore will be out. Do you all feel like why is this happening?) – “No. I feel like you can’t do that. Stuff happens all of the time in this game like that. You just have to be able to … The next person (has to) be able to step up and we can’t miss a beat.”
(With the running game, we saw how Detroit ran all over the Patriots last week. What went wrong? Was it a matter of not having enough reps to get the running game going?) – “I just thought we never got the opportunity to get in a rhythm. We shot ourselves in the foot early with some penalties. We got a couple of first downs and then just got behind by a lot in the game. We had to go ahead and pass a lot. It’s going to be our job to find rhythms and not put ourselves in bad situations on the chains.”
(You guys have gotten banged up on the offensive line. That’s not an excuse but you have to get the running game going. How do you get that going?) – “Like I was just saying, with a rhythm and repetition. We can’t get ourselves behind the sticks early on first down where you force yourself to have to pass, and the penalties we’ve had in those situations. We can stay ahead of the sticks and get into a rhythm and get on schedule with everything and then we can add those runs in.”
(There’s got to be a confidence that you guys are able to do that, right?) – “Yes, we do. We’ve shown it. It’s just one game where we definitely got exposed (on) some things. We have to go in there and correct it.”
(What is the potential of your running game once you get it going, do you think?) – “I feel like the past three years we’ve done a lot better in the run (game) since (Head) Coach (Adam) Gase has been here. It’s just the opportunity. Once we find a rhythm, I feel like guys are going. The running backs, we’re on the same page with them. I feel like that takes time. Like I said, we have to be able to stay ahead of the chains to create that. When we’re backed up all of the time and you’ve got to pass the ball, you can’t find that rhythm.”
(That third-down situation has to be frustrating for you.) – “Yes, it honestly is. But it’s our job to get it done. We’ve just got to go to work this week and fix it.”
Albert Wilson – October 1, 2018
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Monday, October 1, 2018
Wide Receiver Albert Wilson
(What are some things the team didn’t do well that came to light against the Patriots?) – “Kind of the same thing we were going through earlier in the preseason. Penalties, long third downs. That’s not the type of offense we are. When we keep it third-and-minimum, second-and-minimum, we do pretty well. I felt like early in the game, (they) got us out of positions to make plays and continued to keep the ball driving. They got up quick and I feel like it was pretty much history.”
(Head Coach Adam Gase said you guys got out-physicaled. When you hear that, how do you guys take that knowing that that’s something that can’t ever happen?) – “It is what it is. We’ve all seen the tape. We’ve all seen what happened. That’s pretty much what happened all game, from the jump. We can’t go out like that.”
(This seems to be the blueprint of how to beat you guys. This is probably something that you’re going to see from other teams, how do you try to combat that?) – “What’s the blueprint?”
(Jamming you guys at the line or making you guys make mistakes with penalties and stuff like that.) – “I don’t feel like that was the problem. No team can force penalties. I feel like we did that ourselves. We shot ourselves in the foot. I feel like if we came out with energy – like I’ve been saying all week, teams are going to have to match our energy. I feel like we didn’t have any energy going in and that’s what happens.”
(Is it more of a challenge to overcome a loss by 20 or 30 points versus one or two points?) – “Are you saying if we were down by that many?”
(No, after you lose a game.) – “A loss is a loss, no matter what it is. One point or 50 points. It really doesn’t matter once the score is over with. It looks bad on paper, but a loss is a loss. We just have to overcome it.”
(You’re new to this team. What did you see from the fight throughout the game even when you guys were down big?) – “We kept fighting. I feel like when we scored late in the fourth. That was pretty good to see. When we got back and saw the film, we were getting the chance to run the ball in the fourth. I feel like we just go off of that. We put that last drive out there, we build off of that and we continue to play football.”
(We see you guys rallying on the sideline, there’s a lot of talking from leaders on this team.) – “Yes. We’re just trying to keep the guys up. You don’t want to see anybody get down or anything. Adversity happens. We just have to adapt and adjust to that. We’ll be better.”
(I know this is probably the bad end to finish these four games, but you’re still 3-1, still on top of your division. Is this something to take away from that?) – “You’re just as good as your last game. That’s what it’s all about. We took a big L. We’ve all have to play better. Myself, I have to do better. I have to be there for Ryan (Tannehill) when he needs me. I have to get open faster and make plays down the field. I can’t allow a guy to intercept the ball on me. I have to block better on the outside, stretch to finish. I just have to play better.”
(When you guys lose like this, is there much needed to be said by the leaders in the locker room or do you guys just know ‘as a man, we just have to do better?’) – “Everybody knows. One-on-one challenges, it goes on every week. We all took a beating. Like you said, no man wants to lay down for anybody. Things don’t have to be said, but things need to be said. We said what we need to do. We all watched the film, we all saw what happened from the jump. We just can’t go out like that.”
(Head Coach Adam Gase said it was kind of a somber day today. You guys are kind of quiet, real upset about the loss. Is that the case, are you guys just kind of down a little bit today?) – “No, I don’t feel that way. I feel like we took it on the chin. It didn’t go as planned, like I said. We just have to do better. Everybody knows they have to play better. It’s a new week and we’re focused on the Bengals.”
Danny Amendola – October 1, 2018
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Monday, October 1, 2018
WR Danny Amendola
(What went wrong yesterday?) – “I’m worried about Cincinnati now. We’re ready to get back to work. On to Cincinnati.”
(How important is it to wash away that loss and move forward?) – “We’re going to learn from our mistakes and get better and focus on this week. That’s it.”
(When Head Coach Adam Gase says you guys got out-physicaled, how do you guys take that knowing that as a man, that’s something that definitely can’t ever happen, especially on a football field?) – “Football is a physical sport. You’ve got to play it that way – offensively, defensively and on special teams. That’s it.”
(With the way the loss went, is it okay for you guys to look back and think you guys are 3-1 and in a good position?) – “You never want to lose. You go out to win the game. We went out there expecting to win. We tried to win the whole game. We tried to score every time we got the ball and it didn’t happen for one reason or another. So we’ve got to clean those mistakes up and get better this week. It’s going to take a good week of practice, a good week of preparation, work on things that didn’t go well last week and the week before that and try to get better, try to put our team in position to win.”
(Is this a week where a veteran like yourself comes into play and kind of settle down the other guys who may be making more of one loss than it should be?) – “Of course it’s on us. It’s on everyone. It’s on everyone to do our job throughout Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and continue to prepare and do our job in the game. That’s what we’ve got to focus on.”
(Do the losses hurt more than the joy that wins bring you?) – “That’s a good question, man. That’s a good question.”
(Hard to measure, right?) – “Yeah, man, I’m going to go home and think about that (laughter). I love that. I love that question. That’s why we play, right?”
Davon Godchaux – October 1, 2018
Monday, October 1, 2018
DT Davon Godchaux
(As a defensive guy, I’m sure you are disappointed to hear that and know that you got out-physicaled yesterday?) – “We’ve just got to get back to the basics in practice, get the pads low, play our technique and just get back to playing Dolphins football.”
(Head Coach Adam Gase said there is a 24-hour period after wins or losses and that guys will be down and that’s expected. How do you get over that?) – “That’s the NFL. Once I walk in here in the morning, I’ve got my mind focused on Cincinnati. The past game is over. I watched the film last night. I watched it on the plane. My focus is on Cincinnati. New England, that’s history. That game is over. It’s on to the next one.”
(How correctable are those mistakes, what you saw on film?) – “We made our own mistakes. We just made plays … We just didn’t execute our plays. Point blank, period.”
(Is it hard to kind of look at the whole picture, that you guys are 3-1? Or is the way you guys lost yesterday saying everything?) – “Like I said, it’s a marathon, not a sprint. It’s a long season. We’re 3-1. We’re going to face New England again. It’s on to the Cincinnati Bengals.”
(Is it harder to overcome a 31-point loss than, say, a 1- or 2-point loss?) – “I mean, a win is a win, a loss is a loss. Whether you lose by three points, two points or 24 points, or whether you win by three points, a win is a win and a loss is a loss in this league. We’ve just got to get back and regroup as a team.”
(Does losing hurt more than the joy that winning brings?) – “Of course because it’s losing. Nobody wants to lose, especially as a competitor. We don’t want to lose. We want to win. But at the end of the day, we lost yesterday, so we have to get back in on Wednesday and practice hard and get back to the basics.”
(So a win doesn’t feel as good as a loss hurts?) – “Oh, yes. One-hundred percent. I’d rather win all day. But when you’re losing, it’s a tough loss. We just have to regroup. Like I said, it’s a long season.”
(When you watched the tape, were there things that they did that you weren’t expecting?) – “We just didn’t execute on our plays. Once we executed on some of the plays that we did, we stopped them; but once we didn’t take advantage of it, a guy like Tom Brady, he’s going to take advantage of it.”
(Not having as many players on the d-line, how did you guys feel about the rotation?) – “We were good. We weren’t even focused on that. Guys went down. It’s part of the league. We just focus on getting better. We’re going to play with the guys we have in the room.”
Adam Gase – October 1, 2018
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Monday, October 1, 2018
Head Coach Adam Gase
(Will CB Bobby McCain or C Daniel Kilgore be out for an extended period or out for the season?) – “I’m not sure of the injuries right now. We still have a lot of guys out getting MRIs and things like that. I’ll know later today.”
(Is this a game that you’re going to go over the film with the team or do you just kind of move on?) – “I mean we did what we normally do as far as going through film with each side of the ball. We’re going to move on. I mean we have to get things corrected. We have a lot of things to get corrected. But that’s what happens when you play a good team and you make mistakes that you can’t make against this team.”
(What were you disappointed most by in your team? You guys went in there pumped up.) – “I think just getting out-physicaled. Then we didn’t execute things the way we needed to. We didn’t adjust the way we needed to. Nothing was good.”
(When you get out-physicaled, how correctable is that?) – “Since it hasn’t happened the last three games … We just have to do a better job of the fundamentals and making sure we don’t get caught up emotionally in the game. (We just have to) focus on what our job is and then we give ourselves a better chance.”
(Do you have to tell the guys much or do the leaders of the team let the guys know we got out-physicaled and that can’t happen on a regular basis? Do you lean on some of the guys like DE Cameron Wake?) – “I mean those guys know. It’s no secret. We didn’t sugarcoat a whole bunch today.”
(How close were S Reshad Jones and WR DeVante Parker to playing yesterday? Do you project them as far as likely to play next Sunday?) – “I don’t know. We’ll figure it out during the week. They didn’t play. It doesn’t matter how close they were or not.”
(As you looked at why the run game didn’t get going, was it blocking primarily or did the backs leave anything on the field, do you think?) – “I think it was just a combination of what they were doing, we didn’t execute right (and) we probably missed a couple of opportunities. Nothing went right. Nothing we did was good. It just was not a good game.”
(Can you elaborate on why T Ja’Wuan James didn’t play?) – “For me, it wasn’t a performance-based thing. I think he got pretty banged up in the game and we got to the point where we put Sam (Young) in there. It’s the same thing we did with Ryan (Tannehill). Ryan was taking a pretty good beating and after he got bent backwards on the one (play), that probably freaked me out a little bit to where I started thinking ‘What are we doing?’ It was good to get Brock (Osweiler) in there too and just kind of get him in a live-action game. That was one of those ones where my gut was saying to get him out of there and he’s trying to talk me into leaving him in there. (Offensive Coordinator) Dowell (Loggains) did a good job of reinforcing that this was the right thing to do.”
(With the receivers and tight ends, was there any issue in terms of separation? Were they just not open for large chunks of the game?) – “Danny (Amendola) and Jakeem (Grant) were open the whole game. We had times where we were open on certain things. It’s just nothing was clicking as far as we’re open and (we have) pass protection. (When the) pass protection was good, we’re not open. They fell into a couple of things with some of the stuff we did, which they did a good job on scheme-wise and just guys being disciplined in what they were doing. The misdirection stuff they did a really good job on. It was just an ongoing something different each time. So it wasn’t a consistent pattern.”
(You’ve talked a lot about how the makeup of this team that you have now, you feel like when the waters get rough, you’re confident in how they respond. What do you expect to see from the players this week?) – “We’re coming back to work Wednesday. They’re not going to cancel the season. We’re 3-1. We’re out of the first quarter. The thing is we have to reset 0-0. That’s why today is always the toughest because everybody is brutally honest and you’re going to have conflict and you’re going to have some back and forth. Guys, they put a lot into this game and the same thing with coaches. It’s an emotional game. Today is an emotional day. And then once you get past today, you move onto the next opponent. Tuesday you get ready. Then when you come Wednesday, guys reset, they go back to work and then you forget about the last week.”
(Do you like what you’re seeing today or is it too soon?) – “It’s quiet today. Guys are … it’s a bad feeling. When you get drummed in a divisional rival’s stadium, it’s not something you like to experience. You’re pissed you can’t do anything about it now.”
(DT Jordan Phillips I guess was upset on the sideline yesterday. I wasn’t there but I guess because maybe he was rotated out of the game. Do you want guys …) – “Well there’s a reason why we’re doing that. There’s a reason why we’re subbing the way we’re subbing against that team. It’s not a secret why we’re doing it. Whatever (Defensive Line Coach) Kris Kocurek wants the d-linemen to do, that’s what we’re doing.”
(How do you take a look at the season right now? You guys are 3-1. You had an ugly loss. Does that loss cloud the first quarter of the season?) – “It’s just that’s all anyone remembers. That’s why this league is what it is. It’s up and down every week. If you win, everything is great. If you lose, it’s like you lost 10 games. That’s just the way it is. That’s why you’ve got to reset and get going again.”
(Despite that narrative, how do you look at it?) – “Who cares? We’re moving onto the next one. Once we hit Wednesday, our job is to win that one. We’ll go back through the season in 2019. Right now, we’re in the middle of it. We’ve just got to figure out a way to win the game.”
(How did C Travis Swanson play and if C Daniel Kilgore is out awhile, do you have confidence in the fact that Swanson started a lot of games for Detroit?) – “That’s a tough position to get thrown in there, especially a newer guy in our program. Now all of a sudden … He’s taken reps in practice but then all of a sudden you go against those guys and then they’re all over the place. I thought he did a good job. I know there’s some things that he’s going to want to clean up, just some procedural things; but we brought him in here because we had confidence in what he could do as a player and his intelligence is off the charts. He’s somebody that (Offensive Line Coach) Jeremiah (Washburn) has been around before. Communication is easy with him. We’ll just kind of figure what’s going on, probably by the end of today, and we’ll move forward and figure out what our best road is to go down.”
(The key to extending drives yesterday, was it execution on your part or was it New England stopping it?) – “Let’s just get a first down. I don’t care how it happens. It’s the same thing with the defense. Get off the field. It’s like that first third down of the second half, I forget who it was but he catches the ball and we strip it out. It looks ugly, but who cares? It’s the same thing with the offense. Let’s get positive yards. Let’s have a third-and-2-to-5 somewhere in the game. When our only third-and-short is the last play of the half, that’s not good. The last two games have been not as good as what we need on first and second down to where we’re putting ourselves in position for third-and-short.”
(What does CB Cordrea Tankersley have to do to get into the mix at corner and on special teams?) – “I think he’s in the mix every week. We just have to keep practicing and doing things right. The best way to always grab a coach’s eye is you just practice well. Do it day in and day out and be consistent. The hardest thing is when you’re up and down. That’s when you see guys get frustrated and coaches get frustrated and the player gets frustrated. That’s where I think he can help himself is just be the same guy every day and find a way to make plays in practice. Then when special teams comes around, just be a guy that can be counted on.”
(DE Cameron Wake and DE Robert Quinn, how would you assess how they’ve done a quarter of the way through the season?) – “I don’t know. I’ll worry about self-scout at the end of the year. Right now, Cam does exactly what he always does. He does a great job of setting the edge and when he gets his opportunities to rush the passer, if he doesn’t have two or three guys hitting him, he usually causes some kind of pressure. Rob, I think he’s giving us everything he has. I think there’s a couple of plays he wishes he could have had yesterday. He had a great chance on that (end) around and he did a great job of sniffing it out. I think it’s tough enough to even get yourself in that kind of position to make that play. I would love to see him make the tackle because that would have been a huge loss but I think he’s working to do everything right.”
Cameron Wake – September 30, 2018 (Postgame)
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Sunday, September 30, 2018
Postgame – New England Patriots
Miami Dolphins Defensive End Cameron Wake (transcribed by New England Patriots)
(How do you come to grips with a game like this today?) – “I guess you don’t. Probably will take a little while to sink in honestly. It’s hard to swallow, a tough pill to swallow. So I haven’t done it yet and it’s going to take me a little while.”
(What were the challenges that you guys were facing in the run game?) – “Ourselves probably would be the number one challenge. I think – of course I haven’t seen the film but going back and looking at some of the pictures on the sidelines, it was a lot of shooting yourself in the foot. Mis-alignments, missed tackles, self-inflicted wounds. That’s frustrating obviously.”
(Head Coach Adam Gase talked about getting beaten physically on both sides of the ball. Do you agree with that from a defensive side?) – “When I was out there, I can’t say that personally but again, obviously I’ll see the film shortly. But I just – it’s again the execution. You’ve probably heard that word maybe a couple times from guys up here. Just got to be where you’re supposed to be, supposed to do what you’re supposed to do, make the tackles, make the plays. In this league obviously one missed tackle can lead to a big play. One missed assignment, miscommunication leads to touchdowns, points on the board or the opposite on offense. It looked like a bunch of – like I said, self-inflicted wounds and maybe some physicality as well. Again, I’ll see when the tape comes in.”
(Is it possible to keep every victory and every loss to one week? Do some carry on for better or for worse?) – “You would be wise to keep it to one week because if you’re patting yourself on the back about what you did last week, then you’re behind the eight-ball on the upcoming opponent and vice versa if you’re still pouting about what happened the week before and then still you’re behind the eight-ball. So you’ve heard me say this a million times. When you win, you get 24-ish hours to pat yourself on the back and smile and high-five and you’ve got hit the erase button and move on. This goes the same way. You’ve got to figure out whatever corrections need to be made, look yourself in the mirror. But on Tuesday morning-ish, somewhere in that area, you’ve got to move on to your next opponent.”
(It’s a young team and you guys were 3-0. Did you see any patting on the back that may have affected today?) – “I can’t say I have. I think young or not, the guys on this team know that it’s a marathon. Technically we’ve got the first quarter down and we’ve got a long way to go. Three months, three weeks, three days from now, we probably won’t be talking about this game the same way nobody’s talking about what happened in the Titans game. It’s ancient history and again, three weeks from now, we’ll be moving on to whatever the next challenge is and again this will ancient history. I think the guys understand that, things happen fast and you’ve got your 15 minutes to do whatever you’ve got to do, pat or cry or smile. But you’ve got to move on.”
Kenny Stills – September 30, 2018 (Postgame)
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Sunday, September 30, 2018
Postgame – New England Patriots
Miami Dolphins Wide Receiver Kenny Stills (transcribed by New England Patriots)
(On the loss and bouncing back) – “You correct the mistakes that we made today, go out there, put it behind us and try to find a victory next week. It’s a long season; we’re 3-1 after the first quarter of our season. We got beat today, but like I said we got to go out there and make corrections. We’ll go out there and strap them up again next week and try to get a victory.”
(On the offensive struggles) – “It’s things that we always talk about; penalties hurt ourselves on those drives. We weren’t able to beat man coverage, and get first downs on third downs. They played well [and] they beat us, but I think there are a lot of things that we did to ourselves to keep us from having good drives and putting points on the board.”
(On if the Patriots defense was surprising) – “I haven’t watched the film, but based off what I saw out there, it was a lot of what we expected. We just didn’t execute. We hurt ourselves. We’ve got to do a better job.”
Xavien Howard – September 30, 2018 (Postgame)
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Sunday, September 30, 2018
Postgame – New England Patriots
Miami Dolphins Cornerback Xavien Howard (transcribed by New England Patriots)
(On what was the biggest thing that went wrong for the defense) – “We got to stop the run and we got to stop some of those explosive plays. We had a good script but they came out and executed.”
(On the 55-yard touchdown catch by Cordarrelle Patterson) –“It was a pick play. I was in man coverage and they picked me and he got wide open. It’s stuff that me and Minkah [Fitzpatrick] have to communicate knowing what they are going to do and how they are going to attack.”
(On what the emotion was on the field after getting so many penalties) – “It was tough. Most of them were on third down and we would have gotten off the field. We’ve just got to play. We can’t leave it in the referee’s hands.”
