Jerome Baker – December 27, 2021 (Postgame)
Monday, December 27, 2021
Postgame – New Orleans
LB Jerome Baker
(I’m just curious as you woke up this morning and you were kind of getting ready for the game and preparing yourself, were you aware of how Sunday’s games kind of shook out and how you guys essentially in a win and you’re in situation? Right now if you guys win your final two games you’ll be in the playoffs. Were you aware of how all that came to be this weekend?) – “No, not really. I just knew we’ve got to come out here and win a game so I didn’t really – I’m not going to say I didn’t care, but I wasn’t looking forward to or looking out for it.”
(Well now that you’re – after a 1-7 start, seven straight wins – just knowing that you are in that situation now and you just have to kind of take care of what’s in front of you, I guess what’s the mindset of the team? How do you personally feel about that?) – “Just keep it going. What we’ve been doing, it’s been working. Just taking it one day at a time, one game at a time. It’s been working for us so why change it. I think that’s our approach right now, is just keep doing what we’ve been doing.”
(You had 8 sacks, you gave up 164 yards and 0-for-12 on third down. When you look at some of those numbers how do you assess this defensive performance? Could you ask for much more than that?) – “I’m sure ‘Flo’ (Brian Flores) will have some corrections. That’s one thing I’m pretty sure he’ll have. Josh (Boyer) is the same. That’s just the approach of our team, is just we just want to get better and better and better, and we know we can accomplish some great things so at the end of the day we’re just going to take that approach and just keep getting better. We could’ve played better. We’re going to enjoy this one and worry about next week.”
(You guys are the first team in NFL history to have seven straight losses and seven straight wins in the same season. What does that say about the character of this group?) – “It says a lot. That we believe in our coaching staff, we believe in each other, and anything is possible. We’ve just got to take it one day at a time. It’s been working for us so I’m going to keep saying that and we’ve just got to continue just doing what we’ve been doing and keep getting it done.”
Tua Tagovailoa – December 27, 2021 (Postgame)
Monday, December 27, 2021
Postgame – New Orleans
QB Tua Tagovailoa
(I know obviously you and WR Jaylen Waddle have a connection going back to Alabama, but could you have foresaw him having this amount of impact as a rookie inching closer to the rookie reception record, breaking all these franchise records and just the impact that he’s had on the offense. Is that something you could have seen back in summer workouts?) – “I’m not a genie, so I’m not going to say that I did foresee that in Jaylen’s future, but I knew that he had a lot of potential of course just being able to play with him at Alabama and then also the OTAs that we’ve had together and leading up into training camp, he’s done a really good job. You could just see his development within his understanding of coverages, his understanding of getting open fast against man coverage and then blitz, man and so forth. I think he’s done a great job for us and I did just hear about his record so congratulations to him.”
(I wanted to let’s walk through that interception pass that you had in the game. Could you walk us through what you saw on the field and why did you go to WR Mack Hollins?) – “Just stepped up and I thought I could give Mack a good back-shoulder. Didn’t expect him to break it across like it happened but took a chance there. Obviously we could have hit the easier throw, the easier pass to Jaylen (Waddle) on the in-cut on that play, but it was what it was. I think our defense did outstanding giving us opportunities that we obviously need to capitalize on. But that was that.”
(You mentioned the Dolphins defense with eight sacks, holding the opponent to 0-for-12 on third down. How does that impact the throws that you want to make knowing how solid the defense has been?) – “We always stress playing complementary football so the defense giving the offense the ball back and the offense capitalizing on those turnovers and then also in the kicking game whether it’s a punt; being able to back their team and putting our defense in a good situation and vice versa with our kick return and our punt return game. It’s definitely something that gives us life whether it’s the offense scoring on the first drive or scoring in general or the defense getting a big third-down stop or getting a turnover and scoring. It’s definitely something that gives I would say this team life.”
(I wanted to ask you about the throw in the third quarter to WR Mack Hollins that seemed to be a big moment in the game. I just wanted to get your thoughts on that and the confidence you have in him in making the catch.) – “Yeah, I have a lot of confidence giving all our guys the ball. We ran that play flipped going the same way, I think it was the first quarter – and I hit Jaylen (Waddle) on that third-down conversion and coming back to the sideline Mack (Hollins) was open. So we knew they’d have a plan to either double Jaylen or force Jaylen to break in and to the … so when we did come back to it, I thought I’d give Mack a shot on that and I think he did a great job of tracking the ball and catching it.”
(You guys are the first team in NFL history to have seven straight losses and seven straight wins in the same season. What does that say about the character of this locker room?) – “I think it speaks a lot to the character of this locker room. A lot of the guys like I’ve been saying spend time with each other outside of the locker room and I think that’s what helps build the chemistry on the field for us. And it can only get stronger from here, I would say, so it’s hard to get a win on the road especially in a hostile environment like this, but we’ll take it and we’ll move on to who we’re playing next.”
Brian Flores – December 27, 2021 (Postgame)
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Monday, December 27, 2021
Postgame – New Orleans
Head Coach Brian Flores
(I know the season isn’t over and you guys still have at least two more games to play in the regular season, but to start 1-7 and to win seven games and put yourselves in position where you just need to win and be in the playoffs I guess what do you want the overarching message to be for anyone that looks at your team and the turnaround that you’ve had this season?) – “I think this team stuck together really the entire year. I think obviously we dealt with a lot of adversity early in the year and I think it revealed a lot. I would say it revealed the character of the guys in our locker room. Revealed that some people are with you and some people were on the fence and I think our guys just kept fighting. They kept sticking together and I think they support each other, they work hard, they give great effort. And when you do those things you put yourself in position to get the results you’re looking for.”
(Can you talk about your defensive approach against Ian Book making his NFL debut and Nik Needham’s early pick-6 setting the tone in that regard?) – “Credit to Josh (Boyer) and the defensive staff. They had a nice game plan – mixing coverages, mixing the fronts. They did a good job stopping the run which was a big emphasis. I thought the guys just played hard, they played fast, they gave great effort. We knew it was going to be a 60-minute game. We knew it wasn’t going to be easy. It’s a physical Saints team. Sean (Payton) had them ready, made some adjustments in the game that we had to make some adjustments so thought they had a good plan. We just made a few more plays than they did.”
(It was referenced a little bit earlier but just to be more specific about it. The Dolphins are currently in playoff position with two games to play. What are your thoughts on the idea that the team does not have to rely on anybody else? Focus on the games ahead for the Dolphins.) – “I think the games this week – we’ll enjoy tonight, but the game ahead is going to be as tough as any game we’re going to play. I’ve already taken a look at Tennessee. Obviously I know Mike (Vrabel). I have a lot of respect for him. I know he’ll have his guys ready so we’ll enjoy tonight – it was a hard-fought 60-minute game so we’ll enjoy this one and then we’ll turn the page and get started on our next opponent.”
(In terms of what this team has been able to accomplish going and winning seven straight games how difficult is that – I know every game is a one-game playoff situation and you have a linear focus on the season – but to win seven straight games is kind of an accomplishment?) – “I think it’s really just one in a row and that’s really all we’re trying to do. That’s kind of the approach and I think our guys have kind of taken to that approach and the preparation, how important the preparation is, the preparation that’s needed to get results in this league. There’s a lot that goes into that. There’s a lot of work, a lot of working together. I think George (Godsey), Eric (Studesville), Danny (Crossman), Josh (Boyer) – our coaching staff is doing a nice job of putting together game plans and giving our guys a chance to have success. Now the focus is to try to do it one more time.”
(I wanted to get a little clarity on the answer you gave earlier. You said that it revealed a lot about your locker room. It revealed that some people were with you and some people were on the fence. Was that talking about people outside the building or inside of the building?) – “There’s distractions always and when things aren’t going your way I think it just reveals a lot about a lot of things, I would say. I’ve always had belief in this team – our players, our coaches. Maybe there were some people who didn’t share that same belief and I understand why, but at the end of the day it’s not about anyone else. It’s about the guys in that locker room and the guys in our building and the people in our building and we believe in each other. And at the end of the day that’s all that matters.”
