Liam Eichenberg – October 6, 2024 (Postgame)
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Sunday, October 6, 2024
Postgame – at New England
Dolphins OL Liam Eichenberg
(On his thoughts about the offensive struggles in the first half)
“There are definitely things we need to improve on. I can only speak for myself and I need to go back to my technique and fundamentals. We’ll watch the tape on the plane and see what we need to correct.”
(On being able to run the ball in the fourth quarter and get the win)
“It’s great. We were effective in the run game during the game and especially at the end. It’s something we are going to keep building on. It’s something we can’t give up on so we have to keep working and keep trying to improve.”
(On what was working well today)
“With us, it was just staying committed and trust in what we are being coached. Throughout the week we were coached to go outward and not upward and I think that carried over to the game. Pad level was emphasized and that is something we worked on that came through today.”
(On the seven-and-a-half-minute game-winning drive)
“That was tiring. You never really count the plays, but you’re kind of just looking around and just waiting for the next play, but it’s all about one play at a time. Definitely at the end though, that was a tiring one.”
-DOLPHINS-
Alec Ingold – October 6, 2024 (Postgame)
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Sunday, October 6, 2024
Postgame – at New England
Dolphins FB Alec Ingold
(On his touchdown)
“Any fullback dive might be the day-one install for every offense in America, high school to Peewee, Pop Warner, everything. It was cool to end a 17-play drive like that. Credit to the offensive line, I didn’t have to do anything. Center, left guard watched their guys, they climbed up to the linebackers, so for a two-yard run to cap a statement drive is something that we needed desperately. As a team, to score a touchdown at that moment, it was a team drive, it was a team touchdown. So, I think it’s really a testament to all of our work over the last month or so, trying to get back right. It was a long drive capped off by a nice touchdown.”
(On this being the first time the team has had a real physical presence this year)
“I think it goes back to trusting things. We were running the ball quite a bit in the first half. Whether it’s a penalty here or a little procedural thing there, it kind of got us off track. We get four-yard runs, six-yard runs, but we trusted each other. Coaching staff, all the way down to the players. Doing your one-eleventh. That’s all that a running game is. A full team playing all four quarters. And I don’t think, like you said, we haven’t seen that quite yet out of our team. It’s something we’re working on, it’s our process that we’re building towards, so to see a seventeen-play drive in the fourth quarter, when we need it, I think was pretty cool for our entire process, for our entire organization to go through that together.”
(On going back to Miami with a win)
“I think you’re a couple plays away from a win or a loss, and somewhat of a sloppy execution game you could say. Being able to validate that the process that we’re building towards something. You see glimpses on tape, week-in and week-out, then you have the results of a loss, it can sting, it’s frustrating, it’s demoralizing, it’s tough. When you get that win, you’re able to say, ‘okay we’re on the right track, we’re building towards something right.’ But it’s not good yet, it’s not good enough yet. So, that little tweak in the mindset, fighting to find that silver lining I think is extremely important for our team going into a bye week 2-3, to be able to right the ship, to be able to continue to cross the Ts and dot the Is and make sure we’re a better football team at the end of the season than when we started.”
(On if any other plays from the game stand out to him)
“Yeah I think Jaylen Wright (RB), definitely stepped up big. One of his biggest runs of the day was called back because of a holding call. To see him not blink, to be able to go back and convert on a first down later in that same drive, that I think was really cool to see. Raheem (Raheem Mostert, RB) to come back and be able to play physical, you see him, he’s the fastest guy on the team, one of the fastest guys on the team. To be able to run, yards after contact and push that pile, doesn’t seem like a whole lot but second and three is a whole heck of a lot better than second and eight. To be able to find those creases, I think both of those guys played really hard, really physical and it was really cool to see them flourish in the fourth quarter like that.”
(On Tyler Huntley in the huddle)
“His personality was coming out in a number of different ways, and I loved it. It’s more than just a play call, right. As a quarter back, when you get a little bit more comfortable, he’s been here a couple weeks now, to be able to see his little impacts, his little points of emphasis in the huddle, being able to make guys lock in on their assignments and details and understanding the circumstance of the game, I think that was really cool for Snoop to be able to do that for our offense because that’s what a leader is. He’s coming in a tough spot as a quarterback and to be able to have command, to be able to find that confidence to voice himself, for guys to listen and respect that was everything that you could hang your hat on for this offense right now.”
(On if there was a point where the offense could feel the command from Huntley)
“I think that was in the second half. To understand that we were going through adversity, mishaps, things we can’t control. Whether it was a wild snap, a blocked punt, a missed field goal, we had all those things happening in the first half. To be able to have that confidence and command and say ‘no matter what happens, we can’t control that, we can control this right now’, that was pretty special to see. Anybody can have command when it’s all going good, but when you’re playing from behind, when it’s gritty like that, when you’ve got to get a couple first downs to string along a drive and have command when it’s not going well, I think that was the biggest respect Snoop got from all of us.”
-DOLPHINS-
Mike McDaniel – October 6, 2024 (Postgame)
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Sunday, October 6, 2024
Postgame – at New England
Dolphins Head Coach Mike McDaniel
Q: How does it feel to walk out of here with a win compared to what could have happened there in the final minutes?
MM: I think this is a cool game for our team because you know what it usually takes to be able to beat the Patriots is the type of game that I thought our team really needed in terms of winning when everything isn’t great, winning when there’s a ton of frustrating things that happened during a game and leaning into what we’ve really learned to be a strength of our team, which is the defense. Again, another valiant effort. It was a big deal. It’s been 24 days since the Buffalo game. In the NFL losing streaks are real. They’re not fun. So for the team to have to find a way to overcome a lot of sloppiness that wasn’t to do with intent or preparation, but you know, things that we have to clean up in our game and to be able to still find a way it feels great. Kind of knew it was going to be a game like this, but you want to see your team take steps forward. I thought we did today.
Q: Both RB Jaylen Wright and RB Raheem Mostert cleared 80 rushing yards today. Was that the plan throughout the week to be that ground-heavy, especially after your injury to RB De’Von Achane?
MM: Yeah, I think we had been disappointed with what we’ve produced on the ground just in general. So it was a huge point of emphasis to really hone in on our fundamentals and the technique. To the credit of the offensive line, they punched some holes. I think the running back room was ready to put the team on their back, so to speak. I think having Raheem back was awesome. It was unfortunate to lose De’Von for sure. Then you saw a rookie play some snaps where you can feel his confidence just being established. So the plan was to be able to go toe-to-toe and win any way you need to, and I think that was the main objective led by the captains. I think they did a really phenomenal job of keeping everyone’s head space correct. It was very fitting that one of our newly-minted captains this year, Alec Ingold, scored the touchdown because he was a heavy part of the run game production this week for sure.
Q: On the final drive there was a physical presence running the ball that we really haven’t seen much of that yet.
MM: I think when I say the game we’re looking for, we’re not looking to be frustrated, but you know, you have some frustrating points during the course of a game, and nobody cares. Then you have a 17-play drive to get your first touchdown of the day. That’s something that I think when you are talking about your football team and the types of games you want to win, you know, that’s very similar to November, December football where certain weeks you have to strap up and be able to win the line of scrimmage and do it down in and down out. I think that’s a huge piece of the puzzle to me that — we weren’t measured in our words to each other in team settings this week. We challenged each other to be able to win a game like that just in general and not have to have super explosive plays to win a football game. I think that that’s what I’m really proud of is that I know what it takes for our team, in particular that has high ambitions, to put together a 17-play drive at the end of the game, and that means you’re staying locked in regardless of result during the course of it. That’s something we can built upon as we clean up the layers of things we have to clean up.
Q: It was a mixed bag for special teams today, but overall I think it’s 11 penalties now for the season for that unit. How will that unit be evaluated?
MM: Very critically. I think you have to assess the common denominators. The thing I was proud of is you have several things that don’t go your way, you hit a post, and you have a snap that you wish you could have back, but I think we were able to get several very crucial points after that. So the resolve. You don’t want to have to test your resolve every week, but that was an important piece. And then, you know, you give up a blocked punt, but then had complete faith that that would get corrected and that we would be able with the game on the line to get New England to burn their time-outs and trotted that same unit back out there. So those are things to build upon, and they’re much easier to do in the win column. I think that that gives you the opportunity to really assess the common denominators because that’s what you’re trying to find. A lot of times penalties come from particularly offensively and – really in all three phases. Sometimes penalties can occur because people are trying too hard to own their responsibility, and they’re leveraged or edged, and then you hold or you – really all three phases that same thing can occur. I’m careful or judicious with looking at full sale this has to be better to continue to win football games. So you have to find some resolution, and that will come through collective study and effort by our coaching staff and then apply it to the players as we do across the board.
Q: Anything you can say about the injury to RB De’Von Achane and S Jevón Holland?
MM: Yeah, just coming off the field. We’ll be evaluating those in the next couple of days. I do know that De’Von was out with a head injury that I believe to be a concussion, so he will be in the protocol. Then we’ll check out what Jevón — the extent of that is, which fortunately we have a bye week, so we have time to figure that stuff out.
Q: Speaking of the bye week, what does this week mean for QB Tyler Huntley to be able to stay in the classroom, stay in the lab without having to play a game on Sunday?
MM: It’s huge. You’re playing catch-up the whole time that you’re playing football and you’re knowing your responsibilities, your knowing what the pass concepts are, and now you have a chance to study really the strengths and weaknesses of certain things. For him to play convicted, I think it’s going to be huge for him just to have things settle down because you don’t really have time for much when you are just jumping in in an NFL workweek. You have to orchestrate a lot of moving parts, and I thought he did a good job handling all that. He has done a phenomenal job really since he’s been here, but it was a step forward today for sure.
Q: The snap that went by him, was that — what happened there?
MM: We were executing a no-huddle play. He was communicating to the line of scrimmage and communicating to the offensive line what the play was. Then after he did that, he was communicating to the Z receiver. Brew thought he heard the cadence, which Snoop hadn’t given any sort of indicator of a cadence, but he thought he heard one. So he snapped it, which is why it was a gigantic negative. Moving the ball pretty well, but it was one of the three drives in the first half that you felt like you should have points in some way, shape, or form on that drive hoping to convert and get in the red zone and score a touchdown. So that was part of the things that we got in our own way, which is why it’s — you can clean those up all day, but you know, for our team we needed to find a way to win a football game with that adversity right in our face, which is what I was happy about.
Q: FB Alec Ingold used the word to describe Tyler, “command.” How much of a sense for his command of this offense when he’s not on the field? Like do you get to interact with him on the sideline? You hear coaches report back to you about him?
MM: Absolutely, I can tell by the conviction with the other ten people coming out of the huddle. When you’re in a huddle and people have conviction and ownership of — and command of the huddle, you see people leave with certainty from the huddle. Then on top of that, every single play his technique and fundamentals I think I’m connected with. So after the ball is snapped, whatever coverage is presented, you have an idea where the ball should go, and you are watching his technique through to the defensive structure. I could tell all week that he was going to operate in a high fashion, but I could feel during the game simply through his teammates and how they’re approaching each play even if it was a run, and it was with conviction to the line of scrimmage on almost every snap. I think we did have one presnap motion penalty, but beyond that, it was — that was much improved from the week before.
-DOLPHINS-
Tyler Huntley – October 6, 2024 (Postgame)
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Sunday, October 6, 2024
Postgame – at New England
Dolphins QB Tyler Huntley
Q: What’s it feel like to get a win after a few crazy weeks here for you?
TH: Man, we needed it. The city needed it, our team needed it, everybody in the locker room needed it and that’s what we came out here to do and we got it.
Q: Mindset on that final drive, that 80-yard drive down the field?
TH: We knew we had to score to win the game, you know? And that’s what we did.
Q: As DT Calais Campbell said, lot of things to work on, even on that final drive you had two holding penalties that you overcame. How much of today was just overcoming some mistakes?
TH: You said it right. We just had to overcome our mistakes, and we knew once we overcame them, we were going to do good things. We just have to hone in on the details, and it will be better.
Q: Did you expect to run the ball as much as you did coming into today? I think the final 52 yards of that drive were running.
TH: We did whatever we had to do to get that win.
Q: You come from a team with a good physical presence. Did you see a glimpse of that today? It really hasn’t been around this team too much.
TH: Yeah, we were going straight downhill at the defense, and it showed that they couldn’t hold up.
Q: How comfortable did you feel out there?
TH: It felt good to be out there with the guys. Just every play, every drive I’m feeling more comfortable, in tune with my guys. I know they feel the same with me.
Q: Did you feel a difference coming into this game as opposed to last week ?
TH: Yeah, 100%. It was my first week last week. It’s my second week this week, and we’re just going to continue to build off of that. We have a bye week coming up. We’re going to get in the lab, work on the things that we need to fix, and come out the next week ready to fire.
Q: What wasn’t going right for the offense for so much of the day?
TH: Mistakes. You know, a couple of penalties, a couple of miscues. You know, all it takes for us to get it rolling, and it will look a whole different.
Q: The bye week, what will you be doing on the bye week?
TH: We’re going to be self-evaluating ourselves, you know, see how we can get a step ahead of guys. Definitely heal up and be ready to come out.
Q: Actually, on that final drive you had a second and 20, and you hit WR Tyreek Hill for 21 yards.
TH: I know we got a first down.
Q: Was he the guy you were going to all along and you saw him break open?
TH: No, I saw him break open, and I went to him.
-DOLPHINS-
Jonnu Smith – October 4, 2024
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Friday, October 4, 2024
TE Jonnu Smith
(Could you have learned the offense in two weeks?) – “Could I have learned the – from the quarterback position, I don’t know man. I don’t know; that’s a different ball game right there, you know what I mean? At the tight end position, you’re looking at between one and three spots. So obviously, the offense changes when you got to know protections, run game, pass game, where each individual receiver is, knowing hots, knowing your offensive linemen adjustments and sliding. There’s a lot of intricacies that go into being a quarterback in an NFL offense, man – especially this one. So ‘Snoop’ (Tyler Huntley) is grabbing it like this. (snaps) Again, like I said before, I’m excited about this weekend.”
(Do you know how long it’s been since a tight end scored a touchdown for this team?) – “I don’t. I don’t, I don’t.”
(It didn’t happen in 2023.) – “It didn’t happen in 2023? Well, it’s going to happen in 2024, it’ll happen. It’ll happen.”
(Has it just felt like after implementing so much into this offense in training camp that you just haven’t gotten around to it?) – “Yeah, I mean it’s a lot that we didn’t get to. Again, obviously this is a long, long season, man and it’s early. The most important thing, like I said earlier, is we got to fill up that win column and we got to do that however the playbook goes my way or not. I understand it’s a different theme every week. So I just got to continue to be the best version of myself every snap, every play for all quarters, however many quarters we’re out there for. So I’m just continuing to be the guy that I’m here to be.”
(What’s the feedback you’ve received on other aspects of your game? Blocking maybe when you are asked to do that?) – “Obviously, there’s things that we can improve on. But listen, we’re 1-3 right now. There’s not a lot of hoorahs going around in the building about each individual performance. We’re just trying to get better as a team and trying to figure out where we need to improve.”
Mike McDaniel – October 4, 2024
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Friday, October 4, 2024
Head Coach Mike McDaniel
(Do you think it would be prudent to have WR Odell Beckham Jr. have another week of practice through the bye week and bring him back October 20, or is there a real possibility we could see him in uniform on Sunday?) – “There is something to be said about today’s practice, for sure. However, I think there’s – on a team that is very motivated to win a football game, I think he’s eager to try to help do that. You kind of have to weigh – you take in the full breadth of the practice week and then make a decision. That decision, if you do go that direction, has implications you have to address within your team, and then if you do go that direction, it’s some sort of modified usage of him that you’d expect the following game there be a little uptick. Weighing that and watching the guys work together and making sure we put him in a fair position if we go in that direction.”
(How did WR Odell Beckham Jr. look yesterday in his first practice?) – “I’m being pretty measured with allowing the week to progress because it was exciting to see him operate within the offense. He did a good job yesterday, he looked good. But me, being Year Three as a head coach, I temper my excitement. I try to see how he feels and looks today after a little workload and then be responsible for the team, but it was a very positive day from that aspect for him.”
(We saw that T Terron Armstead and CB Kendall Fuller were bumped up to full participation. Where do they stand now as of Friday? Are they cleared? Are they on the verge of clearance? Are they still in protocol?) – “Protocol is tricky. I’ll say it this way, I think I’m fairly optimistic that after today is concluded, the final stages of the protocol they’ll be able to clear. I’m fairly optimistic in that. They haven’t cleared, but today is part of that process and the different details of that after practice. But feel pretty good about it.”
(How is S Jordan Poyer?) – “We’ll do the inverse optimism of the two we just previously were talking about; I would say he is – I’m not optimistic for the game. Still leaving a little chance, but not optimistic. We fortunately have guys that if he’s unable to play, guys may get an opportunity to replace him.”
(Is S Jordan Poyer practicing today?) – “No.”
(With the WR Braxton Berrios ankle is that a concern? Does that put his status in question for Sunday?) – “I’m optimistic that he’s going to play. He’s been living in the training room to get it right. I know he’s starting to feel a groove in his opportunities and made some plays for us. We’re hoping he gets there, and he’s doing everything he can.”
(RB Raheem Mostert, could this be the week?) – “It’s in a similar boat as Odell (Beckham Jr.) where I feel optimistic that after today we’ll be able to – I need to assess potential setbacks, but if no setbacks occur today then there is a strong chance that we’d be able to see him, which he’s been seething to try to get back on the field. So then I’ll be in a mode of he’s out there but I’m going to have to modify how much he plays in general. Just because for him, he basically had one healthy rep this season, then he got hurt on his first touch and then he was fighting it, didn’t really know what it was and tried to play through it. I can’t go zero to 60 with these guys as much as practice might bait me to. He’ll be involved if all things go today, but how much, that’s going to be a lot of communication with him and I.”
(Another week in the playbook with QB Tyler Huntley, how has he looked when it comes to timing of the offense?) – “I think it was a very cool week for ‘Snoop’ (Tyler Huntley) because there was a lot of firsts the week before in operating the offense and doing some of the stuff that we knew he was skilled to do, but it was just the first time actually doing it, so this has been a very beneficial week. I think he’s felt more comfortable and as a result, his confidence that he wears on his sleeve has exuded through the rest of the guys. Everything has been improved as you’d expect.”
(You guys value being a balanced offense, one that keeps teams off balanced. I know so much has been made about QB Tua Tagovailoa’s absence, but where is the disappointment level in the run game contribute to what’s happening on offense?) – “Probably equal part. I think the biggest thing is plays that you don’t make even on third down, there’s been a lot of – we haven’t been able to run the ball the way that we hoped. We haven’t been able to get everyone involved in the pass game the way we’ve hoped, and that’s kind of a residual of going on three games of more drives being under five plays than over five plays. Those short drives really take away your run game, they take away targets for a lot of players. I think they are interrelated; I think there have been points in time where we’ve seen what we’ve kind of expected in terms of the intentionality, the accuracy of aiming points but whether it was the chicken or the egg, all execution is related to everybody’s production. So to say I’m happy with it would be – no, I’m not happy with the way anything has really been executed thus far. I do think it’s equal parts across the board on offense from operation to execution of run and pass plays. They all have been emphasized, all things because we need improvement and the team is counting on it.”
(Is there any magic play you can dial up to get the run game – is it the offensive line? How have you identified what’s going on outside of people putting you in bad situations?) – “No, I think it’s a cool question because you have to – the only way you get things solved when you have such a far stretch between what you see our standard being and the actual result is you need a collection of people that are focused on what they can do better. How does that play out? It’s my fault. I say that and I act accordingly, what things can I fix? But then that’s also depending on the right guard, the X-receiver, the halfback looking at everything the same way. For me, schematically, I think there’s things that the defenses have planned for and give them their credit. You try to forecast how people are going to plan and the schematic offset if people are going to take something away, there’s something else they’re giving up. I don’t think I’ve done a good enough job making people pay for overplaying against something. I also don’t think that along the way – when you don’t have rhythm in the run game and you have people kind of forcing the issue or trying to make a play and we’ve lost some of the connectivity to the technique and fundamentals that we know, that’s how we got to a place of running the ball well. That the secret formula is everyone collectively attacking the problem, not even considering, ‘OK, it’s not my fault,’ and then have collective action because yeah, we want to run the ball better. Those are words, but actions are what this league is about. Winning and losing and improvement is what it’s about, so I think collectively we think we need to do everything better, including the run game.”
(In the preseason, this is along the lines of what we’re talking about here, we saw TE Jonnu Smith doing some interesting things with the offense and involved in a variety of ways. In the regular season, not so much. What’s the disconnect there?) – “You’re right, it is in the same vein. I think we’ve had some things up that might be some of the things that you’re talking about from training camp as well as some other new things for him and we haven’t gotten to those plays. I’d really think you can make a case, or I’m assuming there’s a case being made for each player on our offense – why aren’t they more involved? That’s by nature what you’re going to get when things don’t work, the ‘Yeah, you should have done something different,’ and that’s fair. So I think the biggest thing that I’ve been trying to paint the picture to all the offensive players, who all want to help be a part of the solution, is that it’s execution on plays that aren’t necessarily for you that help you get the ball. You get a lot of people opportunities on an 11-play drive. You get four people opportunities on a four-play drive and those things add up as you’re trying to establish the line of scrimmage and you’re trying to get everybody the opportunity to affect the game. So for me, I try to do, like I said before with the run game, how can I give him opportunities within the game plan, how can I get those called, and ultimately across the board, everyone’s opportunities go up when we’re staying on the field. I think that’s the main thing is a lot of guys can get more involvement when they’re in plays, maybe they’re not at the point of attack, but everyone’s execution of everything will help lead to more opportunities as well as me doing a better job as well.”
(Can you talk a little bit about the Patriots? Do you think their record shows who they are as a football team?) – “What’s unique about the Patriots is they’ve had principles; they’ve played a style of football that’s been very similar since I got in the National Football League in 2005. There’s things that they do on offense and defense that maintain the same philosophy as when I played against them in 2011. They try to control the ball and time of possession, and then they make you earn everything you get defensively by way of having a front that is unified as any front in the National Football League in technique and fundamentals. They have, whether it’s a seven-man box or eight-man box, all sorts of different personnel and packages. Everybody plays the same way, so they make you earn it. It’s generally not in short drives, and they make you play good football where you win the turnover battle to have a chance to win the fourth quarter. So I think this team has exemplified some of the greatest traits that I’ve known the Patriots to have that have always made them a tough out anyway, and they’re playing with passion. You have to win football games the right way to beat these guys, and that’s line of scrimmage out and then winning the turnover battle and being prudent and resilient as they’ll make their plays too. So their tape shows good football, whether or not the result is in their favor more often than not. Yeah, they haven’t won all their games but there’s plenty examples of winning football all over the tape.”
(What made LB Tyus Bowser the choice as this team needs a pass rusher?) – “Well first of all, his talent as a player, and when you’re talking about veteran players around the league, you have connectivity from their draft eval and getting to know them coming out. And then it didn’t hurt the cause that it’s a like system and so that makes the learning curve a little shorter, as well as you get to picture a little bit more direct visuals of how you can apply them in your scheme. So I think he strengthens the group, and as I said before, I think it was on Wednesday, that the key to group is contribution across the board for us to move forward and be productive the way we want to in a situation where you have some injuries.”
(I wanted to ask about something you mentioned after the game. You said that “Everything is pretty much on the table as far as making significant changes based on what you’re seeing on the field.” I know it’s not a case where you just abandon your offensive philosophy because you’re not getting the results, but what does that look like to make those changes from one week to another? Because I think some people assume it’s just as easy as you don’t do what’s not working.) – “Yeah, and I think that’s human nature is to what isn’t working, you should try something else. When I say everything’s on the table, you’re looking at as simply as what if we do something different, as well as what are we focusing on, how am I communicating the utmost non-negotiable variable for success in this play. And you try to make the changes necessary, how you install it, what we’re focusing on based upon the information you get back. We’re bad at X, Y or Z. Well, X and Y we can improve. Z, to expect better results we’re kind of far off, so maybe we abandon Z and try U. So it’s a constant play-by-play when you look at – for us, we’re always looking at the entirety of what the plan needs to be, what it needs to be focused around and then what things can we adjust to play to what our players are doing well. So there’s a little bit of outside the box. There’s a little bit of adjustment in types of things you’re doing. There’s finer tuning. There’s maybe more overlap in concepts, less volume in rules for each. So it’s a litany of things that you’re very motivated to do so, considering you want to be a part of the solution and change the results.”
– DOLPHINS-
Odell Beckham Jr. – October 3, 2024
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Thursday, October 3, 2024
WR Odell Beckham Jr.
(General Manager Chris Grier had told us in late August that you wanted to start the season on the active roster. Was there a benefit in waiting? Does the knee feel better?) – “I think a lot of people don’t know exactly what I was going through. Just like everybody in here, we’re all humans. We all go through life. And ending the season, there was a lot going on in my life, personal life, businesses, all of that, that just kind of had me in a place where football wasn’t exactly the priority. I have a son, he’s two years old and I didn’t get much time to spend with him. I feel like he’s growing up fast and I’m not having that much time, so football exactly wasn’t the first and foremost thing on my mind. Then I had to have a small cleanup of the knee and just kind of going through that free agency process – my agent and I went back and forth whether we do it right after the season or we wait until free agency happens and I just feel like I waited too late, didn’t know what was going on. Deep down inside my plan along time ago the way that the free agency went, I was probably going to join a team during the season. So I had more time, there wasn’t going to be the pressure to be back for training camp and all that. So just talking with Mike (McDaniel), just figuring out where I wanted to go and the conversations I had with him along with some other brothers that I have down here, he was one of the main reasons I came here. We kind of had an understanding of probably not going to be ready. He ensured me that that was fine, just try and get back as fast as you can. And a lot of people don’t know what the PUP list is or what it actually entails. You see a lot of people, ‘Oh, are you even going to play football?’ This is just me from the bottom – I could be anywhere in the world right now. I chose to be here, to play football in the NFL. I could be overseas anywhere. I could be doing whatever I want, I’ve done enough in my life to where I’ve warranted that for myself. So I chose to be here. I hate the feeling of walking around this building, and you’re hurt, and PUP list means I can’t practice with the team. So I can’t practice with the team, be on the field, I can’t play the first four games – it’s a rule, it’s very simple. So it’s just something that I kind of had to follow. Not what I wanted to do, but for me it was a selfless act because if I’m not on the PUP list, I’m taking up a roster spot, which means I’m taking someone else’s job and I’m not doing anything. It’s not really a good feeling to have, so it was what’s best for this team and organization and that’s something that – it was an easy decision for us.”
(Were you itching to get back all this time?) – “Yeah, I’ll be honest – like I said, I don’t want to be walking around this building, waking up 7:00, 6:45 a.m. to just come in here from 7:00 to 5:00 o’clock. Like I said, there’s a lot of things I could be doing with my life. So football is still something that I love to do, it just was an unfortunate situation that I was in. I was kind of behind the eight ball, not really knowing if this was what I wanted to do or anything like that, but being able to be back in the building, to be back on the field, it was a lot of hard work. People don’t know what I’ve gone through with this knee because I don’t come out and make excuses for myself. I just put my cleats on, continue to work. I think at the end of the day, when my career is all said and done, I wanted to be the best receiver and all these things, but I think my story is going to be more about resiliency and just showing kids if it’s something you want, you always got to fight for it. You always can find your way back, so that’s really just kind of what it’s been for me.”
(How is it being back out there with your teammates, full pads and everything? How exciting was it to kind of be in that groove of things and just, that’s it?) – “I mean it was very exciting for me. It was very – I don’t know the right word, but just humbling or whatever it was to be back out there. I felt very grateful because I remember what it was like when I felt like I couldn’t walk during the offseason – I sure couldn’t run, couldn’t work out. Just being able to be back out there, be back out there with these guys who put in so much work, it’s what I’ve been waiting on. I didn’t sign over here to walk – cafeteria has great food and all that, but I didn’t sign over here to come walk around in this building. (laughter) I wanted to be a part of something special. Duke Riley and Jalen Ramsey are brothers of mine and they told me how special this place was and to come over here and see that, that’s what I came here for. I came here to play football, so for all the people who are listening and don’t understand that, that’s what I came here to do.”
(How explosive did you feel in today’s practice?) – “I felt pretty good. The old guy can still run a little bit, so I felt good. I think I feel obviously a bit out of football shape in a sense, but just like everything else, it comes with repetition and just being able to get out there and run around. I don’t think the people understand how much joy that is, to be able to not even stretch and I can go out there and just take off running. It’s been a long journey with me and things I’ve had to encounter in my career, so just being able to get out there felt great.”
(How challenging is it to just watch the last four weeks through the struggles the offense has had? And how much of a difference do you think you can make?) – “I’m a part of this, so it doesn’t feel good. To me, it feels even worse – I would have rather us been 4-0 right now, and then I’d feel like ‘Oh, I can’t wait to get in,’ instead of where we’re at and feeling like I should have been out there battling with them win, lose or draw. That’s the hardest part of sitting out and not being able to help. So like I said, I’m just excited to get back out there. Whenever that is, just coming up with a game plan, ease me back into it and then it’s just play ball. It’s a long season, no need to get down. If you’ve played as long as I’ve played, you know how these seasons can go however which way you want.”
(General Manager Chris Grier said he had to fight you to put you on PUP to start this season. Did you feel ready to go from Week 1?) – “I don’t know if you can just say ready, but I was ready to have my training camp at that time. Like it’s harder to then be on PUP meaning I can’t practice with the team. I’m having to do work here and then leave and go do work with trainers and Gold Feet and all that. I would have rather been able to compete and battle and all of those things. I miss that part of earning your brothers’, your teammates’ respect – that’s what I came here to do. That’s one of the major things that I can see myself wanting to prove.”
(Are you expecting to play Sunday?) – “I don’t know, you got to ask Coach (Mike McDaniel).”
(Just on the timing of it, just to make sure we have it accurate, was the surgery March, April? What month was it?) – “It was sometime in the offseason.”
(Given the situation where the team is record wise and you’re saying, ‘Oh, you wish we could have been 4-0,’ do you think there is added pressure with you coming back? Do you think it’s something that for yourself?) – “I think at this point in my life, pressure is why I got into this game. It was never for the attention, because something about knowing that it’s time to perform and then showing up and performing, truly. It wasn’t for cameras and Instagram followers and endorsements, like all that is something I didn’t really know about, you know what I mean? It was for the pressure. So for me, I’ll take on the pressure, but I don’t feel there’s a need – I don’t feel there’s extra pressure on me. I feel it’s the same for everybody in this building like we got to get going. We got to start making plays. Defense has been playing great, offense it’s our time. Like we got to take over. There’s a reason I came to this offense. It’s because I’ve seen what they did all last year. Two games away from being the one seed. I was over there in Baltimore when we, not we, lost to Tennessee last year. I remember what it was like. So it’s a bunch of great things. It’s no time to panic, but it’s definitely time to have a sense of urgency.”
(Are you able to ignore the people who said “Oh, he’s just here for a paycheck,” or did that bother you personally?) – “Respectfully, it sounds messed up so it’s going to be a bad quote, but I’m not getting paid a crazy amount of dollars. I could be making money if I had more time elsewhere outside of this building. A lot of my contract is incentives-based so that means I have to reach certain numbers to be able to get that money. So for me, respectfully, I don’t really care for opinion. I care for my son. I care for my close family. I’ve grown so far past that because at the end of the day, you could be the most perfect person in the world, say the most perfect quotes and all that, there’s still somebody out there who’s going to hate on you. So it’s not point in getting yourself caught up over that. I’ve said the quote – Purell hand sanitizer cleans 99.9 percent of germs. There’s always still going to be that little something, you know what I mean? (laughter) So there’s just no point in worrying about someone’s opinion and all that, like I’ll never see some of y’all in my life again. You have an account with zero posts and 89 followers and whatever. Congrats, enjoy your life, I’m going to enjoy mine. I’m so far past someone’s opinion of me; I know who I am. I always say, I know where I live so I never need to address anything.”
(How did it feel with QB Tyler Huntley out there, the connection?) – “That’s my dude. We were in Baltimore all year actually. It’s funny because he threw me my first touchdown over in Baltimore. So we were always in meetings, whenever Chef would be in town I would bring him lunch – him and Lamar (Jackson) lunch. Like this is somebody I went through a whole year with and training camp and all that, we’re very close. So just to see him get his opportunity – it’s always unfortunate the way the opportunities happen like that, but just to see him have an opportunity and to be more comfortable. This is not – I don’t think people understand, if there’s any position someone can sign to and come to a team and play and ball out, quarterback is by far the hardest. And this one of the most complex offenses that is in the league so I think he did a very good job. I think that everyone around him has to help him out, and like I said, there’s just got to be a sense of urgency. It doesn’t need to be time to panic or anything, but definitely a sense of urgency.”
(How much interaction have you had with QB Tua Tagovailoa? It’s kind of been like you on PUP and now he’s out so?) – “We’ve been kicking it every day. We go over there and go over the plays and just got an opportunity to even just sit down and just talk life, things outside of football. This is a part of our life, and yeah, we put everything into it, but there’s a lot of life. He’s got kids, he’s got family. Everyone’s got family for the most part, so just being able to talk life with him, talk ball, it’s been great. He’s a great human and you don’t get to say that about just everybody, so he’s a great human. I enjoyed that time that I had to kick it with him and we’re all wanting him to get back and healthy.”
(Obviously, we hear how much you hang out with QB Tua Tagovailoa off the field, but what is that chemistry building process been like as you try to balance with acclimating to the offense while also just rehabbing and getting healthy?) – “It’s hard. Again like I said, I’m not one to complain or put my business out there because I just think people are not going to care, but I’ve been through a lot in my career. Started when my ankle shattered in 2017 and my doc was like, ‘You know, a lot of people don’t ever come back from this,’ to sports hernia surgery to tearing my ACL to not playing with an ACL the whole year, tearing it in the Super Bowl – I’ve been through a lot. So it was hard to balance, OK I need to do this work, take care of the knee, not overdrive it but then also need to get in this. So it’s just been a balancing act. Like everything else it’s a process, but I’ve been enjoying it, the ups and the downs, the hard part of life and I’m still here.”
(Just bonding with WR Tyreek Hill and WR Jaylen Waddle, kind of building that camaraderie, too, how important has that been? How great has that been for you just kind of getting out there with them?) – “Yeah, for sure. I mean, we’ve been able to kick it. It’s not like because I’m on PUP I can’t see them, but our time zones, we’re on different time zones – I’m overseas and they’re in America. They’re going out to practice, I’m doing all of my work. So we’re just – the crossing each other was really mainly in early on settings because I can’t go out onto the field. This is my two-and-a-half hours to get everything in, so I’m a very time-efficient person and made sure I wanted to use up all that time. But being able to be with those guys, I just have never seen anything like ‘10’ (Tyreek Hill) and (Jaylen) Waddle is obviously special, but these two guys are tremendous. I think they were top five in the league last year or whatever it is. It’s just a special talent so just being able to – Coach (McDaniel) and I talked – like I came here to be able to help them out, take some of the load off of them and then just being able to let them do their thing at the same time. So like I said, it’s not about panicking; it’s about a sense of urgency and it’s time for us to come out and get a win.”
Anthony Weaver – October 3, 2024
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Thursday, October 3, 2024
Defensive Coordinator Anthony Weaver
(One random question that I get several times from readers asking about could LB Channing Tindall play the edge, obviously with LB Jaelan Phillips going down. Is there something about his skill set – knowing that he’s behind four veteran inside linebackers, is there something about his skillset that you and Linebackers/Run Game Coordinator Joe Barry have determined would not make him the ideal fit outside even though there is a need there, even though he had pass rush success at Georgia?) – “Particularly with how we view the outside backer position, it’s more just a physical attribute matchup which is why that wouldn’t work. He’s like 230 pounds, he’s relying on speed. We need guys that can set the edge and obviously have some coverage flexibility, but first and foremost their primary job is to set the edge in the run game, and that would be asking a lot of that kid.”
(You losing like a guy like LB Jaelan Phillips, so much stuff that’s happening – what week are we win? It’s been a lot, so how are you guys adjusting again to another, not necessarily setback because everyone is going to have to step up as usual, but how do you deal with that?) – “Well first off, heart goes off to Jaelan (Phillips). Just know the work he’s put in, the mindset he has, how important he is to our unit – you hate to see anything like that happen to any player, particularly one of that magnitude. For us as a defense, shoot, this is the National Football League. Last time that I checked, I don’t think I’m going to be getting any sympathy cards from anybody on the Patriots. It’s our job to collectively as a group, both coaches and players, to step up our game to fill that void with him not out there, and I think we got the guys that can go out there and do that.”
(I want to ask you individually about the guys that will be asked to step up – LB Quinton Bell, LB Mohamed Kamara, LB Chop Robinson. I don’t want to ask you to name a starter right now, but what exactly do you like form each one of them? What do they give you?) – “They all have their special skills and attributes that are each are kind of unique to them. I think Quinton (Bell) is very versatile in the fact that he can drop into coverage, you can rush him from multiple spots, he is a firm edge setter. I think he’s still trying to refine and figure out who he is as a pass rusher, but he does a lot of things well. The two rookies, they’re still trying to feel their way and trying to understand the league a little bit. Chop (Robinson) has obviously had more at bats at that, and you see his confidence growing with what we’re asking him to do weekly. Are there ups and downs like the stock market a little bit? Sure – it’s like that with every rookie. But where we need him – obviously when you lose a Jaelan Phillips where he needs to be most impactful, which is the primary reason we drafted him, is to affect the passer. Sometimes you don’t necessarily see that in sack production, but he needs to be there and that guy needs to feel him. Then Mohamed (Kamara), I see Mohamed like you want him to be an enforcer. He’s a guy that’s rugged, tough. You talk about he should be a firm edge setter, be able to reduce him to a three technique and rush him there if need be, but he needs to be like your topflight security of the world. (laughter) He needs to be the protector and be the enforcer on the field, and I’ve kind of tasked him with that since he’s been here.”
(A philosophy question regarding the play before the half with WR Tyler Boyd. You guys were kind of in an umbrella coverage type. What’s your thought on that specific play and general philosophy – is it better to rush the quarterback or sit back?) – “Situationally right there, obviously they had no timeouts. So you’d like to tackle them inbounds and ideally keep them out of field goal range. So what we did was we rushed three and we played a coverage with outside leverage where everybody was man with outside leverage, and you had two safeties sitting in that dig, dagger window which is where most offenses try to attack you. Our mistake, and this is coming from a coaching standpoint, instead of letting those guys play deep and then work up, we moved them up. Then what happens offensively they do some smart stuff. They dangle a little cheese in front of you which makes you move up a little more and then they hit the window behind you. So we’ve got to do a better job obviously in those special situations of winning there, both from a coaching and player mindset and going out there and executing. It’s certainly a situation we worked. Just in that particular situation, we didn’t execute the way we needed to.”
(Not to throw anybody under the bus, did S Jordan Poyer make the wrong decision there?) – “To me that is completely on us. We should’ve kept those safeties back deep and let them move forward as they saw it. We decided to move them up, which I think hurt us.”
(You mentioned the importance of setting the edge. Where is LB Chop Robinson in that regard and what are some of the teaching points?) – “I think Chop (Robinson) for the most part has done a good job when he’s been asked to set the edge. Where he can continue to improve is really in his hand usage, getting extension and then violently shedding blocks, and that’s normal for young college players. A lot of these guys – I think in some of the teaching is three points of contact, they’re loading up, they’re getting their head in there. Well in this league, when you’re getting your head in there and you’re like this, these 340-pound linemen, they’re going to grab you and they’re going to throw you all over the place. They’re not going to call holding and that is what it is. So you’ve got to play with extension so you can get them locked out, locate the ball and then shed these offensive linemen. I think if there was an area he needed to improve at in setting the edge, it’s now once you’ve got that point of contact, getting locked out, getting extension so you have time and distance now to find the ball and get rid of that offensive player.”
(How would you access how CB Jalen Ramsey has played this year?) – “I think Jalen Ramsey is playing like Jalen Ramsey. There was a couple times where there was some coverage breakdown where he was – I don’t want to say he was vulnerable, but he was put in advantageous situation where he was expecting help and it wasn’t there and that reflected negatively on him. I don’t think those were his faults. But we’ve put him against their best guys the last two weeks, and when he was on them, shoot, he’s been who we expect him to be. We’ve got to continue to find ways to move him, tried to do that a week ago. I thought he affected the game, had some TFLs, blitzing from the corner position, blitzing at nickel. We’re just going to keep trying to find ways to move him around so he can affect the game.”
(Coming in with similar records with the Patriots, what are some things you’ve seen from them, but also knowing that a win on Sunday can be the difference maker, especially in a divisional game?) – “You hear the head coach and I think probably just culturally things are different within the building, but their play style is still very much like New England. They want to be big and physical and tough. They want to impose their will on you with the run game and then take their shots with some of the guys they have on the edge. We know what to expect; we know it’s going to be a knockdown, drag out fight. We like to think we’re built for that a little bit. We know we’re going to have to stop the run. We know from a numbers standpoint, yeah you can say it’s been our Achilles heel a little bit, but 141 (yards) last week and they had 40 attempts, 3.6 yards per attempt – that leaves you pretty good at the end of the year. We’ll take that. So while our numbers from a rushing total standpoint may not look good, when you’re talking about yards per carry, I think we’re trending in the right direction. We’ll just continue to improve in that area, and then see if we can affect this quarterback when we get them in predictable pass situations.”
(I was going to ask you about the run defense. We’ve talked about the one big run before. I think you guys played more eight-man fronts than you’ve played all year? Is that true and was the eight-man front affective?) – “I think the last team we played, they got into a lot of XL groupings, which kind of forced you to play some bigger fronts. So if we have, it’s more a product of what the offense presented to us rather than what we’ve wanted to do.”
(Was it affective?) – “Oh yeah. I think when they were in their big groupings, we had success. The one long run they had, I think they were in 11 personnel and it kind of squeaked through the B gap there and the guy was on his way. But shoot – you give me 40 cracks at it, I’m bound to break one too, like God bless them, good job. If that means that you’re a successful offensive coordinator where you run it 40 times and you have like one plus-10 gain, good job, hats off. We’ve got to stop them every time.”
(Other than his ability to catch the ball with his legs, what have you lied about LB Emmanuel Ogbah so far?) – “Oh man, how sweet was that? The thing I love about ‘Og’ is just one, his approach to work, he’s the same guy every day, and he’s essentially what you hope Mohamed (Kamara) grows into. Right now for us, he is that – he is an enforcer and you saw it multiple times in that game. He sets a firm edge. He can intimidate you with just his sheer size and will and his ability to stick his face in the fan. And then as a rusher, he’s not just a power guy, there’s a little finesse aspect and great hand usage to it, too. To me, he’s the perfect guy for Mohamed to watch and kind of see what he can take from him and then add to his game.”
(You just mentioned LB Mohamed Kamara, you didn’t mention LB Chop Robinson. Is it because of different skillsets?) – “Yes, just different skillsets. That’s all.”
(What are the reasons that the team is first in the NFL on third down defense?) – “I think it always starts with the players; it always starts with them. I think we’ve got a lot of guys that can do multiple jobs and that enables us to be multiple from a coverage standpoint. I think when you look at us defensively, it’d be hard for an offense to pinpoint by down and distance this is who they are. When you allow offenses to do that, shoot, these guys are smart. They’re going to out scheme you and they’re going to put you in situations you don’t want to be in. I think when you just look at us, if you tried to break us down, it would be hard to say we were one particular thing. Which I think then makes offenses more vanilla which allows you to attack that.”
(This team has had success over the years with undrafted corners with CB Nik Needham, and CB Kader Kohou. Was there a moment in the last few months where you and the other coaches, or Head Coach Mike McDaniel and General Manager Chris Grier said, “I think we have something with Storm Duck,” and how did he play on Monday?) – “I don’t know how fast we realized that; there was certainly some growing pains early but man, I’m so proud of that kid and just the strides he’s made since he’s been here. The one thing that I think works best in his favor is that he is completely unflappable. It doesn’t matter if something bad happens to him, next play he is the same guy. You never see him overreacting to anything. He just like, ‘All right, that happened. I’m going to win the next play.’ I think particularly at that position, that’s a mindset you have to have. The other thing you love about him is shoot, I think he’s physical out there for a corner. You saw it in the TFL he had where they tried to throw the ball in the flat, where he ran by the wide receiver and made the tackle. When you have those two combinations with thing – you have this athletic skillset obviously and you have a short memory at that position that give you a chance to be successful.”
(I was going to ask about CB Storm Duck, he’s this interesting mix to me. You talk about the physicality and going after it with the shoulder injury the other game. He kind of jump out to you on film as aggressive, but he also told me that he reads books, so he’s kind of cerebral. Tell me about his personality.) – “Guys – his name is Storm Duck, that shouldn’t surprise you. I’m sure he’s an interesting person. (laughter) He is a quiet kid. He’s a quiet kid, but you can see he’s very cerebral, he’s taking it all in. While that may not manifest itself like a Duke Riley per se, you realize that he gets it and it’s important to him. I love the kid and just look forward to seeing the trajectory of his career moving forward.”
