Mike McDaniel – September 8, 2024 (Postgame)
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Saturday, Aug. 17, 2024
Postgame – Washington
Dolphins Head Coach Mike McDaniel
Q. Before we get to the game just curious what you found out about what happened with Tyreek this morning and the process before the game when that happened for you?
MIKE McDANIEL: For me I was preparing to call the game in my normal pregame routine. I had some teammates come talk to me about what was going on with loose information. It was very gray at the time. Then there was probably 20 minutes between that and their arrival from when I heard about it. Maybe 30, I don’t know. And realistically, I think it would be improper — I don’t really know all of the details of it, outside of the upsetting portions of worried about teammates and their well-being. And then I was really just happy with the way that our team came together when teammates were in need. I think I was proud of other guys jumping in to try to help a teammate. Then all the support. Especially for some of the guys involved who – I don’t think Calais Campbell has ever had … and Jonnu, they were all pretty rattled. Beyond that, that’s what I know of the situation. That’s probably all I can really shed light on and speak on until there’s more information really.
Q. Is there something you tell your team about maybe the emotions element as they prepare to play a game of how to handle something like that?
MIKE McDANIEL: I think you try to prepare a team to handle the unknown. You definitely aren’t forecasting exact situations. A lot of things fall under the veil of adversity. And I think one common denominator is there is light at the end of the tunnel in any sort of life adversity. You’re not necessarily prepared for that, but neither were our teammates that were in need. We just do our best.
Q. We’re getting spotty details of what Tua said to the team at halftime. Were you witness to that?
MIKE McDANIEL: Oh, yeah. I was writing down plays on the whiteboard at the time. It was a cool moment because it was genuine and it was not anything but constructive. There was details that lead to execution in terms of how we are organized and communicate with who’s in the huddle, how those players go from the huddle to the line of scrimmage and just executing the nuances of our job that – I guess at the time he definitely felt that there were several guys that were loose there. I couldn’t deny that at all and was really pumped to hear him constructively lead. It wasn’t, ‘let’s win’ or ‘let’s make plays.’ It was, ‘let’s adhere to our standard,’ which is what a captain and a franchise quarterback have to be that voice to echo. So it was cool to have him beat me to the punch of something if he wouldn’t have said it, I probably would have very closely, holding all of us accountable. And I think it was a cool opportunity for him in his growth and what this team definitely needs and he knew it.
Q. What did you think of the long touchdown play from Tua to Tyreek?
MIKE McDANIEL: Awesome. I thought it was great. What’s interesting is, like everything in sports, there’s a backstory to it. Both of biggest gains of the game were on something that this offseason we’ve really emphasized. That was not number one in progression, that was number two in both situations. It was something that we’ve put a bunch of work into to try to improve our offense. For those big plays to come on something that was absolutely on the front end of how we were going to get better, you couldn’t write the story better for the success that we did find within a lot of frustration and missed opportunities that we’ll see on tape. Always giving the opponent credit for a good job. We really felt like we had more out there. And for the team to come through, and for those guys to come through on substantial points of emphasis, that’s awesome.
Q. In addition to the big plays, you made some smaller plays later in the game, short-yardage plays. Jeff Wilson picking some things up, Alec Ingold picking up short-yardage situations. How did you feel about how the team executed to keep those drives alive that way?
MIKE McDANIEL: I think I speak for all of us in short yardage. It’s not that exciting cause we already converted because we’re the best in the league in short yardage. (laughter) No, it’s the same thing, when you find success in places that you put emphasis on, that’s rewarding. I thought the guys are very aware, as well as the coaching staff, the whole team’s very aware of the places that we’ve fallen short at because we don’t run from it, we try to focus on it in the offseason. For out the gate, game one, to find some success; it’s always awesome to see guys be able to feel that because it’s been that important to them, important enough to get some better results.
Q. Regarding special teams, obviously Jason Sanders had the game-winning kick, Jake Bailey flipped the field numerous times, Elijah Campbell had a fumble caused. What role did special teams play today?
MIKE McDANIEL: We don’t win that game without them. And on top of that, I thought our special teams had a great game. The one thing that would frustrate all of them, they got to find resiliency and make right on the last play of the game. To me, those are the most important factors because I think between special teams, defense and offense – and nothing against our two previous teams – but that game we don’t win the last two years. And that’s because of the growth of the people that have been here for those two years, as well as the added influence from the new guys on our team. But I thought that we came into the season thinking that special teams could be a point of strength for us. For that to happen game one, you love those games where all three phases are absolutely gigantic contributors to the ultimate outcome.
Q. How much of a game changer did it feel like for the sideline when Jevon Holland punched that ball out?
MIKE McDANIEL: That was probably – I’m not the greatest right after the game because of the juggling of a lot of times bad or good stuff I’m trying to move past to be present in the next play. But from my rough memory, I feel like that had to be the play of the game. You’re talking about a gigantic flip in points and momentum. It was really cool to see a guy, when the opportunity came, he made his play and the team desperately needed it.
Q. What was your mindset on the last drive? Obviously Jason missed the earlier kick. You seemed content 50-plus for that attempt. Why?
MIKE McDANIEL: Because Jason’s given me reason to. This being my third year, kickers are the same as players. You’re executing techniques and fundamentals in crunch time and Jason’s given me reason at the end of games to be extremely confident. There’s been several games that he’s made multiple kicks. I go back to the ’22 Jets game where he had all of our points. I go back to the Dallas Cowboys game last year. There’s many beyond that. Things happen. Bottom line is, can you count on people to own their fundamentals and technique in the moment of truth? And the previous kick gave me no reason to hesitate in that moment. I knew he had the game locked as long as we stayed, we kept the ball once we got that final first down.
Q. Going back to the first drive, fourth-and-8, the failed fourth down attempt. What went behind that decision? Was it more so analytics or trusting the offense or trusting the defense to get it?
MIKE McDANIEL: It was more from an analytics standpoint, being able to flip the field or pin an opponent that far in with a fourth-and-8 or fourth-and-7, it’s something I’ve done before. I think it was the same spot on the field as the Patriots, the first game I ever called, before the half. It was something at the time that we felt good about the call. So you try to attack and obviously we were wrong in that assessment, but fortunately, our team responded in multiple ways.
Q. I wanted to ask you about the defense in that final stand to finish with David Long getting a stop for no gain and then two sacks. How clutch is that kind of performance from this defense?
MIKE McDANIEL: It’s everything. How about the whole second half? To keep an opponent, especially a talented one like we were playing, to keep an opponent off the scoreboard for the second half, then finish it the way they did; that was their vision for the whole game. Pretty much all three phases came in really confident but very respectful and regarded the Jacksonville Jaguars. But felt very good about their ability to execute. And it didn’t happen in the vein of the vision early. What do you do about that? Much like in the NFL season, what do you do when you get punched in the gut? These are things that are bigger points of emphasis for our team that we’re able to really capture in game one and get a win. So for that, it’s one week, it’s one game, but it’s also something that we talk about as a team, being able to win games like that where everything doesn’t go your way, starting from before the game to the end of it. Can there be galvanizers to bring a group together? Can you find moments of momentum to lean on? And can you play off each other making plays? I think not only was the defense shutting the opposition out for a half, but it’s very motivating for the other two phases when one phase is capturing or finding their momentum and finding their niche together. I think that affected everything, as well as the 10-point swing that we needed.
Q. On the topic of defense, what did you think about defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver and how he guided the troops as the game went on?
MIKE McDANIEL: He is who I thought he was. He stayed consistent. We talked last night and again this morning because Coach Weaver and I, we share the same philosophy on what your job is as a coach and really who ultimately makes the plays. The players do. But then you go about your business and you try to hold yourself as a coach to a standard and then you want to do right by the players so much that you have to remind yourself that there’s no such thing as the perfect play. You didn’t think that on the front end. It’s a player-driven result. Just put guys in their best positions. Don’t overthink it. Be aggressive when you want to. But you’re not playing out there; they are. So call the game with ease. I thought he captured that. It’s a hard thing to do. People get nervous in NFL games. But he stayed himself, and that’s what I was looking for.
Q. You’re here in four days against maybe your biggest rival. How do you flush this in four days, that quickly?
MIKE McDANIEL: It’s probably the easiest flush that our team could have, you know? Everybody’s very prepared about what they’re going to hear and expects to hear it, as they should. When you’re, I think 1-10 against somebody in your last 11. So they’ll enjoy it, but they’ll be rested and division games are always awesome and a lot of fun. I’m sure this one will be, as well.
Tyreek Hill – September 8, 2024 (Postgame)
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Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024
Postgame – Jacksonville
Miami Dolphins WR Tyreek Hill
Q: Before we talk about the game, can we go through what you experienced? What happened?
TYREEK HILL: Right now, I been trying to figure that out, too. I’ve been trying to figure that out too, man. Right now I’m still trying to put it all together. So I’m not going to give you a version that I still don’t know what happened. But I do want to be able to use this platform to say ‘What if I wasn’t Tyreek Hill?’ Like worst case scenario because it is crazy. I want to be a cop one day. I’ve got a state trooper hat and all of that, so I have a lot of respect for cops, man. Everybody has bad apples in every situation. I want to be able to use this platform to figure out a way to flip this and make it a positive on both ends, on my end and also Miami-Dade. So that way we continue together and do something positive for the community. That’s what it’s all about. You guys are here to protect us as individuals. I have a platform, and I want to be able to team up with you guys. That’s all I got to say.
Q: Why do you believe the police put you in handcuffs?
TYREEK HILL: I have no idea, for real. No idea. No idea, man. It’s crazy. No idea. I wasn’t disrespectful because my mom didn’t raise me that way. Didn’t cuss. Didn’t do none of that. So like I said, I’m still trying to figure it out, man.
Q: I guess the police officer was put on administrative leave. Were you aware of that?
TYREEK HILL: No, I wasn’t. I wasn’t. That should tell you everything you need to know then. That should tell you everything you need to know. That’s all I’m going to say about that situation. I’m just glad that my teammates were there to support me in that situation because I felt alone. When they showed up, it made me realize that we got a (expletive) good team this year, dawg, for them to put their life on the line. It was amazing to see.
Q: Was it on your mind when the game started? Or were you able to completely block it?
TYREEK HILL: The thing about me is I have a great support system at home, from my wife, from my mom. Then even when I come inside the locker room, my teammates. So I was able to pray with my family, able to talk to my wife and calm down a little bit, and I was straight. I know at the end of the day, I still got a job to do. Nobody worried about if ‘Reek comes in, if he drops three passes because he’s still thinking about the little scenario, nobody is thinking about that. I still got a job to do. I’ve got a family to feed. I’ve got to be a leader of this team. I’ve got to find ways to bounce through adversity, no matter, whenever it hits.
Q: How do you answer that question, what if you weren’t Tyreek Hill?
TYREEK HILL: It’s hard. I’m still trying to figure that out. It’s all across the world. You see it. I don’t want to bring race into it, but sometimes it gets kind of iffy when you do. What if I wasn’t Tyreek Hill? Lord knows what that guy or guys would have done. I was just making sure that I was doing what my uncle always told me to do whenever you’re in a situation like that: just listen, put your hands on the steering wheel and just listen. You’ve got to be careful.
Q: Did an officer put hands on you when you were in handcuffs?
TYREEK HILL: Yeah.
Q: What was going through your head during that moment?
TYREEK HILL: I don’t know. I was thinking about something else. What was I thinking about? I was thinking about going for, like, 150 today, for real. (laughter) I was like I’m going to go crazy today, man. (laughter) Then all that happened and I’m like, ‘Hold on, is this happening?’ It happened. It happened so fast that it caught me off guard. I’m like, ‘Dang, they’re really doing this.’
Q: Why did they even pull you over?
TYREEK HILL: They said I was speeding. I don’t know. They said I was speeding – reckless driving, whatever.
Q: Did the officer know who you were?
TYREEK HILL: I have no idea. No idea.
Q: Were you able to say, I’m about to play a game?
TYREEK HILL: I wasn’t raised like that to name drop or flash. If you say I did something, write me a ticket. I’m a normal person, too. If you say I did something, write me a ticket, do whatever you got to do. But I’m saying don’t be disrespectful. I don’t know.
Q: How much planning went into that touchdown celebration?
TYREEK HILL: Hey, I knew immediately. Like, J.W. (Jaylen Waddle) was like, ‘Reek, if you get in that end zone today, show your tail, show your tail and I’ll do the rest.’ It was a planned celebration. Obviously we had something else. Then this all happened this morning. Like they say, man, free my dawg ‘Reek.
Q: How does it feel you and WR Jaylen Waddle combining for the domination that you had today after a slow start?
TYREEK HILL: It felt good. Like you said, we had a very slow start. First quarter, second quarter was not running good routes, not doing what we normally do. Just to see Waddle ball, make plays for us and get us going in that second half, that really got me going right there because we know that the offense, we need big plays. We’re a big-play offense. It was good to see Waddle do his thing. Yeah, it was great for us to come back and win the game in the second half.
Q: Building off this, I know you have a short week, how quick do you turn the dial to the Bills?
TYREEK HILL: You forget quick. We enjoy with the family tonight, enjoy with the teammates tonight and then move on to the Bills tomorrow. It’s just that fast. It’s how this business works.
Q: What do you think of QB Tua Tagovailoa’s performance today? Over 300 yards and get the win in the end.
TYREEK HILL: Tua, he stepped up in the second half. He did his thing. Second half he played lights out. Like I said, the first half, the offense, we all were like kind of timid a little bit, shaking all the dust off our knees and stuff like that. We were getting out of the huddle kind of slow. The thing that really motivated me the most was when we come in, during halftime, and this is like the first time I heard Tua’s Hawaiian accent. It’s crazy. Like, he was turned up and animated in the locker room. I’m like, ‘Ok, I’m liking this.’ He was going and I’m like, ‘Yeah, let’s go, man.’ He called me out. J.W. (Jaylen Waddle), T-Stead (Terron Armstead). I’m like, I’m loving this, bro. Me, I love accountability at its finest, because that’s what I grew up on. I grew up on my dad telling me, ‘Reek, I need you to be better. Not patting me on my back, not doing this. For my quarterback to call me out in front of the whole offense like that, I had to step up, I had to do my thing. I like that in a leader.
Q: You and RB De’Von Achane tied for the leader and receptions today. What’s your reaction to that?
TYREEK HILL: He’s moving to receiver, bro. (laughter) Achane is a dawg. He’s one of those guys that can do it all. Play running back, come out the backfield, catch passes like a wideout. He’s a very special talent, man. He’s going to continue to get better and help this offense. You never can have too much speed on the field at once. Having him and his availability is going to be special for this offense.
Q: I remember in the frozen Chiefs locker room after the playoff game, you said something like, we got to stop learning to be frontrunners. Did you learn today?
TYREEK HILL: You guys got to come up with a new narrative, I guess. You have to talk about something else. Y’all can’t say that we are frontrunners now. It’s amazing to see. It’s amazing to see like our team not feel sorry for ourselves early on in the game. Our defense had our back the whole entire game. We just came together as an offense, man. We decided like, ‘Hey, first of all, we got to call the plays, get out of the huddle fast and do what we normally do, baby.’ We’re fast. People don’t like to run fast with us in Miami. It’s too hot. We did that in the second half. We ran fast, ran some deep routes and we executed.
Q: I know it’s one game, but starting a season understanding where your goals are, what does a comeback win like this do versus being on the other side?
TYREEK HILL: It’s great. It’s great for the confidence. It’s great for the confidence in the locker room, for all the guys to see that, ‘Hey, we are not going to be easy to beat. Whether it’s home, whether it’s on the road, moving late into the season, not every game is going to be perfect. We know that. We are going to have games like this. Granted, we don’t want to put ourselves behind the eight ball. But if we have to, we still have to be mindful we can come back at any moment because we got the team to do it. We got some dawgs on this team, we got some alphas on this team. I’m just blessed to be a part of this team. Blessed to be here with you guys today.
Q: Was there added emotion playing this game today after what you experienced this morning?
TYREEK HILL: For sure. Like I said, I was in my, like, hubby phase, driving to work, feeling good. Then, when all this happened, I got turned up. I was pissed off, bro. Like on the sideline, I was (expletive) teed up. Today is the first day I really blocked somebody. Like I pancaked somebody today. No. 91, 6’8” – I pancaked him. I did that today. I was fired up today. Like I needed that. Sometimes I can get lazy, I can get this and that and get bored because I’m like I’m fast and I can run by you. I need that. So it is what it is.
Calais Campbell – September 8, 2024 (Postgame)
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Saturday, Aug. 17, 2024
Postgame – Washington
Dolphins DT Calais Campbell
Q. The Tyreek situation outside. You were also detained this morning. Can you take us through your experience and just what was going on there?
CALAIS CAMPBELL: I feel like I don’t want to dwell on it, but I think it was a bit extreme and definitely unnecessary, but I think that a true testament to our preparation for us to be able to overcome that because that definitely was a terrible way to start a ballgame, adversity we faced there. I was driving to the game, the lane I’m in is blocked. I see Tyreek in handcuffs, I’d seen, I feel like excessive force so I get out of the car to kind of just try to deescalate the situation and I think the officer just – I don’t know why he felt the need to put me in handcuffs, but I mean it is what it is. The good thing is we were both able to play the ballgame and go out here and find a way to win the ballgame.
Q. How startling is that when you turn around and you see and it’s a teammate in handcuffs going into a game?
CALAIS CAMPBELL: That’s definitely a first. It is definitely startling especially probably our best player. That’s not what you want to see. Obviously things happen. Life happens and nobody’s going to feel sorry for you. You just deal with it and keep moving.
Q. What reason did police give you for putting you in handcuffs on the scene?
CALAIS CAMPBELL: Disobeying a direct order. I guess I wasn’t – he said I was too close to the scene and then I think he said something about me not moving my car in time. I don’t know. He told me later I could stand 25 feet away, that’s fine. I was definitely further than 25 feet away when that happened.
Q. Did they cite you?
CALAIS CAMPBELL: He told me that I wasn’t arrested, but he cited me for being detained and then released, so…
Q. Did you hear that the officer has been placed on administrative leave?
CALAIS CAMPBELL: I was just told that.
Q. Your reaction to that?
CALAIS CAMPBELL: Makes sense based on the situation. I think it was very much the way it should go.
Q. Did you come out here with an extra fire? You start off right off the bat with a sack your first play as a Dolphin and then a tackle for loss following the play.
CALAIS CAMPBELL: It had nothing to do with that situation. (laughter) I told the guys yesterday that my goal was to set the tone, set the tone for the whole season. Being 38 years old, I don’t know how much I got in the tank. I was just going out there giving everything I had. But I knew early in the game I could make a difference. I had a good read. I was able to make a play, follow up with another play. It’s a good feeling. Definitely the questions you have when you go into a season – Year 17, it’s like, can I still dominate? Can I still take a full ballgame? And it felt pretty good to be able to make some big plays to get the game going. Still wasn’t my best ball. It was Week 1. Definitely felt like Week 1, something we can build off of and I’ll tell you, this team is resilient. For us to be able to go out there and win this ballgame the way everything happened, the way it went, just says a lot about our preparation. I think this one was definitely the way we prepared, the way we practiced all camp, and all lead up to this game.
Q. Can you just touch on the second half shutout by the defense? What was discussed at halftime to get you locked in?
CALAIS CAMPBELL: Yeah, Coach Weaver just was like, ‘hey, let’s play ball.’ All the plays they made, we know what it was. Like, nobody is just getting beat. We had a couple mistakes. Settle down and let’s just play ball. And that’s what we did. We settled down. So much talent, so many guys that can make plays. Just play our game, don’t try to chase plays, make the ones that come to you and let others take care of itself and he made some big-time adjustments. And guys made plays. I mean, Jevón Holland, forced that fumble. That’s one of the biggest plays. You never know which play it’s going to be. Whatever one it is, though, that was huge. I think that one really was the biggest difference in this game, but a lot of big plays by a lot of different guys. The last drive with back-to-back sacks, huge, but this is a 60-minute ballgame for a reason. We played a really good 60 minutes.
Q. How happy are you for Jaelan Phillips? You mentioned those back-to-back sacks. He had a hand in both of them.
CALAIS CAMPBELL: Yeah, he’s special. He’s special. For him to come back off a big injury like that, a lot of it is getting your confidence back, realizing that you’re still that guy. I think he got out there the first couple drives, it was like, okay, feel it out, feel it out. In the second half, he was on fire to close out the game. That’s the guy we’re going to need this whole season.
