Chris Grier and Mike McDaniel – January 7, 2025
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Tuesday, January 7, 2025
General Manager Chris Grier and Head Coach Mike McDaniel
Chris Grier:
(Opening statement) – “First I’d like to say, disappointed – 8-9, that’s not the standard here. It hasn’t been and it won’t be. We will better and that includes everyone from myself to Mike (McDaniel), coaching staff, players. We had expectations which we were created by the excitement of the last couple years and we had hoped to continue it and for various circumstances, didn’t happen this year and it was unacceptable. No one is happy and we will get this fixed. Very confident in our process and looking forward to 2025 and not being out of the playoffs watching other teams play, so with that, open up to you guys to questions.”
(As the world knows, WR Tyreek Hill implied that he doesn’t want to play here. Will you accommodate his desire to play elsewhere and trade him?) – “I will say Mike (McDaniel) and I both had conversations with Tyreek (Hill) here yesterday, productive conversations. I will keep those between us. The one thing I would say is in a frustrating season, he was very emotional in a game where we had a chance coming back from 2-6. I would say that’s probably the thing I’m most proud of the players and Mike and the coaching staff; that we were 2-6 and were playing Week 18 to potentially sneak in the playoffs. And I think all of that with him playing through his injury just kind of bubbled to a point and from our conversations – again, we’ll keep that private – but we had productive conversations.”
(Did he backtrack?) – “No, I would say but he never asked for a trade with me.”
Mike McDaniel:
(Yesterday a number of players cited concerns including – I guess they all fall in the category of discipline. They include players showing up late for meetings and things of that nature. Do you agree that that’s an issue here and also as head coach, what if anything do you plan to change in your approach to players to address it?) – “I think that was a main topic of the team meeting that you talked to them after, so it was not something that – it’s almost like them bringing that up means that they understood the message. I think myself as a head coach, you’re accountable for all things and you’re adjusting as you see the team needs you to adjust. It starts with me ultimately because I’m accountable for all things on the field, specifically during the season, and I’m not going to waver. I think it was very clear. I also think that part of my motives were to make sure that without any varying confusion that guys came to work and once we start the Phase 1 of 2025 fully knowing the expectations and how things were going to be addressed. You don’t get anywhere if you’re constantly – I can fine people till they’re blue in the face. I can take their money, I can yell at them, but until they understand that part of the reason that we’re in the position is controllable and we have to with absolute certainty and zero tolerance for anything else, we have to clean the controllables up and we can have a chance to have success together. There was a reason that was an overall theme for the final team meeting and the whole key is that they understand the expectations and that they not only understand the expectations but embrace them which sometimes take hard lessons to do.”
(Why was that a problem this year?) – “I think there’s a multitude of reasons you can go into. There were certain specific individuals that – I don’t think it was across the board. There were a lot of guys that had certain fines before that didn’t have any. There were some people that had multiple that I think there’s different ways to kind of counteract that. Bringing it up as a team and continuing to fine guys wasn’t enough, so I’m not going to continue to just place all blame on even some of the smallest of individuals that were multiple offenders. I’m going to adjust my process and make sure that it’s team-wide knowledge any time that things are done that aren’t in the best interest of winning football games. So there’s a bunch of different reasons and one thing I did learn during the course of the season is that fining guys, which I’d been a part of for season after season in the National Football League, fining guys didn’t particularly move the needle in the way we need to so I’ll adjust as I should as the head coach.”
(Do you feel that WR Tyreek Hill’s relationship with you, is that fixable?) – “The relationship – we met for I want to say an hour yesterday, and I think the competitive spirit of his can represent postgame, especially in a season or a game that nobody likes, it can allude to a relationship being one way. I was very direct with him. He was very honest and it was great terms that we were discussing. Discussed multiple things including without wavering that it’s not acceptable to leave a game and won’t be tolerated in the future, and he embraced accountability. I wouldn’t say there’s anything necessarily to fix as much as we had to clear the air in a rough and tumultuous situation.”
(You talked about the fines not being enough and you mentioned WR Tyreek Hill leaving the game. Does this team need culture change from that standpoint and what would be a punitive action if someone continues being late or if somebody takes themself out of a game?) – “The ultimate ultimatum which is – it’s pretty simple – I think it’s important that you let guys know that we’re at the point in our team where guys are firmly aware of the expectations, and if your actions continually lead to finable offenses that you’re telling me without words that you don’t want to be here. I think it’s very clear. I think it’s not an indictment necessarily of all, but we are subject to everyone’s actions as a football team so we’ll address those as such.”
Chris Grier:
(Chairman of the Board/Managing General Partner Stephen Ross is bringing both of you back, but his statement indicated he’s not content with the current results as General Manager Chris Grier, your opening statement also indicated. So is there some understanding at your levels that things need to change for the better and fast for you guys to continue in those roles?) – “Steve (Ross) and I have conversations about every other day on everything, and so he was frustrated just like we all are. And it’s no different from any season. Every season is postseason we evaluate, we go through, we work with the coaching staff, scouts and we evaluate everything from top to bottom from medical, strength, video, everything. And so we’re going to meet with him and do like we do every year. We meet with him, we spend some time and get with him and go through everything from the roster breakdown, the salary cap, what we look like for the future. So those expectations have been honest from Day 1, so it’s nothing that was new or unexpected. He wants to win more than anyone and we want to win for him. Very appreciative for everything he’s done for not just the Dolphins but South Florida and everything, and he deserves a winner and it’s our job to do it.”
(You guys have been in the NFL for a long time, both of you guys. Is it crazy to be talking about stuff that happens in high school? Guys being late to practice? Shouldn’t that be policed by the leaders and the captains on the team and your thoughts on that?) – “I think that is part of it and I agree. When players are elected captains, it has a role and people want to say ‘player-driven team’ and stuff. Players have to be accountable for each other. Coaches aren’t around them 24/7. Myself, we don’t see things, and at the end of the day, you police themselves, too, and when there’s issues, it gets up to the head coach or position coaches and you deal with it. That’s how I started with – everyone knows who my mentors are, Mike’s (McDaniel) as well – and we have a lot of good people in the locker room. A lot of strong personalities. We have a lot of guys that love football and that’s not in question by anyone. Now the intentionality of things, sometimes maybe in their way of doing things they didn’t realize the residuals or things that may have happened on the side. It’s clearly understood now and Mike’s message to the team was very well received, and that was the one thing everyone talked about so far through exit interviews, was that they’re very excited for next year to be back here and want to be back here with the players on the roster.”
(How would you evaluate the play of the backup quarterbacks this season and how will you approach that position this offseason given QB Tua Tagovailoa’s injuries?) – “That’s a good question. With us, obviously we had drafted Skylar (Thompson) here three years ago, and he started the playoff game and almost beat Buffalo on the road, we lost 34-31. We beat the Jets to get into the playoffs. Then just watching him work through the following year, which he never got a chance because Tua (Tagovailoa) stayed healthy and played the entire season, so we were excited about him and his growth, and the players believed in him. He won the backup job through the spring. But that said, as we always do throughout the entire offseason, and Mike (McDaniel) and Steve (Ross) are aware of it through it, we were in on a number of topflight backup quarterbacks in the league. We were runner-ups for a couple of them that we wanted to get here, and for some financial restraints and compensatory pick stuff, we just couldn’t go to those, to the prices. But all of those guys wanted to come here. It’s a position we do not take lightly. We were working through that the entire offseason, and the fact that some of those guys were willing to come here at what we could pay them shows in how they believe in Mike, the staff and the offensive scheme, and the players that are here. They’re all excited about our skill group. That’s a position we will always focus on, and it will be a position that we will focus on this offseason. I will tell you that every stone will be unturned at that position including the draft.”
(In QB Tua Tagovailoa’s first year after you signed him to the extension, what is your evaluation of that first year as he missed six games?) – “For me, it was good to see his growth as a player when he was playing. I would say that the one thing that has come out of this, even this year, was the leadership part. All the players were talking about his leadership and the step he’s taken. A couple of our free agents that came in said that he’s one of the best leaders they’ve been around for a quarterback. To see where he’s come from, from his early time here was impressive. That being said, he needs to be available. He needs to know how to protect himself. You’re going to get hit at times, it’s always going to happen, but he needs to control what he can control. He understands that. Not being available for taking chances and risk is unacceptable to us, and he knows that.”
Mike McDaniel:
(Mike, do you think this team needs more aggression and physicality?) – “Well I don’t think you’d ever say less in football. I think there is a lot of things depending on the story you want to tell. I think there’s a lot of times there was physical play in all three phases that were there, and there were times it wasn’t enough. I think that’s something that each offseason you evaluate, you try to make sure that the physicality is a forefront in how you approach things. With all the problem solving that you do every offseason, you are able to focus on particular things more because of the assets you have accumulated and built, and that changes every year where your focus can be. I think it’s easy and appropriate to say that our physicality was shortchanged in short yardage situations. I think we have tremendous room to improve there, and I see that as an opportunity because you’re trying to bridge the gap where you fall short and find ways to make gains. I think with absolute certainty that’s a part of our football that can and will improve. But there’s physical components that I was very happy with, in particular our zone defense versus checkdowns and how guys were eliminating space at what we call vice tackles. I think there was a tremendous physicality that really showed its face particularly the middle of the season on. I think there was growth in that area, but you can’t ever say you’re good there. It’s a physical game, so how are you going to dictate the terms? Bottom line is if you’re 8-9, you didn’t dictate the terms enough. We have to find a way to do that.”
Chris Grier:
(Chairman of the Board/Managing General Partner Stephen Ross said before the season, “If we stay healthy, we’re certainly a contender for the Super Bowl.” Didn’t stay healthy, not a contender for the Super Bowl. Do you feel that you need to increase emphasis on track record and durability when evaluating any additions?) – “It’s always a fine line. There’s a 100% injury rate in football. We always talk about that. Mike (McDaniel) has said it numerous times. We always look at it. We always have discussions with our medical staff. We look at guys’ injury history from when they were in college and high school stuff, too, when we go back. So there’s always risk in signing players, but you also don’t want to miss the opportunity of adding a good player to your roster and being afraid to make a move and missing out on someone that may become a really good player for you because you’re scared of something that happened a couple of years ago.”
(It’s social media’s favorite comments to fall back on every season, but the offensive line. Are you at a point where you do feel concerned about it? I know OL Austin Jackson missed a lot of the season. I don’t know what T Terron Armstead’s plans are for the future, but how do you evaluate what needs to happen on the offensive line moving forward?) – “I’m surprised it took that long to ask it. (laughter) And really, when I said that – and I’m not trying to backtrack, I believe in that – but I will always support a group of guys that have worked with a coach that we believe in that tirelessly works to improve, and that group did nothing but work. And still, it’s the hardest working group in the building. Like if you stay after practice – you guys have seen them sometimes, you guys go back out and walk in the locker room – those guys are still out on the field working. And so with that group, it started the 2023 offseason. It was, ‘are they good enough?’ And then we were the No. 1 offense, No. 1 yards per rush and so we ran it back with a lot of those guys while adding (Aaron) Brewer, who was an addition that people weren’t concerned about because they were focused on another player that wasn’t here and rightfully so, that player was a good player for us. But adding Patrick Paul, we feel that he’s going to be a good player. (Andrew) Meyer is the undrafted rookie that made our roster as a developmental center, so we feel we have some good pieces. Austin (Jackson) was a huge loss. Through Week 9 or 10 we were still up there, running the ball, moving, playing well and it was a huge loss for us. And then once he went down, it was like a slow bleed out the rest of the year with guys just playing through stuff, being nicked, battled and bruised. So yeah, I mean we had games where Jackson Carman was playing tackle. I think people forget Kion Smith was a huge loss for us. We had high expectations – we had teams trying to trade for Kion and we were excited about him, and he got hurt in preseason. (Isaiah) Wynn was a setback. We thought he was going to be much quicker than it happened, and he did not come back until late in the season. So yeah, when I was saying it wasn’t a concern, I’m always concerned because you’re always concerned about injury, but I did think that we had created some depth. We had some players that were very confident in Butch (Barry) and Mike (McDaniel) and the scheme and the staff and those guys I thought deserved some praise because of what they had done the year before. And they started out the year well and unfortunately, injuries got to us, we didn’t finish well. But yes, going forward, Terron (Armstead) and I had a conversation briefly yesterday. We’re going to talk again here sometime in the next few days or coming weeks. But also knowing that this will be – we’re going to have to invest in the offensive line now. Kendall (Lamm) did a fantastic job here for a few years and we’re just older there now, and (Isaiah) Wynn. So yes, this is the time again like we did back a few years ago with Austin (Jackson) and Rob Hunt and Solomon Kindley and stuff, this is the time for us to again start investing in some offensive linemen.”
Mike McDaniel:
(Regarding the offense, the system that you ran in 2022 and 2023 ran into some problems early this year. You went to a different system. What’s the offense going to look like in 2025?) – “I think the system is the same. It’s the emphasis and how to attack how people are defending you and simply put, going into the season – you can just articulate it like this – all defenders were deeper, wider and there’s probably two safeties standing deep pre-snap where they were vulnerable in years previous. So the system, if you execute it appropriately within it, you have to make people pay for what they are taking away. And once you make people pay, then it opens it back up for those short drives that we all love and those explosive plays. And I think it took us a little bit longer for various reasons, including Tua (Tagovailoa)’s first injury that I feel like we didn’t start seeing a normal defense until the Raiders game where we got a couple zeroes and blitzes and at that point in the season, we had worked to that point and that’s what you have to be able to take advantage of what the defense is not taking away while they’re trying to take something else. So I think our ability to execute in all three levels of the pass game – not just short, not just long – but you have to complement those things so that you are able to, regardless of how people plan for you, be able to go on Sunday and be able to move the ball and score points. I think it was a process based upon offensive success for both coaches and players to get used to anticipating or to expect the unexpected. We probably have gone 25 games in a row where teams are playing or introducing different coverages or different personnel groups or matching personnels differently than what they’ve put on tape, but as you grow as an offense and have experiences with each other and execute the finer details of all three levels, you are best prepared to make people pay for defending the deep stuff so then they cover the short stuff so you can throw the deep stuff. It’s an endless cycle that we’ve built the system around our players and continue to work at how to make sure all aspects are utilized.”
(Is it safe to say that WR Tyreek Hill would remain the No. 1 option offensively if he comes back next season?) – “Yeah, I mean I think if they’re not doubling him. I don’t see effective offense being predetermining what you’re going to do regardless of defense. I think you have to be able to – everybody gets paid in this league and every week you have different matchups, and I love – I don’t go into a season saying we’re going to be this; I see our assets, I see our matchups and I think really, my true job is to evolve to the situations based upon our players and the opposing team’s players and scheme. So that will always adjust. I don’t think it’s effective offense to throw the ball up into double coverage and throw to where the defense is. And so we’ll always make sure that we complement each other so that there’s no one asset that people can double. You have to make people pay other places. Case in point, Jonnu Smith’s productivity. I think he really helped us out with taking advantage of the space that was given up to cover some of the deep zones from both ‘Reek’ (Tyreek Hill) and (Jaylen) Waddle and the more effective you are at doing that, once you prove that you can march down the field and beat very preventative, cautious defenses; you have time of possession and you score a touchdown, they will try to get you off the field in different ways and that’s what opens up the full utility belt of offense.”
Chris Grier:
(You have a long list of pending unrestricted free agents and S Jevón Holland is the name who stands out there. How much of a priority will it be to try to resign him?) – “Yeah, we had conversations throughout the summer with Jevón (Holland) and his agent. Jevón’s been a good player here, watched him grow both on and off the field as a person. You guys have gotten to see his personality, too, here. We put those on hold once the season started. Both sides agreed let’s just let him focus, focus on the year. We’re going to go through everything like we always do and talk through this year and see what happens here in the offseason.”
(Just looking at how you construct your roster given the top of the AFC and the quarterbacks that are there and the cold weather, how much does that factor in knowing that most likely you’ve got to develop a team to potentially go on the road and beat those teams in a playoff game?) – “I think you always look, especially for us – listen, Buffalo has been the top dog in the AFC East now, so we’re always looking at how we can beat them as well as the Jets and Patriots, because you win your division, you get into the playoffs. So that is a focus. I think a lot of those times in some of those cold weather games, it’s self-inflicted wounds; we find a way to beat ourselves. Even last week, we turned the ball over three times, including in the red zone a couple times. Until this team figures out ways to stop doing it, nothing is going to change, so we need to change that narrative and find a way to win. Buffalo this year wasn’t a cold game, but we went up to Buffalo and lost on a 61-yard field goal. We played them on that Saturday night (two years ago), and another shootout in the cold. The guys can play. We can play in there, it’s just the self-inflicted wounds that we do and it seems to show up in the wrong times and teams. Like Kansas City, in that game, too, at the end, we have a chance to tie it, send it into overtime, and until these guys figure that out, nothing is going to change. We work tirelessly and talk about it constantly, and I think the players are tired of it to. So I think that’s the big step for these guys and us as a team here next offseason to end that narrative.”
(There’s been reports of teams showing interest in your defensive coordinator, Anthony Weaver. Will those requests be granted and how do you evaluate his first year with the team?) – “Yes, the requests have been granted. He’s had a couple. Anthony (Weaver) for me – and I’ll let Mike (McDaniel) talk a little bit more – first of all, the person, tremendous human being and just how he carries himself, handles himself. You can tell when he walks into a room, he just commands respect. A lot of the players, I’m sure Mike will speak more (to it), just talk about how they enjoyed playing for him, and that was from everyone even before when we made calls on him when Mike wanted to interview him. It was everyone talked about the person. It’s been a great year working with him and just getting to know him as a person. I think any organization would benefit tremendously from him. I would hate for him to leave us because then that’s possibly a fourth defensive scheme for the defensive guys to go through. (laughter) But I highly recommend him for anyone. He’s a tremendous human being and football coach.”
Mike McDaniel:
“I wasn’t aware we could block him for a head coaching job. (laughter) But I think he’s more than deserving. He’s fully equipped with the football knowledge and more importantly he’s a relationship builder and maintainer. We obviously thought highly of him by hiring him and he followed through above and beyond and I think we’ll be greatly served if we’re fortunate enough to have him another year, but will not be surprised – very deserving and I see him – it’s not if but when for him to get a head coaching opportunity whether it’s this year or in the years moving forward.”
(Mike, will you consider delegating play calling duties? Is that something that you think could benefit as you evaluate the overall operation?) – “Yeah, I think I always consider it, just because that’s something that I don’t enter into for any other reason but I think the team is best served with me calling the plays. The second that changes, I’ll change that. It’s not a self-serving process and part of the evaluation process in general is am I doing this because I’m the best person to facilitate this within this offense and our players, and the second that changes, I’ll change.”
Chris Grier:
(Chris, it was five years ago that there was an intentional reset, a massive accumulation of assets. Why do you think that, as we sit here five years later, the timeline to playoff success hasn’t accelerated as quickly as I’m sure you would like?) – “It’s a fair question. I would say the last two years we’ve gone to the playoffs and didn’t win games which that’s not the goal. We’re in there to win and compete to get to Super Bowls. Mike (McDaniel) came in and kind of flipped the whole culture in how he does things, created excitement around here. We made some trades and got people in, like you said, with the assets. This year, again we had high expectations, like I said. Injuries happen and I am not using that as an excuse. It is what it is. Every team deals with it. I would say our biggest one, no matter what happens, is obviously the quarterback. When he misses six-and-a-half games, when we miss it by a game getting into the playoffs, to me that’s the difference there. The goal is always to win and it has been to win playoff games and compete for Super Bowls and that will not change. It was a very disappointing year. It was a hard year. A lot of lessons were learned, and unfortunately, I think sometimes you have to go through these to take your next step and very committed and excited for 2025 and the challenge. It’s not going to be easy, but nothing worth attaining is easy. And so excited for the possibility, we’ve got 10 draft picks right now with the compensatory things, and so very excited about the influx of young talent as well as free agency to get the roster going again and add to the players that are here because we feel very good about the core players that are here. They’re talented players, they’re difference makers. To me, the fact that Zach Sieler and (De’Von) Achane didn’t get Pro Bowl stuff, to me it’s (expletive). But at the end of the day when you don’t win games, it’s a team game, unfortunately that happens, and good people and good players that do things the right way get left behind because of it. And it’s our goal between Mike and I to make sure that doesn’t happen to our players again.”
(Was there anything with QB Tua Tagovailoa’s hip that gives you guys concern for the long-term? And outside of that, what gives you guys faith that he can lead you to a Super Bowl?) –
“No concern at all. No concern at all. We’ve talked. It was a very unique injury and there’s no concern at all. I think from us – you’ve heard it, everyone talks about it – players that can operate this system at the levels that he does, we’re very excited. He’s 26 years old, still growth. I think every year you’ve seen growth in what he does. This year, Mike (McDaniel) and I talked about some of the steps he took when he was on the field, and he can still ascend which is kind of weird for a quarterback that’s played as much as he has and won as many games as he has from high school, college and the NFL. So we’re very confident. His teammates are extremely confident in him, and I think that’s been the one thing that seeing here, is that he knows how important he is to these guys and they’ve told him. And again, it’s his availability of controlling what he can control, like throw the ball away, you don’t have to run around and be Superman, live for the next play. The sooner he understands that – which he’s told Mike and I he understands that clearly, because this was hard for him, missing these last two games after he played all last season. It was hard for him. And what you love about him is his competitiveness and his fight, I mean you guys have seen a little bit of how he is now when he’s pissed, and that’s what you love about him because he shows that to us all the time. And it’s not taking the competitive spirit out of him; it’s just having him play smart and realize how important he is to this franchise.”
(Has DT Calais Campbell indicated to either of you his plans moving forward about whether he’s going to retire or come back? Is there confidence or belief that that could be here?) – “We both had separate conversations with Calais (Campbell) yesterday. First of all, what he added to this organization in this year was incredible. An incredible human being, just his longevity and what he’s been able to do as a player at his age for this long is almost unheard of. Every day how he approaches it, his professionalism, it’s just hard to put into words unless you’re around him. He’s got an infectious personality, he loves ball. He loves his teammates. He wants to invest in players and teach them and pass on the knowledge. I don’t want to speak for him, but he’s indicated that if he does decide to play that he loved his time here and we would be a very strong consideration to come back if he decides to play again, and we would welcome him back with open arms.”
Jonnu Smith – January 6, 2025
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Monday, January 6, 2025
TE Jonnu Smith
(What do you think transpired when one of your leaders expresses his desire to want out after adversity? How does that make you feel?) – “I’m not going to speak for Tyreek (Hill) respectfully. Tyreek spoke for himself. I can only speak for myself. We’re all men. We all feel differently about certain things. We handle situations differently and rightfully so he handled the situation how he felt he should’ve handled it.”
(One thing that LB Bradley Chubb and DT Zach Sieler have talked about is players needing to hold themselves to a higher standard. Zach said earlier this year that was an issue. Players have to be on time, etc. Was that an issue where the team can improve? I’m not talking about every player obviously but some.) – “I would definitely say, definitely a lot more house cleaning rules we can clean up on. Is that going to equate to wins? It’s hard to say. You definitely need structure any time you’re striving to do something great. There’s a lot of things we need to clean up as a team. I’m speaking individually for myself that I can improve on and get better. And again, I’m just going to continue to speak for myself, but where we are as a team, like I alluded to it yesterday, I think we all know the foundation that was set. We’ve got a good foundation. We’ve just got to continue to carry that out and let the leaders in this locker room continue to stand on that and continue to relay that message throughout the 2025 season coming up.”
(You’ve spoken about having to go to FIU, being underrated and all. Some of the stuff has to drive a guy like you pretty crazy.) – “Nothing ever came easy for me. I like it that way, though. It’s made me a better man. It’s made me a better person. It’s made me more appreciative of the opportunities that I have. To always walk in humility, obviously as a man of faith, that’s one of the pillars of my everyday living. So just for me not taking a day for granted, being grateful for every opportunity that I have knowing that this is earned each and every day; this opportunity that I have to wear that badge, to represent a great organization like this. Everybody has their own theories about life and how to move about it. The great thing about this game of football is so many people from so many parts of the country come together, even the world now, we come together and strive to reach one common goal. So we’ve kind of got to put all our world views and how we think morally; we’ve kind of got to put that aside and just come in here the eight or so hours that we’re here a day and just lock in and try to achieve one common goal. So I think that’s what’s beautiful about this game. I think we started doing that as time went on, but things just didn’t go the way we wanted it to.”
(Head Coach Mike McDaniel reminded us that emotions are high after a loss like that. Is there something to be said that could be attributed to WR Tyreek Hill’s demeanor?) – “Absolutely. The whole season, the whole season, just kind of how things shaped out for us was emotional. It was a roller coaster. Again, everybody handles emotions differently. To each his own. You can sit here and say ‘I would’ve handled it this way,’ or ‘I would’ve done it that way.’ We’re all different individuals. In some way, shape or form that’s what makes us unique. So however you feel about it, however whoever feels that way about it, to each his own. We definitely have the right guys in this locker room. We’ve got a lot of the right guys. We had a lot of great leaders in this locker room. I’ve been around, I’ve been on a championship team. We didn’t win the championship, but we won. Even just getting there, I’ve seen the kind of camaraderie we had as a team and we’re getting there. We’re getting there.”
(Going back to Week 1. The way the season started with the incident outside the stadium to QB Tua Tagovailoa getting hurt in Week 2. How much of a mental challenge was this season for you guys?) – “It was tough. Like I said, it was a roller coaster up and down. Things didn’t go our way. Proud of where we came from. We fought. That goes back to the guys we have in here. Like 2-6 to 6-2, it’s a hell of a turnaround. It’s not easy any week to go from 0-1 to 1-1. Every week in this league is so valuable and so precious. We understand the impact and the grand scope of things when you’re playing each week. We dug ourselves out of a hole. The funny part about it is we dug a big hole early on so it was hard to get out of it, but we still came up out it. We still found our way climbing and fighting and scratching and crawling and giving ourselves a shot and opportunity the last week of the season when guys could’ve been thinking about vacation. We didn’t go out the way we wanted to, but we gave ourselves a shot.”
Zach Sieler – January 6, 2025
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Monday, January 6, 2025
DT Zach Sieler
(Do you think there needs to be a higher standard, player-wise in terms of being at all things, being on time?) – “Absolutely, yep, I think so. Not to cut you off, but absolutely. And I think what (Mike) McDaniel does a great job of is preaching the player locker room and I think it needs to come from us as players and leaders and captains as well as the staff and get everyone here and get everyone working together from Day 1 in OTAs and camp and get things taken care of from Day 1, and take care of business to start fast next year.”
(Was that not done to the extent that it should have been by all the players?) – “There was things going on this year obviously, in the background that needed to get taken care of and some things could’ve been – we needed to be on our p’s and q’s earlier in the season and earlier in camp, and I think it’s a point of focus this year and we’re going to make sure we don’t mess that up again.”
(Having come from where you’ve been, some of this stuff has to drive you crazy. How tough is it though to speak up?) – “I think speaking up has been one of the things I’ve been working on my entire career. Me and Christian (Wilkins) talked a lot about that early on, obviously me coming from the waivers and kind of not doing much in the NFL early on. Like I told Barry (Jackson), it took me five years to get 10.0 sacks and two to get 20.0, so it’s just one of those things where I’m a leader on this team, I’m a veteran, I have my name now and to speak up with guys like (Bradley) Chubb and Calais (Campbell), (Emmanuel) Ogbah, (Jalen) Ramsey. All these guys on defense, we need to make sure that we’re holding everyone to a standard to be here from Day 1 to work as a unit and stay on top of things early on so that we’re not trying to play catch-up and we’re starting the season fast and we’re not playing from behind the eight-ball.”
(What was your reaction to WR Tyreek Hill yesterday saying he was opening the door for his future? I don’t know if you so those comments.) – “Yeah, I saw them. I think everyone has their own voice and if that’s what he wants to say, that’s what he wants to say. I have all the respect for him as a player. If that’s how he feels, that’s how he feels. So we’ll leave it at that.”
(Is it disappointing though when you guys are playing hard to the end, he’s not in in the fourth quarter and the first sign of adversity, he’s like “I’m out of here”?) – “I don’t know how the game went. I was on defense and I wasn’t watching the offense. I’m making our corrections so I don’t know. I haven’t even watched it yet to be honest with you, but yeah. Obviously, it’s a knee-jerk reaction. That stuff happens and I don’t know what happened. I’m not going to speak for him or speak on that. That’s his own decision, but I know as a team that we need to stay focused this year on making sure everyone’s here and making sure we’re on time and we’re focused on winning it all next year and making the corrections from this season going into OTAs and camp this year.”
(The other thing is Head Coach Mike McDaniel and General Manager Chris Grier are coming back. What are your thoughts on the coach and the GM that you’ve been here with?) – “I think those guys, I love those two. We had an amazing, just speaking of this year, an amazing rookie class coming in – Chop (Robinson), (Malik) Washington, (Jaylen) Wright, Storm (Duck). To come and do what they’re doing was incredible, so really excited to see that rookie class grow and everybody – players, coaches, everyone as a staff grow. I think we learned a lot this season and last season and hopefully this next year is the step we need to take to win it all.”
(How has Head Coach Mike McDaniel grown as a leader, as a head coach? Seeing him from his first year to Year 3?) – “Yeah, I think he’s always continuing to grow, just like we all are. If you’re not growing, you’re dying. And I think being comfortable with the uncomfortable is a big thing around here that we focused on too late, and I think now we have, sadly, to look back in from the outside in now. But hopeful we’ll go into next year kind of making those corrections on what we didn’t get done, what we need to get done and what we need to focus on as a team, as players and coaches. Responsibility falls on all of us, right? So take it into this next season, get after it and holding everyone accountable, earlier on.”
