Zach Sieler – November 16, 2020
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Monday, November 16, 2020
DT Zach Sieler
(Congrats on the new deal. Got to know, does the money go to the hog hunting? Is it the RV? What is the first expenditure that you do with the check?) – “I think the hog hunting is an investment for me – the business – so I think we might try some with that; but for the RV, no, I love it. I’m happy with what I’ve got. It’s perfect for me. I’m going to keep that and keep going. I plan on being in that for a while.”
(So you mean you’re really going to continue to live in the RV home, the RV community?) – “Yeah, of course. I enjoy it. For me, it’s easy. It’s simple. Most of my time is spent at the facility anyways, so I don’t see any point in anything else for now. Obviously things can change year to year, but here right now, that’s what I got. Yeah. (laughter)”
(Congratulations to you. What does this mean to you to get a commitment from an NFL organization considering your journey playing at a small school, being a seventh-round pick, getting cut?) – “It’s huge. For me, it just shows the organization just has faith in me, and I just want to go out there each week and play my best and it just shows just how happy I am – it’s exciting. This organization is great top-down – Mr. (Stephen) Ross, Mr. (Chris) Grier, (Head) Coach (Brian) Flores, (Defensive Coordinator Josh) Boyer, everybody, all the d-line coaches. So to be able to be here and grow with them as a team and continue this culture that we’re starting to build is very exciting for me and I’m very happy to be a part of that.”
(I’m curious, when and how did this come about? Did you have an idea for a while or was it General Manager Chris Grier called you into his office this morning and said, “hey, let’s get this done?”) – “I don’t know when they started talks really. That was more so between my agent and them. Last night my agent called me and kind of laid some stuff out after the game and kind of explained some stuff. ‘Hey, this is kind of what we’re looking at, would you be interested, what would you like, what are you thinking?’ And just kind of today we kind of went through and got it all buttoned and then we were able to make a deal today and sign now, and I’m very excited.”
(I wanted to kind of just relive the last year’s journey with you. You come over here off waivers from Baltimore and you wind up on the team, get an extension in the offseason for one more season and now here you are with a three-year contract extension. I’m just curious if you can kind of reflect on that year, maybe where your game grew to get you into this position, who you might give credit for coaching you up or teammates along the way if you can just kind of reflect on the last year of your life for us?) – “Obviously last year was my second year in the NFL. I was with the Ravens both those years. I kind of grew as a player there and then obviously I was cut and claimed here December 9. And they really – the Dolphins – the coaching and just the staff and everyone kind of gave me the opportunity to really take my game to that next level so I could grow. (Defensive Line) Coach (Marion) Hobby, (Outside Linebackers) Coach (Austin) Clark, (Defensive Line) Coach Robbie (Leonard) and ‘K. Jack’ (Coaching Intern Kenyon Jackson) now who’s here; they all have just helped me just grow my game and just learn as a player as just how to become effective and (Defensive Coordinator Josh) Boyer explaining stuff to me and helping me kind of realize, ‘hey, what kind of role we need you to be’ and just fully taking that and learning from what he’s saying and how to make the most out of that, if that makes sense. And then this offseason to have – even though it was tough with COVID, that was obviously a big hurdle for everybody – but to make the most out of what we were given with the COVID laws and restrictions and just keep growing as a player and maybe even use that to my advantage.”
(Kind of following up on that a little bit, I supposed. There are what, hundreds of guys who get cut every year and for a lot of them, you never hear from them again. Why do you think you’re here and enjoying what you are right now – your reward – and was there ever a point when you doubted that this might not happen?) – “For me, kind of just how I was raised – my family, my parents and just where I came from – I just feel like I have a good sense of just never quitting and never giving up. So yeah, things might be bleak and grim and just not great, but God will give us an opportunity with everything and just for me to realize and make sure I turn anything that might be negative at a time, try to realize how to make that into a positive. So getting cut and getting claimed here. Some guys would be like, ‘oh, this was awful’ and just feel sorry for themselves, but that’s where I try to look at it as an opportunity for me to grow and develop and that’s what hopefully I have been doing and can continue to do while I’m here.”
(You got to paint a picture for me here about this RV. How many square feet are we talking about and is your girlfriend going to be fine if you make this decision that you’ve just made?) – “(laughter) All right, so the second question, I don’t think I can answer that one. (laughter) But the first one, it’s a 35-foot fifth wheel, so it’s got two slide-outs – I don’t even know how wide it is, 10 feet – 35 times 10, so you’re looking at a small space. It’s a toy hauler – got a nice patio out back. The back door drops down, little patio and then you can go all the way down and there’s a garage. You can put a golf cart or something back there if you do trips with it; and on top of all that, to have a trailer, it’s an opportunity for me to get a truck and build that truck up bigger because you’ve got to tow a trailer. So that’s a nice little excuse for me to work on, to tinker on a truck, because I enjoy doing that kind of stuff.”
(I wanted to get your thoughts on kind of the amazing nature of the NFL. You’re a guy who had to put on 50 pounds in a dungeon, you told us, working out to YouTube because you didn’t have a strength coach. And next to you on the defensive line will be for years to come, a guy who was a first-round pick who went to the gold standard of programs in the NFL in DT Christian Wilkins. Just how wild of a story is that?) – “Yeah, it’s definitely not the most conventional way to get here; but again, for me, I’m going to make the most of any opportunity I get and that’s what the Dolphins have shown, is no matter how you get here, if you play and you perform and you buy into the culture and the system they have here, they will reward you for it as you continue to grow and perform as a Dolphin. And I really appreciate that opportunity they’ve given me.”
(What do you think is your potential as a player? Obviously you greatly improved since arriving in the NFL. Do you have goals, aspirations? How do you think you can make the biggest impact during the term of this contract?) – “For me, definitely just continue to grow – run and pass. Continue to learn just offenses and how to manipulate players and how to work edges and get around guys and take on double teams or take out scoops – all that kind of stuff. Just to keep refining and finetuning each one of those things and become an all-around stout player that can play anywhere from end to zero across the line and be able to do it all in case something happens. As we’ve seen this year with COVID with all these teams, you never know what’s going to happen. So be able to all that to help the team out wherever they need me.”
(I don’t want to give your outfitter operation short shrift – you said maybe some investments up there? Where would you like to spend some money and make some upgrades?) – “Advertisement. Get our name out there. That’s always a No. 1 for us, especially being a young company and then probably just making it – keep classing it up. We put a barn out there. We’ve got new buggies. We’re working on a buggy right now, getting that built. Side-by-sides, boats, whatever we need. We’ve got some, but just keep growing and be able to house more people and take more people in on weekends and continue to make a better and better operation each week, just like with football. Just keep growing every week.”
