Mohamed Kamara – April 27, 2024
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Saturday, April 27, 2024
LB Mohamed Kamara
(What was it like growing up in Newark, and how did that help form you into the person you are?) – “Newark is the biggest city in Jersey, and it’s very dangerous in Newark, but learning how to adapt to my environment, that’s what helped propel me to go to Colorado State. Being around a lot of different cultures and learning how to adapt there, so it definitely showed me how to maneuver in my environments.”
(What has been the key for you finding success to getting to the quarterback?) – “Always going back to the basics, that’s the biggest thing for me. Looking at film, rewatching film, studying film. Always trying to get back to the basics, always working on my technique, that’s always been the key. If I had eight one year, then I went to 13, that’s just me getting back to the drawing board and working on the basics.”
(I wanted to ask you about a quote I’m reading here from Head Coach Jay Norvell at Colorado State who said, “Every day in practice, Mo set the example by setting the tone and was a no-nonsense player.” I’m curious to hear in your words your approach to the game, and what he means by that?) – “Unless you are an athlete, you understand that practice is the most important part of the approach, if you get what I’m trying to say. Make practice super, super hard so the games are easy. Be relentless in practice so when you get to the game, you’re just letting yourself free. Fail, succeed, mess up in practice so when you get to the game, it’s easy and you’re just doing what you have to do. That’s just how I look at it, so I’m always going to be relentless in practice. That’s just how I am.”
(Have you watched the Sopranos?) – “No, I didn’t watch the Sopranos, but it is from Jersey. It is from down the way. I didn’t watch the Sopranos. No, I’ve never watched it, but it is from Jersey. I’m more of The Godfather, I think that’s the show. It’s based on the same thing, but I haven’t watched the Sopranos.”
(What do you think of coming into a situation now with LB Jaelan Phillips, LB Bradley Chubb, LB Shaq Barrett, a lot of good veteran edge defenders, and also first-round pick LB Chop Robinson among this edge defender corps?) – “Man, I’ve got to put my foot in the ground and keep moving forward. As much as I respect them, hopefully they will respect me and we all work together. Hopefully we all get to push each other, and hopefully I’m in that room for a long time. Me and Chop (Robinson) were already working out in Arizona, so we already have a relationship there. Both of us worked in Arizona and did what we had to do, and we already butt heads because that’s the relationship we have. We’re good friends, great friends at that. That’s how I’m going to – I respect his game, and he respects mine.”
(First of all, you prefer to be called “Mo”?) – “I prefer to be called ‘Mo.’ It’s easy. I don’t like when people mess up my name. That’s something I take personally. Don’t mess up my name. Just call me ‘Mo.’ Keep it at that, keep it at that. Some people say MOO-ha-med. It’s just MO-ha-med. Or I don’t even know how they say the last (name), what they say. It’s some weird way, but it’s just Mohamed Ka-MAIR-uh. I don’t like when you mess up my name, just keep it simple.”
(And then pronounce the last name?) – “Ka-MAIR-uh.”
(Tell me about the moment of getting drafted. What did it mean? You seemed pretty composed. Were there tears? People at the house? Tell me about the moment with the phone call and everything like that.) – “To be honest, I’m very excited, but I also am very, very angry going the round that I did. That’s just my personality. I knew I could’ve went higher and I wanted to go higher, but the lovely team of Miami picked me up and I’m going to give them that burning desire. I have a chip on my shoulder, so it just got even greater. So everybody else, all 31 other teams, look out because the way I’m about to play against these guys, you should’ve picked me before. That’s just the type of person I am so respect to those guys and I’m grateful for Miami for picking me up, but I know what I’m going to bring to the field and every other team has to see me.”
(Quick follow-up, what round should you have gone? What would’ve been appropriate for you?) – “Somewhere higher. God put it in certain ways or whatever case may be. I should’ve went higher, but it’s not the end of the world. Like I said, I’m grateful for Miami allowing me to even get picked, but for me and my personally I’m going to just take that and just roast the whole NFL. That’s just how I look at things.”
(I was wondering, what is your comfort level playing at multiple positions? Whether that’s rushing with your hand in the dirt, standing up, rolling inside, outside? How comfortable are you with your versatility at this stage?) – “Very comfortable. You’ve seen the film that I’ve done it before. Definitely I have to get better, because that’s what we’re all trying to do is get better. Definitely I’m going to get better, but I’m very comfortable. That’s just the passion I play with. So I’m very comfortable doing that.”
(A lot has been made about your size and that you’re an undersized edge guy. How much do you use that to fuel you in terms of the productivity that you have on the football field?) – “Every thing that people knock me for, I use it as fuel – every single thing. Like I was saying earlier, I’m going to make some things up just to push me to keep going. That’s just the type of person I am. I’m never satisfied. I will never be satisfied. So if you want to call me short, watch out. If you didn’t believe in me, watch out. That’s just the type of person I am, that’s what keeps me going every day. I’m never going to be satisfied.”
(I read that you’re a fan of doing some talking when you’re on the field, talking trash.) – “I don’t mind that. I mean me personally, especially in practice, I don’t mind it, but it’s also a respect thing. I’m never going to really disrespect anybody. There’s a difference between talking trash and disrespecting people. I don’t disrespect anybody. That’s not my cup of tea. I’m not in the game to belittle a man. That’s not what I want to do. If we’re going to talk trash, we’re going to talk trash, and it’s only going to be about football. Like I said earlier, the fire I bring to practice, that’s what it is. By the time we get back to the locker room, it’s just like, ‘Alright, it’s OK.’ Then we get back to practice and we do it again. That’s just the fire I play with. Any reason to run through somebody’s face, that’s just how I look at it.”
(On a totally different topic, South Florida, what do you know about it? Have you been here? Do you have many connections?) – “No, I’ve never been there, but I have a lot of teammates that are from Florida, so they’re definitely going to take care of me. I’m not too keen on what Miami is. I know Miami is its own place, that’s what I’ve been hearing. But I know a lot of people from Florida that will take care of me, a lot of my brothers that will take of me that I’ve played with, that will never steer me wrong or anything of that nature.”
(I’m reading a story here that described you as the ‘The Smack Talker In Chief.’ I wanted to know how you felt about that label?) – “That’s a little bit extreme, Smack Talker In Chief? I’ll say this: I talk trash in practice but in the game, I’m so quiet because I’m so focused. I don’t say much in the game. I don’t say much in the game. I like to build the atmosphere where we’re competing in practice. That’s why I keep mentioning practice, it’s like you have to compete to get better. When it is gametime, the bullets are flying. You don’t have time to be – me personally, I don’t have time to be saying certain things. I’m trying to catch my breath because I’m running full 100 miles per hour every time playing the edge position. In the games, I don’t really talk a lot, but in practice, we’re chatting it up. Like I said, it’s a respect thing, so I have to go into training camp and go into the facility earning the respect of everybody. I’m not going to go the first day blabbering my mouth – that’s not football. I have to first earn the respect of my teammates, my coaches, the organization and the people of Miami, too. Then if it’s requested, I’ll do it. If it is not, then I wouldn’t have to do that. So ‘The Chief’ is extreme, ‘The Chief’ is going way left. I don’t think I’m the Chief. I’m just not afraid to talk when it needs to be said, to say things that need to be said. That’s not something that I tip my hat too. The Chief? No, that’s a little too much. (laughter)”
(Is there an NFL player you’d say you model your game after or whose style you think yours resembles?) – “I did Haason Reddick a lot. He’s definitely a guy that’s my weight, my speed, my height. He’s somebody that continues to make plays, and he’s doing it at a high volume, going from team to team. That’s somebody that I look closely at. Also Von Miller – a guy that if you do half of the things he does, you’re probably going to be better than the rest of the league.”
(You named guys like Von Miller and Haason Reddick who are of similar size in stature. In a previous interview you’ve had, you also mentioned another Colorado State alumni in LB Shaq Barrett, who is now a Miami Dolphin. He has the same stature, same speed, same length and you guys bring the same thing to the table as well. What are some things you are looking for or what are some types of experiences and toolsets that you’re looking from LB Shaq Barrett to elevate your game in the NFL?) – “Shaq Barrett has a great motor, too. He’s a guy that does a great job at turning the corner. He gets a lot of pressures. One thing that I’m going to take away from him and I’m going to study his brain is how he was able to sustain this long career in the NFL, because that’s what I want to do. Like I said earlier, he won (Mountain West) Defensive Player of the Year years before, and now I’m coming in winning Defensive Player of the Year for the same team. I’m not going in to be any of those guys – Haason Reddick, Von Miller or Shaq Barrett – but I am here and I am coming in to learn from these guys. I personally want to pick his brain of how do you compose a long career like that? How are you able to sustain productivity throughout those years too?”
Jaylen Wright – April 27, 2024
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Saturday, April 27, 2024
RB Jaylen Wright
(I’m guessing Head Coach Mike McDaniel had something to do with this pick. Did you by chance get to meet Mike McDaniel or talk to him at all at any point in the draft process?) – “Yes, I did. I had a 30 Visit with Miami. I met the whole staff, it was cool. That was the team I really wanted to go to, which is crazy. It was the best visit I had. I’m just glad to have the opportunity to come out in South Beach and help make a difference in the team, help add that explosive element.”
(I understand you once had a roommate named Jaylen. The Dolphins have CB Jalen Ramsey, LB Jaelan Phillips, WR Jaylen Waddle and RB Jaylen Wright. Is there anything that we can call you? Do you have a nickname or anything?) – “I mean, people call me ‘J-Wright.’ It’s kind of simple. ‘J-Wright,’ or ‘Jaylen.’ I don’t really have a big nickname, but ‘J-Wright’ is what all my teammates call me.”
(If the NFL were ever to put together a 4×400 relay team, I think you’re on the winning team right now. So with already an offense with so much speed, how does that impact your game? What can you bring to that offense that already has so many home run hitters?) – “I mean it’s – just adding another explosive athlete to the offense, that just makes the offense way better than it already is. It’s going to really scary. I’ve got a lot of fire built up in me through this whole process. I’m just ready to get out there and just prove my point. Make the people feel, that passed on me, make them feel me. I’m just ready to bring that aggression to the field and make a lot of plays, a lot of big plays.”
(You caught 22 passes last year. How comfortable are you catching passes out of the backfield? How comfortable are you as a route runner right now?) – “I’m comfortable, for sure. We didn’t do a lot of route running and catching balls at Tennessee, but I’m definitely comfortable. I’m an athlete. I know I’ll make big plays, whether it’s the passing game or running game. So I’m just ready to get rolling.”
(Have you ever met RB De’Von Achane? Do you know much about De’Von Achane? The idea of you two in the same backfield on the same play, what does that unlock for Head Coach Mike McDaniel?) – “No, I’ve never met him but I know of him. I watched his tape in college when he was at Texas A&M. He’s a great running back who’s fast. He’s really elusive. He’s a good guy to learn from. That’s somebody that’s been here, he has a year over me in the league. That’s somebody to learn from and take a lot of advice from. I’m just ready to meet him and meet all the running backs as well.”
(You were clocked at 4.38 in Indy. What’s the fastest unofficial time you’ve ever ran?) – “Fastest unofficial, I think I ran a 4.37 or 4.36 when I was doing Combine prep. I know I could’ve ran faster in Indy, but I’m just glad to be in the 4.3s regardless”
(Have you ever had the GPS tracker? What’s the fastest you’ve got up to on that?) – “Like miles per hour wise, right? I’ve ran like 23.7 miles per hour.”
(This goes back two years ago; you had a NIL deal going and part of your logo or entire logo was dealt with “Cheetah Mentality.” Can you tell us a little about that?) – “That’s just something that me and my dad came up with a long, long time ago. I mean, I’ve always been fast. He just started calling me, ‘Cheetah.’ I already know there’s already a Cheetah on the Dolphins, so I’m going to let him have that Cheetah – that’s his thing. But yeah, it’s something my dad always said to me because I’m fast. ‘Cheetah Mentality’ is always going to be a thing, but like I said, I already know there’s a Cheetah on the Dolphins and I’m letting him have that. (laughter)”
(I was going to ask you about WR Tyreek Hill for sure. If he’s going to have the Cheetah label, have you come up with a backup? What are we going to refer to you as?) – “I don’t know yet, but I’m going to have something for sure. I like ‘Lightning,’ ‘Flash,’ or something like that. I’m ready just to get going, playing football. Just make a lot of plays, I’m excited.”
(Few teams have the diversity or complexity in the run game as the Dolphins. I’m curious how you feel your time in Knoxville prepared you to step into an offense like that and perform?) – “My time in Knoxville, especially my sophomore year and junior year, we had receivers to space out the field. That’s just something that the Dolphins do really good, just space out the field and get defenses to get out of Cover 1 and Cover 3. Get defenses to play Cover 2 and Cover 4, that’s just going to break bigger opportunities for the running backs, bigger explosive plays. That a lot – I had a lot of things like that happened in Tennessee, and I feel like that’s going to be good in Miami.”
(I’m looking at some stats here that you were No. 1 in percentage of runs that went 10-plus yards and you were No. 3 in college football in yards after contact. Do you prefer to run around guys or run through them?) – “It could be either or. I don’t feel like I have any limitations to my game, I feel like I can do anything. If it’s going around somebody, I’m going to get around them. If it’s going through them, I’m going to get through them, too.”
(In your interview after the Combine with the Tennessee Network, you stated that you’re known for your speed, agility, your pass catching and vision, but you didn’t mention pass protection. A lot of scouts and analyst have said that your pass protection is best in this draft class. Do you take pride in blocking for your quarterback, and what do you look forward to doing? Who do you look forward to hitting in the NFL?) – “Yes, of course I take pride in protecting the quarterback. You’ve got to protect the quarterback. That guy is making multiple millions of dollars – he’s just somebody that’s got to be protected. I take pride in pass protection. I feel like pass protection is a mentality thing. If you’re willing to step up and stone blockers, keep people from getting to your quarterback, I just feel like that if you have that mentality to stop them, it’s going to happen. Pass protection is a mentality and it’s a mindset. I had that this past year, and I’m going to keep having it. People I’m willing to see – there’s a lot of great linebackers in this league, there’s a lot of great DBs. I want to be able to pancake somebody that comes through the line. I just want to have a big excitement play while blocking, so I can make that statement that I’m willing to protect my quarterback.”
(On your 30 Visit with the Miami Dolphins, specifically with Head Coach Mike McDaniel, what were some of the things he raved about you?) – “He just likes my skillset. He just felt like my skillset would fit in the offense. He just felt like I’m an explosive player and I can make big plays in the offense, and I agree. So I’m just ready to get going for real.”
Patrick Paul – April 26, 2024
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Friday, April 26, 2024
T Patrick Paul
(We were just talking to Head Coach Mike McDaniel and General Manager Chris Grier and they said the Dolphins were the number one team you wanted to go to. Can you explain why that was and why Miami is a special place to you?) – “Of course. During the whole process, I talked to them multiple times. I remember talking to Chris at the Senior Bowl and it was a great conversation that me and him had. Then just moving on forward at the Combine, I had a great interview with both of them. Then to our 30-visit that we had, it was amazing. Really getting to spend that much time with them, I knew that I wanted to be coached by Coach McDaniel and (Offensive Line) Coach Butch Barry and it was amazing. It was something I knew from the minute I started talking to them that I wanted to be a Miami Dolphin, so this is a blessing.”
(I understand you have the same agent as RB De’Von Achane. How close are you two? And what do you think about getting to block for him now?) – “He’s a great player. I watched him throughout his college career. We don’t have a relationship yet, but that’s going to be my dawg. I already know. I’m excited to get out there and I’m ready to get to work.”
(What do you feel is the biggest thing that you bring to the table for this Miami organization? And I know you’re originally from Houston, but you also have some deep family ties in Nigeria. So for you to be able to represent both of these places, how meaningful is it for you to come into the NFL?) – “Of course. It’s going to be great. You asked what I bring to the Miami Dolphins. I’m going to bring a resilient player who is a great teammate. Someone who handles business in the locker room, outside the locker room, outside of the facility. Someone who is going to come every day with the same mindset and that’s to work and that’s to compete every day and be a great teammate. I’m going to bring it every day and hope to end my career with the Miami Dolphins, so that’s the goal.”
(Reading your bio, it says you are a martial arts prodigy. I was wondering if you could expand on that at all?) – “Yeah, of course. I’ve been boxing now, I’ve been doing MMA for five to six years now. It’s something I was introduced to when I first came to Houston by the offensive linemen that were currently there and I took it on from there. As soon as I went to one class, I fell in love. I happened to be really good at it early on and I keep honing my skills since then. It’s something that is one of my hobbies and one of the things that I really enjoy and it helps with on-the-field stuff. It correlates to the field. It’s a great hobby to have.”
(A guy that you are about to be playing with, T Terron Armstead, I don’t know if you been able to speak with him or meet him yet, but he’s a big boxing guy. It might be something to bring up whenever you guys do talk.) – “Definitely. I know Terron. I met him about two years ago at an O-Line Masterminds. He’s been a master at his craft for a very long time, so I’m excited to get in there and get in that o-line room and learn from him.”
(I talked to you at the Senior Bowl and remember it was a very good interview. You’re a very engaging guy. Mike McDaniel and Chris Grier talked about your personality. You have a grandfather who was the head of Nigeria, the martial arts. Tell me about the interview part of the pre-draft process. I would think you wowed all these teams. How did that work for you? And how does your personality work for you off the field?) – “Yeah, I would say my personality is from my parents and my brothers. I was raised in a great household that we understood our backgrounds and with that, just came about me, I guess. During the interview process, it was great just talking to everybody. I felt like I did pretty good with all my interviews. I remember the one at the Combine with the Dolphins was one of my favorites. I guess it had a lasting impact because it carried over to that 30-visit. So it’s been a great process.”
(It looks as though you have really long arms. Do people always ask you to reach things on the high shelves?) – “Not exactly. Most of my friends are pretty big being an offensive lineman. Also with my family as well. So not really, but if they ever did, I’m going to grab it for them.”
(How does it help you on the field?) – “Always being the first person, if you’re timing is right, to always land that first punch and get that first contact, it gives you an advantage being the first to strike.”
(Your family, what was their role in Nigeria, and have you been there?) – “As far as my family, the roots of it all, my grandfather was the head of state. With that, he was a major general in the army. That was way back in 1966, 1965. From then, no one has really taken over in regards to our family. I lived there for two-and-a-half years when I was younger. The last time I went there was 2015. I haven’t been back since, but it’s definitely something I want to do. I want to go back and do as much as I can.”
(So how much did your family talk about the heritage that you all have and the roots that you have in Nigeria?) – “I mean it’s something that I grew up just knowing and understanding. So just learning on my own, learning and doing my own research and asking my parents and my mom, when I can, to figure out more about my roots and where I came from. But it also inspired me throughout my entire career knowing that someone before me did such great things. It motivates you a lot to want to do the same.”
(The draft projections for you were all over the place from as high as the first round to maybe as low as the third, maybe even in the fourth. What was your draft experience like with all of that uncertainty and those wide range of projections?) – “Throughout the draft process, I didn’t really try to pay attention to where people had me mocked at and where they expected me to go. I knew I was going to end up in the situation that was perfect for me. Time did tell and I’m in the perfect situation for me. It all ended up how it was supposed to.”
(As a quick follow up, did you have an inkling it would be the Dolphins all along?) – “I hoped so and when I got that call, let me tell you, it was a surreal moment.”
(There were a lot of scouts and analysts talking about your hand technique. Head Coach Mike McDaniel, in his press conference, stated that with your athleticism, foot speed, quickness and big body, you’re a great athlete and can attack the B-gaps and move up to the second level, and it helps mask some of those technical deficiencies. In the offseason, you were working with an offensive line coach, Duke Mayweather. What were some things that you guys did throughout this draft process to work on your hand techniques and other techniques as well to get ready for the NFL?) – “I’d say working with Duke in this pre-draft process, I came there on December 12th, immediately after the season was done. I couldn’t really chill. I had to get working already so we hit the ground running. On Day 1, we’re in there watching film and he’s taking me through all of the things that he wants to correct in my game. The big emphasis were the hands, as you said. The hand placement and striking. So we started running. He has the perfect drills to work that. I don’t want to release all his sauce but he works with boxing mitts and stuff. He gets you right. Just understanding landmarks and how to use length to your advantage. That’s something that I am going to carry along to the Dolphins. Working with (Offensive Line) Coach Butch (Barry), we’re going to hit the ground running and I can’t wait. I can’t wait to learn from him and I can’t wait to be coached by him.”
(I know we mentioned T Terron Armstead earlier. Can you expand on what you feel you can gain from being able to work with him, a veteran like him, as a rookie?) – “It’s going to be great. He’s a legend of the game. I’ve been watching him since he was with the Saints. He’s a master at left tackle. He has all of the techniques in his book. He has a gigantic bag. Just learning from him, learning the game, learning how he’s had such a long career and has played at such a high level for so long, it’s going to be a blessing. I can’t wait to get in that o-line room and start digesting all of the knowledge from all of the different guys in there.”
Chris Grier and Mike McDaniel – April 26, 2024
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Friday, April 26, 2024
General Manager Chris Grier and Head Coach Mike McDaniel
Chris Grier:
(Does that mean you’re trading back into the third and working on it if you’ve got to get back up to the room?) – “The draft is still going on, so again, you never know what opportunities may come. Whether it’s someone just reaching out and availability on a trade or something. For us, we wanted to do you guys a favor, so we could come meet with you now, and in case something doesn’t happen, you guys can go home early. (laughter)”
(What appealed to you about T Patrick Paul? Also can he play right tackle as well as left?) – “Yes, we feel confident that he can swing. Obviously, he’s been a left tackle. He’s someone that we spent a lot of time with. We met with him at the Senior Bowl for a while, at the Combine. We had him here on a 30 Visit. He was very enthusiastic about his intentions of wanting to play here. He really enjoyed his interactions with the coaching staff and us, watching him on film and some of the things we liked about how he plays. And he knows he’s got some things to work on. He’s very honest and direct, and that’s what we really appreciated. We’re very excited to work with him because we think he’s very talented player.”
(What is it about the wingspan and the size that appeased you guys the most?) – “Just his athletic ability for a guy as big as he is. Just even when he’s not perfect with technique, which (Offensive Line Coach) Butch (Barry) and Mike (McDaniel), the staff here and (Offensive Coordinator) Frank (Smith) have all shown that’s a point that’s emphasized around here very heavily. So for him, even when he’s not perfect, when you have a guy that big with that length that he can still block people at times when he’s not right. The changes that he made from last season even in college to this season, you can see the growth in the player and wanting to get better. We’re excited. We think he has another level he can take it to, and he wants to. That’s an important part that he wants to be good and wants to be coached.”
(Is there a possibility of guard for him at all or is he just purely a tackle?) – “I think right now we just want him at tackle, but we don’t box people in. Mike (McDaniel) just said he could play fullback for us if he wanted. (laughter)”
(T Terron Armstead already contemplated retirement this offseason. Is this a potential plan in place in case he does decide to just play one more year?) – “No, I think you’re always looking at your roster, like we’ve talked about. Again, this was a player that we liked and spent a lot of time with. Following our board, he was the highest rated player on our board left still. We don’t really chase positions trying to draft out of need. This is a player that we liked at a position that can add depth and grow and compete for a role here in the future.”
Mike McDaniel:
(What about his football IQ, his smarts? Somebody at Senior Bowl told me that he is smart enough that he could play center, not that he will play center. What about his football IQ and what kind of factor was that?) – “I think he has a yearning for the knowledge. He’s very, very hungry and very capable. He’s excited to have some of his game worked on through coaching, and he’s eager to make steps in his game. To me, he exhibited how easily it would be for him to immerse into what he needs to immerse into, to adjust to our scheme. It’s rare when you get a guy that’s focused on being great at a size and length that he has with the quickness, balance and athleticism to play the position on multiple levels. Very confident that this is a guy – the personnel department was way in front of this. We met him at the Combine and had him in here. (We) spent a lot of time with him, and he shared some exuberance on wanting to be a Dolphin, so he’s all the way Fins up right now.”
Chris Grier:
(It looks like he has the longest arms of all these 32 tackles I’m looking at here. Is that accurate? How long are his arms? I don’t mean the number, I mean from your impressions, and how can that impact him on the field?) – “The first thing Mike (McDaniel) and everyone joked about when he came on his visit, he fills up the hallway when he walked in. (laughter)”
Mike McDaniel:
“No, seriously. It’s like more of the hallway is filled than not.”
Chris Grier:
“(laughter) But again, it’s like you – even when he’s not perfect, which it happens in our league and college all the time, that length allows him to recover because he is so long and he’s got some strength and power to him that it enables him to recover, even at times. So that’s an intriguing thing with all the tackles. Everyone talks about length, athletic ability and size, and those things you can’t teach. He has that in abundance.”
Mike McDaniel:
“I am a sucker for length (in) guys that like to play with their hands so they actually can use it.”
Chris Grier:
(You guys have mentioned development a few times with him. Is that something where you put together a plan ahead of time of drafting a player to develop him over the course of his time here? Or do you kind of make the selection and then think about how the plan looks from developing his technique and everything.) – “I think every player needs development when they come in, so I think when we say that, it’s just we don’t think any player comes in readymade, no matter who it is. From the first pick to the (last), they all have something they need to work on. I think the good thing about Mike (McDaniel) and the staff, it’s always talking about development. Even with our guys that are starters here, still talking about developmental plans, whether it’s Jaelan Phillips or something. It’s always development and that’s the core principle of Mike and his staff, and I think that’s why you saw the jump in a lot of player’s ability and the things they have done on the field over the last couple of years.”
Chris Grier:
(A couple times you’ve mentioned his exuberance in wanting to come here. Is there an example, something he said or did?) – “It was just – from Day 1 at the Combine, because we had already spent some time with him at the Senior Bowl, and he came in the room. Once he met Mike (McDaniel) and spent time with (Offensive Line Coach) Butch (Barry) and the other coaches down there and the meetings stuff, he enjoyed the meeting and talking ball and being around the coaching staff and the scouts. Then on the visit here, he had expressed to us, ‘I don’t want to be anywhere but here.’ And then all through early this morning up to our pick, it was a barrage of text messages, not from him, from his agent saying, ‘The kid is driving me crazy. He wants to be here.’ (laughter)”
Mike McDaniel:
“And it kind of speaks to what we’re talking about, he has a vision. He’s not paying attention – in our minds, he’s watching how players were developed on the team by (Offensive Line Coach) Butch (Barry), (Offensive Coordinator) Frank (Smith) and everyone, so when we say he was yearning for the opportunities because he wants to work and wants to develop his game and is super eager to do it. He was a pretty giant man with a giant, strong handshake letting us know from the Combine on that he thought this was a fit, and clearly, we agreed.”
(Your first two picks have both been guys with off-the-chart measurables that you think there’s a huge growth opportunity for them. How do you, in the short time you’ve spent with them, really get a feel for, “Hey, these guys have what it takes to make what’s going to be a big leap?) – “It’s a whole process. It all starts with all the work that the scouts do in the fall of talking to coaches, strength coaches, whether it’s janitors at places, cafeteria workers, just to get who they are – their high school coaches, things like that. Then as we get to meet them from All-Star games to Combine, you start to piece things together and get to know who they are. I think everything usually reveals who they are at some point through that whole process, because even if you’re trying to fake it, you can’t sustain it over that long of a period of time. So here on a 30 Visit again, we had him in here and spent all day with him and really enjoyed him. And nothing changed from when we had met him at all of those different times, and it matched up with all the information the guys had gathered, and then coaches follow up with their connections at schools and places that have coached him over time. So you’re just piecing all that information together to make you comfortable, and both these kids have come in and it’s their love of football, their passion, how they want to be good, and so it makes you feel good. You know you’re never 100% (right) as we all know, but we feel good about the process.”
(Did you have conversations tonight or today about moving up or moving down in this round?) – “Yeah, we had a couple opportunities possibly, but you know how there was so movement as you saw in front of us that teams had better offers here and there. We had a bunch of offers for our pick. We had a bunch that were – a couple were enticing, but not enough for us to move from not taking Patrick (Paul).”
Mike McDaniel:
(Coach, you mentioned a few times getting off the football for offensive linemen. How does T Patrick Paul measure up in that category?) – “It’s intriguing to have – off the tape, you’re like ‘Wow, this is a big guy.’ But there’s position functionality and an athlete that has the foot quickness to cut off a B-gap or get the four-technique to the second level with urgency. That projects as some cool displacement as a tool for a blocker, and again, that’s why we keep talking about the human being tied to the player, because those types of things he has the ability to be really good at with a lot of deliberate work and motivation to do so. Those nuances, he’s totally fit to really do well in our footwork fundamentally, and we feel very confident he’s willing to put in the work to master the craft.”
Chris Grier:
(Obviously this is not like picking a first-round quarterback where you call your existing quarterback, but T Terron Armstead is obviously a guy you have great respect for and is an elite player in the league. I know you mentioned your communication with him this offseason. Did it ever come up that you might take someone who could eventually succeed him down the road? And is he the ideal guy with the character he has to help nurture someone at his position?) – “Yeah, Terron (Armstead) is fantastic dealing with it. We felt strong that we didn’t need to communicate with him on this because he knows – he’s always like ‘take an offensive lineman.’ (laughter) The cool thing about him is he loves to mentor these guys, so I think if you were to talk to Austin (Jackson) and Rob Hunt and Liam (Eichenberg) and all of them, I think that’s a big part of the work that (Offensive Line Coach) Butch (Barry) and Mike (McDaniel) and (Offensive Coordinator) Frank (Smith) put in, but also what Terron, behind the scenes with these guys, does. He spends a lot of time and likes to pass it on to the younger guys. He will be very enthused to work with him, and we’re excited that Patrick (Paul) is the right kind of person to come in and work with our group.”
Mike McDaniel:
“It’s funny, we kind of knew Terron (Armstead) would be excited. How Terron views himself and how he’s become such a player in this league is Terron’s not worried about someone outplaying him. Just like how he came out from a small school and had people invest in him, he loves paying it forward. He’ll be the most excited. He might already have a jersey of his.” (laughter)
(When you think about developing T Patrick Paul, what are the specific areas that you want to see him improve once you get him in here?) – “Literally, you want people to have the willingness to improve everything. And it’s not like cliché. It’s more like if you have the mindset that ‘I’m good on this,’ that mindset is not – you have to come in hearing with intentionality the process with which we teach, and from his stance to how he’s coming off the ball and his overall mindset, that’s never done. He’s trying to master a new scheme. I think all of the stuff is on the table while he develops the type of athlete and what Chris (Grier) was alluding to is he’s able to block people a little out of position. What we look at is how easy or impactful that block would be if everything was aligned. So especially for offensive linemen coming into our system, every day is very valuable. From stance and start, that’s probably the first thing that you master is how we come off the ball. For that to be impactful against an opponent, we want it to be the fastest, the quickest, the most deliberate that anyone does in the National Football League. So you have to train that and make it consistent, and then you move onto the next thing. But all is on the table, not because there’s a hole, more because we’re going to coach this guy to be the best player he can be and we know he wants to be great.”
Chop Robinson – April 26, 2024
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Friday, April 26, 2024
LB Chop Robinson
(Why don’t you take us through the last several hours since we last spoke to you. I can imagine it’s been a little busy for you.) – “After I got the call, honestly just celebrated with my family, my close ones, my loved ones. I just spent time with them, enjoyed every single second of it, listening to music and just hanging around, spending that quality time with them. Then woke up this morning, got on the flight to Miami, enjoying this weather. Walking around meeting everybody, meeting all the coaches and just enjoying this journey, that’s it.”
(So you actually slept?) – “I slept on the plane. I slept on the plane. I didn’t sleep the whole night. Once I got to the airport and got on the plane, I instantly went to sleep though.”
(When you get here and you’re seeing the facilities for the first time, what’s going through your mind knowing that all of that hard work, dreams come true, and here you are at an NFL facility with the Miami Dolphins?) – “It’s crazy. I’ve been working for this since I was five years old. I’ve been playing football my whole life. Putting everything that I worked for – I put in all the work, I sacrificed a lot of things to get here. It’s just the first step. Once you get here, you got to stay here. So I’m ready to put the work in.”
(Have you talked to any of your new teammates yet? Have they reached out to you?) – “Yeah, I talked to Jaelan Phillips earlier today. I met Bradley Chubb earlier today, too. Those are some guys I’ll be able to take some things from their games and add them on to mine so I can be an elite player.”
(Your fellow Nittany Lion T Olumuyiwa Fashanu is going to the Jets. What do you think about possibly facing off against him for years to come in the AFC East?) – “It’s going to great, just like practice. One on ones, everything we did together. I think it would be another day at practice, going against Olu (Fashanu) in a game.”
(We talked about the four sacks, but you’re incredibly disruptive. Good win rate, good pressure rate, quarterback pressures, tackles for loss. Talk to me about being disruptive in both the run and the pass game, how are you able to be disruptive and what does that do for the team?) – “Honestly, for me, I just feel like that’s me doing my job. I feel like everybody on defense, if all 11 people do their job, you’re causing disruption as a whole defense. If every man is doing their job, then the defense is doing what they are supposed to do.”
(Your skillset, the first step. Tell me about when did you first discover that? Was that 6-years-old, 5-years5old, junior high? How do you use it to your advantage?) – “I would say I discovered it in middle school. I was playing Pop Warner, and I was playing d-tackle. I was just getting off the ball so fast that I was able to just run around the offensive linemen, and that’s when I realized I had some good speed on the edge, especially for my size. That’s when I started to realize that, and I just kept working on it throughout my career.”
(Your hands, tell me about your hands and how you use that to your advantage?) – “Since I’m not the most lengthiest guy, but I have quick hands, I’m quick to react when hands are thrown in my face. So just being able to use my hands, my speed and my bend is something that is really good for my game, because I’m so fast and being able to use my hands is just very disruptive.”
(You have been comped to LB Micah Parsons. I don’t think you crossed paths with him. He was in the draft once you transferred over?) – “Yeah, I think he was 2020, the COVID year. So he was COVID year draft, but when he was coming back to Penn State, I was still talking to him here and there.”
(Is there more to the connection with him coming back? How many times did you interact with him and things like that?) – “We interacted probably like 10 times. Every single time he came back, we talked. We’d just chat. I talked to him before the Combine, asking him about the process, about interviews and everything. He gave me some advice, so we talk here and there.”
(You mentioned earlier about the sacrifices you made to get here. Can you elaborate on that? What are some of those sacrifices?) – “Honestly, just being away from my family. First, I went to Maryland my freshman year which is home, then I went to Penn State. That was my first time really being away from my family, just not partying or anything, just staying true to myself, staying inside, being a homebody, and focusing on what I wanted to do and chase my dreams and get to the next level. So sacrificing those things is the biggest thing for me.”
(You had the 4.48 40-yard dash at the Combine, which I think was tied for seventh all time among defensive ends at the Combine. Your 10’8 broad jump was the best by a defensive end at the Combine. What do those numbers mean to you having that place and again, how does that translate onto the field toward being disruptive?) – “I feel like that 10’8 broad jump shows the explosiveness I have, especially with my first step. Just jumping out like that, being able to get off the ball and show that not only doing that at the Combine results, but I can do it also on tape. So just doing that from the game and then doing that at the Combine just shows that I can do it on tape, too.”
(Where do those athletic traits come from? Is that all natural? Were you a track guy? How did the speed and all of that stuff come about?) – “I would say it’s all natural. I feel like me and my brothers were always fast, but I was able to adapt to it.”
(What’s the next order of business for you? You’ve toured the facilities. Are you trying to find a place where to be? What’s next for you to explore the city as well?) – “I wish I had an answer for you. (laughter) I don’t know what’s next to come. I’m just taking it one day at a time.”
(One guy you could probably ask is Manny Diaz, he was a head coach at University of Miami. I actually covered him when he was with the Hurricanes. Can you tell us something you’ve learned from him in your time at Penn State having him?) – “I’d just say the hard work and mindset he has. No matter what, no matter how you’re feeling, no matter how tired you are, he just always wants you to go out there and give you everything you’ve got and just push yourself to reach limits that you think you can’t get past. That’s something I picked up from him. So I was just able to learn from him, listen to him, be coachable and it helped me get to where I am today.”
(Have you picked a number yet?) – “No, not yet. I haven’t.”
(Do you have one in mind?) – “Of course, 44. But I don’t know who has 44 or if it’s open. I haven’t really looked at it yet.”
(You mentioned yesterday being inspired after losing a brother and a sister. Can you tell us about that and just the inspiration that you have and motivation you have to accomplish whatever you can for them?) – “Losing my two siblings, I knew no matter what adversity was thrown my way, nothing could make me feel worse than me losing my two siblings. I always look at that as a positive thing, just coming out there, give everything I got in what I do and just keep me motivated, because I know no matter how I’m feeling or what’s thrown my way, I can face it. Because I faced something that a lot of people would’ve been broke down, but I looked at is as a positive thing.”
(If you’re comfortable sharing, just where were you when each occurred? I think you were in the first grade when you lost one and was in freshman year of high school?) – “Yeah, I was in first grade when I lost my sister. I was actually in my room when I found out that it happened. My mom was just telling me she went to sleep, and I didn’t understand because I was so young. But I was a freshman when I lost my older brother. I was actually playing a game and then I heard my mom screaming when they came in and told her, so I ran upstairs. Seeing the tears and heard the news – I’m doing it for them two. They keep me motivated every single day, that’s who I’m doing it for.”
(We’ve seen different numbers on how many siblings you have. Can you set the record straight?) – “I’ve got nine siblings. So it’s ten of us – it’s six boys and four girls.”
(What was it like growing up in a family that big?) – “It was crazy. It was always fun though. You could never be bored; you were always bothering another sibling. The one thing (was) you’ve got to get to the kitchen table as fast as you can, because sometimes people would have to eat on the stairs if you don’t make it to the kitchen table. (laughter)”
(Is that where you got your first step?) – “Basically, yeah. Yep. (laughter)”
(What order are you in – what number?) – “So I’m third youngest. I have two younger siblings and the rest are older.”
(Tell us about – your chain glistening in the lights. Any special meaning to it?) – “Yeah, so it has my name and then it has the axe, which is my sack celebration that I use. I basically find the detail and put it in there, put it in the mix.”
(Did your siblings tell you anything when all this happened? What was the first thing they told you when you got signed here?) – “I mean, they were just telling me they were proud of me, because they know how much work I’ve put into this, how focused I stayed and how much sacrifice I took. They were just so proud of me. They shed tears, and that’s what made me cry also. It was just a great experience.”
(At what age and what level did you know getting here to the NFL was a possibility?) – “I would say in middle school, I figured out. I knew with the speed I had and me playing defensive end at such a young age and running around guys in that speed, I just knew I could take it somewhere. So I just took it seriously since I figured that out in middle school and it’s been that ever since.”
(Were you a chubby kid in middle school age?) – “(laughter) No, when I was in middle school, that’s when I started to slim out. I was chubby only when I was born, for real.”
(Is that where the nickname comes from?) – “Yeah, when I was born, I was 14 pounds, and then it was ‘Pork Chop’ as my nickname. Got older, slimmed down, took the ‘Pork’ out, kept the ‘Chop.’”
(Were you always a lineman? Offense, defensive line growing up?) – “Yeah, my first position I played was center, then after that I played defensive end.”
(So you liked it?) – “Yeah, I love it.”
(Has this all sunken in? Are you still in that mind of, “Wow this is really happening?” Or is it down to business, let’s go?) – “I’m kind of at both right now. Of course I’m soaking it all in because it’s a dream come true. But I know once the day is over with, it’s time to get to work once I get here. I just have been on both waves, both ways.”
(How much time have you spent, probably not a ton since you just arrived, but how much time have you possibly spent with Head Coach Mike McDaniel and Defensive Coordinator Anthony Weaver?) – “I spent a lot of time with them. As soon as I walked in and saw them, we were just chatting about how he sees me as a player. He had me on his radar for a very long time and how he liked getting to know me as a person and hearing all the good things about me. So I spent a lot of time with him, like 30 minutes, since I got here.”
(Are you talking about Head Coach Mike McDaniel or Defensive Coordinator Anthony Weaver?) – “Both of them.”
(Defensive Coordinator Anthony Weaver has a good track record of developing defensive linemen, edge rushers. So what do you think he can do for you and your game?) – “Honestly, I feel like the things he can do is just bring more cheat codes that I have, more things to my toolbox. There’s things that a lot of people say that I don’t have. I feel like I know I’ve been working on it and I feel like he can elevate my game even more.”
Chris Grier and Mike McDaniel – April 25, 2024
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Thursday, April 25, 2024
General Manager Chris Grier and Head Coach Mike McDaniel
Chris Grier:
(Why LB Chop Robinson?) – “He was a player that we identified early that we liked. We spent some time with him throughout the whole process and watching him work with the coaches and the scouts, he was someone we felt could impact our team and had a lot of traits we liked as a person and a player, which was important to us. So for us, the opportunity for us to get him, we couldn’t pass up. We were very excited – the defensive coaches, scouts, ownership, all of us were fired up we could get him.”
(What traits are you particularly intrigued by?) – “The one part is he plays hard. He plays his ass off, and that’s what we like. Then obviously the athletic traits and what he has, you see the first step quickness, the explosion, his ability to bend and do stuff. He’s done a lot of good things in college. We think with our coaching staff and his work ethic, we think he can even take it to another level. We’re very excited to have him.”
(I know you hate when we bring this up but his stat numbers from college don’t exactly jump off the page. What do you attribute the disconnect between the stat numbers and the actual ability for him to play?) – “Since you guys have known me over the years, we’ve talked about the stats part. For us, it’s an important part, but we’ve always talked about the ability to disrupt the passer. His disruption stuff numbers are all very high. For us, working through the analytics, watching him and what he does and contributes, sacks people always want to – the guy that comes to mind for me would be Danielle Hunter had four career sacks coming out of college, and he’s become a really good player in this league. I’m not putting that pressure on him to be Danielle Hunter, but it’s not just him; there are other players throughout the league that if you look at what their college numbers are compared to how they’ve had success in the pros – we think a lot of traits and the things you see on film translate. He has things he has to work on. He knows that. And the exciting part is the kid, and who he is, his work ethic, how much he loves ball and his toughness. We’re excited to work with him and we think he has a really good chance to be a really good player.”
Mike McDaniel:
(Mike McDaniel once told us that edge rusher is your favorite position in football, so really it is a true to form pick, I guess?) – “Absolutely. The coolest thing about the opportunity that we had at that pick is that if you have a player contributing in pass rush, those are things that you feel very fortunate to not pass up. As passing games become more and more of a focus, those players are a really, really big part of the driving force of your defense. To double down on Chris (Grier)’s point –if you’re more used to receivers, we’re not just drafting the guy with the highest amount of production goes first or next. I’m not sure if anyone can even rattle off the order of the production of the players. Disrupting the passer, there are a lot of compounding variables to a sack, whether a quarterback sees it and holds onto it or not. But disrupting the passer and taking the rhythm off the pass game, that’s a stat for him but it’s also for teammates and production comes off of that too. It’s exciting to not have to block him.”
Chris Grier:
(How close were you to making a trade?) – “We were active on the phones; I’ll just say that. So I don’t know how close we got, but we were active probably through the backend of the draft.”
(How close did the board fall that you guys had set up to what actually happened in Round 1?) – “It was pretty close. (laughter) We were sitting there, there were a couple players at the end we were excited for, so we were active even trying to get back in to get another one here in the late first.”
(There was a stretch that seven picks before you guys were on the clock, it seemed like every single one of those guys would have made sense for you. I’m not going to ask you how LB Chop Robinson compared to them, but were you kind of sweating, “Hey, player after player after player that might be a good fit here are going. Are we going to get our guy?”) – “It’s not sweat. It’s just Chop (Robinson) was someone that we identified and thought he might be there. If he wasn’t, there were other players we liked there as well. But he was our targeted player, so for us, we’re very excited to have him.”
Chris Grier:
(You guys went through some terrible luck with edge rushers at the end of last year, including your top two guys who were lost for the season. How much, if at all, did that play into selecting LB Chop Robinson?) – “No, I mean obviously you always look at your roster for what it is, but for us it was, like we’ve talked about, just adding the best players in the draft at that point. He was rated as one of the top players in this draft for us, so adding him, especially rushing the passer in this league with all the great quarterbacks and the skill, the ability to rush with four and not have to blitz every down and stuff, that creates an advantage for the defense. So for us, he was a player that we had in high regard with high grades, for us to add him, we were again very excited to have him.”
Mike McDaniel:
(Is there a scenario where you see LB Chop Robinson, LB Jaelan Phillips and LB Bradley Chubb on the field at the same time? Or do you imagine more of a rotation? I see Head Coach Mike McDaniel looks like he’s in the kitchen right now.) – “All scenarios are alive. I think it’s key to remember, man that team, ‘They just had too many pass rushers, that was their problem,’ that’s never been said. So I think that’s the common denominator, is you know that you’re adding to your team, you feel great about that and you let the players kind of set the orchestration of all the multiple things that you can do. I know our coordinator is not afraid of outside the box, so he might be playing corner, who knows?”
Chris Grier:
(To that point you had mentioned that Defensive Coordinator Anthony Weaver had brought visuals to you about some of the players you guys added in free agency. I was curious his involvement in this process and kind of how he brought his interest in LB Chop Robinson to you guys?) – “It’s been very collaborative and you’ve always heard us talk about it; that’s important because you can’t just have whether it’s just scouts or just coaches saying, ‘This is our guy.’ It’s working together, working through it, whether you see players the same or differently. And for us the collaboration, working through it with not just (Anthony) Weaver but Ryan Crow, the outside linebackers coach, was fantastic and the whole defensive staff as well as the scouts. So we meet individually, we meet as groups, and so we spend a lot of time working through it because it’s an important pick for us. So it was cool working with ‘Weav’ (Anthony Weaver) and the guys and the new guys here and seeing the work ethic. We were presented a packet the other day on Chop which was fantastic that (Ryan) Crow put together for us. So it was very collaborative and it was exciting and really enjoyed it.”
Mike McDaniel:
(On the scale of raw to polished, where do you view LB Chop Robinson’s skillset and toolbox?) – “’Rawlished’? (laughter) I couldn’t help it. I’m sorry.”
Chris Grier:
“His testing numbers are elite and you see all the tools, the things he can do. But is he a finished product? No. And I think he’d probably admit that to you as well, and not many players who come into the league are. So we think he has obviously the get off and speed that everyone talks about as kind of rare and his athletic tools. So I think again for us, he still has a runway to keep improving, but the fact that the guy works hard and has a tremendous motor and toughness to him which gives us really excitement to think he’ll reach his peak of ability that we think he can hit.”
(Do you now go into Day 2 with a focus on o-line, maybe d-tackle with the trenches?) – “I think for us we’ll get together here tomorrow. We’ll go home tonight and then we’ll get together in the morning and look at the board and see who’s up there and kind of put the plan together, but again, it’s taking the best player. Not just roster but whoever the best player is, too, so down where we’re picking, we’ll probably need to see who falls to us and then we’ll see if we’ll get aggressive to go up and get somebody.”
Mike McDaniel:
(How does it feel to finally have that first-round pick under your belt?) – “This is awesome. We should do this more often. (laughter) What was really cool is just knowing that your – just from the organization standpoint and the personnel and coaching staff – having understanding that the assets are real but they’re limited and the focus for preparation for all the different scenarios. I could feel just overall there was a deep dive on every level to be as thorough as possible. I think what was exciting for all of us is the conviction that came out and the vision and the extensive process that we went through and to have the opportunity to add to our football team a guy that has plenty of room to grow, but I think from all departments, we were very, very convicted that he can be productive and help the entirety of the defense while growing and that’s a key component for us, which we talk about disruption, disrupting the passer and all of those things. I think that’s a really cool thing to be able to do, and I hope all first rounds go like they went today because we feel very, very convicted and pumped for the football team.”
Chris Grier:
(In the first round, you had some unexpected events. Six of the first 12 selections were quarterbacks and I think the first 14 were offensive players. What happens in the draft room? Are there phone calls? Are you consulting with other people here? Are there new possibilities? What happens in the draft room?) – “It’s like everything. You do your homework and you talk to a bunch of people. So for us, we had a pretty good idea that five were going to go before our pick, and we were told the possibility of six. So we were kind of working through it. So when you do your homework and work through people and even just digging through our own analytics and going through everything, for us, it wasn’t really a surprise. The phone calls all at that point were really coming into us about people trying to move up to our spot. It was relatively quiet. We had about four or five teams that were trying to move into our spot and as the board kept falling to us, which we thought it would, like you said it kind of fell to where we had it, at that point we decided to stay where we were because the offers weren’t enticing enough for us to move.”
(Did you have any inclination to move up or was 21 kind of where you guys were going to pick?) – “No. As the board was falling, like you said, there were multiple players there that we liked at 21.”
(Just to make sure I heard you correctly earlier, you said that you were on the phone trying to trade back into the first round?) – “Yes.”
(Without a third or fourth rounder, there is a 103-pick drought between your second-round pick and your fifth-round pick. What’s the level of urgency to get back into one of those middle rounds?) – “Again, as the board falls and the players – you never want to get desperate in doing things and moving around. But if opportunities arise, we’ll take a shot and move around.”
(You had mentioned early on about getting to know LB Chop Robinson as a person as well as a player. What stands out to you both in terms of Chop as a person?) – “Really, just getting to know him and who he is as a person, just talking through some of the things that he’s been through in his life and seeing how he’s come out, and just listening to people talk about his character, just in terms of how he loves football and the passion and how he plays and his work ethic and his drive. His whole focus is football. He loves football. He wants to be great. And I think you guys saw his clip of when we talked to him on the phone, he was so excited. He’s ready to come play right now. Just when you meet kids like that who are genuine and you understand that they truly love football and they want to be great and they know that it doesn’t come easy and they’re going to have to work, that gives him a chance to be the player that everyone thinks he is. Again, we’re very excited.”
(You told us last year that we were more worried about the offensive line than maybe you were. I’m just curious 12 months later, you went pass rusher over o-line. OL Graham Barton and others were available at No. 21. What’s your level of confidence right now with where the o-line is?) – “We were talking about that coming in. Like you said last year, it was this and just the level of what (Offensive Line) Coach (Butch) Barry had done with the offensive line, we still think those guys will keep improving, and the job they did last year with how we were moving the ball and scoring and stuff. So we’re very excited. Again, the draft is not over. There’s always still free agency to add pieces to come in. We’re excited with the guys we have in the room. We added a couple of guys through free agency and we’ll keep looking at it, but we’re excited with the guys in the room.”
Mike McDaniel:
(So are you kind of saying that offensive line is a position that we continue to be over-obsessed about that you’re not really that stressed about?) – “We love your passion. (laughter) There’s a lot of good players available. We didn’t feel like there’s any sort of – you try to go into the draft, so Chris and I both share the firm belief that you position yourself as best as you can to take the best available player and allow these players to kind of shape your team. I think it comes off as we’re dismissing, and it’s quite the contrary. We have a really good orchestration of talent evaluation and coaching. With that, we have a room of passionate guys that we know are going to develop. You can only pick one guy and depending on the value relative to the class and historically what produces in the NFL, you take your shot when you recognize the opportunity for your team to get better. I think it’s more of a compliment of the development. I think the one thing you can say is there’s a history of guys getting better and you can understand how people, especially well-informed reporters and fans – if you look at a picture of a player last year, well, part of the thing that our mantra is, is if you’re signing up as a Dolphin, we’re going to invest and develop you. So what you saw last year, our bottom line we’re expecting as coaches and players is that’s a different guy the next time you see him. There’s a lot of positions. There’s a lot of players. I think when guys are continuing to develop, sometimes it can come off like – we’re investing. It’s just in a way of in-house commitment and making sure that we get the right guys that want to develop and we get the right developers.
Chris Grier:
(In college, LB Chop Robinson obviously played some linebacker, some defensive end. Do you see him as a stand-up linebacker? Do you see him as a hand-in-the-ground end? Or both in this scheme that you have?) – “I think it’s some of the versatility that we like. You see it when you watch him. He rushes kind of all over. Inside, he’s over the center, he’s two-point, three-point. So that versatility is what drew us to him initially.”
Chop Robinson – April 25, 2024
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Thursday, April 25, 2024
LB Chop Robinson
(I was curious, what was that conversation like? What was that phone call like with General Manager Chris Grier when he told you that you were going to be the No. 21 pick tonight?) – “It was just a quick call about ball, choosing me. He was talking about the defense I’ll be put in and everything like that, and how he was getting to know me more as a person and everything and how he had a really good feel for me. So I’m honestly just blessed and happy to be a Dolphin.”
(How much contact did you have with the Dolphins throughout the pre-draft process?) – “I had a lot of contact. I talked to them at the Combine. I talked with them the day before Pro Day, so we were honestly keeping in touch from the Combine to the Pro Day.”
(There are no questions whatsoever about your athletic ability which you showed off at the Combine, but the sack numbers maybe did not reflect that while you were at Penn State. How would you address that situation and what’s your confidence level that this kind of clicks sooner rather than later?) – “For me, it was just being inconsistent with my hands. I know I had the speed and the bend, but sometimes I forget to use my hands. But that’s something I’ve been working on this whole offseason, and I feel very confident because I’ve been working on this so much repeatedly and I know it’s going to be natural when it comes time to put my hands to use.”
(What do you think about going into a situation where you’re working in with LB Jaelan Phillips and LB Bradley Chubb on the edge and LB Shaq Barrett as well?) – “I feel like that’s going to be a great situation for me – come in there, learn from those guys, compete every day, being able to take things from them and take it to my game and vice versa. So I think it’ll be a great thing for me.”
(What all do you know about the city of Miami, about the Dolphins organization, about the fans and just how excited are you to come to Miami?) – “I know a lot of guys on the team in Miami – of course everybody wants to win, everybody is chasing greatness and that’s what I want to chase, so I feel like it’s a great fit for me. I know it’s beautiful weather in Miami. I don’t know much about the city because I’ve never been that way, but I know I’ll have a great time there just enjoying with my teammates and being part of the team.”
(To what extent do you think your game and your athleticism is comparable to LB Micah Parsons?) – “I would say just the speed and the bend that we both have. Micah (Parsons) has the speed. He ran a fast 40 (-yard dash). He plays like it. I have the speed. Micah also has a great bend. He’s able to bend around a big offensive lineman and turn tight corners, and I feel like that’s a part of my game that we both have.”
(Can you take us through this process? Obviously, this is the culmination of a long, hard journey for you of work – you’re finally an NFL player. Can you take us through what this means and maybe the most important things you went throughout this process?) – “Honestly, it means everything. I’ve been playing football since I was five years old … (inaudible) So sacrificing everything, not partying and just being who I am, working out every day, just being consistent with my (inaudible) and staying focused. I made a lot of sacrifices, being away from my family. Also losing my older brother and older sister has been my motivation to stay focused and just keep grinding, so I never stop. I’m proud to be where I wanted to be, but the work doesn’t stop.”
(Defensive Coordinator Anthony Weaver is somebody who has a lot of packages. He’s a creative defensive coordinator. How can you be used? Can you be used inside, outside? What ways can you be used and how much have you talked to Anthony Weaver about being used in different ways?) – “We haven’t talked much about it, but I know the defense he uses is the same thing we used at Penn State with putting me at nose tackle, on the edge. So I feel like that’s a good thing for me because I’m kind of familiar with already doing that, so it’ll be second nature when I’m able to go out there and do it.”
(How much do you know about the city of Miami? Have you ever been here? And what do you think about coming here as your first pro destination?) – “I think it’s going to be great. Not too far from home, but far from home far enough. Enjoy the warm weather, and just get to work and work every day. The work doesn’t change, so I’ll be able to stay true to who I am.”
(Question of the day first is what’s the first chop that you’re going to have as a celebration, a lamb chop or a pork chop?) – “(laughter) I would say the pork chop. That’s the original name, so I’ll say a pork chop.”
(How excited is your family to come to South Florida to watch you play some games?) – “They are very excited. They know they don’t have to be in the cold to come watch me, especially when I was at Penn State. So now they can come and enjoy some beautiful weather and also enjoy watching me play.”
(You’ve played up against a lot of great offensive linemen, a lot of great quarterbacks in college as well, QB C.J. Stroud is now in the NFL. Who’s one player that you would like to face up against and ultimately beat one on one?) – “Honestly, everybody who comes across me. Whoever lines up in front of me, that’s the guy I feel like that’s the guys who’s trying to take food off my plate, so whoever lines up in front of me, I’m trying to beat.”
Braxton Berrios – April 23, 2024
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Tuesday, April 23, 2024
WR Braxton Berrios
(What do you think of the new kickoff rules? What have you and Special Teams Coordinator Danny Crossman said to each other about it since it was implemented?) – “First and foremost, I love it. I think it brings back a really exciting play in a game where it was kind of eliminated the last few years, at least especially early in the seasons in the warmer conditions. So it’s exciting and yeah, just been bouncing off each other, strategies, what we think might happen, what we can see happening, what we think is the best way to go about it. I think Week 1 is going to be – that opening kickoff of the season is going to be very interesting all across the board. But yeah, just talking through it and seeing what we feel is best.”
(You’re a guy who has had bigger receiving numbers than you had last season. I’m wondering if you would go to Head Coach Mike McDaniel this offseason, or if there was a time you went to him last offseason, maybe just kind of nudged him and said, “Hey Mike, I can do more,” maybe we need more? Have you done that or will you do that?) – “No, I think everybody is out there doing everything they can. I think with this offense, with as much talent as there is across the board, I think everybody is grown men enough to realize you have one ball. And really all we can do across the board is when the ball comes to you, when that op – when you get it – make good on it. So no, I don’t foresee that happening.”
(What are your thoughts – and I’m not trying to pit you against the offense – your thoughts on having a more prominent No. 3 receiver whether it’s the slot receiver or the tight end, whether it’s you, TE Durham Smythe, TE Jonnu Smith? Would that help the offense? Is that necessary for the offense do you think?) – “I think that’s a question for up top and not for me. I think like I said, we have so many good elite skill guys that I think we can mix in a lot of different ways and fill ‘voids’ where we need them to, but I don’t think that’s for me to judge there.”
(I wanted to ask you based on the social media video that we saw – obviously you and the missus were very excited about rejoining the Dolphins – so I wanted to ask you just how important was it for you to be able to come back here to South Florida? Also if you could take us through what the free agency process was like?) – “The free agency process is funny, because it’s different every year and this one was just a lot of back and forth with my agent figuring things out. I’m probably not going to give up too much of what it was and what teams were involved and all of that, but at the end of the day, absolutely ecstatic to be back here. That was the hope and I’m really happy that it worked out.”
(You touched on earlier the new kickoff rule and how you and Special Teams Coordinator Danny Crossman kind of batted things around on what it might look like. I’ve got to tell you, when I looked at a chart, it almost made me dizzy trying to figure out how wild it looks. What’s your best guess on how it’s going to look and what might you be able to do to maximize your skills?) – “My best guess is just that, a guess. Like I said, opening kickoff Week 1, there’s going to be a lot of trial and error. I don’t think we’ll see much in preseason. I think everybody is going to pop it up and let your cover guys cover and see who can block on the return team. And I think Week 1 is going to be – everybody’s going to think they have the ace of cards up their sleeves. So I really truly don’t know what to expect. Obviously the zone is a lot tighter and I expect there’s going to be – there’s not as much drops on the kickoff return team. You’re going to get on guys earlier, and the cover team, they’re going to have to make decisions quicker and with way less of a running head start. So I think the good thing is, I think the holes will open up and they’ll be earlier and quicker. I think for the guys that hit them, I think it’ll be a good thing.”
(It’s draft weekend, I wanted to see your memories of your draft weekend?) – “Yeah, absolutely. Draft weekend was awesome. I hosted a bunch of my family down here actually in Miami. We rented out a house for the weekend, had everybody coming in from really all parts – my mom and them from North Carolina and my dad and them from Texas. Yeah, it was a really, really fun weekend, really cool experience obviously and something that you only get once.”
(Are you a draft follower as a player? Are you one that really engages? And if so, who do you want the Dolphins to take on Thursday?) – “No, I want them to take whoever they feel is best for this team. I really don’t. It’s kind of like college recruiting these days. It’s just a different world, and I think our focus is on who’s here right now. Obviously when we draft guys that they see fit, they’ll be inducted in a few weeks and we’ll get rolling with them. But no, I have full confidence they’ll do the best for the team.”
(I missed your first response to the kickoff rules change question so forgive me if you’ve kind of answered this part, but have you looked at or watched any of the UFL, XFL or USFL games or clips on YouTube?) – “Yeah, we have. That’s obviously the starting point for trying to figure out what’s going to happen. So in our meetings and on my own just been going through them and again, seeing what other teams did, what worked, what didn’t, trying to guess what the kickoff team is going to do to – I know the yardage is a little bit different as well. One returner, two returners, all those things are questions, but yeah, absolutely. You can try to look at that and get the best gauge. And at the end of the day, it’s kind of going to be what the kickoff team is trying to do and how do you respond to that.”
(The kickoff return percentages were much higher. How do you feel about that if in fact it happens in the NFL?) – “I think that’s what I opened (this) with – I’m very excited. The fact that I think it’s one of the most exciting plays in a game and over the last few years was definitely getting weaned out a little bit. The kickers can kick it through and you may get a little big higher percentage of returns later in the December, January, the playoffs because the weather gets colder and the ball doesn’t fly as far. But really for being down in Miami, those December, January – it’s kind of all the same. So I’m very excited, because I think it’s a big part of the game and a part that I love to do, so yeah, I want those percentages as high as possible.”
(I know everything obviously is gameplan-based and you have WR Tyreek Hill and WR Jaylen Waddle as studs playing opposite you, but your number of targets – 16 in the first four weeks, 17 after that. You’re a total team guy so you’re fine with anything, but Head Coach Mike McDaniel is obviously a communicator. Did he tell you late in the season or in your postseason meeting, “Look, I’d like to get you more involved in the passing game if we can more so than we did the final 13 weeks last year”?) – “I think that’s a question for him, and I’m obviously not going to be the one to divulge anything that we talk about in-house. I didn’t know that stat so that’s news to me, and at the end of the day – it’s kind of what I answered earlier as well – we have so many guys on this team that are elite, especially on the skill position, on the offensive skill position at that. So it becomes one of those things, it’s at the end of the day, it’s a numbers game, right. You have all these guys to feed. You have the running backs, the tight ends and obviously the two absolute elite receivers and sometimes it happens that way. And so, really that’s last year and I’m looking forward to this year.”
(Speaking of the offense, obviously some of those guys are heading into Year 3 with Head Coach Mike McDaniel and QB Tua Tagovailoa at the helm. I’m curious from your perspective, from your lens, how much different is it coming back this spring for offseason programs when you already have the year’s worth of tape and practices and you know the offense? Just how much different is it from last year to now?) – “It’s a lot. You’re learning everything for the second time. You’re getting introduced to it the second time and all the things that you harped on last OTAs, last camp and then throughout the season are just being repeated and drilled in a little bit better. So when you go out there the first day to run routes, you’re not asking which foot is up and which step is it or how deep is it. You kind of already know and from the top-down, that helps everything go more smoothly, and then more so than that, you can really get into the details of the offense, of the play, of exactly what we’re trying to do, exactly the timing. If you’re trying to pull somebody away for somebody else, you really, really get into the little details of the offense when everybody knows the basics. So I think it helps tremendously move us along throughout the spring and then camp.”
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