Adam Gase – June 5, 2017
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Monday, June 5, 2017
Head Coach Adam Gase
(In regards to DE Charles Harris, on the days we’re here, he seems quite disruptive. Is that a consistent thing and what’s the next level for him in his development?) – “It is consistent. He’s really done a good job of trying to implement the techniques we’re asking him to do and doing everything in the run game (and) passing game exactly what he’s coached to do. It’s hard to predict how far we can take and what’s going to happen when we get in pads. That’s going to be a different world just because we’ll be able to do some different things offensively as far as the run game goes and some of the trap game type things. That will be a new world for him with what we’re going to do in training camp. I think it’s just going to be an evolving process for him. He’s just going to keep learning and see how fast he can adjust to the pro game.”
(When it rains outside, do you have a policy? I’m sure if there’s lightning in the area, you’re not going to be out there. Do you have a policy of sometimes we’ll stay out or we’ll always stay out?) – “I think it’s just what are we trying to accomplish for the day. Today was a good experience for us. (Defensive Coordinator) Matt (Burke) and myself talked about it once it started coming down pretty good of ‘we might not stay on the script here.’ We have some philosophies that we like to do when we do have these kind of situations come up. Play calling starts changing; the way we play defense starts changing. We both had to make those adjustments through practice so really the scripts kind of go out the window. You start calling it like a game.”
(How would you say the team handled the rain?) – “I thought it was good. It was really good to see the guys just never batting an eye. We had guys staying on their feet and we weren’t slipping and sliding all over the place. The grass held up well. It was good for us to go through.”
(Was today a blitz day defensively?) – “Not necessarily. Every day is just … We don’t really over-emphasize our periods. We don’t want our guys kind of cheating a drill. We just call them team periods. (Defensive Coordinator) Matt (Burke) and myself kind of choreograph what we’re looking to do. When we’re doing red zone, it’s pretty obvious you can tell when we’re going to be doing that. I thought the guys handled … They don’t know it is coming and then all of a sudden we start dialing up a few more blitzes. We’re very careful with what we’re really doing because we don’t want to start doing things where guys are stunting all over the place and then you get bodies on the ground.”
(Since OTAs began, how would you describe the way the defense has performed overall?) – “They’ve done a really good job. The speed has been outstanding. The coverage has been tight. Any time we have pressure, our fits and where guys are supposed to go has been really good. It seems like they have a pretty good grasp of the playbook right now. We’re just hoping we’ll keep improving. We just don’t want to get stuck on ‘Hey, we feel pretty good.’ We have to keep finding ways to improve.”
(Entering yet another week, what has the learning curve been like for the rookies? Are they grasping what you’re trying to teach them?) – “They’ve done a pretty good job. They’ve gotten a ton of reps. They’ve handled it well. I see those guys are very engaged in meetings. It says something about these guys that have either been drafted or found by the scouts as an undrafted free agent to where that emphasis of let’s make sure we’re getting the right kind of guys that can fit into our culture and understand what we’re looking for and listen to how we want to do our note taking, studying, in the meetings how our guys are learning. I thought what (General Manager) Chris (Grier) and the scouting staff has put together has really been beneficial for us this spring.”
(Is it a positive mental hurdle for QB Ryan Tannehill to clear with the slick field out there with his knee?) – “I think you guys are thinking about that a little more than we are or he is. He’s fine.”
(What makes this group of running backs unique, in your opinion, and is the approach different with the success you had last season going into this season?) – “I think it’s a very, very tight group. That whole group, they’re happy for each other’s success. If one guy is not on the field, you never see a guy standing by himself upset he’s not in the game. They are always kind of in it for each other. It’s pretty cool to watch over this last year then heading into the spring, how much they pull for each other. I think we’ve started something good last year with our running game. Jay (Ajayi) has really done a great job of taking the lead with that group and becoming really our bell cow running back. Those other guys are all trying to figure out ‘Where do I fit in best for us?’ They’re all ready to go if something would happen and they had to be the next guy. I really like that group and love the way they’re working right now.”
(When you get the rain coming down like it did today, do you almost embrace that as throwing the scripts out the window but you’re going to have to deal with something like that during a game. Do you almost embrace that as a challenge?) – “I personally love it because now it becomes a real game for us. We’ll see how our guys react to it and understand what we’re trying to do. We saw last year in the Arizona game, you have to keep your feet. The ball was popping up, popping all over the place. We were getting turnovers. We did a fairly good job of protecting the ball in that game and that’s probably what helped us win that thing. Just to get this experience of … Those balls today, it’s not like we got so many of them to where you’re constantly having a fresh ball. Those things were pretty water logged. I know (Equipment Manager) Joe (Cimino) was trying to change them out as much and as quickly – his staff is trying to get those things as dry as possible. But we kind of want that wet ball situation and to make it as hard as possible for our players.”
(Was there anything significant with either G/T Laremy Tunsil or S Reshad Jones?) – “No. It’s just I’m being soft and holding them out.”
(Do you have a timetable regarding the whole thing with the rookies and the decals on the helmets?) – “You guys are making a bigger deal of that than I am. We thought it was something different. We just wanted to make a point of everything needs to be earned here. Our veterans have really embraced that to where I think they appreciate that they know that rookies don’t just come in and are handed things. Every guy in that room knows the best players will play and nothing will be given to anybody.”
(Is G/T Laremy Tunsil injured?) – “Yes, but we’re alright. It’s nothing significant.”
(G Isaac Asiata, he played mostly left guard and now is being cross-trained. Is that just for the overall development of the line or do you envision him possibly contending for playing time?) – “We cross-train everyone because when you only have seven guys up on Sundays and one guy goes down, that can cause a lot of chaos. We always want guys to be able to play multiple spots. I know I’ve talked about this before. Just moving from right to left or left to right or to center, or if you get bumped out to tackle, it’s a completely different line of sight for you. It’s a completely different aspect you’re looking at things (from). So we’re always cross-training our guys. We try to get as many guys that can snap as possible because, as you guys know, when you lose your center and you don’t have a bunch of reliable guys in that area, it can be very costly for you. We’re always cross-training guys at guard; we’re always cross-training guys at tackle and the same thing at center, so we can find as many guys as possible to play all of those positions so if we do have an injury, we’re able to move some pieces around and we don’t feel like we’re going to be in a big hole.”
(Has G Isaac Asiata held his own so far?) – “I think so. It’s harder to tell with the linemen because they are at a disadvantage. There’s no pads. You feel like you’re on an island a lot of times because, especially with our d-line, those guys can get by you pretty quick, so you have to be pretty quick on your feet.”
(What is your comfort level with the backup left tackle situation? Is it T Sam Young? What are your other options?) – “We’re moving a lot of guys around. It’s too early for me to really say ‘This is the guy that’s going to back up the left tackle.’ We’ll just keep moving guys around and then whatever we find out our best formula is going into the season, we’ll make that decision later. Right now, we’re just trying to get guys reps.”
