Bobby McCain – May 28, 2020
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Thursday, May 28, 2020
S Bobby McCain
(How are you handling all of this? How has it been to be quarantined and how has it been to get on the same page as some coaches you may have never met before, because they are new to the staff?) – ”We do a fair job with the Zoom meetings. It’s tough that we can’t be in the building right now with everybody; but we do a real fair job with the Zoom meetings and understanding that it is what it is and we’ve got to make it work and we’ve got to make it happen. So meeting the guys virtually and through text messages, through Instagram, talking to them, it’s all been fairly simple.”
(I want to take it back to last year. I think you played in nine games last year, but basically through your first few years, you played in about every game. How tough was it for you sitting out that much time being injured?) – “It sucks. No one wants to be hurt. Everyone want to play, everyone wants to get on the field and help their team win. Everyone feels like they take the necessary steps to be ready for the season and sitting out that long, I’m itching to get back. I just can’t wait for the season to start myself. I try not to dwell on the past and just look forward to what’s coming.”
(You always say the right thing when it comes to doing what the team asks you to do; but tell me why you think going to safety or staying at safety is the right call for you as opposed to playing nickel or cornerback?) – “I’m a guy that can play any place in the backfield. With practice and with time, everyone gets better. It’s not my decision to make decisions. My job is to just play football. I love playing football and I love doing what I do, and I’m able to do it all.”
(Last season, mentality was so much of what made this team successful, buying into what Head Coach Brian Flores preached. I’m wondering, how do you pass that on to the newcomers now when for the most part, all you have are Zoom meetings? You don’t have those team meetings. You’re not in the weight room. You’re not on the field. How do you pass along kind of the Flores way right now?) – “It’s tough being that we are not around each other, but we know that we’ll come back hopefully sooner than later. You’re just going to have to be ready, and you’ve got to hold yourself accountable to being a pro. You’ve got to be a pro and if you’re not, you won’t last.”
(There’s been some reports that practice could resume as soon as a couple of weeks. Would you feel comfortable coming back to the facility and practicing in a couple of weeks?) – “Yeah. I feel comfortable. I know they’re going to take the necessary precautions to keep us safe. I’m no doctor, so I can’t tell you too much about the coronavirus, but I do know it’s dangerous. I know they will take the proper steps to make sure that when we come back, we don’t contract the virus, and we don’t come back and we’re sick. I’m definitely excited for that. Or I’ll be excited for that.”
(I know you had a year of it, but I know from the draft, it was visible for a lot of people seeing Head Coach Brian Flores and General Manager Chris Grier – two black guys – at the front of your organization. What is it like from a player’s perspective to have two leaders that kind of look like you heading your organization?) – “For me, it’s not so much black and white. I’ve had black coaches, I’ve had white coaches, I’ve had mixed coaches. There’s no such thing as black and white; it’s just people trying to win football games. Chris Grier and ‘Coach Flo’ (Brian Flores) are black, and I guess for the culture, that is dope; but I don’t see black and white because you have to be able to adjust and you have to be able to adapt in this league, regardless if they are black, white, Asian. No matter what they are, you have to be able to do what you’re told.”
(I noticed that ESPN had some computer rankings that came out and said that their expectations for the Dolphins would be six wins and a 13.8 percent chance to make the playoffs. I know we haven’t even gotten back to practice yet but with all of the free agent additions and all of the draft picks, how does that align with what you think is possible?) – “I think we’ve made some good picks. I think we had some good picks in free agents as well. I’m not too big on looking at ESPN and what they are talking about in March, April and May. We’re just going to take it one day at a time and try to get better as a team, and hopefully by the time January and February rolls around, they’ll be able to put their foot in their mouth.”
(You’ve been here before with Head Coach Brian Flores. You’ve been in the mix with the team last season during the first year of the rebuild. With the new additions, the excitement around the team and the new players, what do you think the rest of the franchise’s efforts have in store for now, next season and in the future?) – “This is an exciting time of year for every team. For all 32 teams in the league, this is an exciting time. It’s a new start or a restart. No matter if you’ve got a new coach, you’ve got new players, you’ve got a new scheme, you’ve got a new playbook. No matter what it is, it’s a new start. Whatever you did in 2019 doesn’t matter. With ‘Coach Flo’ coming in and implementing the things that he wants, as a team we’ve got to understand that if you want to win, they want it done this way. To end the season how we did last year, hopefully like I said, last year doesn’t matter. People talk about the momentum we had and how we were doing so well, but it’s going to be one game. When that ball kicks off, no one is going to be thinking about the last game we played in 2019 that we got momentum from. We’re going to think about that game and be in that moment.”
(You suffered two separate shoulder injuries last season. Obviously injuries are a part of the game of football; but do you think that contributed to the fact that you were playing safety or that wasn’t a factor? Do you think that playing a more physical position, playing safety, was a factor in the shoulder injury that you suffered?) – “No.”
(Why so?) – “It’s football. You can get hurt doing anything – making a tackle, a simple tackle. Sometimes the most – sometimes the easiest plays to make are the ones that hurt the most. It’s just football. Things happen. I went down to make the tackle and ended up hurting myself. That’s just football, and I’m not too stressed about it.”
(I think you were out in the community yesterday. Can you share with us what you did?) – “Yes, I was putting on an event with Farm Share. We did a drive-through food pick up. The cars came through with their trunks open. There will be enough food for a week. Fruit, rice, chicken, orange juice, chips – it was enough food for a week. That was a really special event. There were a couple of people sitting there from midnight on. It started at 8 a.m. It just shows you the people that are in need at this time. It was really heartwarming and I was thankful to be able to do it. I was with (Miami-Dade) Commissioner (Jose) Diaz and the mayor of Hialeah (Gardens, Yioset De La Cruz), and we were there for an hour and a half, maybe two hours, until we filled up all of the cars and got rid of all the food. It’s just something that I wanted to do. I wanted to give back and find a way to do something throughout this time.”
(How are you going through this offseason period? Being on the field and doing your own work is not the same as being at OTAs. Are you worried about what shape people will be in or what people can do on their own versus having the typical team OTAs?) – “It’s definitely going to be a little different being that we are not in the building and guys are training at home, guys are training with their trainers – and even those weight rooms and trainers maybe closed now for a little while. It’s definitely going to be different; but like I said, you are a pro no matter if it’s your first year, your sixth year or your 10th year. You have to be a pro and hold yourself accountable, because when it comes and training camps hit, the sun isn’t going to hold back.”
(How do you feel about not having to play against QB Tom Brady twice a year?) – “Oh, man. He’s one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time. No one is going to take that from him. Him moving out of the division, everyone knows it’s a big deal; but they’re still going to play football. They’re still going to be New England, they’re still going to be Miami, they’re still going to be Buffalo, they’re still going to be New York. You’re going to have to beat teams – good football teams. They unfortunately lost one of the best quarterbacks to ever play the game; but we know it doesn’t matter who the quarterback, who the running back (is). It doesn’t matter. It depends on what we’re doing and how we’re going to be focused going into every game.”
(I wanted to make sure that I remembered this correctly. I think that you had shoulder surgery since the last time we saw you. Is that right?) – “Yeah.”
(So where are you in your recovery from that? Are you completely back? What have you been able to do in terms of workouts and football training?) – “Just about everything. It’s been about – I had surgery in November so you’re looking at about six months – five or six months now. I’m coming along very well. We’re doing the right things with the rehab and taking the precautions for the season to make sure that I’m ready.”
(As a player, how do you strike a balance between QB Tua Tagovailoa and QB Ryan Fitzpatrick, knowing that Tua is the exciting, new player and perhaps the future, but Fitzpatrick did so many good things for you last season. How do you strike that balance?) – “I wouldn’t say to strike that balance. It is a good balance because ‘Fitz’ is a good player and is also a good leader. He helps everyone. He’s a guy that’s been around a long time. He’s seen a lot of football. He’s going to do nothing but elevate that room and elevate the quarterback room. Being that we drafted Tua, he’s a good player, as well. He’s going to come in, there’s going to be a learning curve – it’s the league – and hopefully he learns fast. Regardless, I feel like ‘Fitz’ and Tua – that whole entire room is a good room with Josh (Rosen) and everybody. It’s going to elevate everybody’s game.”
(I wanted to get your thoughts on the additions of CB Byron Jones and CB Noah Igbinoghene to the secondary. What do you know about Byron and how good can the secondary be with the guys you now have in place?) – “I know they’re two good players. I’ve seen Byron for years. He’s my class – my draft class – so I have seen him over the years play really good football. Even with the rookie coming in, he’s going to have a lot to learn and it’s going to be tough because there are no OTAs (off-season training activities) and everything, but he’ll get it done. He’s a smart kid. I’m not going to make any accusations or any predictions on how good our secondary is going to be. We’re just going to take each and every day and try to collect them, gain chemistry with each other and try to be the best version of the Miami Dolphins. That’s all. We don’t want to just sit back and say how great we’re going to be. We’re just going to try to get better each and every day, and we’ll just let it fall into place.”
