Brian Flores – September 1, 2020
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Tuesday, September 1, 2020
Head Coach Brian Flores
(With the news of RB Kalen Ballage failing his physical with the Jets, where does he stand with the organization? And also, what is the team’s level of interest in RB Leonard Fournette, now that he’s available?) – “Well, we look at the waiver wire every day so to your Fournette question, (General Manager) Chris (Grier) and the scouting staff, they’ll make their evaluations, write a report and we’ll just kind of see – like all players who hit the waiver wire or street free agents, we’ll see if we feel like it will be a good fit for us. If we do, then we make a move. If not, then we won’t. As far as the Kalen situation, obviously he reverted back to us. We’ve had obviously discussions internally and that’s an ongoing situation. We’ll address it when it’s necessary to address.”
(I wanted to check in with you on your stance on how the rookie class as a whole has done, knowing that they had no OTAs and preseason and now that we’re in the last week before you guys make some big decisions. How do you think the rookie class that you drafted, as a whole, has done to adapting to everything that comes with being a Dolphin?) – “I think given the situation, I think they’ve worked hard. They’ve improved over the course of training camp. But the big thing with the rookies on our team and really across the league is you never really know about a player until there’s live action. Some guys get tight when there’s live action. Some guys play better when there’s live action. It’s hard to know, so we’re going to go into the unknown this season. You know a little bit more in the preseason, but even that isn’t a regular-season game. I’m pleased with our rookie class. From the guys we drafted early to the undrafted guys, I think they’re all working hard. I think they’re all bought in. But there’s a lot of unknown here, as you guys could imagine. Playing an NFL game, the speed of it, the pressure that’s involved in playing in the game, the players you’re playing against – these guys are big, they’re physical, they’re strong, they’re tough, they’re angry. When you get put into that situation, pressure busts pipes is a phrase that’s been used for a long time. We’ll see. It’s not just us. That’s every team.”
(I wanted to ask you primarily about your rookie linemen – not necessarily T Austin Jackson but the decisions you have to make with T Robert Hunt or G Solomon Kindley, whoever fills into the right side of that line. What goes into your judgement? Is it where G/T Jesse Davis best fits? Or which rookie you feel is further ahead and ready to start? Conditioning? What goes into the thought process on that decision you have to make on the right side?) – “I mean all of those things. Everything you mentioned goes into the decision. Conditioning, best fit, best overall – I would say the number one thing is the overall – we’re talking about five guys we need to get on the same page from a communication standpoint. I think the three rookies – Austin (Jackson), Robert Hunt, Solomon Kindley – I think they’ve all played well at times during training camp. They’ve all made mistakes, as well. These are tough decisions that we have to make. Look, things change over the course of the season. Like I was telling (you guys) earlier, we may feel a certain way now and put a group out there; but if a player freezes up, we’ve got to make an adjustment. I think we all know that. But I like where they’re at. I think they’re all working. We’re still in a little bit of an evaluation phase here at practice today and a couple of practices later this week, so no official decisions have been made. Honestly, you guys probably won’t know until opening day exactly what it is. I like where they’re all at.”
(Are you open to using LB Elandon Roberts at fullback or do you want him to focus exclusively on defense? And also, I’m curious how close the QB Tua Tagovailoa and QB Josh Rosen competition is for the No. 2 job?) – “Obviously Elandon has played fullback in the past. Look, he’s someone who is willing to play wherever we ask him to play; but we’ve got a lot of guys that way. It’s definitely a possibility, I would say that; but it’s not something that we’re going to make any definitive decisions on right now. We’ve still got 12 days, so that’s where we’re at with Elandon. As far as Tua and Rosen – we might as well throw (Ryan) Fitzpatrick in there as well – that’s still a lot of competition at that position. We’re not saying somebody is one, two or three. It’s still a competition. Obviously ‘Fitz’ has played well – they’ve all played well in spurts, and they’ve all made mistakes. We’ve still got a few days here. I think we like where all three of them are and we’ll continue to leave that as a competition moving forward.”
(I guess we’re getting closer to cut-down day, so I wanted to ask what’s your comfort level on who you think your 53 is at this point? And I know you just mentioned the quarterbacks, but is there a day going into Week 1 where you would like to know who QB1 is or at least tell us who your QB1 is?) – “On the 53(-man roster), we’ve got a lot of competition on this team at various positions. There’s probably – let’s call it 60 players that we feel good about, and probably a little bit more than that when you start talking about practice squad spots as well. There’s 16 practice squad spots this season. I think we’ve got some talented players, some guys we can develop. So as far as forecasting who the best players and who the guys we think can develop, that becomes a little bit of a longer conversation, to say the least. As far as who the 53 are, I kind of look at it as who the 69 are, to be honest with you. We’re going to have to release some of those guys and hope that we get them back on the practice squad. But yeah, I’ve got a pretty good idea of who the 69 players are. The next question was about QB1 and when we would like to know – as soon as possible. You guys will know probably as late as possible is where I’ll leave it. (laughter)”
(Will giving QB Tua Tagovailoa more time and separation from his injury be a part of the discussion about who is active at the quarterback position? Or is that, at this time, no longer a factor – is it not a part of the discussion or the equation?) – “That is definitely part of the conversation, for sure. I think we’re at 10 months. It was a pretty serious injury. He looks good though. You guys have seen him. He looks good, he looks healthy, he’s moving around to his right, to his left. But yes, that’s part of the conversation. Look, he’s a great kid. I care about him. I want what’s best for him and that’s definitely part of the conversation.”
(I wanted to ask about T Julién Davenport. How would you assess his development over the past year?) – “He’s made a lot of improvements. He’s stronger. He’s made a lot of gains in the offseason. His technique, his footwork is a lot better. He’s made a lot of improvement. Obviously he started some games last year. I’ve been very happy with him. I’ve seen a lot of improvement. We’d have no problem putting him in a game.”
(I wanted to ask you a little bit about your comfort level with your receiver depth, especially considering the injuries that you’ve got and WR Preston Williams’ pre-existing injury. Where is that comfort level and what have you seen from guys like WR Mack Hollins, WR Isaiah Ford and WR Charles Rogers?) – “I feel – guys like Ford, Hollins, Rogers and obviously you mentioned DeVante (Parker), Preston and Jakeem (Grant) – I think they all, I like the depth. They’re all working. They all understand their role in the offense. Malcolm Perry is part of that as well. They all have different and unique skillsets. I like the depth. I think their role in the kicking game will also play a role in that evaluation, whether it’s Jakeem as a punt returner, Mack Hollins as a gunner, Malcolm Perry and his roles as a punt returner and as a ‘PP’ (personal protector) on punt. Isaiah Ford, who can move around and play multiple positions. I like the depth. It’s a hardworking group. They all block and it’s important to them. I think they’re – I like the group.”
