Dan Feeney – March 22, 2023
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Wednesday, March 22, 2023
OL Dan Feeney
(How many games have you started at center? I know most have been at left guard.) – “Most of the 2020 season was all starts at center. So 16 there and then I think two at the Jets. So yeah, 18 to 20 or something like that.”
(Did the Dolphins give you any sense if you would be in a competition at left guard? Obviously they have OL Liam Eichenberg, OL Rob Jones there. OL Lester Cotton as well. Or are you coming in strictly as a backup at guard and center as it was portrayed to you?) – “They said there would definitely be opportunities at the line. So that’s what kind of made me jump at the offer. I’m just excited to get there and show my talent, show my worth to the team and then we’ll go from there.”
(I wanted to ask you about kind of the continuity of going from a system that has some similarities to what the Dolphins run here under Head Coach Mike McDaniel. Playing the last couple of years in Mike LaFleur’s system, how does that kind of help you ease the transition to a new offensive scheme?) – “I think it’s huge. Honestly one of the first times Mike and I talked on the phone, it was pretty much X’s and O’s, so just having a very similar language is definitely huge. It’s easy to kind of just get into the system and kind of fit in right away, so I think that’ll be good for me. There will always be different languages about some sort of things but kind of having that same offensive mindset and scheme, I think it’ll be an easier transition for me.”
(I don’t know if you happened to see QB Mike White’s social media video where he did some casting on the Hangover with you and those guys coming down here. I believe he puts you in Zach Galifianakis’ role. I was I was just curious if you thought he was accurate there in his casting on that?) – “I definitely thought it was a little shade at first, but it is hilarious. And I think that is a little bit of me, that personality of just happy to be there, happy to be back with the boys. So it was a hilarious video. Whoever edited that and did that, it was spot on.”
(I actually want to ask you about those two guys. Tell us about your former Jets teammates now coming over with you. What are QB Mike White and WR Braxton Berrios like as teammates?) – “Oh, man, they’re awesome. Great locker room guys. Great people to golf with. They’re some of my golf partners so we have a good time out there on the course as well. Just good guys. Good guys to put in a locker room. They bring a great energy. They’re X’s and O’s guys, too, so talking ball with them is very fluid and easy. They’re just great additions to the team, I believe.”
(Was that something that you guys all communicated with each other about as your free agency sort of lined up that you guys wanted to go to the same place together?) – “I think we were just pretty much a package deal at that point, as soon as Mike White went somewhere. (laughter) No, I’m just messing around. But the stars kind of aligned for it more than anything. And it was awesome to see that I’m definitely going to have some familiar faces in the locker room, so it’ll be easier for me to transition when I got a couple of good guys in that locker room with me as well.”
(Talking about the Jets and all, you’re aware of how they were building and what kind of team they’re starting to put together up there. You know about the Bills as defending division champs and what the Jets are hoping to add in Aaron Rodgers. When you look at this division, what’s it going to be like you think in the AFC East next year?) – “I think it’s going to be a powerhouse division for sure. Like you said, I mean, the Bills have been very strong past couple years. And when I was on the Jets, Miami was coming along and had some great players. So it’s exciting to be a part of that system now and it definitely will be a powerhouse league. I mean, Bill Belichick at the Patriots. I mean, he’s one of the best coaches of all time. So it’s definitely going to be a tough division. And we’re going to have some tough division games coming up this year, but I think we’ll be able to handle it.”
(Let’s talk about the fun stuff. The beer chugging at hockey games. Tell me how that happened and are we going to expect to see that at Panthers games this year?) – “I hope so. I hope the Panthers shoot me an invite. I’d love to go. I love being at hockey games. It’s such a good energy and a good vibe. That energy is just contagious, so I kind of lose myself in a hockey game, clearly, as you guys have seen. That just kind of came about. We were all like, ‘Hey, when we get on the Jumbotron, let’s all chug a beer together.’ I took it a little far I guess, and started slamming it on my head. I was just trying to have a little fun with it. It was a great time being together with the guys.”
(What are your top three all-time beer choices?) – “Anything that’s cold is usually No. 1. I love that. I really don’t hate on any beer. I’m a Coors Light, Miller Lite guy to probably start. I love a Budwesier, a little Diesel. Funky Buddha is pretty good – a little local one to South Florida. I’ve had one or two of those and really liked those, so I think that may sneak it’s way up the leaderboard.”
(You’re obviously a lot of fun. You enjoy life off the field. How does that translate to your approach to football?) – “I think it’s contagious. Just being around guys that love having a good time and making work fun, it just makes the locker room better and makes the vibe around the whole entire team better in my eyes because if guys love hanging out with the guys outside of the facility, we’re going to bring that same natural energy and camaraderie into the locker room. And I think that’ll translate onto the field. Because once you know your teammates, you want to hang out with them outside of the locker room and it just becomes contagious. More and more guys get on board with it and it just becomes a nice atmosphere.”
(Is this still a mullet?) – “Oh, yeah. We still got the mullet. Business in front, party in the back. You got to be able to do both so I figured I’d show people right away.”
(Your sister made some t-shirts right for MS, right? Are those still around?) – “Yeah, so my sister does work for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society and I support her doing off the field stuff. She wasn’t the one that made the t-shirts. They were kind of – so the Islanders actually ended up making a t-shirt for me and then all the proceeds that the t-shirts sold, we gave away to charity. I thought it was just something good to do – give all that money away and have fun with it and just trying to bring good energy and vibe there. But I had a couple of Jets fans make a couple of shirts too. Got to start making one and selling that thing out there.”
(How does that play into your – I guess that fits into your personality perfectly right? All of this stuff around you?) – “Yeah, I guess so. It’s just how it goes. Once the COVID year kind of happened, I couldn’t get a haircut for a while. I kind of went to the barber and I’m like, ‘Hey man, cut a mullet in there. Let’s see how it looks.’ It kind of just stuck from there and the train has been rolling pretty much ever since so I didn’t want to get off it.”
(I saw when you had that the hat on it was a Bass Pro Shops hat. Is that something you’re going to enjoy about South Florida? Are you a fisherman? And what else are you going to like about South Florida off the field?) – “Yeah, absolutely. I love fishing. It’s been a while since I’ve put a little line in the water, but I’m definitely excited to go back and do that. It’s just a calming thing I like doing when I’m not playing ball, just kind of let your mind go, catch a little fish, throw it back in there and do it all over again. It’s one of those easy things that’s just fun to do. But off-the-field stuff other than that, I just kind of like hanging out with my buddies, watching TV, Netflix series and playing video games. So usually when it’s not all gas, it’s usually a little quieter than that. But yeah, I like to have a little fun clearly.”
(The mullet was created because of COVID and the pandemic?) – “It definitely was a child of the pandemic year because I was out in California at the time and everything was pretty much shut down, so my hair was getting long. My girlfriend was like, ‘You need to get a haircut somehow.’ And that’s when all the at-home haircuts were coming out and it frightened me a little bit of all the horror videos I was seeing online. So I found a spot that was still open. The guy that ended up cutting the mullet in my head was one of the most ecstatic barbers I’ve ever had to cut a mullet. I’ve never seen anything like it. I was like ‘well, I came to the right spot,’ and he pretty much juiced me up right away when he cut it, so I was like ‘well, I think it’s going to stay for a little while.’”
(So you requested the mullet? That wasn’t like his top choice of hairstyles that he does?) – “I think it was his top hairstyle. They are just few and far between. So I think he was just so ecstatic about it. When I came in, I was like, ‘Hey, man, let’s cut a mullet in and have a little fun.’ And then I was going to eventually do a high and tight but he persuaded me the other way. I thought it looked good so I figured that keep it.”
