Darren Rizzi – May 7, 2016
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Saturday, May 7, 2016
Assistant Head Coach/Special Teams Coordinator Darren Rizzi
(On how this draft was for his special teams purposes and if he found a lot of quality in this draft) – “Yeah, I mean obviously time will tell. But I think right now, when you look from a special teams standpoint, the background that some of these guys have certainly excites the special teams staff – mostly myself. But yeah, a lot of the skill sets that some of these guys have – you look right on through from the second round on – I think all of these guys’ (have the) skill set (and) have the ability. A lot of them may not have done as many jobs, but certainly guys like (RB Kenyan) Drake and (WR Jakeem) Grant have done the return stuff. (Kenyan) Drake has actually played a lot of core teams as well … Being CB Xavien Howard’s skill set. So right on through, I think that that’s what we’ve been doing these couple of days is just trying to get them caught up to speed on the mental part of it. It looks, again on paper and certainly on film, based on what those guys did in college, that a lot of them should be able to help us, for sure.”
(On if he got anybody on the table) – “On the table is a strong word. You guys know I’m a pretty strong personality. But I’m not afraid to give my opinion so a lot of those guys, like I said, to me – and you guys know that I’ve been around here a decent amount of years now – I’m a big believer in collecting as many guys as you can and having options. I feel like some years in the past, we haven’t had a lot of options in the return game and I think with this draft, we’ve brought a lot more options here, which hopefully will help us.”
(On the value of kickoff returners given the rule changes in the NFL regarding kickoffs) – “That’s a great question. (If you) talked to the other 31 coordinators around the league, I think there’s probably some mixed opinions right now with what’s going to happen with the new rule. I think the intent was to maybe increase touchbacks. I’m not sure that’s going to happen. I think it’s going to be really curious. A lot of guys aren’t going to tip their hand right now but there’s certainly some talk around the league throughout the coordinators on whether or not they’re going to go for the touchback or hit it high and short. So you may actually see more returns. Now, if people are going to try to hit the corners a little bit and try to get you tackled inside the 25 (yard line), that may change our alignments and adjustments a little bit, as well. So having two guys back there, not just us but throughout the league, could be more of a common theme. (When) people are starting to try to go high and deep into the corners, there may not just be one person back there. There could be two. A lot of times you see, (in a) formation, guys will have a lot of linemen in the back, for example, and just one returner. You may see teams starting to put two guys back there. That could change a little bit depending on how people treat the new rule. I don’t personally think the touchback percentage is going to go up dramatically. That’s just myself. We’ll see how it plays out.”
(On if WR Jakeem Grant will work on both punt and kickoff return) – “Yes, that is the vision. We went down and worked him out pre-draft and we felt comfortable about that workout and his Pro Day. He’s a guy that caught punts all the time, but for whatever reason he didn’t do it in games. We felt very comfortable going into the draft that (returning punts) is something he could do. So he’ll definitely be working at both for sure.”
(On the type of speed the team has acquired in the return game) – “I’ve always said this, I, as a coach, I hate going against opposing teams that have a lot of options at returner because you never know which guy you’re going to get – whether it’s a big guy, little guy, quick guy (or) fast guy. The one thing about some of the guys that we’ve acquired is that you have some guys that (give us) different options there. So now, if you’re playing us, you don’t know if it’s going to be … maybe you knew it was going to be (WR) Jarvis Landry back there as a punt returner. That’s not really going to be the case now. I think we have developed some options here that will make us more dangerous (and) make our team (harder) to defend, for sure.”
(On the vision of drafting both RB Kenyan Drake and WR Jakeem Grant) – “(RB Kenyan) Drake doesn’t have a long resume as a punt returner, either. Everybody thinks of him and remembers that one big play he had (in) the national championship game. (It was a) huge play. But he didn’t really … I think he only had 20 kick returns in his college career. (WR Jakeem) Grant had much more experience as a kick returner – a lot more reps, for sure. Again, it’s those options. The more options we have the better we’re going to be. I feel very comfortable in that aspect, with those guys skill sets, for sure.”
(On what it is like working with Head Coach Adam Gase) – “Every head coach has a unique style. I really enjoy being around Adam (Gase) every day. We’re very similar personality-wise. I think we share a lot of the same visions in terms of different things we’re doing, in terms of inside the building, itineraries, schedules (and) things like that. We bounce a lot of things off each other – a lot of ideas. He has been at a lot of great places and has been around a lot of great people. I really like his demeanor around our players. I think they appreciate it. I think he relates very well with today’s athlete and certainly his success, I think the guys really respect that. They respect him certainly as an offensive coach and now as a head coach, just being around him every day. I like being around (him). He’s refreshing. He’s really brought an energy to the building. He has a lot of great ideas. (He’s) very, very ingenious in some ways (and an) outside the box thinker. I think he’s really been a very welcome addition. I’ve seen a lot of things here in the last seven years and he’s the fifth guy, the fifth boss that I’ve worked for. And he’s been nothing but positive. I’ve got really nothing but positives to say. I think he’s brought a lot of new ideas and forced some of the coaches here to think outside the box and I think that’s only going to make us better for sure.”
(On two point conversions and if he favors attempting more two point conversions) – “I think it depends on the game. There’s a lot of factors involved. I think the defense you’re playing (against), to be honest with you, (is a factor). The percentages still tell you that it’s a little bit less than a 50 percent play. Remember that Baltimore situation last year? We had the penalty and then got the ball on the 1-yard line. There’s a big difference. I think getting that PAT back to the 15 (yard line) has changed some of the dynamics, for sure. You look at a great kicker like (New England Patriots K Stephen) Gostkowski misses a PAT in the postseason. (He’s) a guy that had made every one in the regular season. I just think the dynamics will change game-to-game, week-to-week and we’ll talk about those things in our game-manager meetings. There’s always going to be … it’s always going to be on the table. It’s always going to be an option to go for two, like in that Baltimore game, where I think we jumped up 15-0. At the end of the day, that actually helped us win the football game big time. I don’t think it’s ever going to be one of those deals where you’re saying ‘Hey, we’re definitely going to go for two every time,’ or definitely going to go for one every time. I think it is going to be game-by-game, week-to-week, weather … All of those things are going to be involved in the decision making. But I think the thought process, all along, (is) always going to be that (it is) an option that we have, for sure. Again, the percentages will tell you that still, at the end of the day, it will probably be about the same amount of points based on stats.”
(On the type of growth he expects to see from P Matt Darr and K Andrew Franks in their second seasons) – “I want to see a big jump. They say your biggest jump should be from year one to year two. The old NFL adage is from game one to game two, you see teams improve the most. I’d like to see those guys make a big jump this year. Now some people would say, ‘Well gosh, Matt Darr was third in the league in gross punting.’ But there are certainly areas of the game he can improve on. Our net punting could go up better. He did a great job on going-in punts inside the 20. But some things like location, hang time … little things that he can work on. I’d love to see … I think the sky is still the limit for this guy. I still think he could be an elite NFL punter, if he’s not already. Andrew Franks didn’t get a lot of field goal opportunities last year. He missed one from 63 (yards) and then he missed two others. Some people may think the jury is still out on this guy. I saw a major improvement out of him from training camp, this time last year, until we got to game one. He made a huge jump and that’s why he made the team. He has a huge leg. I want to see him become more consistent in everything he’s doing. We missed three PATs last year. One wasn’t on him, it was on the operation. But the makeable kicks are the ones – the makeable kicks that he missed – are the ones we want to see. We just want to see him become more consistent. I’ve seen that in practice. We want to see that translate onto the field, for sure.”
(On if he has a lifetime contract with the Dolphins) – “Nah. (laughter) I’m day-to-day like everybody else.”
(On if there are certain things he likes about K Marshall Koehn) – “I’ve said this before, I really believe that anybody we bring in here … in training camp, has a chance to make team. No different than (K Andrew) Franks and (P Matt) Darr last year. Marshall (Koehn) had a hell of a career in the Big Ten. He kicked in inclement weather. He kicked in some big situations. He made a 57-yard game-winner last year at home. He’s going to definitely compete for the job. No doubt about it. And again, it would be a disservice, in my opinion, to bring anybody in here and not say they were competing. So on a daily basis … He has a great skill set. He has a real strong leg. He reminds me a lot of Andrew (Franks), to be honest with you, coming out last year. The only difference is that
(Koehn) kicked at a bigger school. But they have a very similar skill set and kicking leg.”
(On if WR Jarvis Landry is his best option at returner, will he be returning next year) – “If he’s our best option, then yes. If we’re going into Week 1, Game 1, the best option for the football team is going to be the guy that goes back there. I still will always use the Antonio Brown example. He’s still the Pittsburgh Steelers punt returner and you could argue he’s their best player. You could argue he’s one of the best receivers in the league and he’s still back there returning punts and making game-changing plays. I think the thought process is to get more options on the table. We didn’t have a lot of them last year. We haven’t had a lot of them the last couple of years, (that’s the) bottom line. So at that point Jarvis (Landry) was our best option. I’d like to think moving forward that guys like (WR Jakeem) Grant and guys like (RB Kenyan) Drake and some other guys we’re bringing in are going to now be options for us and now make the decision at the end, ‘Hey, can this guy do it week one?’ But I’ll just keep going back to that same thing, having more options for me and certainly the football team is the best scenario for everybody.”
(On what he has learned about his rookies this weekend and what has been his early impressions) – “We’ve done a great job from the scouting department and coaching staff, as well, of evaluating these guys up through the process. We kind of know their skill set and their athletic ability based on film, combines, workouts (and) all (of) that stuff. What we’re evaluating this weekend is really what they can retain from a mental standpoint. I think that’s really the premise here. I really enjoy what we’re doing. I think this weekend was a great idea. It’s an out-of-the-box idea. But I think its great idea because … it’s just no different to me than anybody starting a brand new job. You start a new job with Apple, what do they do? They send you for a two-week orientation. You start a new job with Google (and) they put you in an orientation program. They’re not going to just throw you out into the field. To me, it’s no different. We know these guys have the skills. I think our scouting department has done a phenomenal job of drafting and bringing in these free agents. This weekend is more about getting these guys caught up here and (seeing) how much they can retain. They’re getting a lot of stuff thrown at them this week mentally, not only from the football standpoint but from a building standpoint, a resource standpoint. We’re really loading these guys up mentally and we really want to see what they can retain. And so far from what I’ve seen, at least in my meetings, they’ve done a really good job of it.”
(On if the returner competition is close if he would shy away from using WR Jarvis Landry on returns to lessen his injury risk) – “I don’t want to avoid the question, but I think it’s a little bit early for that. Again, you look at what (WR) Jakeem Grant has done in college and if he can bring that same juice and energy and big-play ability. You look what (RB Kenyan) Drake did as a kick returner. If those guys can match what they did in college, then they are certainly going to be great options for us and they’re going to have a chance to do the job. For me to sit here and say who the kick returner or punt returner is going to be in Week 1 is certainly premature. But I will say Jarvis (Landry) is still in the mix, for sure, because at this point right now, he’s the most proven guy that’s done it.”
(On if RB Kenyan Drake will fill in on punt returns) – “Yeah, absolutely. I mean you look at what he’s done in the kick return game and here’s a guy that’s done … You look at his career (and) he’s done a little bit of everything. He’s caught passes. He’s run the ball well. He’s had high yards per carry. He’s caught the ball out of the back field. He’s covered kicks. It’s almost like ‘What can’t this guy do?’ And I’ll go back, (WR) Jarvis Landry never returned a punt in college either. I think people forget that. You look at what Jarvis (Landry) has done the last couple of years in punt returns in the NFL (and) this guy never returned a punt in college. We’ve proven that we can do it with a guy that hasn’t done it (in college). Obviously WR Odelle Beckham was ahead of (Landry at LSU). So certainly I feel very confident with these guys’ ability and the fact that we’re going to have a lot of great options moving forward.”
