Eric Saubert – March 22, 2023
Download PDF version
Wednesday, March 22, 2023
TE Eric Saubert
(I know you have a prior relationship with Offensive Coordinator Frank Smith. I was just curious, back from his days with the Raiders, what was that relationship like? And how much of that was maybe a sticking point for you in making your decision to come to Miami?) – “Frank is awesome. I loved working with him in Oakland. I think he’s a big proponent, or I guess component of my development as a tight end, as a person. So, getting to reunite with him – we’ve kind of stayed in touch throughout the years. Getting to reunite with him is exciting for me. I love working with him and I’m looking forward to that.”
(You mentioned that he’s taught you a lot. What’s maybe one thing or one part of your game that he really helped develop or shine a light on to help you improve?) – “I think it was all encompassing. There wasn’t one thing. There were just so many things. I mean, run footwork, hands, technique, just being a pro, a lot of it. So, I owe him a lot of my development and like I said, just getting back with him is going to be cool.”
(You were there in Denver with Defensive Coordinator Vic Fangio. What stands out to you about his coaching style as your head coach and did that play a factor in your coming here?) – “Yeah, Vic (Fangio) is another guy who I’ve loved working with. You talked about his coaching style. You know, he’s gritty, he’s a little old school but his defense speaks for itself. It’s one of the hardest defenses in the NFL to recognize the coverage. They hide that really well. Just all in all it’s just a tough defense to beat. You asked, was that a reason for me coming here? Not really, but Vic, getting to work with him again, like I said, him and I have a have a good relationship so the opportunity to work with him and compete against him is going to be cool.”
(I wanted to ask you about your mix of blocking and passing because I know that you’re an improved receiver and your numbers have been up. Is there an ideal mix to you like 90 percent blocking or 80 percent blocking and did they tell you anything along those lines?) – “That wasn’t really discussed. I don’t view my game as 80 percent, 90 percent. I think I’m a person that can do it all. Obviously, statistics are something that you can get hung up on. I’m definitely improving in the production aspect of my game and I look to continue improving. It’s just kind of funny, because when I was coming out of college, I was touted as only a receiver and now I’m being kind of touted as only a blocker. (laughter) So I didn’t lose that ability to receive it’s just kind of how you’re mixed in the game and what kind of opportunities you get. The ball’s got to be spread around between different guys on different teams you’re on. I take a lot of pride in my ability to be a receiver and a blocker. If I get labeled as a blocking tight end, that is what it is. But I know my ability and I’m looking to shed some light on that when I when I get here. I’m just excited to work.”
(Who did you hear from with the Dolphins either before you signed or after. Was it Jon Embree, Mike McDaniel, Chris Grier? Who’d you talk to and what did they tell you about what they saw your role being?) – “When I when I came down to Miami, I got to meet Chris Grier. I got to meet Coach McDaniel, Coach Embree. I guess I prefer to keep those kinds of conversations a little more close to home. But overall, just excited to get there and get to work with those guys. Whatever my role is going to be, it’s going to be and I’m a guy that will fall into his role as it kind of reveals itself. So, like I said, just excited.”
(You do a lot of things well, have you been surprised you’ve bounced around a lot and has it been frustrating over the course of your young career?) – “I guess looking back it’s not a surprising. I’ve come a really long way since my rookie year and I feel like right now, these past couple years, my development in Denver, I’ve just kind of really hit my stride … Miami is going to be awesome. Excited for the city. Excited to live there. So, I think the best is yet to come for me. So I’m just looking forward to it.”
(You’ve mentioned Head Coach Mike McDaniel, Coach Jon Embree and traditionally this offense has empowered players like you see yourself in terms of multifaceted. I’m curious how you think this offense in this system can get the best out of you as a player?) – “Oh yeah, for sure. I’ve been in this system before. There’s a lot of familiarity there. Obviously, you see guys like George Kittle on the Niners that can do it all, can do both and how that works, how that mirrors with play action, playing off the run, RPO, there’s a lot of opportunity in this offense for the tight end. Like I said, the roles we discuss, my role, whatever they ask me to do is what I’m going to do. Whether they need me to go break off a guy on third down, I’ll do that. Whether they need me to push the pile on third-and-short, I’m going to do it. That’s what I’m here for.”
(Tell us about LB Malik Reed as a player. What do you think he does well?) – “That guy, first of all, he’s a workhorse. He’s one of the first guys at the facility. Him and I, our lockers were right next to each other, so the past two years were pretty cool getting to know him, getting to compete against him. Great dude. His style of play. Just a motor, never going to stop, always chasing down the ball even if it’s 30 yards downfield. He’s got some sneaky pass rush. I think he led our team in sacks a couple years ago. So, his game is awesome. And like I said getting to compete with him again and (Bradley) Chubb as well. That’s going to be fun.”
(I thought of you when I saw that Miami was playing Drake in that NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament. Did you ever play pickup basketball with the Drake guys and had you already chosen Miami when that came out. Did you watch the game?) – “Oh, yeah. So, I love basketball first of all. Back in my Drake days I did the whole intramurals thing. I played a few times pick up against the team. You know my allegiances were kind of challenged because it was right after I signed. I’m pretty sure that it was the next day they were playing. I think the free throw differential was just an interesting thing. It was like 28 free throws shot for Miami and maybe eight for Drake. That’s just really interesting. That’s all I’ll say. (laughter)”
(I wanted to ask you about the kind of excitement of playing with one of the most star-studded rosters in the National Football League. Everywhere you look there’s a big name. Do you let yourself think ‘hey this is a team on paper that can and should make a run at the biggest goal’?) – “Yeah, absolutely that’s got to be the goal all the time right. If you’re not committed to winning the Super Bowl, you’ve got the wrong mindset. I think it gives you more confidence that when you’ve got such great players around, it allows you to play better. That’s the thing that when you have a great receiver on the field and you have a great quarterback on the field, everyone just plays better when those other (good) players on the field. We’ve got a got an awesome roster getting set here and I’m excited to see how far we can go. The Super Bowl is the goal. If it’s not, you’re in the wrong headspace.”
(I want to get you to put into words your own career because you’ve been a well-traveled man. How much do you think that that has molded you into the player that you are?) – “Yeah, absolutely. Getting to travel, I guess bouncing around as much as I have, it’s a blessing and a curse because you do meet so many amazing people that I owe a lot to in my career. Like I said working with Frank (Smith) for just that little, short amount of time, had such an impact on me. Stopping with the Bears, stopping with the Jags. It’s huge anytime you can pick up different little things to add your game from different people. Seeing how things are done differently, I’ve now learned probably eight or nine offenses in my career and that’s going to stay with me for the rest of my career too. Learning an offense for me now is not difficult. I can do it like that. So, it’s a curse in the fact that you are moving around so much. The instability is kind of annoying, but I guess it shaped me to who I’ve become now. Like I said, I feel like I’m just taking off and getting ready to make an impact.”
