Eric Studesville – February 15, 2019
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Friday, February 15, 2019
Running Backs Coach Eric Studesville
(I want to ask you about RB Kenyan Drake, first of all. I know there was some frustration that maybe he didn’t carry the ball as much as you wanted although he got a lot of the touches in the past. Did he ever express frustration to you?) – “No. Kenyan has been a part of this. I think he did a great job and was trying to do everything he could to help us win games and he knows that happens a lot of different ways.”
(Would your hope be, and I know obviously Offensive Coordinator Chad O’Shea, you, Head Coach Brian Flores collectively will decide this, but would you hope to be able to incorporate him a little bit more in the running game next year? I know a lot is dependent on how many offensive snaps you have. That was a big factor in why everybody’s numbers were lower, but do you think he’s capable of carrying the ball more than the seven times per game that he averaged?) – “I don’t know what that’s going to be going forward. We haven’t done all of that yet. The hard part is how you build this and who we get here and how all of the pieces go together. It’s the same thing as we’ve always done, we’re going to try to put guys in a positon to help us win football games. How many that is? Enough to win the game. That’s the end goal.”
(Do you think RB Kenyan Drake played well last year?) – “I do. But like all of us, we could all get better. There’s areas for everybody to improve on and work on; but we’ll get to all that. Right now, the biggest thing that we’re trying to do is we’re trying to figure out who everybody is right now and get the pieces in and we’ll figure out what to do with them.”
(One other thing on RB Kenyan Drake, I know Adam Gase had some concerns about negative carries and there were a good number of them, well into double-digits last year as far as losses of 3 yards or more. When I asked Kenyan about it he said he doesn’t want to change his running style to reduce those, he is who he is. Are you okay with that?) – “I think backs have natural instincts. How much can you change it, how much do you adjust that, you take away what their God-given ability is. The thing we want to do is we want to do is with all of the backs, not just Kenyan, the things we talk about are we want to keep the offense on track and we want to do positive things. They all buy into that.”
(Do you just accept with RB Kenyan Drake that there are going to be some losses on some runs just because he has the explosiveness to break? Is that something you accept or do you try to tinker with his style at all to eliminate or to reduce some of the negative yardage runs?) – “In everything we’re going to do, we’re going to coach all those guys to do what’s best within the scheme of the play and what we’re trying to do and then hopefully those plays are part of utilizing their skillset.”
(With RB Kalen Ballage, what did he show you? Could he one day be a three-down back?) – “I hope all of them can be three-down backs, because you never know. You hope that the biggest thing that they can do is find their role in the offense, whatever that is. If we need them to play three downs, they’re able to do that. If we’re fortunate enough to have one back and they have roles and things, we want them all to be able to contribute and be able to play. I think that’s good for everybody too. I don’t know that there’s one answer to that. Three-down backs are hard to find.”
(With RB Kalen Ballage’s skillset, what impressed you specifically and about how he played late in the season?) – “I think the big thing you notice about Kalen is he’s a big, physical body. He can run. He’s athletic. I think he’s maturing and growing. He still has a lot of growth to do as far as seeing and recognizing things, but his work ethic is tremendous. He has got a great personality and he comes in every day ready to work. That’s the best starting point there is for a young player.”
(From a skillset standpoint, what stood out to you about RB Kalen Ballage? His burst?) – “I think his size. His size and he can run. He can catch the ball. He’s got speed for a big man. All of those things make him impressive as a player.”
(Do you hope RB Frank Gore is back?) – “The biggest thing with Frank is let’s get Frank healthy and we’ll figure out what’s next for him. Him ending the season banged up was … I want to get him healthy first and then we’ll cross all of those other bridges.”
(RB Frank Gore will be a free agent in a month. I know you probably wouldn’t reveal it even if you did know, but do you know if he will return, if he’ll be asked to return?) – “I don’t know that.”
(How much of a presence was RB Frank Gore with the young guys?) – “I think Frank was an outstanding presence. The biggest thing that Frank gives to you is leadership and a demonstration of what a veteran, professional in your room looks like. That example is incredibly valuable.”
(Another guy on the roster, RB Senorise Perry. How did he perform last year? I know he was on special teams a lot, but what did you see out of him?) – “Senorise did everything we asked of him. It’s an unusual situation when you have five backs that are active for all 16 games. The great thing about Senorise, he was ready to go every week. He approached his job in a professional way. Had we called on him to do something, he would’ve been ready to jump in there no question.”
(You’re back here this year. What did you think of the running back production last year?) – “I think like in every area, I’m going to say this every year: there’s room for improvement.”
(Specifically as far as pass protection?) – “I think in every aspect of it. I’d like to see us improve in a lot of different areas. The hard part is what those areas are exactly, we don’t know yet, because we start building where we’re going now in this direction and it is making all of those things fit. We can do a lot of little things better. We can do things better in our room and that’s where we’re going to work at, at least as a starting point.”
(The running game’s role in this offense, I know Offensive Coordinator Chad O’Shea just got here and Head Coach Brian Flores just got here, do you know? Is it going to be a half and half?) – “No, I don’t know. We haven’t even gotten to all that. We’re working through the playbook now and evaluating people and things. We haven’t even got to how the pieces work on the table yet. We’re still trying to figure out what the pieces are and what we’re going to ask them to do.”
(Your guys can carry a pretty big share of the load, right?) – “I would think so. I would hope so, yes. I hope there’s the confidence that we can do that if that’s what’s needed to help us win a game.”
(What are you expecting from RB Kenyan Drake as far as things that he needs to work on, things that he did well that you want to accentuate?) – “I think we’re probably being a little premature on that, because we don’t know what we’re going to ask him to do yet. Until we start putting everything together and finding out what those things are, we don’t know what we’re going to ask him to do. So then that affects what we need him to work on and improve on and all those kind of things and specifically what to work on.”
(RB Kenyan Drake has a knack for big plays. Has that worked for him or has that worked against him? In other words does he try to house it too much? We see it, but how does that manifest itself?) – “I hope that mentality is in all of my guys that they want to be out there, they want to make the big play and they have the capability to make a big play. That’s how I want them to approach it. I don’t ever want them to … Unless it’s third-and-1 and we’ll take that 2-yard gain every time. But I want them to think about big plays. I want them to have that potential in them. Obviously, as an offense and a team, if that’s what helps us win, that’s going to put is in a better chance to win. I like that mentality that he has that he feels like he can score whenever he touches the ball.”
(RB Kalen Ballage, did you see enough of him? Obviously, you saw him in practice all year. In games, did you see enough to have a good feel or you just got a little taste of him?) – “I think we all got a little bit and scratched what the potential is. Now the next step is going to be up to him and him establishing a role and whatever that is going forward, and how he can contribute in some kind of what to what we’re doing. But I think he has potential. How much? We have to wait and see. That’s what the future is going to give us.”
(I’m doing a story on black coaches and the ability to climb the ranks. The idea is this that this last round of coaching hires, we saw a lot of offensive-minded coaches and yes they were white, but offensive-minded coaches get jobs. Guys we saw lose jobs were defensive-minded coaches and yes they were black. As an offensive coach, as a black coach, how do you get play-caller, quarterback coach, offensive coordinator roles so that you can be next in line?) – “I don’t know if there’s an easy answer to that question. How I’ve always approached it is I come into work, prepare myself, get ready to go the best I can and whatever opportunity comes up, I’m going to try to prepare myself for that. You can’t control those things. Some of those things aren’t in my hands. Someone has got to say they want you to do this. The only time you’re going to obviously get that opportunity is if you’re ready for that opportunity. I know that’s not a good answer for you, but that’s really what it is, is that when those interviews come up or when somebody wants to talk to you, that you’re ready for those opportunities and that’s the only way you’re really going to get seriously considered for it.”
(I know of a few in colleges – Pep Hamilton, who’s not in college, but Scottie Montgomery, Mike Locksley up at Maryland, Brian Johnson at Florida. There are guys around. I was talking to Troy Vincent yesterday. He was saying there’s guys around, they just need to get those opportunities.) – “Those are the opportunities we’re talking about. Somebody has got to say, ‘I want to talk to Mike Locksley about this offensive coordinator position.’”
(It was something that just really, to me, it really became apparent this last round that … And Troy Vincent was saying that black coaches previously, you felt more comfortable coming up on the defensive side of the ball and that’s what we had with Todd Bowles, Vance Joseph and Steve Wilks, but now it has changed. What owners and GMs are looking for are the passing-game guys.) – “It has always been that way. I think it’s always been that way. Whatever seems to be kind of ‘in.’ For a while, it was … For years it was Bill Walsh’s guys. Then it was Mike Shanahan’s guys. There are trends it seems and now it’s the Sean McVays or whatever that is. It goes in spurts. I don’t know what the answer to it is.”
(I’m just wondering if there are offensive black coaches and Troy Vincent says there are. Troy Vincent says there are.) – “There are.”
(I don’t know how many are in the NFL. The other part is I talked to Kris Richard and Anthony Lynn at the Pro Bowl about this and they were saying I wish you would just say you’re looking for the best leader not the best offensive coach or the best defensive coach and it shouldn’t matter if you’re black or white.) – “I would concur strongly with that sentiment.”
(I thought that was interesting too because while I want to look at it one way, they’re looking at it like don’t consider one side of the ball.) – “But the reality is that that positon is not just offensive anymore. I’m talking about when you become a head coach. You’re over all three phases, so it’s not as easy as just saying, ‘I’m only in charge of one side of the ball.’ I think that’s where the leadership component that maybe they’re referencing comes up. You’re a leader over men no matter what side of the ball they’re on.”
(Give me your thoughts on coming back to the Dolphins. I believe it’s three guys who are back from last year’s staff.) – “I’m excited. I’m glad to be here and find some more time here in South Florida and be a part of this organization and help be a part of what’s going forward here with Coach Flores.”
(Did you have a good relationship with Head Coach Brian Flores?) – “I knew him. I knew him before here; but like all the things that happen in the job world, you know a lot of different people, but it’s different when you’re trying to actually get a job.”
(Where had you and Brian Flores met?) – “I knew him professionally, obviously. We played New England so many times in Denver and then here last year, but obviously Denver and when I was in Buffalo, too. (I) knew of him, respected him and who he was and how he carried himself. We got a chance to know each other a little bit more and spend some time last year at the coaches’ symposium.”
(What are your thoughts about Head Coach Brain Flores from a coaching standpoint?) – “I think the first thing is presence and leadership. Those are the first two things that really jump out at me. Obviously, he’s highly intelligent. I think he’s got a plan to go forward. I think when you sit in front of him, you see somebody that looks like a leader and somebody that can be a leader of men and create a direction that we want to go.”
(What do you feel about the potential of the running backs, especially when you have two young guys RB Kenyan Drake and RB Kalen Ballage?) – “I think there’s potential there. That’s exactly the right word. We have to develop it and figure out how to utilize it in the scheme and where we’re going.”
(The Miami Miracle, did that come up when you were talking to Head Coach Brian Flores?) – “No, I don’t bring that up. It was a great play. That’s one of those plays you enjoy later in life.”
