Frank Smith – October 13, 2022
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Thursday, October 13, 2022
Offensive Coordinator Frank Smith
(The blocking of the tight end room – outside of TE Durham Smythe, who I guess is in question this week in case Durham can’t play because of the hamstring – with TE Mike Gesicki, with TE Tanner Connor, with TE Hunter Long obviously coming back, is there enough blocking skill there to run the offense entirely as you might want to?) – “Yeah. And I think also, when it comes to that, there’s also different options as far as scheme, different things we can utilize to help everyone execute what we need, fundamentally. So I think that, yeah, if Durham can’t make it to the game, then we have a plan and we have contingencies like we talk about for all positions. But ultimately, our job is to put our players in the best position possible to execute what they do well.”
(What was it like having a week where you prepare to have QB Teddy Bridgewater as a starter, and the first play he goes out and you have QB Skylar Thompson going?) – “Yeah, the last two weeks have been an interesting time in the NFL to be honest. But also really a great time for us to really act upon the adversity that the NFL provides for this roster to really learn nothing’s guaranteed, for everyone to maximize their opportunities. But if you dwell on what you don’t have, you will be reminded really quickly of what you won’t get, and that’s not winning. So our goal is always around here to focus on the future, focus on the present and make sure that everyone that’s active on game day is preparing in a way to make sure that they can help us execute to win a football game.”
(Now, what gives you confidence in QB Skylar Thompson with a full week of preparation for him to start?) – “Well, I think it’s pretty evident from what you guys have been able to witness through training camp, for Skyler, he’s not your average rookie. The way he’s been able to prepare, the way he’s been able to execute, we have full confidence in what he’s going to be able to deliver to help us win on a full week of preparation. The scenario to which he went in, I can’t even imagine sometimes. It’s the second play of the game and you’re standing there and you’re kind of by yourself. I mean the rest of his position group that he’s been prepping with the entire offseason was not available. So he’s by himself pushing through and I think you really saw a lot of the moxie he possesses and the reason why he’s going to grow and continue to get better. We felt like this week, with him being available and getting the full preparation, that he was our best chance to help us win.”
(Let us get some, I guess, an explanation on the offensive tackle situation last week and this week. OL Brandon Shell made his debut at left tackle. But you have T Greg Little, who I believe has flexibility. So why go with Brandon on the left side as opposed to the right side last week? And then how is OL Austin Jackson after yesterday?) – “I think overall, it just stresses back to our goal to create consistency for guys at positions. When you’re flipping guys constantly, you’re not allowing for that to happen. We felt all along that if we can create consistency for the guys, we’ll give them the best chance to execute when we need them to be at their best on Sundays. And always, it’s never a finished product. There’s always things to work on. There’s always the ebbs and flows of the game that create challenges. But overall, at the tackle position, we’ve tried to create that consistency so if and when we have to make changes at those spots, we try and make sure that we’re not flipping them back and forth because in the course of a week, just with our experience, we found it’s extremely challenging. It would be challenging for many positions – if you’re on one side, you’re on one side. That’s just kind of like, you’re back in the 1980s and you’re going strong guard, quick guard like everyone else was doing.”
(And OL Austin Jackson, are you optimistic?) – “Yeah, extremely. I think A.J. has done a great job in his rehabilitation, his preparation, being active and involved. He is such a hungry learner. I mean just coming into the NFL so young. I mean, he’s just been really fun to work with. I know we’ve all enjoyed his progression. So we’re very optimistic and hopeful that he’ll be able to help us this Sunday the rest of season.”
(I wanted to ask you about T Terron Armstead. Obviously he signed here in the offseason, and yet he hasn’t been able to practice hardly at all really. How sustainable is that? Does it hold him back more? Or is it a matter of having an opportunity to work on chemistry with the other guys?) – “I would think if he was younger in his tenure, maybe more. Now granted, practice is where you want to refine and work on the things that you’re trying to get ready for Sunday. Terron, and like many elite tackles in this league, though, have such a wealth of experience to draw upon. And I mean, it’s a credit to him in the last couple of years in New Orleans – I know it was very similar, as far as making sure any little things are being maintenanced and also his mental focus and his stamina is elite. Like he’s able to stay on-task through everything else. So we haven’t had any concerns with that. Just knowing the guy since he was a rookie, he’s one of those guys that when you draft him, he acts like he’s 31. I mean, he acts older, he’s more mature, he’s always been that way. So I don’t think we’ve particularly had any concerns, and we won’t probably going forward. I mean, you’d love to have practice time, but it’s the NFL and sometimes it’s not available. But especially for younger players, you’d like to be able to practice more.”
(I know he had some injuries early, but what’s been the issue or challenge in getting WR Cedrick Wilson Jr. involved into the offense?) – “I think that the challenge is, ultimately, just trying to make sure that we’re getting guys in positions to do what they do well, and then secondly, how does the game play out? Like, guys have opportunities throughout the game plan, where we really want to have options. And then ultimately, what the coverage is dictating, what the defense is trying to do can sometimes have us adjust and have to move the ball around. Or the primary gets open immediately. Or when we thought a check-down was going to be there, or obviously the second progression, first or second, we have to adjust. I wouldn’t say that for us, really, we’re trying to make sure that we spread the ball around, because great offenses make sure they push the ball around as much as it can. So I think that the continued work in practice by all guys is to try and work on – getting involved in the offense is the most important thing because that’s where we build the confidence for getting ready for Sunday.”
(Watching the games, it looks like on a weekly basis, you get good blocks on the perimeter from your receivers. I’m curious if you agree with that. And then also, as kind of an underappreciated part of the position, if you can maybe just quantify how valuable it is to have that good blocking on the perimeter?) – “It’s vital. I think (Wide Receivers Coach) Wes (Welker) does a great job with one, playing the position of such a high level, and then understanding how to execute the fundamentals of perimeter space blocking. (Head Coach) Mike (McDaniel) also has experience because that’s kind of been a hallmark of their system of having all skill players be good blockers and understanding that that element is going to help them get more opportunities in the ball with being good blockers. So overall, yeah, there’s always stuff you can improve on. I mean, we never really think everything’s a finished product, especially at this point in the season. The growth is from week to week. I mean there’s obviously a couple blocks that occurred in the game on the perimeter that we feel that we could have improved on. But overall, we like we’re progressing, especially with Tyreek (Hill) and Jaylen (Waddle)’s production in the passing game. The fact of which that they strive to be not just effective blockers, but excellent blockers is just a credit to who they are as players and who they are as men.”
(You guys seemed to play complementary football very well in the first three games. Maybe not so much in the last couple. What kind of stress does that put on your unit and each unit when don’t get that complementary football?) – “The biggest thing is it’s just kind of the name of the NFL. I mean, if everything goes the way you thought it was going to go, every game would be boring, and you’d play out exactly as you prepared. But it’s our ability to adjust, it’s our ability to communicate, it’s our ability to push through the adversity that the 17-game season provides. And I think that’s truly where you learn the measure of your football team and how you’re built and what kind of guys you’re going to be able to count on when it really matters in December. So I think you normally would say, even our Baltimore win, it didn’t really go the way you would want it to go. But it went a good way at the end. And I think we learned from that. And then the Buffalo game was a back and forth contest. I mean we didn’t get a whole lot opportunities with the ball, but when we did, we tried to maximize it. And now the last two weeks, we’ve had some adversity where the quarterback at the start of the game didn’t finish it, and that is the NFL at its most. So I think ultimately, we’re learning as a football team that the next-man-up mentality has got to be the most vital and important thing. And I think that as coaches, our fundamental job is to communicate, educate and prepare our guys to be able to handle those variables and be able to execute regardless of situation.”
(It seems like for the longest time, the Dolphins have had a challenge in putting together kind of a dominant offensive line. What is it that makes it so hard to put together that kind of line? Are there things that the average fan doesn’t even think about that makes it that hard?) – “Absolutely. It’s a great question. I think it comes down to like last year, when I was in LA, and (General Manager) Tom Telesco was talking about the challenges that they were going through through the years of trying to get their line back because they felt their heyday years were back in the late 2000s, when they were running the ball with ‘LT’ (LaDainian Tomlinson) and they were really controlling the division through running the football. And the challenges are just as you allocate resources to the position, there’s uncontrollable variables that occur, (like) injuries, a guy maybe you wanted to have back and free agency and he moves on because of the market so high. I just think that sometimes guys – you have to make sure in your evaluation selection, that you’re making sure you’re finding the right type of guy. Sometimes coaching change is a big issue. I know that happened in LA when I was there, that they had been through a couple of different changes at not only the head coach but the position coach. So I think ultimately, if you’re trying to develop players, if you don’t have consistency of their coaches, that’s hard for a guy because he’s getting a different message each year. So I think ultimately, if you want players to have sustained success, you’re trying to create a world where there’s consistency and availability. And I think that is, in all life, in all jobs we work, that’s the hardest thing is trying to create a consistent environment where you can be at your best. And I think if you look at this group, they’re kind of a hallmark of there’s been injuries, there’s been changes in position coaches, changes in head coaches. None of those are excuses but that’s the reality of the situation, the adversity that the group’s got to overcome and meet the challenge head on with a positive attitude, and just realize that they are control of their efforts, their attitudes and their approach. They’ve got to trust us that our number one goal is to help them be their best, and then we form a bond and push forward.”
(What went right with the running game last week?) – “I think there was some consistency that we were looking for that we’ve kind of been talking about here with you guys. Just what are the little things where we can get better? There was some fundamental stuff that we’ve been really stressing that guys up front were able to execute. I think that we were able to create some space in the defense that our runners were able to exploit. I think some of the explosive runs contribute to a higher overall yards per carry. I think of the game before in Cincinnati, you add back and there was a throw on one of the runs that if we would have handed it off, you’d been looking at a double-digit gain. There was a penalty on the Tyreek (Hill) run, which would have been a double-digit gain. If you add those two onto our total, we’re looking at over a hundred yard game. So Cincinnati was kind of a prelude to that, and then we were able to capitalize on some of those learning lessons from Cincinnati into last week. So ultimately, week to week, it goes into how we improve and it goes from – it takes all 11 and to run the ball effectively in this league and you’ve got to be committed to it. I think we got some good positive growth that we’re really going to look to build on this week. And ultimately, the 11 that are in there every play have got to be able to execute collectively.”
(You talked about finding space in the run game. Are you seeing teams play more two-high against you guys to open up those spots? And is that something, in conversations with the coaching staff, like if teams are going to try to take WR Tyreek Hill and WR Jaylen Waddle away, we have to take advantage of the lighter boxes?) – “Yeah, absolutely. I think that what we’re trying to do, ultimately, and with who we have, we’re going to see some of those coverages. And when we get those coverages that are advantageous for the run game, we got to maximize it. And that’s where I would think that we think collectively, that’s a great area where we can improve and really with the emphasis in probably the last two or three weeks, we’re starting to see the growth because the guys are really seeing how important and how small the margin of error is. So I think yeah, as teams try and make sure they have roof over the coverage on our wide receivers, we’ve got to make sure that our foundation is good in the running game. So I think that we’ve made growth and this week will be a great opportunity with way that they play their defense to try and continue our growth in that area.”
(Is RB Raheem Mostert setting himself apart as a lead back or do you still kind of see it as matchup based who will get the bulk of the carries?) – “I think Raheem has done a tremendous job and Chase (Edmonds) too. I mean his opportunities are going to come. Again, it’s a long season. To rush to any decisions about what we’re going to need or who’s where and who’s in what spot, in a month, we’ll be sitting here and saying it’s flipped. So I think we’re fortunate to have two backs that we feel really good about. Right now, Raheem is playing some really good football. But Chase is going to come up huge for us at some point. We all know that; we feel that. He had an excellent day of practice yesterday and really challenged himself. We’re excited for him to have another great day of practice today and look forward to him on Sunday and build into the next month and quarter of the season.”
