George Godsey – May 24, 2021
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Monday, May 24, 2021
Co-Offensive Coordinator/Tight Ends George Godsey
(How did you and Co-Offensive Coordinator/Running Backs Eric Studesville go about coming together and collaborating on whatever is the current Dolphins playbook?) – “We’ve both been here for the past two years going into now our third year together. We’ve had constant communication. I think that’s part of the role. Both of us are good communicators and both of our positions in the past have had to touch each other’s position, as far as communication with the line or communication with the quarterback. Obviously in the pass, tight ends play a little bit of a receiver role too at times. We do a good job of communicating. That’s the main requirement of the roles. That’s our job is to put the message together and then distribute it to the staff and then to the unit.”
(Did you guys build off of last year’s playbook or did you and Co-Offensive Coordinator/Running Backs Eric Studesville decide to start over from scratch?) – “I think that’s a good question because there are some things that we’ve done well and maybe some things that we need to improve on. That internal discussion as far as what plays we will continue to grow on and build off of, I think we’ll see some of that and then obviously some things that maybe we haven’t seen. It’s been a fun offseason. We’ve been busy.”
(I wanted to ask you from a personal level, what this opportunity means to you?) – “Well, that’s what it is – it’s an opportunity. We know that we’re fortunate to have these opportunities. It’s about winning here. It’s about putting our team in the best position – our athletes in the best position to perform. We take it one day at a time and kind of go from there.”
(What is the single biggest thing you want this offense to be known for?) – “I think our job as an offense is to move the ball and score points. That’s our main goal and there are a lot of other factors that go into that. We have to be physical when we decide to run the ball, when we block and protection. We’ve got to protect the quarterback, we’ve got to protect the ball and then when the ball is thrown to us, we have to catch it and make plays. There are a lot of little factors – we call them little but there are a lot of factors that go into an offense being successful and moving the ball and scoring points.”
(Philosophically, in your mind and in Co-Offensive Coordinator/Running Backs Eric Studesville’s mind, what is the Dolphins’ new offense or your offense?) – “We want to be able to play the game in multiple different modes, so if it’s a game where we need to run the ball, then we need to be able to block everybody and we need to block them effectively. Then obviously when it’s time to pass the football, which a lot of times in this game, in this league, it comes down to a two-minute situation where you need to throw the ball, we need to be able to protect the quarterback and throw to the open receiver. A lot of that seems simple but we’re going to have to get open versus different coverages, we’re going to have to identify different coverages from both a route-runner’s position, and also the quarterback. We’re going to have to play the game in multiple different ways to move the football. It’s a longer season too and you can’t just repeat the same thing each week.”
(Does the personnel that you see now on the roster, does that lend itself to a lot of versatility in your mind?) – “That’s what we want. We want to be able to challenge the defense with different groupings and different personnel that have a wide variety of skills. It’s exciting and it’s definitely complicated to make sure that we’re distributing the ball to all of the different positions; but that’s a good thing to have.”
(Regarding the additions of WR Jaylen Waddle and WR Will Fuller and the speed that they add as far as the vertical passing game and what it does to open up the middle passing game and what it does for the running game, can you just talk about what that speed can add to your offense and the ripple effect it has?) – “I think any time you can stretch the field vertically, it puts the defense in a bind. I have some experience with Will and we’re catching Jaylen up to the speed of NFL football, so that’s been the fun part of this, especially with Jaylen from a rookie standpoint. They have a little bit of a different skillset, although they both have very good speed. That’ll help us pushing the ball downfield but they are also good route-runners underneath. Being able to add all of those elements are important to both of those players.”
(What did your experience in Houston as a coordinator teach you? What did you learn from it, that’s going to help you be better in this instance?) – “The Houston experience was a totally different experience. We went through quite a few quarterbacks in really the first season that we took over. We had won two games the year before, so we ended up leaving there and going to the playoffs a couple of times. That’s how I finished out there. We have high expectations for this group. Like I said, it’s a totally different situation. I know our players are getting that message from all of our coaches and they are here working and they want to be coached and they want to succeed. That’s all we can ask for at this point of the offseason. They are working hard both in the weight room and when they are with us, they are digesting all of the information.”
(You spent a lot of time working with QB Tua Tagovailoa last year. Why do you feel that the surrounding talent he has this year is better suited to his ability? And was the entire focus of this offseason getting him wide receivers that matches his ability?) – “It’s Tua’s second year in the NFL, so we’re expecting to see a jump just from being able to retain a lot of the information, whether it’s defensive structure, ID’s, front, coverage. That initially will be a big part of his improvement from Year 1 to Year 2. And then, any time you’re dealing with the passing game, guys that get open are definitely a key for the quarterback. And then guys that have coverage next to them but can adjust to a ball whether it’s high or low and can make those 50/50 balls, it’s on us at the quarterback position to put that ball in that position. That’s really where we are at right now is really identifying defensive information as far as what we can see off the tape, and then trying to apply that to what routes we are putting in.”
(Fans are having a little fun with you and Co-Offensive Coordinator/Running Backs Eric Studesville running the offense, whether it be called Godsville, or Studsey – the combination of you guys running the offense. I want to know how you guys work together and gelling. Obviously it’s a little bit a unique situation having co-OCs. How do you guys see that dynamic?) – “We work well together. We meet every day together too. We spend a lot of time before we meet with the group together, digesting each other’s outlook, and then we put it into a plan. Obviously all of the other assistant coaches too have a big part of it. We see it as a collaborative effort. We have a lot of great minds on offense. There are a lot of bodies there too that can help us. We don’t see it as a two-person job. We see it more as a unit. That’s the way we’ve kind of approached it. We’ve had fun building this playbook and presenting it to the players. It’s a lot on everybody following and staying on track here during this time.”
(I know obviously it’s a collective; but at some point there is going to be maybe one play caller. I know that’s been a little vague with us and I know you guys may know a little more than that in that realm; but how do you view that responsibility? I know you had a little bit of that in Houston – and what that would entail if that’s given to you?) – “I think that’s just a part of it. There are certain times in the game where adjustments are needed and it’s good that we have two voices that are looking for that and not just glued into the specifics of your individual position. We’ve had some talks on that obviously but we’re going to keep it at that right now.”
(I know that you and Eric Studesville as co-coordinators are just that – the label implies and says you’re co-coordinators. But ultimately, I think there is only one voice in QB Tua Tagovailoa’s ear before each play, so whose voice is he going to hear?) – “Like I said, we’re working through the offseason right now and we’ve had our discussions on that. We’re going to keep it at that, but I would say from not calling plays before, there is definitely some feedback that’s given to the coordinator. We have roles for that during the game for each position, so it’s a matter of making those adjustments, and we’ll get there when we kind of get there in the fall.”
