Jordan Mills – May 14, 2019
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Tuesday, May 14, 2019
T Jordan Mills
(What are your thought on this opportunity with the Dolphins?) – “It’s a great opportunity. It’s a great team, great young team (and a) new coaching staff. (We’re) coming out here to build a championship, playoff caliber type team and get an opportunity to play for this great organization with a great history. It’s a true blessing and I’m glad to be here.”
(You played your last six years in Chicago and Buffalo. How is your readjustment to the weather?) – “I’m from Louisiana, man. (There isn’t) much of an adjustment. Even though I’ve been in the Chicago weather, I still go home in the offseason. The weather is no different. It gets hot. I’m not saying that I can push through – well, I can push through but I’m not saying that I’m the guy that can deal with it all the time – the heat is the heat. Even you all are standing outside in the bleachers and you still feel it. I’m a Louisiana guy and I’ve been dealing with it my whole life.”
(To play the number of games you have, do you walk into a room and see all the eyes focus on you like you have the most experience?) – “I (don’t) have a lot (more) experience than some of these guys do like ‘LT’ (Laremy Tunsil), and (Daniel) Kilgore and the rest of these guys. I’m just coming in to add my savvy, my experience and just come out here and compete and work hard every day. That’s the task at hand right now, to come in and help this team get better each day.”
(You have experience playing against this team. What stands out to you about the Dolphins the past couple of years, just going up against them?) – “They are a tough team. They bring it every time. When they are playing in Hard Rock Stadium or when they come up to Buffalo, they bring it every time. They never give up. They have a toughness about themselves that nobody has. Not everybody practices in this heat. Not many teams can say that. The way we grind and the way we push, we are pushing towards something great, but we’ve got to take it one day at a time.”
(When did the Dolphins first show interest in you, when did you first get that feeling?) – “I was just, honestly, the time until I got here, I was just working out and training hard. I just left that up to my agent. Whenever they wanted to make that move, they made that move and now I’m here. I wasn’t really paying attention to that. I knew I was going to end up on another team sooner or later. I just had to keep continuing doing what I’ve been doing for the past six years, seven years and I landed here. I’m going to make the best of it.”
(What were some of the options you were considering if it wasn’t Miami?) – “There were a few other teams but it doesn’t matter now. I’m a Miami Dolphin and I’m glad to be a Dolphin. Respect to the other teams, but I’m glad to be here in Miami.”
(Your first impressions of watching QB Josh Rosen and QB Ryan Fitzpatrick today?) – “They’re great. They are hard workers. They are some of the first people in this building and the last ones to leave. All of our quarterbacks, they command the huddle, they bring great leadership to our team and they are great players.”
(We know you’re new here, but is there anything you can share with us about the TNT wall and what that means and what that is for this team right now?) – “The TNT wall is just nothing but hard work, dedication and just holding ourselves to a higher standard and to focus on the fundamentals and the little things each day. It’s not always much, always focusing on the big things. (It’s) the little things that make a team great. Fundamentals, technique and things like that, being ready for practice and focusing on individual and team periods. That’s what it’s all about.”
(It’s early, but kind of with QB Josh Rosen and QB Ryan Fitzpatrick as leaders in the locker room. what have you taken away from that? What have you seen from them?) – “When they need to talk, even when they don’t need to talk, you hear their voices. When we’re on offense and the defense is on their side, they’re commanding the offense and talking to make sure that everybody is at where they need to be. (They) make sure, Ryan and Josh, communicate to the o-line what they wants to do and things of that sort. Them being vocal and not also vocal, but showing it in their technique and their pass routes, their readings and stuff like that, they don’t always have to be vocal to show their leadership. The way they work, the way they train, the way the study shows a lot.”
(Is there one thing between the two of them is kind of similar in that aspect?) – “They work hand and hand. Obviously, Ryan Fitzpatrick is a veteran. He’s been around for a long time and Josh is young. Josh acts like he’s been here, like he’s been a 10-year vet and Ryan helps him along. They have a lot of similarities, like I said. They are the first ones in the building and the last ones to leave. You see them working out together and studying together. It’s a great dual – not dual but trio because you got No. 5 (Jake Rudock) back there slinging the ball. They’ve got a great relationship.”
