Austin Jackson – November 24, 2021
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Wednesday, November 24, 2021
G/T Austin Jackson
(On the offensive line not allowing a sack against the Jets.) – “A no-hitter. Well, a penalty. (laughter) One guy (bailed us) out. But that’s our goal every week. Uphold the protection, follow our keys. We study a lot. I think the league is a copycat league so if you mess something up with one team, another team is going to try to do it. Just staying on our p’s and q’s with that and staying alert. We look to have a lot more of those.”
(I think you and T Liam Eichenberg did a good job on the left side of the offensive line in the pass game. Can you talk about how the two of you and your relationship and working together is evolving?) – “Yeah. We go to practice every day. We’re both guys that – I don’t know, we just work hard. We’re not afraid to critique ourselves and accept that we’re not doing some things well, so we’ve got to do it better. We just keep that mentality and take it in day in and day out.”
(The Panthers are one of the league leaders in sacks. What have you noticed about the Panthers pass-rush plan?) – “They’ve got two very fast dynamic guys on the edge in (Brian) Burns and (Haason) Reddick. They’re very fast, very agile type of rushers. We’ll definitely be practicing for that. They’ve also got some pretty stout guys that can also move pretty well too on the inside, too. It’s really a good mix. I think the offensive line has to do a great job of just holding the pocket, especially upfront for us, with those guys being fast around the edge. Yeah, they’re dynamic. And like you said, they’re leading some categories in terms of the whole league.”
(Your comfort level at guard now, how is it? Do you feel a lot better there than you did a month ago?) – “Yeah, definitely. Just getting more reps, more game reps, practice reps and training. I think my comfort level has gone up.”
(How about your chemistry right next to T Liam Eichenberg?) – “I think that’s gotten better too. I like to get better every time I step on the field. I definitely would say that instinctually, I’ve been able to be a lot quicker on certain things and reading certain types of stunts. I think I’ve done a good job there.”
(What was your perspective on QB Tua Tagovailoa’s long touchdown pass last game?) – “I was like blocking the whole time so I really didn’t even know what was going on, to be honest with you. I just looked up and saw Mack (Hollins) running down the field. Looking back at the film, it was a great pocket he had to step in. He stepped up, which is all the great things we talk about, and he delivered a strike. That’s what we want.”
(There were several good runs in the last game. What are some of the common denominators, in your opinion, on the successful run plays?) – “Just being on – first things first, we have to be on the same page in terms of who we are blocking. There’s a lot of different rules, a lot of different motions, a lot of different situations where we would re-count and where we wouldn’t. Being on the same page, first and foremost. And then getting movement up front. I think they played a lot of – in their base, they didn’t really move too much at the start of the game. But every team you play makes adjustments based on how you play, so taking in those adjustments, or adjusting to their adjustments, that’s like the second biggest thing. I think we did a good job with both of those things.”
(It’s rare to have a day off in the middle of the season on a game week to celebrate friends, family and Thanksgiving. What’s your plan tomorrow?) – “I actually don’t think I have a lot of family coming into town for this game. I think Christmas, I will. I’ve got some turkey legs I want to smoke. Tua (Tagovailoa) got us a Traeger (grill) last year for Christmas, so I finally got that set up. So I’m probably going to throw something on the grill and see what I can do.”
(This is kind of random, but I’m curious how you think the USC head-coaching opening compares to some of the other ones that are out there like LSU and Florida?) – “Well you get the opportunity to coach in LA, which is a great job. It’s a great university. Very prestigious. (I had a) great time. I love it. I think there’s a culture about football over there that is hard to match. I think whoever ends up filling that role, I’m looking forward to whoever it is because there’s definitely a lot to do in order to help us get back to where we want to be.”
(I heard they re-did the Coliseum. I have not seen how nice it is.) – “Yeah, it’s nice. It’s really nice. They re-did it like two years ago. They took a lot of seats out. I remember my freshman year, we were sitting at some games of like 100,000 capacity. Now I think it’s 70 or 80,000. Something like that.”
Tua Tagovailoa – November 24, 2021
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Wednesday, November 24, 2021
QB Tua Tagovailoa
(Your deep throws obviously at Alabama were outstanding, but your metrics in terms of balls that travel 20+ air yards have improved a lot from Year 1 to Year 2. They’re among the best in the league now. Do you attribute that partially to the hip being better and more power in the base? Are there other reasons? What might you cite?) – “I would say it starts in practice. A lot of the looks that we get in practice kind of entail us to take shots. But in the game, if it doesn’t present itself, we never want to force it. So when it does present itself, we try to take advantage of that.”
(Are you feeling more strength just in your base this year on deep throws? Obviously you’re future removed from the hip injury.) – “I wouldn’t say it doesn’t not help. I would say it helps. Then again, it’s always about the opportunity presenting itself.”
(Have you found it difficult at all to manufacture power when going through the rib fracture and your finger fracture as well?) – “I would say just being in the game, those aren’t things that you kind of think about. You’re just playing. And also in practice. So to me, no. I would say no.”
(You’re like I’ll deal with the pain later?) – “Yeah. Nothing really hurts if you win.”
(Hitting that deep ball at the end of the game, did it feel like a monkey off your back, to be able to hit one in the game that both the opportunity presents itself and then you connected?) – “Yeah, it felt really good. We haven’t had much of those. Last year when I played and then this year too, we haven’t had much of those aside from the throw to Albert (Wilson) earlier the game before, the Baltimore game. Those feel really good, especially when it ends in a touchdown too.”
(The last couple of weeks, the play-calling there’s been some Wildcat and there’s been some flea-flicker stuff. Do you guys get excited for that or is it just ‘Don’t mess this up, the execution, whether it’s the pitch or whatever,’ that you can’t really get geared up for it?) – “I would say it’s definitely the second part of what you said. We want to execute the handoff, the toss, whatever the trick play has. We really want to execute that. Then once everything is kind of set up already – when I get the ball to throw it or someone else gets the ball to throw it – then it’s just about making the throw or the guy being in the right spot.”
(Has any DB ever said anything to you when you are lined up wide in the Wildcat?) – “No. I don’t think these guys want to talk to me. (laughter) I just go out there and just ask for the ball and try to get them to come up. Some come up and some don’t even mind me.”
(One of the statistical things that I’ve noticed is that your performance in the fourth quarter has been good. Can you think of any reasons why things might be going well for you late in games?) – “I would say the things that kind of haunt me is after our first series, it’s the second, third, fourth series when we kind of get stopped and are just shooting ourselves in the foot with me turning the ball over on the second series. Things like that. I kind of think of those things more than the fourth quarters and how we’re trying to finish. Obviously we’d like to start fast and finish strong but it’s really the meat of everything. Then also situationally, our two-minute, just all of those things. I think offensively, I need to help our guys do a better job this upcoming game with the second quarter, the third quarter, playing at a high level still and getting us to the fourth quarter to finish strong.”
(Do you have any personal experiences with Carolina DT Derrick Brown when he was at Auburn and you were at Alabama?) – “A really good player. He was always in the backfield when we played against them. He’s a nice person too, just not on the field.”
(Back to those instances when you line up out wide, if the ball one day comes your way, are you catching it or are you looking like QB Tom Brady in the Super Bowl?) – “(laughter) It really depends. If I see somebody and the ball is coming, I’m going to have to bat the ball down. I’m not catching that ball. (laughter) I know how the receivers feel now. I don’t know about that. (laughter)”
(What stands out to you about the Panthers defense?) – “Fast. Fast, athletic. They’re very good as far as their communication up front and then the back end, I do understand that they – I think they’re the No. 1 pass defense, which forces us to – it gives us a challenge, I would say. I would say philosophy-wise with this defense, they don’t give up big plays much. It’s more of a eight-play or 12-play drive. They really make you work for points. You don’t ever see them blow coverages. You rarely ever see a three-play or four-play drive and a team scores on this team. They do present a big challenge for us.”
(Do you spend any or some time on social media to know that there is a very, very staunch group of fans that are very defensive of you and back you 100 percent? Like a minute ago when someone said your performance in the fourth quarter is good, they might be thinking, ‘What do you mean good? It’s better than good.’ Are you aware of how much they’re behind you?) – “Sorry if this offends those guys, but no I don’t.”
(WR Jaylen Waddle told us that he has an invite to your place for Thanksgiving?) – “Yeah, but I did hear that he is going to everyone else’s house after? Yeah, so I’m pulling the invite. (laughter)”
(How many teammates are invited?) – “Well, I mean all of them are invited. It’s just whoever shows up.”
(You’re a family guy. You’re so used to being with your family. I’m sure Thanksgiving is amazing for you. What’s it going to be like for you and your teammates, your second family?) – “It’s going to be good. You got it right, I’m a family guy so my family is coming too. They’ll be here and I’ll be able to spend some time with my dogs, with my sisters and with my parents. The only person that won’t be there is just my brother.”
Brian Flores – November 24, 2021
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Wednesday, November 24, 2021
Head Coach Brian Flores
(WR Will Fuller, WR DeVante Parker, RB Malcolm Brown, G/T Michael Deiter – any of those four that you think will be out there today?) – “Deiter will return to practice today. The rest of that group, they will not be out there. All getting closer, just not quite there yet.”
(S Will Parks, what’s the thinking behind adding him? What skills do you like?) – “He’s obviously had some experience in this league – free safety, strong safety, kicking game. An opportunity to add him to the roster and take a look at him. We’ve got some guys banged up. That played a role in it as well. I’ve watched him over the years and had an opportunity to have him join our team and we’ll see what it looks like.”
(When you watch QB Cam Newton, do you feel like there is any rust or anything from his time off or has he picked up where he left off?) – “I think he’s picked up where – he’s the same player he’s been. Dynamic obviously as a runner, but also as a thrower. I think that gets pushed to the side. He can throw the football. He’s had a lot of production with throwing the football in this league. They’ve got good receivers, a good o-line, a good scheme, good backs obviously. He’s a very good player in this league and can still make a lot of plays. This will definitely be a big challenge for us.”
(It probably helps that you faced him last year. Did you have any idea that you would face him in different circumstances?) – “Yeah, we’ve got history with him like we’ve got history with a number of players that we play against, but the same problems are there – as a runner, throwing the football. This is definitely going to be a game about communication and playing disciplined football. But it’s not just Cam. (Christian) McCaffrey is a great player. (DJ) Moore. Robby Anderson takes the top off the field. Ian Thomas is a very good blocking tight end. (Tommy) Tremble is a good young tight end as well. They’ve got a good o-line. It’s not just one player that’s their offense. It’s their offense, their defense and their special teams and we have to play a good complementary game in all phases, which starts in practice.”
(What have you noticed about the Panthers’ pass rush?) – “It’s very good. I think defensively they are fast. (Brian) Burns, (Haason) Reddick, Shaq Thompson, Derrick Brown – they’ve got players everywhere. It’s a very good defense. They are well coached. (Matt) Rhule, (Phil) Snow, Joe Brady – they’ve got a good coaching staff. Chase (Blackburn). It’s a good group, a good staff, they’re well coached and they’ve got a lot of good players.”
(LB Brennan Scarlett and CB Jamal Perry, are those season-ending deals?) – “Yeah, unfortunately with Jamal, that is going to be season-ending. You hate when that happens. He’s been a significant contributor to this team for three years. He’s been on the active, this year he was on the practice squad, he was back active this past weekend and unfortunately that will be season-ending. Brennan will be at least three weeks and we’ll take it from there. I don’t want to put a timeline on that one.”
(Anything you’re particularly thankful for this holiday season?) – “I think we all have a lot to be thankful for. I’m thankful for my wife, my kids and my family. I’ll take this time to say that, how thankful I am for my wife and really all of the football wives. Throughout the league, whether it’s high school, college, pros, those women in our lives allow us to come in early, stay late and do what we love to do. My wife in particular has done a great job raising our kids and taking care of our household, so I’m very thankful for her. I’m also thankful for all of the other wives who allow their husbands to come hang out with me and coach some ball and they take care of things. I’m very thankful for them. I’m thankful to be a part of this organization. I’m thankful for our support staff. I think we have a great staff from the medical, to nutrition, to equipment, to you name it – IT, video. I think there are a lot of great people here. I’m thankful to work with all of them. And I’m thankful for the Dolphins fans and the community here and the support of our team.”
(It’s your third Thanksgiving week as a head coach. How unique is this week as far as the players deserve friends and family and that outside thing, but also keeping the team on track with very little margin for error? How do you balance that? Have you got that down to a science?) – “No. I don’t think anything is down to a science in this league. It’s the same for everyone else. I think that’s it. We’re all kind of dealing with the same schedule, besides the teams actually playing on Thanksgiving. But we know there is going to be family in town. We know there is going to be added distractions, so what I try to do is just get our guys, when they’re here, let’s focus in. I understand that parents are here, brothers are here, family members are in town. They want to spend time with them, as they should. This is people who are important to our players and those people are important to them, and I want them to spend that time. I think that has a lot to do with – those relationships outside of the building are a part of the reason why we get production on the field. It’s a whole different thought process but I want them to spend that time with them. But at the same time, when we’re in here and we’re putting time to focus on the Carolina Panthers, let’s devote time to do that and get prepared well so we can have the results we’re looking for.”
(Question on DT Zach Sieler. What are some of thew things that you think make him effective against the run?) – “I think he’s tough. He’s strong at the point of attack. He plays with very good fundamentals and technique. Hand placement, footwork, locking guys out, it gives him an opportunity to see where the ball-carriers are and does a good job of releasing and making plays. He works hard at that, really on a daily basis. He’s the first guy out there hitting the sleds and he’s improved really every day since he’s been here. There’s a desire there as well. I don’t think you can really quantify that and I would say that’s probably the No. 1 thing that he has that allows him to make some of the plays you are talking about.”
(When things aren’t going well for a team, there is that … to put the nose to the proverbial grindstone and all those cliches. When things are going well, how do you keep that same edge? How do you not get lost in 3-0 the last three games and get away from the things that help you be 3-0 in those three games?) – “I like to take the same approach, really every day, which is we are just trying to get better and improve. I think that’s the most important thing. Try to let the results take care of themselves as long as the preparation is where you want it to be, the execution in practice, that we are doing everything we can possibly do to get the results we want. That’s kind of the mindset we are looking for. I don’t really get into losing streak, winning streak, momentum and not having momentum. I try to stay the same either way and that’s the message I give to the players. There’s always emotion involved with winning and losing. You try to build on the winning and you try to learn from the mistakes and adversity of not having success. In both instances, there’s an opportunity to motivate.”
(Is there something you really liked or maybe that’s different, other than execution and those things, about the way your defense has played these three games? They’ve given up some yards. It hasn’t been all three-and-outs, but you’re not giving up points. In the ultimate moments, they found a way to get off the field. Is that simply execution or is there something that’s really stood out in that unit?) – “Execution is definitely a part of it. I think communication is a part of it. I think putting in extra time and meeting together more is a part of it. I think practice, practice execution becomes game reality. That’s a big part of it as well.”
(What can you tell us about your Thanksgiving tomorrow? Are you going to be spending it at home? Are you going to be eating, cooking? You’re a Latino, what kind of special food? I expect you like some flavor.) – “Yeah, I like flavor for sure. (laughter) I’ll be home, probably a little later than my wife wants me to be but I’ll be home. We’ll have the normal – turkey, ham, greens, macaroni and cheese, yams. My wife makes a lot of desserts so maybe we’ll have some guys come by for some dessert. They probably won’t come by though. (laughter) The offer is there for the players.”
(If you like mac and cheese, there’s a lot of blasphemy going around about this dish on the internet right now.) – “Yeah, I’m not really on the internet so I don’t know. (Laughter) I like mac and cheese.”
(It’s average. Like a throwaway of a dish. Patriots OLB Matt Judon said yesterday, ‘Take mac and cheese off of the menu. Take it off the menu, it’s a terrible side. No one should be eating mac and cheese.’) – “Who said that?”
(Matt Judon.) – “Hmm well, everyone’s got their own opinion. (laughter)”
(Do you have a controversial food take that could make some news?) – “Controversial food?”
(Food take, yeah.) – “Um, for Thanksgiving or just in general?”
(Let’s go Thanksgiving.) – “No. I think it’s all good.”
(What about in general?) – “(laughter)”
(I think you have one open spot on the 53-man roster, is this going to be a tough call for you and General Manager Chris Grier? Are you looking potentially for another edge guy like a LB Vince Biegel to replace what LB Brennan Scarlett gave you? What’s the thought process this week with you and Chris on that?) – “Yeah, we are going to sign Biegel today.”
(So LB Vince Biegel will be on the 53-man roster?) – “Yes.”
(I know LB Vince Biegel’s injury, especially the one last year, is sometimes tough to come back from. Does it look to you like he’s regained physically what he showed in 2019?) – “Yes. I think he’s moving around well. I think he’s brought a lot of juice, energy to practice. We brought him up a couple times and we’ll sign him to the active (roster) today.”
(Talking about family as we have been this morning, I’ve wondered in the role that you’re in, obviously you spend a ton of time in this building. How do you balance that? I know being a father is very important to you. How do you balance those two?) – “I think when I’m home, I try to be present with my kids. When I’m there, I try to throw the football around, play baseball, run around with them as best I can. I think that’s the most important thing. I don’t want to go home and watch more film. I don’t do that. All coaches kind of deal with that same wanting to spend time with their family, knowing it’s important – very important – but also doing what we love, coaching and spending time with our other kids which are the players in the locker room. It’s not easy but I try my best to FaceTime as much as I can and make the parent-teacher conferences even if it’s over Zoom. It’s not perfect but I work hard at it. You always want to spend more time and we get that done in the offseason.”
(I can’t imagine what the teachers think when the Dolphins’ head coach pops up.) – “I’m just a dad in those instances. That’s what I am. When I go home, I try to just be a dad. I’m just a dad. The head coaching thing doesn’t really matter in those moments. My daughter sure doesn’t care. (laughter) It’s just, ‘go get me this,’ and alright I’m going to get it. That’s kind of how that works. I’m just a dad.”
(I’m genuinely curious, do you watch football on Thanksgiving Day like the rest of us?) – “Yeah, I pop it on. I like to watch end of half situations, end of game situations, red flags, timeouts. That interests me.”
Josh Boyer – November 23, 2021
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Tuesday, November 23, 2021
Defensive Coordinator Josh Boyer
(How would you assess how DE Emmanuel Ogbah has been playing and how important is he to what you all do defensively?) – “I would say Emmanuel has been a good leader for us. He leads by example. He comes in and puts a good day’s work in every day. He’s been able to be multiple for us and he’s been able to have some production for us. I would say the things that he’s doing for us over the course of the season, I think that’s been consistent. The things that he needs to improve – he’s worked really hard to improve some things that maybe haven’t went his way. I would say that we’re seeing production from him out on the field.”
(Heading into this matchup, a lot of people naturally look at the quarterback you are facing QB Cam Newton and draw a quick comparison to QB Lamar Jackson and say that you guys can replicate the same gameplan. When you look at the Panthers’ offense and that scheme, what differences do you see compared to what you faced against the Ravens?) – “I would say the similarities are they definitely have the quarterback runs that Baltimore has. There is a little bit of a different flavor to it. All three of the backs that Carolina has used are dynamic players, headlining that with (Christian) McCaffrey. But (Chuba) Hubbard and (Ameer) Abdullah, those guys have all made explosive plays as well in the run game. It’s just a matter of how they choose to play. They have some – call it normal runs. And they also have their quarterback runs that they can implement, which they’ve implemented a little bit more in the past two weeks with P.J Walker and Cam Newton at quarterback. But they’ve run some of that stuff earlier in the season with (Sam) Darnold too, so it’s not foreign to them.”
(If there were certain keys that you would want your defensive players to keep in mind when they faced QB Lamar Jackson and his dynamic style, what are some keys towards handling QB Cam Newton and the kind of power that he presents when he takes off running?) – “When you’re talking about a quarterback run scheme, I think it’s very important for us defensively to make sure that everybody plays good assignment football and you try not to do more than your responsibility. That’s when you can get in trouble and that’s when you can put yourself in bad position, and somebody like Lamar can make you miss or somebody like Cam can run through you. When you’re talking about a quarterback in the run game, it really starts with assignment football. That will be our focus going into the week.”
(I wanted to ask you about your four interior guys who seem to play all over the place with DT Raekwon Davis, DL Adam Butler, DT Christian Wilkins, and DT Zach Sieler. I think the obvious question would be how much does those guys being able to all play significant snaps and stay fresh help them out, but was that the thought process building that room out was to keep all of those guys fresh? Is that something you guys talk about how to keep fresher legs as the game goes along?) – “I would have to go back to (General Manager) Chris (Grier) and ‘Flo’ (Head Coach Brian Flores) on this and those guys building the roster. I think you want good depth at every spot that you have. You want to feel comfortable when you put guys out on the field that they are going to know what they are doing and they are able to execute. I think all four of those guys up front, there are some multiple things that they can do. It really boils down to the simplicity of trying to put guys in the best position to succeed within the structure of 11 guys being out there and a total team defense. With each of those guys, even though they may play the same spots, at certain points you may try to highlight a little bit different things that they can do or do well, even though they are playing the exact same position. You kind of tweak it a little bit to highlight their abilities. I would say the good thing is they are all good players. They are all good workers. They come in and they compete every day. They are really a joy to be around.”
(I wanted to ask you about the structure of your defense and I know you guys didn’t create this defense out of nowhere. It’s built off of what you all did in New England. How important is it to have two cornerbacks that can hold their own on one-on-one coverage when you’re doing a lot of this exotic stuff and blitzing the safeties? Could you do this defense without having those two guys?) – “I feel very fortunate that we have the two guys that we have. I feel pretty comfortable with the guys that we have behind them. That’s the nature of the position. I’ve coached that position for many years. There are going to be times, regardless of your scheme – the majority of the teams you see when it comes to third down, red area, you’re usually at some point going to get a version of man, whether that’s blitz coverage or man with help. When they go out there, we ask them to do a lot of things, but at the end of the day, you’re responsible for covering a guy that we need you to cover when we ask you to do that. We feel very fortunate about the guys that we have and I think (Cornerbacks) Coach (Charles) Burks has done a good job with those guys. They work extremely hard at their craft. I’ve always compared it to being in martial arts. It’s a skillset and if you don’t practice your skillset, your skills are going to diminish, and those guys work very hard at that every day. it’s not a really easy thing to do. We feel very fortunate about the two guys that we have and we feel very fortunate about the spots that we can put them in. Those guys have done a good job for us.”
(With CB Noah Igbinoghene being inactive again, I wanted to know what he could stand to do better and what do you tell him in that regard?) – “It’s probably good advice for everybody, and myself included. You need to try to control the things you can control. That is come in, put in a good day’s work, do the best you can and keep improving and keep working at it. When you get opportunities, make the most of them. We’re pretty fortunate. Chris (Grier) and ‘Flo’ (Brian Flores) have done a good job putting the roster together. We’re pretty fortunate to have good depth at that position. Just keep doing what he’s doing and working hard and keep improving. I think those are the things that he’s doing and that we encourage him to do.”
(When you play that zero pressure look and there is no help over the top, what’s the coaching point or the weighing of the risk versus reward in terms of taking chances versus playing off and being more willing to accept underneath completions?) – “One, it’s a philosophy thing. I think Coach Flores has hit this point many times, whether it’s in the kicking game, offensively or defensively, we’re going to be aggressive. I think you’re always looking for spots when you feel it’s best to do and when it’s advantageous for us as a defense and when it coincides with putting your players in position to succeed. It’s one of those things, do I sit back or go after them? I think there is always a good mixture, but I just think from a philosophical standpoint that we tend to be a little bit aggressive.”
Eric Studesville – November 23, 2021
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Tuesday, November 23, 2021
Co-Offensive Coordinator/Running Backs Eric Studesville
(I wanted to ask about the play-calling in recent weeks. It seems like you guys have been reaching into the bag and using a lot of what we call trick plays or gadget plays. I’m just curious if there have been maybe more conversations about trying to stress defenses with things they haven’t seen. And as a coaching staff, in a 17-game schedule, when do you feel really comfortable bringing out something you haven’t shown in the first half of the season?) – “I don’t know that we necessarily bring out things. We’re always trying to find what gives us the best chance and when we are looking at the tape and we are studying and we are game-planning things, lots of conversations come up. We have lots of ideas in the room. That’s one of the benefits of doing this as a collaborative effort with the entire staff is that everybody is involved in it and can throw out ideas. Some of them don’t ever make it anywhere but some of them do and if they’re good ideas and we can (draw) them up and we think they give us a chance to execute and make good plays, then we will do that.”
(In the game on Sunday, you hit 15-of=17 passes for over 200 yards off of play-action and obviously had some success in the ground game too. I’ve heard from so many different outlets that you don’t have to run to set up the play-action pass. But I wanted to get an expert’s opinion, how do you think the running game helps the play-action passing game?) – “I think they go hand and hand together. When you’re running the ball effectively, that changes the defense’s mentality a little bit and makes them have to obviously honor that and maybe bring another defender down into the box. Again, everything that we do, we try to make sure there is a complement for it – run, pass, play-action, RPO potentially. We’re trying to always match things up to put someone in conflict somewhere on the defense as much as possible.”
(Having a sack-less game, what were your takeaways from that and the whole operation of pass-blocking and the quarterback getting the ball out?) – “Obviously no sacks in the game is something that we can build on and we want to build on going forward. I think that’s a credit to ‘Lem’ (Offensive Line Coach Lemuel Jeanpierre) and the offensive line group, in that they are working continually to offset some of the things that have given us some problems earlier in the year. This is one week. We’ve got to keep building on it though. It’s not a finished product by any stretch of the imagination. The backs can play a part in that, the tight ends are a part in that and the quarterback as well, making quick decisions and throwing the ball, getting the ball out of his hands. We’re all involved in that but I think up front, the line, they really took the challenge that they’re working as hard as they can to make sure that we are going to protect these quarterbacks.”
(Over the years, what have you liked about RB Duke Johnson’s skillset just watching him as an NFL player? Did he show you those skills in his debut on Sunday for you guys?) – “I think the one thing you see, Duke has played a lot so he came in here and in the meetings you could tell that he had a background with experience with dogs, blitzes and different kind of run schemes. The biggest thing always in the transition for someone that comes in in the middle of the season is terminology. That’s the biggest hurdle that guys have to come in. It’s still x’s and o’s and people are lined up in the same places, but what we call things is different and that transition takes a little bit of time. But I think he’s worked at it, he’s gotten into it, he’s a smart guy, he’s into it and I think you saw him on the field. He’s got a physical presence. He hits the ball downhill aggressively, attacks the line of scrimmage. He did a nice job on one of the pass protections that we had scanning across. I was very pleased with him and happy for him because he has put in a lot of work and I think he maximized the opportunity that he had.”
(I wanted to ask you about QB Tua Tagovailoa’s long passing touchdown to WR Mack Hollins. What was your perspective on that play and on that throw?) – “My perspective was right down the sideline where it was caught and Myles (Gaskin) and I were leaning almost onto the field hoping that Mack scored on that. It was a great play by Tua being able to locate Mack down the field and throw the ball and complete it. Again, we’re always looking for those explosive plays when we can get them. We were able to locate that one and make the most of it.”
(How effectively do you think QB Tua Tagovailoa can drive the ball, especially as we all know playing through the discomfort of ribs and throwing hand? Maybe we haven’t talked about that enough.) – “You’d have to talk to him about that. I’d be speaking probably out of place as the how all that works. I just know this, Tua is a competitive person. He comes in here, he’s working his tail off to try to do everything that he needs to do to get ready for games and he’s out there when we need him and he’s playing as hard as he can and he’s doing all he can to support this team and this team is supporting him.”
(TE Durham Smythe already has a career high in receiving yards. If you could touch on his ability to affect the game in multiple ways when he’s in.) – “I think Durham has a nice role. The one thing Durham has done is he kind of quietly goes about his business. He’s there, he’s constant and he’s consistent. That’s what we’re looking for, dependable players that can go in there. He’s got one of those dirty, kind of job descriptions. You’re not going to see a lot of what he does. You may not notice it unless you really go back and study what he does. He’s being physical on the end of the line of scrimmage, we use him in second tight end roles too and he’s catching passes and getting what he can out of the pass routes when he does catch them. I’m happy for Durham in what he’s doing and I’m happy for us that we have him because I think he’s a valuable part of what we’re trying to do.”
(There has been a noticeable theme in terms of what coaches and players have been saying during this three-game winning streak is that you guys have been practicing better. I wanted to get your thoughts on what basically quantifies better practices? How do you know you’re practicing better other than the results have changed? What, in your eyes, have you guys seen that says, ‘Hey, these practices are better?’) – “I think that’s perspective. Whoever’s saying that, I think you’d have to ask them how they’re quantifying that. I think our guys come to work everyday and they’re preparing in the meetings, they’re attentive in the meetings, they’re on top of the information that we are giving them. We’re going out, we’re practicing, we’re working through different issues, adjustments, concerns or whatever we need to do – looks, different looks that we think we are going to get and then they’re going out and they’re executing. It’s the whole process that’s important. How to quantify a good practice from a bad practice, I just think it’s about the work and these guys are putting in the work and that’s the beginning of it. When you’re in that part of the process and you’re putting in the work and you’re prepared and you go out and you work and you’re trying to get them the physical repetitions that we need, then it becomes execution on game day. I think it’s the whole process that goes into it and our guys have been working the whole time. This is a hardworking group. They come to work, they’re disciplined, they’re focused on things and right now we’re executing probably better. That’s a good thing. But that’s a result of the whole process. It’s not one particular part of it. I think that’s meetings, practice, away from the field and everything.”
(Particularly in the run game, I know there are very limited padded practices now. I know you were probably part of old-school football where you could wear pads every single day during practice and had two-a-days too. I actually participated in two-a-days. But how can you replicate the physicality of the run game in practice without getting somebody hurt in today’s NFL?) – “That’s learning how to practice as a team and with each other. Certainly, we’re not full speed and we’re not tackling people and taking them to the ground but there is an increased level of intensity when we have on full pads and things, particularly in our run periods that we want to get and we need to get some of those fits with the offensive line, tight ends and the backs where they’re hitting things. Then backs need to get thumped a little bit too, going through the line of scrimmage with how linebackers are going to react to runs or safeties or whatever that is in team periods. That’s learning how to practice with each other and being able to do that at an increased intensity level but not where we’re risking hurting anybody.”
(I wanted to ask about WR Mack Hollins. Entering the season, you guys had a lot of different pass catchers who were above him on the depth chart but obviously because of injury, he’s been moving into a more prominent role on offense. For him to do what he does on special teams and then come and be able to make the plays that he’s making on offense, what does that say about him, his preparation and the worker he is throughout the week?) – “I think you just said it right there. It’s who he is and how he works and how he prepares and gives himself a chance for an opportunity that comes in. You never know when that opportunity is going to be and he’s taking advantage of the opportunities that he’s had, made some plays and done some things for us this year. Again, I think that goes right back to the beginning of your statement, that’s a credit to who he is, how he prepares, how he works, how committed he is to his craft and coming in here and wanting to be a part of this team and contributing in whatever way it is – special teams or offense. Not counting plays but just trying to contribute.”
(I know when the captains were announced, for WR Mack Hollins to be voted an offensive captain and again, not a guy who many expected to have a prominent role, what type of leader is he? How do you see him take on that leadership role?) – “He brings great energy every day. That’s the one thing about Mack, he’s got energy every day in the meetings, in the building, on the practice field and who he is. That’s his personality. That energy I think is also channeled in the right direction in his preparation and his effort on the practice field and what he’s doing. Again, that’s preparing him for opportunities that have presented themselves to him.”
Danny Crossman – November 23, 2021
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Tuesday, November 23, 2021
Assistant Head Coach/Special Teams Coordinator Danny Crossman
(I wanted to ask you a little bit about K Jason Sanders coming off the All-Pro season he had last year. Where do you see him this year? Obviously we’ve seen him miss a few short ones this season.) – “Obviously we have complete confidence in Jason, first and foremost. But as you know in this profession, and especially in that job, it’s a fine line between being successful and not being successful. That’s twice now that at the end of the half we’ve banged them off the upright. Again, we have complete confidence in him. It’s small things. We’ll keep working and Jason will be fine.”
(Do you see any difference in his kicking motion or anything that you can pinpoint?) – “No. There’s nothing different. He’s been the same for the three years that I’ve had him. We’ll just keep fine-tuning and keep working and keep grinding. One thing about Jason is he’s a worker. We’ll get that taken care of.”
(We’re starting to see all of these short kicks now. Is that just teams figuring out – not just against you guys but is that just teams figuring out that the return game could possibly not be as sharp as it has been in past years because teams aren’t used to returning it anymore?) – “I think it’s a combination of things. I think No. 1, in our particular game, I think weather was a little bit of a factor. But I think more importantly, to your point, I agree with you that people aren’t getting as many opportunities and maybe aren’t as crisp and clean, because you can practice as much as you want but that live speed repetition, when you don’t get as many of them, it sometimes makes it a different scene for the players.”
(Going back to K Jason Sanders, are you noticing any in the operation? Is his lack of being able to duplicate the success that he had last year attributed to the entire operation?) – “No. There’s nothing wrong with the operation. There’s nothing wrong with Jason. Again, it’s the small subtleties of what that guy, you’re asking him to do. The slightest little thing – in our room we refer to it as splitting hairs. Things have such a small margin that you can’t even see them but when those little things do crop up, that can be the difference between a make and a miss. Then you throw the rest of the elements into it whether it be the distance of the kick, the weather, the wind, or whatever it may be, you may run into some misses. But again, we have complete confidence in Jason and we’ll get this sorted out.”
(Somebody brought up the idea that maybe he has a different holder this year, that could be playing a factor.) – “Nah, that has nothing to do with it.”
(I know WR Jaylen Waddle had a pretty dynamic career as a college returner but he just doesn’t seem – to my amateur eye – very comfortable back there. Is there something that you guys can do other than just reps that can get him kind of greased up and going and looking back like he did in college?) – “No. Jaylen Waddle is going to be absolutely fine. He’s going to be a special player. I think to combo this question along with your earlier point, when there are limited opportunities, it’s hard to get that rhythm. We have complete confidence that he’s going to be a special player in everything that we ask him to do.”
(I wanted to ask you about DB Elijah Campbell. It seems like just about every week, he’s making plays on special teams for you. I was just curious what it says about him to be able to arrive here in September and have an impact pretty much throughout the course of the season on special teams.) – “He’s been good. It was a good get for us. He’s a talented player – a young guy who we think is going to keep getting better and better.”
Brian Flores – November 22, 2021
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Monday, November 22, 2021
Head Coach Brian Flores
(What was your message for the team when the season reached its low point, a seven-game losing streak, and what do you remember telling the team at that point that kind of turned this around to these three wins? What do you remember you wanted to get across to your players at that point in time and how the players responded?) – “I think my message is I try to be consistent. I hope my message is the same every week. We want to get better and improve in really all areas. That starts with our preparation, our understanding of what the opponent is trying to do to us, how we are trying to attack them, getting into the scouting report, doing a good job in meetings and in practice. That’s my message every week.”
(I was just wondering if you had any updates on whether CB Jamal Perry and LB Brennan Scarlett injuries are serious and if you expect to have WR DeVante Parker and WR Will Fuller available to practice and potentially play?) – “We’re still waiting on tests with the guys who went down yesterday. I think some guys are still getting some of those tests, so I don’t have all the information on, you mentioned Jamal and Scarlett. When we have it, I’ll get it to you, but they’re still running some tests. As far as DeVante and Will, they’re eligible (to return off IR). We’ll see how this goes. We’ll know Wednesday for Wednesday practice. Nothing definitive right now though.”
(I wanted to ask you about what went into the decision to move up RB Duke Johnson and not dress RB Salvon Ahmed, and how you thought Duke did? Obviously, he got a chance there late in the game.) – “Duke’s been here a few weeks, kind of got his feet under him. He’s got a little better understanding of what we’re trying to do offensively. He had been doing a good job in practice. He’s an experienced player. He’s played a lot of ball in this league. I thought he went in and played well yesterday. He got us some positive yardage, was ready to go and I was pleased with his performance.”
(Speaking of Thanksgiving, I’m doing a story on Steven Rivera and how thankful he was for you and the Miami Dolphins organization for allowing him to do what he does and does well, which is cut hair in the facility and whatnot. He mentioned you being a fellow Honduran and how much he appreciated you. I just wanted to get your insight on that.) – “Steve is one of my favorite people around here, and not just because he does a good job with my haircut but I think he’s just a great overall human being. We’ve gotten to become friends since I’ve been here. When you go into the barbershop, there’s a fellowship that happens in there and the camaraderie in that environment. He’s someone who’s a great listener. We’ve had some great conversations and I’m glad to call him a friend.”
(A lot of people have talked about, among the many goals you guys have for the last six or seven games, to get a look at everything QB Tua Tagovailoa can do as a quarterback. Yesterday we got to see him rip a really long ball down the field. Is that something that you guys have wanted to incorporate more into his game and did he sort of show people? There have been people who have questioned if he could do it, but I imagine in the building that wasn’t a big surprise for you.) – “We know he can throw the ball down the field. It’s all about the opportunity to do so in a game. We try to create those opportunities with our play design and play calling. I think there’s a timing element to it. You can get the exact look you’re looking for, get the matchup you’re looking for and get an opportunity to push it down the field, get the protection you need to get it down the field. There’s a lot of things that play into that. That showed up yesterday and we were able to connect.”
(QB Tua Tagovailoa said on that play that he was going through his progressions, that he was looking for TE Mike Gesicki and that he was able to look off. Is that something that’s frequently designed in plays where you have a guy going deep as part of a progression if a play breaks down at the line?) – “Occasionally. I think you can read the post safety and if he’s low, you throw it high. Sometimes where a Cover 2 corner or a curl-flat player is supposed to play high-to-low and he doesn’t so you can get in behind him. Sometimes deep third corners are sitting on a curl route or sitting on an in-cut and you can get in behind him. I think oftentimes as you go through your progression, you expect to see a guy somewhere and he’s not there and that’s normally when you have an opportunity to go down the field.”
(You just came off of a road win and you’ve won on the road before. That goes without saying. But the fact that you’re home now for the next month, what kind of advantage could that be as you guys look to continue this surge, the fact that you don’t have to – everything will be very settled, you don’t have to travel. Can that be of help for you guys?) – “It’s only a help if we prepare the right way, meet the right way, walkthrough the right way, practice the right way and then go out there and execute against what’s going to be some stiff competition definitely this week. This Carolina team, I was taking a peek at them this morning. They are talented. They are fast. They’ve got a lot of good players. It’s going to be a big challenge.”
(I wanted to ask you about the other two guys who are eligible to return from IR – C/G Michael Deiter and RB Malcolm Brown, in terms of their level of readiness?) – “Like (Will) Fuller and DeVante (Parker), those guys are working every day to get back as quickly as possible. Definitely making a lot of progress and try to take it one day at a time. We’ve got a plan for all of these guys, and we’ll see if they’ll be available Wednesday. I’m hopeful that we’ll get a couple of guys back. There are a couple of more things we need to get through before we make those decisions.”
(What if anything have you noticed about LB Jaelan Phillips on Sunday, and also over the last wo or three weeks that has changed or improved?) – “He’s made a lot of improvements. We need to not have 15-yard penalties. I’ll use this platform to make sure he understands that. Obviously there is a lot of fire, a lot of intensity, a lot of energy. We’ve got to channel that the right ways, which he’s done most of the time, but not yesterday on one particular play. I’ll take this as another opportunity to use this platform to tell Jaelan to keep your poise.”
(I know you base practices and changes on injuries and the way you’re feeling about the team. But there has been this message that the practices have improved, they’ve gotten crisper, understanding is better. Do you think that has anything to do with the Thursday walkthroughs and then Friday practice, instead of practice Wednesday, practice Thursday and walkthrough Friday? Do you see any kind of correlation with that? I know when the team was struggling, you were changing up a couple of things and experimenting.) – “Perhaps. I think we always try to do what we feel is best for the team. The Wednesday practice, Thursday walkthrough, we’ve had a little success with that than other times where we’ve had different schedules. But at the end of the day it’s about our preparation and just getting a better understanding of how we want to play and then being able to execute on Sunday. Whatever works best for the team is what I’ll try to do. That’s likely how we’ll go this week as well.”
(You’ve made the point that every team is different. Every team reacts and handles things differently. Every team has to be coached differently. How long do you think it takes you to figure out the rhythms of the team that year?) – “I think you want to find out as quickly as possible. As a staff, we’re always trying to do everything we can to put the players in the best possible positions to have success. Always hopefully sooner than later, to answer your question.”
(Since you wanted to use your platform for LB Jaelan Phillips, I’ll tee you back up on it. The 19 penalties in the last two games is the most under you in a two-game span. How much of an emphasis across the board is that? I know it always is for you guys, but will there be a little bit more emphasis on this week?) – “We’ve got to do a better job. We talk about it at length every week – the officials we’re going to see, how we expect them to call it, how we’ve got to adjust to the way they are calling it within the game. We’re not doing a good enough job of that. They are calling pass interference, offensive pass interference. We’ve got to make an adjustment. Defensive pass interference or holding, we’ve got to make adjustments. We’re not doing a good enough job. I’ve got to do a better job in-game of reminding these guys that you’ve got to limit the penalties. They are hurting us. Again, I’ll use this platform to convey that message. I think they know that. Our guys know that. They understand it. They’re trying to play physical, trying to play aggressive, but we’ve got to play smart also. I’m not going to beat him down too much, even though that’s what you’re looking for. (laughter)”
Mike Gesicki – November 22, 2021
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Monday, November 22, 2021
TE Mike Gesicki
(Every time that there is success on the first drive of every game, and then there is a little lull, fans like to say ‘it’s because the first drive is scripted, and the other drives aren’t.’ Is there any truth to that at all?) – “You really can only follow the script for so many plays. It’s like the first two or three plays. Then it could be third down, it could be a different part of the field where you weren’t anticipating being. The script only lasts for so long. That’s why the fans are where they are and our coordinators are where they are.”
(Is there any scripting for the second or third drive?) – “Yeah, there is. There is scripting for the first two drives. But it’s all dependent on – I mean you’ve got a script for the second drive, but you got a turnover and you’re in plus field position, now that changes how you’re going to call the game. There are a lot of things that go into it. It is what it is. I think we got into a groove a little bit in the first drive, got down there and scored a touchdown. I’ve said this before – these defenses are also getting paid a lot of money to play football and these coaches are also getting paid a lot of money to stop us from moving the ball. That’s how it happens in this league. I know everybody wants to see every drive end in a touchdown, but unfortunately that is not how this always happens.”
(You’ve consistently been a big defender of QB Tua Tagovailoa from all sorts of criticism that he’s faced. One of the things that people have said is ‘why isn’t he throwing the deep ball?’ Then yesterday he unloads a 65-yard touchdown pass. I’m wondering what you thought, and what the mood was of the team when he threw that bomb?) – “I was happy for him but at the end of the day, you don’t want to force a deep ball that’s not there to try to give people something to write about or people to be happy about. You’ve got to play within the gameplan and play within what the defense gives you. That’s really that. I’m not going to harp on it too much, but I talked to you guys in the spring and I told you guys what I thought about all of the criticism that he gets and all of that kind of stuff. That is what that is. I think he handles it great and yesterday was just another great example of that.”
(I’m sure you’d like to avoid any fines, if in fact they do fine players for criticizing officials. But did you get a helpful explanation relative to what you could’ve done differently or better in order to avoid two pass interference calls in five minutes?) – “When I was driving in this morning, I thought of two things when I was coming to this press conference. I knew that I was going to get asked the OPI call. I initially thought to myself ‘what can I say without getting in trouble?’ I’ll probably keep that to a small margin right there. The other thing I thought to myself was, ‘Wow, Durham (Smythe) went over his career yardage yesterday. He has a new career high so I’m going to wear his jersey in my press conference today and start the initiative to get him paid here by the Miami Dolphins.’ He’s a good player, has a lot of success, does a lot of things – special teams, offense, blocking, receiving. Did it take a trick play to get him an 18-yard catch? It sure did but nonetheless, nobody knows it on the stat sheet. An 18-yard catch is an 18-yard catch, which brings me back to your point – my 18-yard catch taken away which was obviously unfortunate. The refs were doing their job and I’m doing my job. We’re all allowed to agree to disagree and all of that kind of stuff I think that was another instance – I did talk to the ref after that play. I invited him to come to our film session today and we could discuss it. He said he watched it on the Jumbotron and got all of the film that he needed. Like I said, we’re able to agree to disagree and that was that.”
(TE Durham Smythe had a career high in what?) – “Yesterday he went over his season career-high in yardage. Last year he had 208 receiving yards on I think 26 catches maybe. Was the yards per catch great? No. But was the yards up there for him a career high? Yes. This year, with still six games left to go, he’s already exceeded that. I’m happy for him, so I figured I’d come in here wearing his jersey and give him a little boost. I know he wouldn’t do it for me, but I’ll do it for him. (laughter)”
(Are you kidding? He’s done nothing but campaign for you to get your money.) – “Absolutely. I know he’ll come in here and say it, but he probably won’t come in here and put on an 88 jersey. (laughter) But I’ll come in here and put on his jersey for him. I haven’t even seen him yet this morning. This was a, ‘Hey, good job Durham.’ We got home last night, went out to dinner at Louie Bossi’s, watched the game. We were having some fun, enjoying ourselves, congratulations Durham, we were talking about it and realized that he had a career high.”
(I didn’t even know. Thank you for creating that awareness for us.) – “That’s how this happens. See, Durham is a guy that goes under the radar and I’m just trying to elevate his – like he is not even on the Pro Bowl ballot. That’s another thing. Just get him on there. I’ll have to get in touch with NFL.com. Maybe we can get him on there. I’ll vote for him.”
(New tight ends are getting paid. I know you saw that TE Dallas Goedert contract. Thoughts?) – “Happy for him. Very happy for him. He’s a good player. I like Dallas a lot. I’ve met him a couple times, and I don’t have anything bad to say about him. He’s a good dude, great player and I think he got exactly what he deserved. We’ll see what happens”
(When you see tight ends raise the bar, you think what?) – “I like when people get what they deserve.”
(I take it based on what you started to mention a minute ago, TE Durham Smythe is unaware of your campaign?) – “Yeah. Yesterday he said ‘Yeah, you said I was slow last week. You said I ran a 4.9.’ I was like, ‘Bro it was a joke. Relax.’ So today, I figured I’d come in here and give him all of the praise and start his campaign to be a Miami Dolphin next year and moving forward. So Chris (Grier), if you’re listening, this is my campaign for Durham.”
(A few minutes ago, DT Christian Wilkins was talking about how the team wasn’t panicking when you were on the losing streak, which I can certainly appreciate. Was there a point where it crossed your mind about ‘Hey, the margin for error is really shrinking for us, if we want to make something of this season?’) – ‘Yeah, absolutely. I was coming into every postgame press conference telling you guys that we were close and we really were. To be honest with you, we’re still not playing our best football. But we’re making enough plays to come out on top. We’ve got six games left and say what you want, but I think what we want is still out there. You see each and every week that some teams go down and you’re shocked by it. This is a crazy league, so there is definitely an opportunity to still reach our goals as a team. We just take it day-by-day, week-by-week, and this week we’re on to the Carolina Panthers and have another opportunity.”
(What you want is still out there, so that raises the question, what do you want?) – “I’ve got to keep that internal. (laughter) We just want success. We want week-by-week success. I’m not going to put any expectations or big goals out there. We keep those internal because I feel like once you start saying stuff out loud, then the football gods work in an interesting way. We keep that to ourselves and let everything else handle itself.”
(I raised my hand before you referenced the football gods and I totally get that. But is it fair to say that the playoffs remain the main objective? It’s certainly not out of the question with the way you’re playing and with the schedule ahead.) – “I would say that for every team in the NFL, that is the objective. Then you just have to take it day-by-day, week-by-week, and go out there on Sunday and try to put another good week together and strive to reach our goals.”
