Jonnu Smith – November 17, 2024 (Postgame)
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Sunday, November 17, 2024
Postgame – Las Vegas Raiders
Dolphins TE Jonnu Smith (transcribed by ASAP Sports)
Q. Jonnu, when do you ever remember having a game like this?
JONNU SMITH: Christ is king, baby. Man, that was – it’s a lot more than just a game for me. I’m extremely blessed, man, and just proud of where God has placed me with this team. Everything was rocky in the beginning – forget about the stat line, what we just experienced in the locker room is something that we worked all year for. I’m not trying to ignore your question, but I just felt like I needed to hit on that. It wasn’t about the stat line for me today, it was the joy that we had knowing that the work that we just put in, the work that was put in all the way from OTAs and just the expectations and the fight that’s in this team. Just proud of this group of guys. It’s a special group, truly, and I’m just excited to be a part of this as a team no matter which way it’s going. Today was another step towards the direction that we want to go, but it’s one step at a time mentality.
Q. What was the locker room like?
JONNU SMITH: It was what we expected it to be every week, to say the least. But the resolve of the group of guys that we got, the leaders on this team, it was some key additions that was added to this. It was a championship caliber team before this year but just the leaders that were added to this team, it’s definitely taken us to another level. I know the record right now doesn’t show it, but we know who we are. We know who we want to be, and just that energy in the locker room, just guys being selfless rallying around one another, just more happy for other people’s successes. Just proud to be part of this group.
Q. What is that feeling of when you’re standing there all alone in the middle of the field on that touchdown?
JONNU SMITH: The Red Seas parted. It’s Sunday, I’m coming with my biblical terms today. It seems like if it was a busted coverage, and Tua, me and him, we just connected, locked eyes and just made the rest happen.
Q. Talk a bit about the reaction on the sideline when Jalen Ramsey got the interception, pretty much iced the game.
JONNU SMITH: Just momentum and energy, just an amazing feeling. It’s such a sigh of relief when you see everything that we put into it, you know what I mean? The guys, we’re working — I know the stats, the record doesn’t show, but we’re working. We’re sacrificing, you know what I mean? And for everybody, this town, this city, has had big expectations on us and we understand that we’re playing for the city of Miami — really probably the state of Florida, you know what I mean? We’re playing for a lot bigger than just the city of Miami, we’ve got fans all over the country. And I understand that there’s an expectation that came into this. And to just have that mentality of, listen, let’s look at this thing in the mirror and let’s go attack it. No matter who is with us, who is against us, we know what we’ve got in here and we’re going to keep rolling.
Q. What’s it like to have scoring drives of 14, 16, 14 and 10 plays?
JONNU SMITH: I was messing around earlier in the locker room just now saying, Jake probably went home already. (laughter) That’s our brand of football. That’s who the Miami Dolphins are offensively, that’s who we are. Still not our best offensive game, still. A lot of things we can clean up, and that’s why we believe in — but that’s who we are. That’s the Dolphin standard of football, and still a lot of things that we need to clean up and we know that. We’ll get back to the drawing board and continue to fix those mistakes and just continue to try to be better, never get too complacent.
Q. When you caught that and you saw nobody around you but you knew they were gaining on you, were you looking back? Were you just like focused at the end zone?
JONNU SMITH: I was told a long time ago slow people look back. So when I caught it and I saw nobody in front of me, I wasn’t leaving without a tud, wasn’t leaving without a tud. The Red Seas parted, Uce found me and God did the rest.
Q. What about the first touchdown moving in motion, fourth down play, could you just detail that one?
JONNU SMITH: Yeah, again, just getting my eyes around quick and just Tua having a feel for where I’m at. It’s funny, the ball actually got tipped. The guy tried to make a play on the ball, the ball got tipped and we still found a way to come down with it. Another big, big play just by the offensive group being it was fourth and one right there and definitely needed points. Another big play for us, and good way to start the game off.
Q. You guys were I think 8-of-12 on third down, 2-of-2 on fourth down. Since Tua has back from injury, you guys have been a really good third-down team. What’s the key been?
JONNU SMITH: Best in the world. You’ve got the best quarterback in the world. Makes things a lot easier for everybody else. And those guys that came in during that time when he was down, they did a great job and helped us as much as they could and showed a lot of grit and a lot of selflessness. We are happy to have those guys, but 1 is who he is for a reason. But we’re excited to have him back and excited to where we’re back where we need to be.
Q. You talked about how happy you are and what a blessing it is to be on this team. You’ve been on a few teams, what’s the difference?
JONNU SMITH: Again, like you could look at the roster and you could say, they’ve got this guy, they’ve got this guy. A lot may deem them as superstars. When we come into that locker room, we just try to put all that stuff away and come together and win. And I think that’s what is so special about this group, just eliminating the egos. Eliminating the “me” mentality and just focusing on the team, doing what you’re supposed to be doing, being there fighting for your brothers, being in this thing together. Everybody had the same feeling for the past nine or so weeks or whatever it was. We all had the same thing, we were all going through the same thing. Nobody was pointing fingers and nobody was wavering. We rallied, we experienced some adversity and pushing through it. That’s why it’s a special group.
Q. So because you’re a coach for little league football team, how does it translate with you being on the field to the coaching mindset with the kids? How do the kids look at you? Do they look at you as, oh, that’s just coach; like he’s supposed to do that? Or do they look at you when you have a game like this, it’s like, dude, that’s our coach?
JONNU SMITH: I’ll say this, so it’s funny that Tua said that. I had my pups come in. We just won two championships, my flag — my 7-year-old and 9-year-old team, we came in Saturday for Saturday’s walkthrough yesterday. I brought them in because we just won two championships, so I wanted to show them around, bring them around the guys. But obviously it’s like I’ve been coaching going on it’s probably started in January, so this is probably, I don’t know, what is it, 11 months or whatever it is. For me obviously all the kids knew who I was and all of that, so I had to separate — actually a good question, but they did a great job like separating like Jonnu Smith from Coach Nu. They did a great job. That’s why we won two championships. Shoutout to Cooper City Dolphins Optimist, come check us out next year.
-DOLPHINS-
Jordyn Brooks – November 17, 2024 (Postgame)
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Sunday, Nov. 17, 2024
Postgame – Las Vegas Raiders
Miami Dolphins LB Jordyn Brooks
(What can you say about the defense’s performance today?) – “I thought we were OK. We weren’t our best today. We gave up some touchdowns I don’t think they should have got. We pride ourselves on being a Top 5 defense, so there’s some things we’ve got to clean up but I thought we finished well.”
(I saw you gather the team on the sideline. What was the message and have you had to do that before?) – “Just the timing of the game, I felt that the Raiders were gaining momentum and those times, you kind of want to get everybody back focused and let them know we’ve still got the lead, we just have to keep the lead and finish it.
(What do you guys say to each other in the locker room after winning but like you said not being fully satisfied?) – “Enjoy the win. Always have to enjoy the win because it is hard to win in this league. Enjoy and then the next 24 hours, get back to work because we’re not where we want to be. We’re heading there, but we’re not where we want to be. Be content but don’t be satisfied.”
-DOLPHINS-
Jalen Ramsey – November 17, 2024 (Postgame)
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Sunday, Nov. 17, 2024
Postgame – Las Vegas Raiders
Miami Dolphins CB Jalen Ramsey
(What does it mean to get the first back-to-back win for the season for you guys?) – “It means a lot. It means we can start stacking them up, letting our preparation turn over to Sundays or Mondays or Thursdays, whenever we play our games. So it means a lot, but we’ve got to keep going.”
(Tell us about the interception. What did you see on the play?) – “He kind of just threw it to me, for real, and I had to get down there and make the catch, but that was it.”
(What do you like about your role with the defense? I see you sneaking up on the line, sitting on the pass, you got an interception, what do you like about your role?) – “Yeah, it keeps me in the game plan. It keeps offenses guessing a little bit. Just my versatility, going where I’m at, makes the linemen pay attention to me, makes the running backs pay attention to me, and of course, the receivers. So it’s fun. It keeps me motivated, it keeps me focused throughout the game. In the past when I’ve only played corner and things like that, it could at times get boring. I love the game and have fun but in the sense of being in the action, being in the game plan. So it’s cool, it’s fun.”
(DT Zach Sieler has a sack, DT Calais Campbell has a sack, just how big are those guys up front for you guys?) – “They’re literally big. (laughter) They’re big for us. Captains of the team, leaders of the team, they help set the tone with a handful of the other guys. They are super important to what we have going on this year.”
(Do you feel momentum building here?) – “We got to keep building so that’s all that matters. It’s what we feel in here and just continuing to build. Obviously we are happy, don’t get it twisted, but we can’t get too high or too low. We’ve been preaching that all year, even through the tough times and the good times like today. So, yeah, we’re going to keep building.”
-DOLPHINS-
Tua Tagovailoa – November 17, 2024 (Postgame)
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Sunday, November 17, 2024
Postgame – Las Vegas Raiders
Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa (transcribed by ASAP Sports)
Q. Can you talk about a guy like Jonnu Smith, what he did today on the field to be able to also help with this win today?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: I think it’s super cool. We’ve had plans to implement him in the past within the offense, so be it, the defense doesn’t allow for him to get as many catches as we would like for him. But it’s been really cool to see his progression from the prime time game we had against the Rams to now. Just being in the right spots. It’s just a lot of the reps that we’ve gotten throughout training camp and leading up to this point. So all of this that everyone is seeing isn’t new to our team, but now that he’s being implemented more and getting the ball, going through the progressions, that’s just what it is. He’s a baller.
Q. You had all kinds of yards and points and last year was a special year offensively, but you didn’t do it like you’re doing it now. The 12-, 14-, 16-play drives. What’s been different for you guys?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: I think what’s been different with the quarterback play is now not trying to force things down the field if it’s not there. Taking the checkdowns, allowing our runners in space to go get first downs. Hopefully they can break a tackle and you can use that also as essentially a run play if you look at it in that sense. And we like our matchups with our guys in space, so that’s what I would attest to today’s performance for us offensively.
Q. Sometimes when players are off for a week or two or three weeks, they get a chance to see the game a little bit differently from the side. Was this something when you came back that you wanted to implement? To be a little bit more ball control, keep drives up, alive longer?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: Not necessarily. I think coming back it’s more so how can we get back into our rhythm as an offense, finding that rhythm, whether it’s in the run game, the action game, the pass game, whatever that looks like and just protecting the ball. Not trying to force things if it’s not there. We’ve got good enough players to where if we get them the ball in space, we like our chances. That’s sort of been the mindset coming back. And really pocket presence as well. If guys want to drop eight or if they want to bring pressure, just feeling that out. If I still have time in the pocket, just moving subtly, things like that.
Q. Talk a bit about having to limit an explosive player like Maxx Crosby on defense. How did you guys game plan for him? And how ultimately are you able to pull off limiting him to just five total tackles?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: He’s a dawg. Everyone knows that around the league. If you watch his tape, he’s in every play. Dude has a motor like no other. Got a lot of respect for him. Got a lot of respect for his game. A lot of what we did was because of where he was on the field, so we had a lot of check outs of runs and things like that to go away from him. Once you get somebody like that going in a game and he gets a rhythm, it’s sort of hard to stop it regardless of the scheme or whatever. Players make the plays work, so got a lot of respect for him.
Q. When Divine Deablo was closing in on you in the last touchdown, did you see Jonnu? Did you know he was going to be there the whole time or did he all of a sudden come open to you?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: You know, I don’t know – I think that was, for Jonnu, that was a feel-space kind of play because essentially that wasn’t what we called for that play to be. And I think he just felt space and was, like, ‘if I break it in, like, I could run into this guy over here.’ And he kind of just throttled going forward and was just, like, ‘yo, I’m over here.’ So I got out – I think at the beginning of it the motion kind of messed up what they wanted to do. I think they were trying to get into a (Cover) Zero look. And I think 5, with the communication in the back end, I think it was messed up. That’s why they dropped it. It was 2-for-3 and they were trying to bring 5. But it helped that they had that communication error because he ended up adding late. So that was cool.
Q. As a leader of the offense, just to give Jake Bailey essentially the day off with no punts. Can you describe that feeling?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: Free money for him. Good for him. Great for him. We took a picture. Had zero punts. Happy for him. It should signify that, for the most, part things are going well offensively.
Q. What keyed the 10-for-14 on third and fourth downs? What was the key?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: I think just staying in it, continuing to have the Seakeeper mindset and each play stands on its merit. Just go through my reads. And having it in the back of my head with what other teams have played prior to us on third downs that they could potentially do that instead of what they would normally do in those down and distances and having those answers. So I think everyone was dialed in and locked in on that.
Q. Going back to the past two games, how close or far do you think you are to playing your best football?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: I think it’s a week-to-week thing. We’ve just got to build off of what we can learn from this week. We move forward. We see what the next opponent is and things that we can do to get better to give us the edge to win that next game. And we’ll continue to move forward. I don’t think anyone can play their best game essentially. But you try to minimize the amount of mistakes that you have in games. So I think that’s what we’re trying to do.
Q. On that topic, just talk a bit about, there’s a couple of big playoff-caliber matchups ahead, however you do have New England next Sunday. Just talk about not looking too far ahead, especially against a team you guys have already beaten earlier in the season.
TUA TAGOVAILOA: We’re looking forward to playing New England, but first off we’re going to enjoy the win tonight, go home to our families, hang out with our friends, whatever that looks like. And we’ll come in Monday, watch the film, put that to rest, and then we’ll get on to New England and focus on that week.
Q. I think you had extended play completions to Jaylen Waddle and Tyreek Hill. I might be missing another one, but are those plays particularly rewarding? Do you get a personal sort of rush of confidence when those occur, the extended plays?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: Yeah, sure, if you will. Yeah. Any time we can extend plays and keep their offense off the field and we can continue to be on the field, you love that at all times. I just got to be better with protecting the ball inside the pocket.
Q. Just to put up the amount of points you guys did, how gratifying is it understanding, all right, like, all this, we’re finally seeing this on Sundays?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: It’s cool. It’s cool. We’re glad that everyone gets to see it. One thing that I know with the players in the locker room is they’re not satisfied. There’s a lot of things that we wish we could have done better, especially on my end with my play, with some throws. I wish I could have had back for certain guys. But that’s just the way the game goes. It’s football. You learn from it and you continue to play the game as it is.
Q. Your first touchdown came on a tipped ball on fourth down. Your last touchdown of the game just popped wide open. First time all season winning two in a row. Do you feel like you have more momentum going into the back half of the season?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: I would say any time you can get a win in the NFL, it’s a momentum builder for your team, for the locker room, for the organization. It always feels better when your body is hurting after a win than a loss. I would say we’re looking forward to New England next week. We’re going to enjoy this game and move forward.
-DOLPHINS-
Mike McDaniel – November 17, 2024 (Postgame)
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Sunday, November 17, 2024
Postgame – Las Vegas Raiders
Miami Dolphins Head Coach Mike McDaniel
Q. The four long drives — 14, 16, 14 and 10 plays. What do you think when you absorb that, digest that, the four long drives?
MIKE MCDANIEL: I think you know you’re diligently working at various things in our football. I think last year we might have had three drives that were 14-plus plays the entire year. So it has been a focus of ours in anticipation of how guys were going to defend us and then as we’ve gone through the season, adjusting to how defenses have adjusted to us, and I think that’s a lot of hours of practice, meeting room – that’s what comes to mind, as well as the collective effort of our coaching staff, starting with (Offensive Coordiantor) Frank Smith, but all the position coaches being connected with the players and really focusing on fundamentals and technique to improve our game because the idea is if the whole orchestration of your offense is right, it shouldn’t matter who you go against or what they decide to do. So a lot of execution, a lot of people making plays, and a lot of fundamentals and detail that go into that earned productivity.
Q. What has TE Jonnu Smith meant to you guys and has he exceeded what you expected when you first got him?
MIKE MCDANIEL: I knew it was a great add by Chris (Grier) and the pro (personnel) department just because of his skills with the ball in his hands, and then I knew secondhand from a couple of coaches that have been on staffs before the type of person we were getting. But I think the collective of his play and who he is has really added something very important to our offense. Ultimately, he’s making defenses pay for the over attention that Tyreek (Hill) and (Jaylen) Waddle get, and that space that’s added by, let’s say, call it you have a linebacker playing in the alley between the numbers and the hash and his landmark is three yards deeper based upon our offense and trying to stop the in-breaks for Tyreek and Waddle. Well, he’s making full use of those extra three yards and adding a real cool element to our offense that we needed every yard that he’s had for us this year. It was cool to see him make plays in opportune times today.
Q. We asked you about becoming a ball control offense. On third down, what’s the key since QB Tua Tagovailoa has been back?
MIKE MCDANIEL: I think the development of like when Tua was out, our offensive skill positions didn’t throw their hat or they didn’t tap. This year, those tight ends, receivers, running backs, have done a very good job at developing their game within the season, which is very hard to do. So their attention to detail in situations today, the Raiders coming into the game were a very zone-oriented defense on third down. And today, they played virtually all man, specifically the first half, which is, as we are a group working together over time, we’ve learned to adjust faster to the unexpected because it’s been a long time since a defense has just shown up and done what they’ve done against other teams against us. You don’t get that exact work, all the plays that we’re running on third down during the week against man coverage. That’s the idea of them showing up and surprising us, but we’ve been focusing on fundamentals and technique to beat man each and every week from a route tree perspective. So being able to do that, having the amount of time, the protection plan being executed and then I think Tua has just been very, very – he’s taken a gigantic step in his game. He’s got control of the emotional piece of the football game and isn’t trying to force things unnecessarily, isn’t trying to make plays when they’re not there, but also finding ways to extend plays and making more plays than maybe the play that I gave him enabled them to do. So a lot of work, and I think the good news is although we haven’t gotten a 30-point offensive output all season, that’s been kind of the standard and expectation of the guys and they’ve been unrelenting in that expectation standard for themselves. So I think today, we got to tap into all that work and I don’t see our crew really taking the foot off the gas just because there’s a lot to prove each and every week. It was fun to get our first consecutive win of the season but we’ll have another tough journey next week and the week after that as that continues. I like where we’re at. We have a lot left to do.
Q. You have used basketball references before. What is the value of seeing the ball go in the hoop and the value of that win last week after being so close, two or three weeks before, the value of stringing two or three together?
MIKE MCDANIEL: Well, I think for this season, for this team, it’s monumental because there’s only so far that belief can last through adversity. And I think when you have a losing streak of like three games, that’s 21 days of – and you have the next week before the next game, it’s almost like a month of it’s not good enough, but then you have guys continuing to chop wood and holding themselves accountable and finding ways that they can burden themselves with that result and that’s trying. Worried? It makes you a little nervous when you find your fifth and sixth loss of the season consecutively on the last second. But then thankfully during the work week, my worries were appeased because I saw guys not breaking and going after it. So they deserve to be feeling the feeling of a two-game win streak. Based upon feelings that we’ve had for a couple of months at the beginning of the season, I think – I don’t know about you guys, but winning feels a lot better than losing. So I think we’re going to keep trying to do that.
Q. You had success on third downs the Raiders also did. What were you finding some of the challenges in that setting and what can you say about TE Brock Bowers?
MIKE MCDANIEL: I’ll have to look at the tape. We’ve been very successful, specifically in the previous game on third down. It was one of the reasons we were able to win that game against the Rams. And they found a rhythm where, I think, they were ultimately, including fourth downs, 10-of-16, maybe? I think it was 8-of-14, 10-of-16. It was tough. It made the drives last long. We need to find a way to get off the field and take advantage of some of the momentum on the opposite side of the ball, and that’s an important part of team football is playing complementary football and being able to put a team away when you have the ability to. I think that would have occurred earlier if we would have been able to find some success on third downs, but I was very happy with the fact that more often than not, even when they were driving, we kept them out of the end zone and had several, or we had a couple, four-point plays that helped the score be what it was. We had some tackling issues. Bowers, he’s legit. We knew coming out of the draft, we were very high on him, and he didn’t disappoint. He’s going to be a player that everybody knows for years to come, in my opinion.
Q. Can you talk about the defensive line’s efforts and what the return of DT Zach Sieler has meant to the team?
MIKE MCDANIEL: I saw an uptick in generated pass rush from my live observation, from our big guys, and it was really cool. Zach Sieler and Calais (Campbell) together do some really, really cool things in terms of working together, pass rush lanes, stunts, and just bringing the much-needed juice. I would say they’re probably the heartbeat of our defense, for sure. And everybody plays off of that. And we have players on all three levels making plays from some of the production they do in the run and pass game. So (they are) very important players to us. Zach, personally, he’s probably like my binkie. I don’t like doing game day without him. He’s the guy when we pray together in the locker room that sits next to me every single week and a lot of guys have really, if they didn’t already appreciate it, appreciate what type of playmaker he is for us. Every opponent ends up saying that he’s probably better than they realized, and that’s good for us. Hopefully they can keep doing that.
Q. After so many completions between 13 and 24 yards, what was it like to see that 57-yarder develop?
MIKE MCDANIEL: It wasn’t real. I was getting ready for my next call on the 30-yard line. (laughter) No, those are strenuous. If you can’t tell by my energy level right now, my eyes feel like they’re bleeding because you’re just staring at your call sheet and the defense. A lot of decisions to be made. It was nice to have one pop. And that’s what happens. You have to earn that. Well, in that situation, so many guys had made the appropriate play versus soft coverage, four-man rush, that it forces the defense to try to bring five or six. And the way that we operate in our offense and motion guys around, that makes it difficult to totally play sound. They dropped a guy and to Tua’s credit, he waited an extra tick longer to go get the ball to Jonnu (Smith). If teams want you to earn it, then you need to play that way to have explosives. Explosives are an important part of winning football, just because it’s hard to execute play in play out at five yards a tick. But if a defense wants to commit to playing keep-the-ball-in-front-of-you defense, then you have to execute in the ways we did and have long drives to force them to be a little riskier. But like we’ve seen all year, we’re going to have to earn those types of defenses, which is what I was happy with the collective unit that they were able to do that this week.
-DOLPHINS-
PFWA Pool Reporter Case Keefer Interview with Referee John Hussey – November 17, 2024
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PFWA Pool Reporter Case Keefer Interview with Referee John Hussey
Las Vegas Raiders vs. Miami Dolphins
Sunday, November 17, 2024
Question: When was the facemask penalty noticed and when was the flag thrown (third quarter, Las Vegas first-and-goal at the four, 5:22 remaining)?
Hussey: “So I announced the holding penalty from one official. Two officials were talking to each other and they were piecing it together. I think they both had a feeling or a sense that there was something on the play. So, they came together and were talking and as I announced the holding penalty, they confirmed the fact that they had a facemask, threw the flag and brought that to my attention. I just took the next step and did another announcement to include the facemask and offset both penalties.”
Question: Was that why the initial holding penalty seemed like it was already assessed?
Hussey: “I don’t think it was assessed or stepped off because I had just announced it. The two officials were talking behind me, and I wasn’t sure what they were talking about. But it did not cause me any concern. It is just one of those plays where they each had a different angle, and they wanted to collectively talk to each other to get to that result.”
Question: Was the call affected by either the replay or the reaction from the crowd?
Hussey: “No, we don’t officiate that way.”
Mike McDaniel – November 15, 2024
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Friday, November 15, 2024
Head Coach Mike McDaniel
(So how did CB Jalen Ramsey sustain the knee injury that surfaced on the injury report yesterday and do you expect him to play Sunday?) – “Something that came up during practice so we’ll see how it plays out today. Either way, I don’t rule out warriors like he is and an integral part of our team, so I know he’ll do what he is able to do today and we’ll be optimistic for the game knowing that if he doesn’t play it’s because he can’t.”
(What about OL Robert Jones? How’s the knee?) – “He had a good day yesterday. Feel optimistic about that for the game.”
(You have three plays that could come back this week with LS Blake Ferguson, S Patrick McMorris, OL Isaiah Wynn – any in play for Sunday or all more likely down the line?) – “I think it’s a more likely week-by-week, but I think that’s more likely a possibility in the next coming weeks than this week.”
(And how about the calf for FB Alec Ingold? I’m sure he wanted to play on Monday. Is he better this week where you think you will have him?) – “He’s better this week. Again, just making sure that we don’t have a setback. He didn’t have a setback yesterday, so we’re hoping for no setbacks today or tomorrow.”
(And with the David Long Jr. thing – just to clarify, the Long decision, did David or his agent David Mulugheta ask you or General Manager Chris Grier for his release or was that purely a team decision?) – “It was a team decision. Didn’t anticipate the scenario that came across with (Tyrel) Dodson being available. Didn’t anticipate that. Absolutely love David Long as a person and player but had to make the decision that was best for the Miami Dolphins.”
(And TE Julian Hill? How’s the shoulder? What’s the outlook for him?) – “He had a good day. I’m very optimistic for his participation and if he has a setback, I will be yelling at some defensive players during practice. So if you hear my voice, it’s because they set Julian (Hill) back.”
(I was thinking about doing something on the power of recall for coaches and I’m wondering how many plays can you recall? How far back? Can you recall since 2022 as a head coach every play…?) – “Every play. (laughter) No. In terms of, are you talking about like can I recall from seasons before? I think the toughest time for me to recall something is directly after the game because I’m trying to stay in the moment. So postgame press conferences are always a challenge because I’m changing from in the moment to reflection. But once I see the tape and stuff, there’s a good amount of recall specifically because you’re in the system, and as a play caller, you kind of feel the burden of the result and the whys of that result that kind of stick with you. I think that’s part of the advantage of experience and having recall on certain defenses, certain situations from concepts to how our players perform. It resurfaces itself every single game and every single game prep, but there will be a play call that I have this game that will be based upon something that I know our players can execute and perform based upon a previous example that’s happened since I’ve been here. So unfortunately to have one of these positions in the National Football League, you kind of have to be obsessed so I don’t know how to do a lot of things around the house and can’t recall what the cook time is on a Hot Pocket or something, but I can remember plays, for sure. (laughter)”
(So last week you guys had 53 plays, right? How many of those could you recall today now that you’ve seen the – I know you’re preparing for a different opponent, but could you recall 42 of them or…?) – “Yeah, I would say you can recall to the point of the order, pretty much all of them besides maybe like five or 10. I’m not to the extreme of like a Sean McVay that can rattle off the exact time and situation and hash, but for the most part, it’s important to my job that I do remember things, the succession of them, what opponents have seen, what they’ve studied. You have to do it all the time because when it’s earned first down on the 35-yard line going in, you’re making a play call decision based upon your anticipated defensive play call which has to do both with what they like to do and what we’ve done in the past. So that’s why I’m a terrible conversation on a game day. (laughter)”
(I know covering golf, golfers can recall pretty much every stroke and I wonder if you ever get to the paralysis by analysis point? When you’re recalling down and distance situations and defenses…?) – “That’s when you see us burn a timeout for no reason, that’s what it is. (laughter) That’s when the overload occurred and it took me too long to get the play in.”
(Have doctors recommended with CB Kendall Fuller because it is his second concussion in two months that he misses extended time like doctors suggested with QB Tua Tagovailoa?) – “Haven’t gotten that feedback, also don’t have a timeline. I do know he was feeling – based upon the previous situation where he was at in the timeline, he felt better than he did previously. Henceforth the medical experts did not feel as though the timeline, whatever that was, was absolutely necessitating that automatic four weeks out. It’s week-to-week based upon the advice of the medical experts as well as the feedback from Kendall (Fuller) and what he’s feeling, because that’s the most important thing.”
(FB Alec Ingold, how is he doing?) – “He’s doing well. What does that mean for the game? Soft tissues, particularly with guys that are not on the line of scrimmage, but major in blocking like Alec Ingold where you have to run before your contact point and come off the ball with absolute suddenness and stuff, you’re always wary of the feedback of the next play or the next outing or the next practice. We’ll be conservative, but prudent to see where he at. I feel good about him. That kind of makes it 50-50 for me for the game, just based on having two more days to get through and where that leads us.”
(If somebody would have told you back in August that WR Tyreek Hill and WR Jaylen Waddle would have a per game average of 90 yards, what would you have said?) – “I don’t really go into things forecasting; however, I would have found it interesting. I would have thought either two things; first and foremost, how are defenses playing us and they must be giving them a lot of attention, and then I would have thought how are we executing against those looks if we’re not having production on offense, we’re not taking advantage of whatever scenarios that are keeping them from getting the ball. I guess nothing surprises me, I would just be looking at how’s the rest of our offense executing because if we’re not getting yards from them, yards and points better be coming from somewhere. I think that’s been one of the great things about the adversity from this season is how instead of doing what a lot of people can and have done that I’ve seen in the past where there’s dwelling on numerical values that aren’t Ws and Ls, I’ve seen guys get better. I think our line of scrimmage play from Tyreek (Hill) and (Jaylen) Waddle is the best that it’s been since I’ve been here in terms of releasing, using their footwork, and I think there’s another level of understanding of the timing of our offense based upon the challenging looks they have gotten. I think that overall, it’s forced our team to get better across the board which is an overall win. Our entire motives this offseason has been finding ways to get better during the season so that our best football is at the end when it matters most.”
(A general question, you guys had two phantom whistles at Seattle, I know that’s going way back. I’m wondering, did you turn that into the league? I know that won’t affect the outcome the game. If I turned it into the league, it would be so that I knew the league was aware and so that I knew the league would address it. Have you heard from the league and what is your why when you turn something in?) – “We’re the same guy – and by the way, I’m really interested, you’ve got some stuff cooking in the hopper with these. The angles you’re coming at me (with) means you are doing something. (laughter) There’s twofold in that whole process; one, you’re communicating with the league to make sure that you understand the rules appropriately so you can articulate it to your players, and two, you’re trying to make them aware of something if they feel like it was inappropriately called or whatever. My memory serves me appropriately at this point because I can’t remember what they said at this point and I wouldn’t want to make enemies with the National Football League and just put them on blast at the podium, like that serves nobody’s purpose. Realistically, that is part of our weekly procedure. We do it with all things called or not called, that way I can best inform players to put them in position for success, not failure, in the future because you can’t really – it’s not my operating procedure to dwell. So I think that’s part of the league’s process that’s very healthy because you need to be able to move forward and give your players clarity. We try not to leave anything in the hands of the officials but you have to understand how to stay within the rules and what we should do in the event that something like a faulty whistle or an inadvertent or a fan whistle does occur.”
Jonnu Smith – November 14, 2024
Thursday, November 14, 2024
TE Jonnu Smith
(I wanted to ask you about your big play in the fourth quarter, 33-yard catch and run that gets you guys down to the one-yard line. What did you think of the reaction you got from the sideline, from your coaches and teammates?) – “It’s always good to have that camaraderie behind you, that support behind you. Any of us make big plays, we always want to rally behind them especially when you’re on the road. So to get that momentum going and for a touchdown to follow up after that, that was big for us and we came out with the win on top.”
(How much pride do you take in playing tough – breaking tackles, doing whatever you need to do to get the job done?) – “It’s a physical sport. If you want to make big plays, it’s a certain level of physicality that you’ve got to possess. I understand that part.”
(WR Tyreek Hill said thank you but that you need to get in next time.) – “Yeah, (laughter) I’ve got to find a way to get in there. He definitely should be thanking me. But I’ve got to find a way to get in there. I’m just glad we came out with a touchdown on that drive. That’s all that mattered to me, whoever got it.”
(How do you guys keep the momentum up for the Raiders on Sunday?) – “Just continue to keep doing what we’re doing. I’ll say this. I understand the beginning of the season for us has not been what we expected, what obviously a lot of people expected, but we never wavered. The way we come in and our intent towards work, it never changed. Nothing changed last week from the week (before). It just unfortunately hasn’t been going our way. We’re just staying to course, keep chopping wood and just trying to get this thing going in the right direction.”
(There has been no tight end better than you at YAC [yards after catch] these last three years. How much of that part of your game do you take pride in?) – “You said the last four years?”
(Five years, six years…) – “Six? I’m going to keep going. (laughter) No, I don’t even know what stat that is, but I would like to see it though. There is just a certain level of physicality that you have when you’re running that ball. You got to become a running back with the ball in your hands. As a ball carrier whether you’re a receiver, tight end, quarterback, running back; to make big plays in this league it’s a mindset. So that’s just the element that I try to bring to this team and to help us be in a better situation.”
(Is YAC acknowledged in meetings here like with Head Coach Mike McDaniel, or Offensive Coordinator Frank Smith, or Assistant Head Coach/Tight Ends Jon Embree or someone say something about good YAC plays in particular?) – “Quite a bit, quite a bit, quite a bit. That’s definitely a point of emphasis. We know who we have in this offense. We know the ability that we’ve got, so there is a certain standard and level of expectation that is demanded form us that probably wouldn’t be demanded form other players.”
(Assistant Head Coach/Tight Ends Jon Embree said a few things, but you probably can’t repeat them on the sidelines.) – “’Embo’ – that’s my guy. That’s my guy. Definitely. I didn’t see it, but I heard all about his reaction from the sideline. They said that he had like a mini heart attack after the play. So like I said, just to get that moral going, just to get that energy up; that is definitely big for the team. No matter who, it could be anybody’s play. We just need more plays like that down the stretch and we will be in good position.”
(With respect to vets like you and TE Durham Smythe what responsibility do you feel when a veteran or new player is brought into your room? Like with TE Jack Stroll do you and Durham say, “text me if you have any questions” to him?) – “Absolutely. That comes with the territory. You’ve got to make yourself available to guys that you may have more experience than. It’s an honor to be in the position that I’m in. I wear it proudly. I’ve always since my years have been getting up there in the league – listen, I don’t consider myself old – you’ve got guys who have been playing 15, 16, 17 years, but I understand that an eight-year NFL veteran I understand is definitely, you’ve got your stripes. But everybody likes to put the ‘older guy mark’ on it. But I still feel young. I still look young so doing something right. But you’ve just got to make yourself available and do what you’re supposed to do always. If you do what you’re supposed to do, everything else will come with it. That’s part of being a leader. Doing your job first, worrying about what you’ve got to do, being accountable, respecting others, respecting your teammates, respecting the building, respecting the standard, and you got to make plays. You don’t get this far in the league without doing that. Just try to continue passing on that message to every guy that’s younger than me.”
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