Chop Robinson – April 26, 2024
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Friday, April 26, 2024
LB Chop Robinson
(Why don’t you take us through the last several hours since we last spoke to you. I can imagine it’s been a little busy for you.) – “After I got the call, honestly just celebrated with my family, my close ones, my loved ones. I just spent time with them, enjoyed every single second of it, listening to music and just hanging around, spending that quality time with them. Then woke up this morning, got on the flight to Miami, enjoying this weather. Walking around meeting everybody, meeting all the coaches and just enjoying this journey, that’s it.”
(So you actually slept?) – “I slept on the plane. I slept on the plane. I didn’t sleep the whole night. Once I got to the airport and got on the plane, I instantly went to sleep though.”
(When you get here and you’re seeing the facilities for the first time, what’s going through your mind knowing that all of that hard work, dreams come true, and here you are at an NFL facility with the Miami Dolphins?) – “It’s crazy. I’ve been working for this since I was five years old. I’ve been playing football my whole life. Putting everything that I worked for – I put in all the work, I sacrificed a lot of things to get here. It’s just the first step. Once you get here, you got to stay here. So I’m ready to put the work in.”
(Have you talked to any of your new teammates yet? Have they reached out to you?) – “Yeah, I talked to Jaelan Phillips earlier today. I met Bradley Chubb earlier today, too. Those are some guys I’ll be able to take some things from their games and add them on to mine so I can be an elite player.”
(Your fellow Nittany Lion T Olumuyiwa Fashanu is going to the Jets. What do you think about possibly facing off against him for years to come in the AFC East?) – “It’s going to great, just like practice. One on ones, everything we did together. I think it would be another day at practice, going against Olu (Fashanu) in a game.”
(We talked about the four sacks, but you’re incredibly disruptive. Good win rate, good pressure rate, quarterback pressures, tackles for loss. Talk to me about being disruptive in both the run and the pass game, how are you able to be disruptive and what does that do for the team?) – “Honestly, for me, I just feel like that’s me doing my job. I feel like everybody on defense, if all 11 people do their job, you’re causing disruption as a whole defense. If every man is doing their job, then the defense is doing what they are supposed to do.”
(Your skillset, the first step. Tell me about when did you first discover that? Was that 6-years-old, 5-years5old, junior high? How do you use it to your advantage?) – “I would say I discovered it in middle school. I was playing Pop Warner, and I was playing d-tackle. I was just getting off the ball so fast that I was able to just run around the offensive linemen, and that’s when I realized I had some good speed on the edge, especially for my size. That’s when I started to realize that, and I just kept working on it throughout my career.”
(Your hands, tell me about your hands and how you use that to your advantage?) – “Since I’m not the most lengthiest guy, but I have quick hands, I’m quick to react when hands are thrown in my face. So just being able to use my hands, my speed and my bend is something that is really good for my game, because I’m so fast and being able to use my hands is just very disruptive.”
(You have been comped to LB Micah Parsons. I don’t think you crossed paths with him. He was in the draft once you transferred over?) – “Yeah, I think he was 2020, the COVID year. So he was COVID year draft, but when he was coming back to Penn State, I was still talking to him here and there.”
(Is there more to the connection with him coming back? How many times did you interact with him and things like that?) – “We interacted probably like 10 times. Every single time he came back, we talked. We’d just chat. I talked to him before the Combine, asking him about the process, about interviews and everything. He gave me some advice, so we talk here and there.”
(You mentioned earlier about the sacrifices you made to get here. Can you elaborate on that? What are some of those sacrifices?) – “Honestly, just being away from my family. First, I went to Maryland my freshman year which is home, then I went to Penn State. That was my first time really being away from my family, just not partying or anything, just staying true to myself, staying inside, being a homebody, and focusing on what I wanted to do and chase my dreams and get to the next level. So sacrificing those things is the biggest thing for me.”
(You had the 4.48 40-yard dash at the Combine, which I think was tied for seventh all time among defensive ends at the Combine. Your 10’8 broad jump was the best by a defensive end at the Combine. What do those numbers mean to you having that place and again, how does that translate onto the field toward being disruptive?) – “I feel like that 10’8 broad jump shows the explosiveness I have, especially with my first step. Just jumping out like that, being able to get off the ball and show that not only doing that at the Combine results, but I can do it also on tape. So just doing that from the game and then doing that at the Combine just shows that I can do it on tape, too.”
(Where do those athletic traits come from? Is that all natural? Were you a track guy? How did the speed and all of that stuff come about?) – “I would say it’s all natural. I feel like me and my brothers were always fast, but I was able to adapt to it.”
(What’s the next order of business for you? You’ve toured the facilities. Are you trying to find a place where to be? What’s next for you to explore the city as well?) – “I wish I had an answer for you. (laughter) I don’t know what’s next to come. I’m just taking it one day at a time.”
(One guy you could probably ask is Manny Diaz, he was a head coach at University of Miami. I actually covered him when he was with the Hurricanes. Can you tell us something you’ve learned from him in your time at Penn State having him?) – “I’d just say the hard work and mindset he has. No matter what, no matter how you’re feeling, no matter how tired you are, he just always wants you to go out there and give you everything you’ve got and just push yourself to reach limits that you think you can’t get past. That’s something I picked up from him. So I was just able to learn from him, listen to him, be coachable and it helped me get to where I am today.”
(Have you picked a number yet?) – “No, not yet. I haven’t.”
(Do you have one in mind?) – “Of course, 44. But I don’t know who has 44 or if it’s open. I haven’t really looked at it yet.”
(You mentioned yesterday being inspired after losing a brother and a sister. Can you tell us about that and just the inspiration that you have and motivation you have to accomplish whatever you can for them?) – “Losing my two siblings, I knew no matter what adversity was thrown my way, nothing could make me feel worse than me losing my two siblings. I always look at that as a positive thing, just coming out there, give everything I got in what I do and just keep me motivated, because I know no matter how I’m feeling or what’s thrown my way, I can face it. Because I faced something that a lot of people would’ve been broke down, but I looked at is as a positive thing.”
(If you’re comfortable sharing, just where were you when each occurred? I think you were in the first grade when you lost one and was in freshman year of high school?) – “Yeah, I was in first grade when I lost my sister. I was actually in my room when I found out that it happened. My mom was just telling me she went to sleep, and I didn’t understand because I was so young. But I was a freshman when I lost my older brother. I was actually playing a game and then I heard my mom screaming when they came in and told her, so I ran upstairs. Seeing the tears and heard the news – I’m doing it for them two. They keep me motivated every single day, that’s who I’m doing it for.”
(We’ve seen different numbers on how many siblings you have. Can you set the record straight?) – “I’ve got nine siblings. So it’s ten of us – it’s six boys and four girls.”
(What was it like growing up in a family that big?) – “It was crazy. It was always fun though. You could never be bored; you were always bothering another sibling. The one thing (was) you’ve got to get to the kitchen table as fast as you can, because sometimes people would have to eat on the stairs if you don’t make it to the kitchen table. (laughter)”
(Is that where you got your first step?) – “Basically, yeah. Yep. (laughter)”
(What order are you in – what number?) – “So I’m third youngest. I have two younger siblings and the rest are older.”
(Tell us about – your chain glistening in the lights. Any special meaning to it?) – “Yeah, so it has my name and then it has the axe, which is my sack celebration that I use. I basically find the detail and put it in there, put it in the mix.”
(Did your siblings tell you anything when all this happened? What was the first thing they told you when you got signed here?) – “I mean, they were just telling me they were proud of me, because they know how much work I’ve put into this, how focused I stayed and how much sacrifice I took. They were just so proud of me. They shed tears, and that’s what made me cry also. It was just a great experience.”
(At what age and what level did you know getting here to the NFL was a possibility?) – “I would say in middle school, I figured out. I knew with the speed I had and me playing defensive end at such a young age and running around guys in that speed, I just knew I could take it somewhere. So I just took it seriously since I figured that out in middle school and it’s been that ever since.”
(Were you a chubby kid in middle school age?) – “(laughter) No, when I was in middle school, that’s when I started to slim out. I was chubby only when I was born, for real.”
(Is that where the nickname comes from?) – “Yeah, when I was born, I was 14 pounds, and then it was ‘Pork Chop’ as my nickname. Got older, slimmed down, took the ‘Pork’ out, kept the ‘Chop.’”
(Were you always a lineman? Offense, defensive line growing up?) – “Yeah, my first position I played was center, then after that I played defensive end.”
(So you liked it?) – “Yeah, I love it.”
(Has this all sunken in? Are you still in that mind of, “Wow this is really happening?” Or is it down to business, let’s go?) – “I’m kind of at both right now. Of course I’m soaking it all in because it’s a dream come true. But I know once the day is over with, it’s time to get to work once I get here. I just have been on both waves, both ways.”
(How much time have you spent, probably not a ton since you just arrived, but how much time have you possibly spent with Head Coach Mike McDaniel and Defensive Coordinator Anthony Weaver?) – “I spent a lot of time with them. As soon as I walked in and saw them, we were just chatting about how he sees me as a player. He had me on his radar for a very long time and how he liked getting to know me as a person and hearing all the good things about me. So I spent a lot of time with him, like 30 minutes, since I got here.”
(Are you talking about Head Coach Mike McDaniel or Defensive Coordinator Anthony Weaver?) – “Both of them.”
(Defensive Coordinator Anthony Weaver has a good track record of developing defensive linemen, edge rushers. So what do you think he can do for you and your game?) – “Honestly, I feel like the things he can do is just bring more cheat codes that I have, more things to my toolbox. There’s things that a lot of people say that I don’t have. I feel like I know I’ve been working on it and I feel like he can elevate my game even more.”
Chris Grier and Mike McDaniel – April 25, 2024
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Thursday, April 25, 2024
General Manager Chris Grier and Head Coach Mike McDaniel
Chris Grier:
(Why LB Chop Robinson?) – “He was a player that we identified early that we liked. We spent some time with him throughout the whole process and watching him work with the coaches and the scouts, he was someone we felt could impact our team and had a lot of traits we liked as a person and a player, which was important to us. So for us, the opportunity for us to get him, we couldn’t pass up. We were very excited – the defensive coaches, scouts, ownership, all of us were fired up we could get him.”
(What traits are you particularly intrigued by?) – “The one part is he plays hard. He plays his ass off, and that’s what we like. Then obviously the athletic traits and what he has, you see the first step quickness, the explosion, his ability to bend and do stuff. He’s done a lot of good things in college. We think with our coaching staff and his work ethic, we think he can even take it to another level. We’re very excited to have him.”
(I know you hate when we bring this up but his stat numbers from college don’t exactly jump off the page. What do you attribute the disconnect between the stat numbers and the actual ability for him to play?) – “Since you guys have known me over the years, we’ve talked about the stats part. For us, it’s an important part, but we’ve always talked about the ability to disrupt the passer. His disruption stuff numbers are all very high. For us, working through the analytics, watching him and what he does and contributes, sacks people always want to – the guy that comes to mind for me would be Danielle Hunter had four career sacks coming out of college, and he’s become a really good player in this league. I’m not putting that pressure on him to be Danielle Hunter, but it’s not just him; there are other players throughout the league that if you look at what their college numbers are compared to how they’ve had success in the pros – we think a lot of traits and the things you see on film translate. He has things he has to work on. He knows that. And the exciting part is the kid, and who he is, his work ethic, how much he loves ball and his toughness. We’re excited to work with him and we think he has a really good chance to be a really good player.”
Mike McDaniel:
(Mike McDaniel once told us that edge rusher is your favorite position in football, so really it is a true to form pick, I guess?) – “Absolutely. The coolest thing about the opportunity that we had at that pick is that if you have a player contributing in pass rush, those are things that you feel very fortunate to not pass up. As passing games become more and more of a focus, those players are a really, really big part of the driving force of your defense. To double down on Chris (Grier)’s point –if you’re more used to receivers, we’re not just drafting the guy with the highest amount of production goes first or next. I’m not sure if anyone can even rattle off the order of the production of the players. Disrupting the passer, there are a lot of compounding variables to a sack, whether a quarterback sees it and holds onto it or not. But disrupting the passer and taking the rhythm off the pass game, that’s a stat for him but it’s also for teammates and production comes off of that too. It’s exciting to not have to block him.”
Chris Grier:
(How close were you to making a trade?) – “We were active on the phones; I’ll just say that. So I don’t know how close we got, but we were active probably through the backend of the draft.”
(How close did the board fall that you guys had set up to what actually happened in Round 1?) – “It was pretty close. (laughter) We were sitting there, there were a couple players at the end we were excited for, so we were active even trying to get back in to get another one here in the late first.”
(There was a stretch that seven picks before you guys were on the clock, it seemed like every single one of those guys would have made sense for you. I’m not going to ask you how LB Chop Robinson compared to them, but were you kind of sweating, “Hey, player after player after player that might be a good fit here are going. Are we going to get our guy?”) – “It’s not sweat. It’s just Chop (Robinson) was someone that we identified and thought he might be there. If he wasn’t, there were other players we liked there as well. But he was our targeted player, so for us, we’re very excited to have him.”
Chris Grier:
(You guys went through some terrible luck with edge rushers at the end of last year, including your top two guys who were lost for the season. How much, if at all, did that play into selecting LB Chop Robinson?) – “No, I mean obviously you always look at your roster for what it is, but for us it was, like we’ve talked about, just adding the best players in the draft at that point. He was rated as one of the top players in this draft for us, so adding him, especially rushing the passer in this league with all the great quarterbacks and the skill, the ability to rush with four and not have to blitz every down and stuff, that creates an advantage for the defense. So for us, he was a player that we had in high regard with high grades, for us to add him, we were again very excited to have him.”
Mike McDaniel:
(Is there a scenario where you see LB Chop Robinson, LB Jaelan Phillips and LB Bradley Chubb on the field at the same time? Or do you imagine more of a rotation? I see Head Coach Mike McDaniel looks like he’s in the kitchen right now.) – “All scenarios are alive. I think it’s key to remember, man that team, ‘They just had too many pass rushers, that was their problem,’ that’s never been said. So I think that’s the common denominator, is you know that you’re adding to your team, you feel great about that and you let the players kind of set the orchestration of all the multiple things that you can do. I know our coordinator is not afraid of outside the box, so he might be playing corner, who knows?”
Chris Grier:
(To that point you had mentioned that Defensive Coordinator Anthony Weaver had brought visuals to you about some of the players you guys added in free agency. I was curious his involvement in this process and kind of how he brought his interest in LB Chop Robinson to you guys?) – “It’s been very collaborative and you’ve always heard us talk about it; that’s important because you can’t just have whether it’s just scouts or just coaches saying, ‘This is our guy.’ It’s working together, working through it, whether you see players the same or differently. And for us the collaboration, working through it with not just (Anthony) Weaver but Ryan Crow, the outside linebackers coach, was fantastic and the whole defensive staff as well as the scouts. So we meet individually, we meet as groups, and so we spend a lot of time working through it because it’s an important pick for us. So it was cool working with ‘Weav’ (Anthony Weaver) and the guys and the new guys here and seeing the work ethic. We were presented a packet the other day on Chop which was fantastic that (Ryan) Crow put together for us. So it was very collaborative and it was exciting and really enjoyed it.”
Mike McDaniel:
(On the scale of raw to polished, where do you view LB Chop Robinson’s skillset and toolbox?) – “’Rawlished’? (laughter) I couldn’t help it. I’m sorry.”
Chris Grier:
“His testing numbers are elite and you see all the tools, the things he can do. But is he a finished product? No. And I think he’d probably admit that to you as well, and not many players who come into the league are. So we think he has obviously the get off and speed that everyone talks about as kind of rare and his athletic tools. So I think again for us, he still has a runway to keep improving, but the fact that the guy works hard and has a tremendous motor and toughness to him which gives us really excitement to think he’ll reach his peak of ability that we think he can hit.”
(Do you now go into Day 2 with a focus on o-line, maybe d-tackle with the trenches?) – “I think for us we’ll get together here tomorrow. We’ll go home tonight and then we’ll get together in the morning and look at the board and see who’s up there and kind of put the plan together, but again, it’s taking the best player. Not just roster but whoever the best player is, too, so down where we’re picking, we’ll probably need to see who falls to us and then we’ll see if we’ll get aggressive to go up and get somebody.”
Mike McDaniel:
(How does it feel to finally have that first-round pick under your belt?) – “This is awesome. We should do this more often. (laughter) What was really cool is just knowing that your – just from the organization standpoint and the personnel and coaching staff – having understanding that the assets are real but they’re limited and the focus for preparation for all the different scenarios. I could feel just overall there was a deep dive on every level to be as thorough as possible. I think what was exciting for all of us is the conviction that came out and the vision and the extensive process that we went through and to have the opportunity to add to our football team a guy that has plenty of room to grow, but I think from all departments, we were very, very convicted that he can be productive and help the entirety of the defense while growing and that’s a key component for us, which we talk about disruption, disrupting the passer and all of those things. I think that’s a really cool thing to be able to do, and I hope all first rounds go like they went today because we feel very, very convicted and pumped for the football team.”
Chris Grier:
(In the first round, you had some unexpected events. Six of the first 12 selections were quarterbacks and I think the first 14 were offensive players. What happens in the draft room? Are there phone calls? Are you consulting with other people here? Are there new possibilities? What happens in the draft room?) – “It’s like everything. You do your homework and you talk to a bunch of people. So for us, we had a pretty good idea that five were going to go before our pick, and we were told the possibility of six. So we were kind of working through it. So when you do your homework and work through people and even just digging through our own analytics and going through everything, for us, it wasn’t really a surprise. The phone calls all at that point were really coming into us about people trying to move up to our spot. It was relatively quiet. We had about four or five teams that were trying to move into our spot and as the board kept falling to us, which we thought it would, like you said it kind of fell to where we had it, at that point we decided to stay where we were because the offers weren’t enticing enough for us to move.”
(Did you have any inclination to move up or was 21 kind of where you guys were going to pick?) – “No. As the board was falling, like you said, there were multiple players there that we liked at 21.”
(Just to make sure I heard you correctly earlier, you said that you were on the phone trying to trade back into the first round?) – “Yes.”
(Without a third or fourth rounder, there is a 103-pick drought between your second-round pick and your fifth-round pick. What’s the level of urgency to get back into one of those middle rounds?) – “Again, as the board falls and the players – you never want to get desperate in doing things and moving around. But if opportunities arise, we’ll take a shot and move around.”
(You had mentioned early on about getting to know LB Chop Robinson as a person as well as a player. What stands out to you both in terms of Chop as a person?) – “Really, just getting to know him and who he is as a person, just talking through some of the things that he’s been through in his life and seeing how he’s come out, and just listening to people talk about his character, just in terms of how he loves football and the passion and how he plays and his work ethic and his drive. His whole focus is football. He loves football. He wants to be great. And I think you guys saw his clip of when we talked to him on the phone, he was so excited. He’s ready to come play right now. Just when you meet kids like that who are genuine and you understand that they truly love football and they want to be great and they know that it doesn’t come easy and they’re going to have to work, that gives him a chance to be the player that everyone thinks he is. Again, we’re very excited.”
(You told us last year that we were more worried about the offensive line than maybe you were. I’m just curious 12 months later, you went pass rusher over o-line. OL Graham Barton and others were available at No. 21. What’s your level of confidence right now with where the o-line is?) – “We were talking about that coming in. Like you said last year, it was this and just the level of what (Offensive Line) Coach (Butch) Barry had done with the offensive line, we still think those guys will keep improving, and the job they did last year with how we were moving the ball and scoring and stuff. So we’re very excited. Again, the draft is not over. There’s always still free agency to add pieces to come in. We’re excited with the guys we have in the room. We added a couple of guys through free agency and we’ll keep looking at it, but we’re excited with the guys in the room.”
Mike McDaniel:
(So are you kind of saying that offensive line is a position that we continue to be over-obsessed about that you’re not really that stressed about?) – “We love your passion. (laughter) There’s a lot of good players available. We didn’t feel like there’s any sort of – you try to go into the draft, so Chris and I both share the firm belief that you position yourself as best as you can to take the best available player and allow these players to kind of shape your team. I think it comes off as we’re dismissing, and it’s quite the contrary. We have a really good orchestration of talent evaluation and coaching. With that, we have a room of passionate guys that we know are going to develop. You can only pick one guy and depending on the value relative to the class and historically what produces in the NFL, you take your shot when you recognize the opportunity for your team to get better. I think it’s more of a compliment of the development. I think the one thing you can say is there’s a history of guys getting better and you can understand how people, especially well-informed reporters and fans – if you look at a picture of a player last year, well, part of the thing that our mantra is, is if you’re signing up as a Dolphin, we’re going to invest and develop you. So what you saw last year, our bottom line we’re expecting as coaches and players is that’s a different guy the next time you see him. There’s a lot of positions. There’s a lot of players. I think when guys are continuing to develop, sometimes it can come off like – we’re investing. It’s just in a way of in-house commitment and making sure that we get the right guys that want to develop and we get the right developers.
Chris Grier:
(In college, LB Chop Robinson obviously played some linebacker, some defensive end. Do you see him as a stand-up linebacker? Do you see him as a hand-in-the-ground end? Or both in this scheme that you have?) – “I think it’s some of the versatility that we like. You see it when you watch him. He rushes kind of all over. Inside, he’s over the center, he’s two-point, three-point. So that versatility is what drew us to him initially.”
Chop Robinson – April 25, 2024
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Thursday, April 25, 2024
LB Chop Robinson
(I was curious, what was that conversation like? What was that phone call like with General Manager Chris Grier when he told you that you were going to be the No. 21 pick tonight?) – “It was just a quick call about ball, choosing me. He was talking about the defense I’ll be put in and everything like that, and how he was getting to know me more as a person and everything and how he had a really good feel for me. So I’m honestly just blessed and happy to be a Dolphin.”
(How much contact did you have with the Dolphins throughout the pre-draft process?) – “I had a lot of contact. I talked to them at the Combine. I talked with them the day before Pro Day, so we were honestly keeping in touch from the Combine to the Pro Day.”
(There are no questions whatsoever about your athletic ability which you showed off at the Combine, but the sack numbers maybe did not reflect that while you were at Penn State. How would you address that situation and what’s your confidence level that this kind of clicks sooner rather than later?) – “For me, it was just being inconsistent with my hands. I know I had the speed and the bend, but sometimes I forget to use my hands. But that’s something I’ve been working on this whole offseason, and I feel very confident because I’ve been working on this so much repeatedly and I know it’s going to be natural when it comes time to put my hands to use.”
(What do you think about going into a situation where you’re working in with LB Jaelan Phillips and LB Bradley Chubb on the edge and LB Shaq Barrett as well?) – “I feel like that’s going to be a great situation for me – come in there, learn from those guys, compete every day, being able to take things from them and take it to my game and vice versa. So I think it’ll be a great thing for me.”
(What all do you know about the city of Miami, about the Dolphins organization, about the fans and just how excited are you to come to Miami?) – “I know a lot of guys on the team in Miami – of course everybody wants to win, everybody is chasing greatness and that’s what I want to chase, so I feel like it’s a great fit for me. I know it’s beautiful weather in Miami. I don’t know much about the city because I’ve never been that way, but I know I’ll have a great time there just enjoying with my teammates and being part of the team.”
(To what extent do you think your game and your athleticism is comparable to LB Micah Parsons?) – “I would say just the speed and the bend that we both have. Micah (Parsons) has the speed. He ran a fast 40 (-yard dash). He plays like it. I have the speed. Micah also has a great bend. He’s able to bend around a big offensive lineman and turn tight corners, and I feel like that’s a part of my game that we both have.”
(Can you take us through this process? Obviously, this is the culmination of a long, hard journey for you of work – you’re finally an NFL player. Can you take us through what this means and maybe the most important things you went throughout this process?) – “Honestly, it means everything. I’ve been playing football since I was five years old … (inaudible) So sacrificing everything, not partying and just being who I am, working out every day, just being consistent with my (inaudible) and staying focused. I made a lot of sacrifices, being away from my family. Also losing my older brother and older sister has been my motivation to stay focused and just keep grinding, so I never stop. I’m proud to be where I wanted to be, but the work doesn’t stop.”
(Defensive Coordinator Anthony Weaver is somebody who has a lot of packages. He’s a creative defensive coordinator. How can you be used? Can you be used inside, outside? What ways can you be used and how much have you talked to Anthony Weaver about being used in different ways?) – “We haven’t talked much about it, but I know the defense he uses is the same thing we used at Penn State with putting me at nose tackle, on the edge. So I feel like that’s a good thing for me because I’m kind of familiar with already doing that, so it’ll be second nature when I’m able to go out there and do it.”
(How much do you know about the city of Miami? Have you ever been here? And what do you think about coming here as your first pro destination?) – “I think it’s going to be great. Not too far from home, but far from home far enough. Enjoy the warm weather, and just get to work and work every day. The work doesn’t change, so I’ll be able to stay true to who I am.”
(Question of the day first is what’s the first chop that you’re going to have as a celebration, a lamb chop or a pork chop?) – “(laughter) I would say the pork chop. That’s the original name, so I’ll say a pork chop.”
(How excited is your family to come to South Florida to watch you play some games?) – “They are very excited. They know they don’t have to be in the cold to come watch me, especially when I was at Penn State. So now they can come and enjoy some beautiful weather and also enjoy watching me play.”
(You’ve played up against a lot of great offensive linemen, a lot of great quarterbacks in college as well, QB C.J. Stroud is now in the NFL. Who’s one player that you would like to face up against and ultimately beat one on one?) – “Honestly, everybody who comes across me. Whoever lines up in front of me, that’s the guy I feel like that’s the guys who’s trying to take food off my plate, so whoever lines up in front of me, I’m trying to beat.”
Braxton Berrios – April 23, 2024
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Tuesday, April 23, 2024
WR Braxton Berrios
(What do you think of the new kickoff rules? What have you and Special Teams Coordinator Danny Crossman said to each other about it since it was implemented?) – “First and foremost, I love it. I think it brings back a really exciting play in a game where it was kind of eliminated the last few years, at least especially early in the seasons in the warmer conditions. So it’s exciting and yeah, just been bouncing off each other, strategies, what we think might happen, what we can see happening, what we think is the best way to go about it. I think Week 1 is going to be – that opening kickoff of the season is going to be very interesting all across the board. But yeah, just talking through it and seeing what we feel is best.”
(You’re a guy who has had bigger receiving numbers than you had last season. I’m wondering if you would go to Head Coach Mike McDaniel this offseason, or if there was a time you went to him last offseason, maybe just kind of nudged him and said, “Hey Mike, I can do more,” maybe we need more? Have you done that or will you do that?) – “No, I think everybody is out there doing everything they can. I think with this offense, with as much talent as there is across the board, I think everybody is grown men enough to realize you have one ball. And really all we can do across the board is when the ball comes to you, when that op – when you get it – make good on it. So no, I don’t foresee that happening.”
(What are your thoughts – and I’m not trying to pit you against the offense – your thoughts on having a more prominent No. 3 receiver whether it’s the slot receiver or the tight end, whether it’s you, TE Durham Smythe, TE Jonnu Smith? Would that help the offense? Is that necessary for the offense do you think?) – “I think that’s a question for up top and not for me. I think like I said, we have so many good elite skill guys that I think we can mix in a lot of different ways and fill ‘voids’ where we need them to, but I don’t think that’s for me to judge there.”
(I wanted to ask you based on the social media video that we saw – obviously you and the missus were very excited about rejoining the Dolphins – so I wanted to ask you just how important was it for you to be able to come back here to South Florida? Also if you could take us through what the free agency process was like?) – “The free agency process is funny, because it’s different every year and this one was just a lot of back and forth with my agent figuring things out. I’m probably not going to give up too much of what it was and what teams were involved and all of that, but at the end of the day, absolutely ecstatic to be back here. That was the hope and I’m really happy that it worked out.”
(You touched on earlier the new kickoff rule and how you and Special Teams Coordinator Danny Crossman kind of batted things around on what it might look like. I’ve got to tell you, when I looked at a chart, it almost made me dizzy trying to figure out how wild it looks. What’s your best guess on how it’s going to look and what might you be able to do to maximize your skills?) – “My best guess is just that, a guess. Like I said, opening kickoff Week 1, there’s going to be a lot of trial and error. I don’t think we’ll see much in preseason. I think everybody is going to pop it up and let your cover guys cover and see who can block on the return team. And I think Week 1 is going to be – everybody’s going to think they have the ace of cards up their sleeves. So I really truly don’t know what to expect. Obviously the zone is a lot tighter and I expect there’s going to be – there’s not as much drops on the kickoff return team. You’re going to get on guys earlier, and the cover team, they’re going to have to make decisions quicker and with way less of a running head start. So I think the good thing is, I think the holes will open up and they’ll be earlier and quicker. I think for the guys that hit them, I think it’ll be a good thing.”
(It’s draft weekend, I wanted to see your memories of your draft weekend?) – “Yeah, absolutely. Draft weekend was awesome. I hosted a bunch of my family down here actually in Miami. We rented out a house for the weekend, had everybody coming in from really all parts – my mom and them from North Carolina and my dad and them from Texas. Yeah, it was a really, really fun weekend, really cool experience obviously and something that you only get once.”
(Are you a draft follower as a player? Are you one that really engages? And if so, who do you want the Dolphins to take on Thursday?) – “No, I want them to take whoever they feel is best for this team. I really don’t. It’s kind of like college recruiting these days. It’s just a different world, and I think our focus is on who’s here right now. Obviously when we draft guys that they see fit, they’ll be inducted in a few weeks and we’ll get rolling with them. But no, I have full confidence they’ll do the best for the team.”
(I missed your first response to the kickoff rules change question so forgive me if you’ve kind of answered this part, but have you looked at or watched any of the UFL, XFL or USFL games or clips on YouTube?) – “Yeah, we have. That’s obviously the starting point for trying to figure out what’s going to happen. So in our meetings and on my own just been going through them and again, seeing what other teams did, what worked, what didn’t, trying to guess what the kickoff team is going to do to – I know the yardage is a little bit different as well. One returner, two returners, all those things are questions, but yeah, absolutely. You can try to look at that and get the best gauge. And at the end of the day, it’s kind of going to be what the kickoff team is trying to do and how do you respond to that.”
(The kickoff return percentages were much higher. How do you feel about that if in fact it happens in the NFL?) – “I think that’s what I opened (this) with – I’m very excited. The fact that I think it’s one of the most exciting plays in a game and over the last few years was definitely getting weaned out a little bit. The kickers can kick it through and you may get a little big higher percentage of returns later in the December, January, the playoffs because the weather gets colder and the ball doesn’t fly as far. But really for being down in Miami, those December, January – it’s kind of all the same. So I’m very excited, because I think it’s a big part of the game and a part that I love to do, so yeah, I want those percentages as high as possible.”
(I know everything obviously is gameplan-based and you have WR Tyreek Hill and WR Jaylen Waddle as studs playing opposite you, but your number of targets – 16 in the first four weeks, 17 after that. You’re a total team guy so you’re fine with anything, but Head Coach Mike McDaniel is obviously a communicator. Did he tell you late in the season or in your postseason meeting, “Look, I’d like to get you more involved in the passing game if we can more so than we did the final 13 weeks last year”?) – “I think that’s a question for him, and I’m obviously not going to be the one to divulge anything that we talk about in-house. I didn’t know that stat so that’s news to me, and at the end of the day – it’s kind of what I answered earlier as well – we have so many guys on this team that are elite, especially on the skill position, on the offensive skill position at that. So it becomes one of those things, it’s at the end of the day, it’s a numbers game, right. You have all these guys to feed. You have the running backs, the tight ends and obviously the two absolute elite receivers and sometimes it happens that way. And so, really that’s last year and I’m looking forward to this year.”
(Speaking of the offense, obviously some of those guys are heading into Year 3 with Head Coach Mike McDaniel and QB Tua Tagovailoa at the helm. I’m curious from your perspective, from your lens, how much different is it coming back this spring for offseason programs when you already have the year’s worth of tape and practices and you know the offense? Just how much different is it from last year to now?) – “It’s a lot. You’re learning everything for the second time. You’re getting introduced to it the second time and all the things that you harped on last OTAs, last camp and then throughout the season are just being repeated and drilled in a little bit better. So when you go out there the first day to run routes, you’re not asking which foot is up and which step is it or how deep is it. You kind of already know and from the top-down, that helps everything go more smoothly, and then more so than that, you can really get into the details of the offense, of the play, of exactly what we’re trying to do, exactly the timing. If you’re trying to pull somebody away for somebody else, you really, really get into the little details of the offense when everybody knows the basics. So I think it helps tremendously move us along throughout the spring and then camp.”
Teair Tart – April 23, 2024
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Tuesday, April 23, 2024
DT Teair Tart
(Agent Drew Rosenhaus said on his television segment that you had higher money offers elsewhere. What made you want to come home to Miami? Also before you signed did you and Head Coach Mike McDaniel, or Defensive Coordinator Anthony Weaver, or Defensive Line Coach Austin Clark have conversations? Did any of those talks get you excited about the role they have in mind for you?) – “I think the biggest reason why I signed back here is it’s obviously a familiar area for me. I went to college here. It’s just really great to be back in a comfortable environment, a familiar environment, a family environment. Yeah, I had a couple of conversations, but it was really through Drew (Rosenhaus). It really gave off a really good family environment here, and it was something I thought I could definitely benefit from.”
(Did they bring you in for a workout or visit first? Or was it simply a contract offer you accepted?) – “It was just a contract offer.”
(When you had those conversations early on about joining the Dolphins, was a role discussed? What do you think you can bring? How many positions on the defensive line can you play, and do you think they are going to use you all over the place?) – “There was no role discussed. Everything is earned in this league, as we all know. There was no role discussed, but they said that I will have a fair opportunity to come in here and play if I worked hard, showed up and participated, and that’s what I plan on doing.”
(Is there a spot on the defensive line that you think you’re best at?) – “I think I’m a football player first. So wherever they feel comfortable is where I’m comfortable. I’m here to help the team win – whatever it takes.”
(I know you played all over the defensive line for the Titans, but a lot of 0-technique and 1-technique. At 300 pounds, it’s pretty impressive how you’re able to hold up against some of those bigger guys in the middle. I’m curious, what is the key at that size to be able to hold up as a 0- and 1-technique?) – “I think the technique – you always rely on your technique, even through adversity, fatigue and whatever. So technique is the key thing, having a good pad level, using your hands properly definitely can give you an advantage and just being strong in there. You need a lot of nasty to play some D-line, so that don’t hurt at all either.”
(Your ex-teammate, now current teammate OL Aaron Brewer talks about being nasty on the pivot as well. I’m curious what you learned from all those practices going against up him in Tennessee?) – “Competitive, that’s my boy. Me and ‘Brew’ (Aaron Brewer) go back since my rookie year, both undrafted. Just competitive, man. Even from our rookie year, I remember some hard-fought battles, definitely some fires, some bickering, but that’s my dog, man. When you get competitive in there, it just makes you want to go a lot harder. When you do that, you just keep finding ways to improve.”
(In the NFL, interior defensive linemen are recording a lot more sacks nowadays. That’s not your thing, you are a very effective run stopper. Statistically eight tackles for loss last year and I think one sack, which means you’re effective at what you do. Do you ever feel the pressure to get more sacks, either for financial reasons or that’s because a lot of other defensive linemen are doing that nowadays?) – “I think a lot of people get confused from sacks. Everybody just thinks if you don’t get sacks, you’re not a good pass rusher, which isn’t true at all. There’s a lot of ways to affect the quarterback – obviously pressures, disrupting timing, hits, pressing the pocket, making the quarterback feel uncomfortable. Those are ways that actually translates into getting other people sacks and actually makes you an effective rusher. Getting sacks just doesn’t tell the whole story. If you watch my stats, I had almost 30 pressures a couple of years ago. Obviously, the pass rushing ability is there, just closing out on the opportunities you can get as a pass rusher on those rush downs can definitely benefit, but sacks are hard to come by in this league. Like you said, the numbers have increased. I think that contributes to the coaching and the players, definitely the IQ and the scheming up.”
(Regarding guards that you’ve faced, it seems like guards are a lot taller now a days. You see guys at 6’4, 6’5. A lot of offensive tackles shift inside. I’m wondering do you have an advantage on leverage when you play against a taller guard? Is it hard for them to keep low? Does that give you at your height and your size an advantage?) – “I think that’s all just dependent on the player honestly. I can’t really speak on every player in the NFL that’s taller than me. I guess it depends on the player and the type of player you’re going up against. Some people aren’t really good at bending their hips, so I think it would be harder for them to get as low as me. I think that’s all (individual).”
(In Tennessee, things went left for you and you got your release. Can you tell us what happened in that scenario before you ended up in Houston where things just went south?) – “I think I just needed a culture change. I think it was just better to not be a part of that situation anymore. Me personally, I just felt like I needed a culture change, honestly.”
(So you requested your release?) – “Yes.”
(Having played at FIU, what do you remember about the heat and humidity during training camp workouts in Miami and what you’re in for coming back here?) – “I know one thing – you’re going to be in shape. (laughter) I think the biggest thing I remember from college is – we don’t have a dome. So we didn’t have a dome, and I remember the second week of camp, the turf got to like 148 degrees. Y’all probably already heard this plenty of times. So the glue started melting on the cleats and stuff, we’re just sliding across. We kept spraying ice-cold water on the cleats to keep the glue from melting. That was one thing I really remember. But it’s football camp, no matter where you’re at it’s going to be tough.”
(I wanted to expand on that high tackle-for-loss rate last season that you had. How does one get to the ball carrier in the backfield that often?) – “Playing within the scheme and sometimes just taking the opportunity when it presents itself. It can definitely benefit you.”
(Some of the things coming out of Tennessee really cut to the heart of things like work ethic, which I’m sure is a sensitive area for any football player. You never want to hear that questioned. What do you want Dolphins fans to know about your work ethic, about never taking plays off and things like that?) – “I was in Tennessee four years. I never had work ethic questions or work ethic issues until I asked for a release – but coming from a (Bill) Belichick situation, you’ve got to play hard, you’ve got to practice hard – which I found really weird. I think in a lot of things, you can expect me to be competitive, spirited. I’m not afraid to show emotion out there on the field and really get after it and compete. I’m really just excited for a new beginning honestly. Tennessee is the past. I was at Houston after that, that’s the past. I’m here in Miami now. I’m excited to get to know the fans. I’m excited to play hard for this organization. I’m in awe just to be here, man. It’s a blessing, honestly.”
(When you talk about showing emotions and being excited about big plays, DT Chrisitan Wilkins just left here and he was known for some of his wild celebrations. Can we expect something like that from you whenever there is a big play made by the defense or a touchdown by the offense?) – “I’m always going to celebrate with my teammates.”
(I have not met another Teair before. What is the background on the name?) – “There’s not really much of a background on the name, honestly. I think my aunt picked out the name and my mom just ran with it; I really don’t know. There’s really not much behind it, honestly.”
(Have you ever met another Teair?) – “No, I have not. (laughter) I have not.”
(The 76ers, they have some complaints about the officiating about the series with the Knicks. I happen to be a Knicks fan, and I know you’re from Philly. Are you a 76ers person? What do you think of the officiating?) – “Philly is getting robbed. (laughter) I think it’s terrible. (laughter).”
(I wanted to ask you about Defensive Coordinator Anthony Weaver. How much research did you do on him and the scheme before you decided to become the seventh defensive tackle added to the team this offseason?) – “Obviously when you’re looking into teams, you’re looking at who’s on the roster, what type of scheme they will be running. Really not to get too much into it, I just thought I would be a good fit here for what I believe they’re going to have on. I could play in multiple schemes as you’ve seen. I’ve played at Tennessee, obviously Houston was a different scheme. I felt really comfortable coming here and being a part of what they’ve got.”
(In Tennessee, you were teammates with LB David Long Jr. Wondering your thoughts on reuniting with him and what it was like being a teammate of him?) – “Dawg, he’s a dawg. David Long is all dawg, all gas all the time. I love playing with him. David gets those double teams off of you quick, man. He’s a hard worker. He’s passionate, very passionate about what he does. I missed him in Tennessee a lot, man. That was my boy, man, for sure. It’s a blessing to be here in Miami playing with him again. I know one of the first things I said, ’51!’ That’s just my boy, he plays hard.”
Chris Grier – April 16, 2024
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Tuesday, April 16, 2024
General Manager Chris Grier
(Opening Statement) – “Good to see you guys back. It’s always an exciting time of year kicking off with the players back in the building. First of all, good luck to the Heat in their play-in game and to the Panthers in the playoffs, an exciting time again for South Florida.”
(As you look at your roster at this point, do you believe you need a starting-caliber player to replace DT Christian Wilkins in his spot? Or do you feel you have enough with DT Neville Gallimore and DT Jonathan Harris? Is DT Teair Tart in that mix or do you see him more as a nose?) – “Yeah, I think the exciting thing is working with (defensive coordinator) Anthony Weaver. His vision and obviously his work and what he’s done in the league as a player and a coach and (defensive line coach) Austin Clark as well, so very excited about that group. Having Zach (Sieler) back, of course, after coming off a historic year for a Dolphin d-tackle as well, we’re very excited. But the group we have were targeted players, really liked their potential and what they can be. We feel good about the group. These guys, we were talking about them today. They’ve been in working hard already and it’s a really good group. Starting to see that bond come together with that group and they’re all competing hard. So with the roster, it’s not a priority, but it’s obviously any player that we can add that helps our roster and is a good impact player, we’ll take. It doesn’t matter what position.”
(With DT Teair Tart, is he a nose do you think? Or can he play…) – “I think we’ll work through the spring and see how he fits in what we’re doing. And I would leave that for Anthony (Weaver) to answer, too, instead of me just assuming. (laughter)”
(Is signing seven sort of an indicator that you don’t like what’s available in the draft from that position?) – “No, not necessarily. I think it was more just the availability and for us, people wanted to come play here. They’ve looked at what Austin (Clark) and Anthony (Weaver) have done in their careers as coaches, so they’re excited for the opportunity to come play for these guys and learn and compete. They know nothing has been promised to any of them, and that’s the exciting part. They all know they’re coming in to compete. I just think it was the opportunity to add guys that we thought are quality players that had good upsides.”
(LB Jaelan Phillips suggested on television over the weekend that Week 1 is his plan. Where does he stand? Where does LB Bradley Chubb stand? With where they are in their rehab, does that impact maybe how you go in Round 1? If you feel if both of these guys you’ll have for 17 weeks, pass rush might not be as big of a concern. Is that in the calculation?) – “Well Dr. Phillips, I don’t want to speak for him. (laughter) But no, it’s been fun watching those guys. They’ve been rehabbing like crazy. And you guys know them, they’re kind of maniacal with just how they attack it. I don’t put any timelines or pressure on it. Our doctors have done a great job working with them and working through the process. Any timelines I wouldn’t feel comfortable with until we get to training camp and we can give you guys more information then. But in terms of the roster, again, it’s always the best player available as we’ve talked about over the years. So whatever position that is that can impact us in Round 1, if we have that pick, we’ll be excited to add them.”
(Up and down this roster, you have flexibility with o-line that can play inside-outside, cornerbacks that can do the same, box and post safeties. How does that versatility help your draft day strategy to find the best player that could also fit a team need?) – “Yeah, I think talking about players – obviously, you’ve seen here the last couple years with some of the injuries we’ve had late in the season, the versatility of players is key. So guys that can play all along the offensive line or in the secondary, move around, that’s really important for depth and building a team. It helps. We’re always looking for those players that can do more things, because I just think it helps your roster. So for us, we’ll always keep looking for players that can do more.”
(How would you describe the likelihood or unlikelihood, I think I know the answer, but I want to ask because fans want the answer to this question, of selecting a quarterback in the first round?) – “I think – listen, we always look at every position. I would say that’s not somewhere I’m looking at in the first round. It’s not a position that we’ve even talked about. There are some good players, but we’re very happy with Tua (Tagovailoa) and where he is with us. At some point I wouldn’t say we’re not going to draft a quarterback at any point. We took Skylar (Thompson) here in the seventh round years ago. You always look at opportunities for where you can add depth in your roster, so I just think that goes across the board for any position.”
(I have a best player available question if you can expound on it, please. How does that rule apply? Is that only the first round or is it every single pick? And if that’s how you do your draft, then is free agency when you fill your needs?) – “I think the best player available, and again this is probably going back from years when I started to learn under Coach (Bill) Parcells years ago and going through Coach (Pete) Carroll, Nick Saban and stuff. You always stack your board and you work hard, but your board, obviously early in the draft, will always look kind of how you set it in terms of best player. But when you get into Day Three, the board is being picked apart, flying all over the place. (laughter) So it’s one of those, and I think sometimes when you get late in the draft, you end up looking for depth or filling holes in your roster. But for the most part, I think most teams would be early in the draft, you’re always going to take the best player available for the first couple rounds, because that’s where you probably have the most control of how your board looks in terms of how you spent all the offseason ranking in terms of all your time with the coaching staff and scouts to build it.”
(And so filling needs, that’s mostly free agency?) – “Yeah, it’s part of it, but it still goes post-draft too. There are still good players that are available that are veterans that are on the streets post-draft, too. But yeah, you’ll always get into that end of the draft where people are like, ‘Hey, if there’s a position where there are maybe not a few players, it’s light at that position and you don’t want to compete,’ you go, ‘If we like the traits in that player, we’ll draft them and add them to the roster then.’ It’s always interesting, the end of the draft process when you get to it, because you’re looking at your boards and it’s usually picked apart and no one has players left. (laughter) It’s really just looking at the depth there of where it is and where you need to fill, then you make your decisions there.”
(When you decide to trade up or trade down, about how far in advance do you make that decision? Is it when you’re on the clock? Is it when you have two, three picks remaining until you’re on the clock? Or how does that process work?) – “Yeah, some of those conversations are happening now where teams call and say, ‘Hey, would you be willing to move down or move up?’ So for the most part, if a deal is too good to pass up, you pull the trigger now, because you never know when those opportunities come and go. But usually most of them are on draft day, because people want to see if the players they’re interested in are still there. If someone has specifically targeted one or two players, and again, it could also go at the depth of that position. There may be two players at a position they like in the first round, one is gone so a team wants to come up and get them. So for the most part to your question, it’s draft day, but we’ve had discussions with teams about moving up and down and calling us so it’s been a typical draft pre-week.”
(Considering where you are picking in the first round and the lack of a third and a fourth, would you be more inclined than usual to look to trade down in the first round?) – “Yeah, I think we’re open to everything, but also you don’t want to pass on a good player. If there is someone there that we all feel very strongly about that can really impact our roster, it’s like how far can you drop down and still possibly get him. (laughter) You always weigh those factors of yeah, it’s great to pick up an extra third, but if that second-round player is someone we believe in like a Jevon Holland or Jarvis Landry in the second round, then you’ll take the player.”
(How is Head Coach Mike McDaniel reacting to finally having a first-round pick?) – “He has been out of his mind, because now he’s recommending everybody to me. (laughter) But it’s been fun. He and I have been watching a lot of players, talking, great communication. So it’s been fun. I think he’s very excited to add a good player, as we all are.”
(On LB Jaelan Phillips, have you made a decision on the fifth-year option for him in particular with the injury, and I guess WR Jaylen Waddle as well?) – “We’re getting to that point. I would say we’ll end up picking it up on them, I’m comfortable saying that. There is no reason for me to sit here and lie to you guys and hide it, but yes.”
(That’s on both LB Jaelan Phillips and WR Jaylen Waddle?) – “Yes.”
(At No. 21, it’s kind of an in-between pick maybe a little bit that you hope there’s a run on maybe quarterback that might push some guys down. How many players would you feel comfortable taking at 21 that are on your board right now?) – “I think we definitely feel there will be one or two players that we really like there is where we are right now. We feel that we can get an impact player there that will help our team and roster, and we’d be very excited to add. We’ve gone through it a few times. We’ll keep going through it here. We feel good about who would be there at No. 21 if we were to pick there.”
(So it’s fair to say you have at least 21 first-round grades?) – “As of right now, we do not have 21 first-round grades. But we feel that again, when teams are building for their roster, teams are looking at different things. You talk to every team, and they’re usually in that 15 to 20 range on players, but it varies from team to team on what everyone is looking for.”
(S Jevon Holland doesn’t have that fifth-year option. How much does that, him being a second-round pick, accelerate the urgency to get an extension done with him sooner rather than later?) – “Jevon (Holland) is a big piece here, and we’ll spend some time talking with him. Excited for him to just get healthy and have a good year here. He is an important piece, I love him. My kids love watching the anime stuff on Twitter that he talks about all the time. (laughter) He’s an important piece and we’ll be talking with him here in the future.”
(Have there been any talks, especially now with the WR DeVonta Smith contract in place, any talks at all regarding the WR Jaylen Waddle extension?) – “Like I’ve always been, we don’t really talk publicly about things like that. We’re aware of it. We are in a good spot with those guys, so I’ll just leave it at that.”
(It’s a pretty loaded tackle class. How do you split the hairs with I think there is six potential first round picks? Is it what flavor of gum you like? How does it work?) – “I think again, it goes all to the systems, too. You guys have watched how we play the offensive line – some guys are great fits for it, some are OK fits for it. As you kind of go through it, again that’s where you talk about the number of picks in the first round by team will vary. There’s some good players that we do like, and there’s other ones we feel will be good players and they are not ideal scheme fits, but they can play in the scheme. For us, we have more than enough guys we feel good about that can help us.”
(Head Coach Mike McDaniel confirmed to us that an offer was made to WR Odell Beckham Jr. a while ago. Are those talks on going, or does it appear unlikely that you all will be able to reach terms?) – “Nothing imminent on it. It’s been – we’ve had some discussions back and forth a little bit, but as of right now, there is nothing in the works to get anything done.”
(This is your 25th year going through this process. What excites you the most this go around?) – “The draft is always a fun time when you when you go through it in the offseason, because you’re always trying to see how you can help your roster going into a season where every year there’s always change. I enjoy this part of the year. I enjoy working with the coaches, the scouts, and just sitting talking ball, because it’s the purest part of just talking football and players and people. So that’s what I enjoy about it, and now that the players are back in the building, I’m very excited for this upcoming season. It was good to see a bunch of guys out there running and getting going.”
(When you think back over all the drafts that you’ve presided over, there have been some guys that you’ve picked who maybe didn’t get a whole lot of attention leading into the draft. Is there one guy, can you pinpoint one guy that you say to yourself, “I’m really proud that I found this guy?”) – “That’s hard. Obviously, most recently would probably be De’Von (Achane) last year. Achane was a guy that we were very high on and spent a lot of time getting to know him. I’d say in the past, probably Andrew Van Ginkel was one because he was kind of a – transferred into Wisconsin and had a little bit of production and just watched him grow as a person and play over the last few years. Very happy for him. Sad to see him go, but very happy for him. But there’s been a number of guys over the years. You go through it and you just talk about – Xavien (Howard) was one, too. Xavien was always a guy that was talented and he would tell you, we interviewed him at the Combine and it was a terrible interview. He would tell you that and then we brought him in on a 30 visit and he was lights out. Like knew all the players, everything, talking history of Dolphins stuff. So it was cool and then watching the evolution of him where his rookie year he played and got criticized a little bit for some of his play as a rookie and then becoming an All-Pro. So it was fun watching his growth and the number of things he did behind the scenes that when he came by to see me probably a month or so ago, we had a long talk about just everything he did behind the scenes. I’m so proud of him, how he worked so hard to get to where he was, so those are always satisfying moments to watch when players get what they’ve worked hard for.”
(Regarding T Terron Armstead from where we sit now, you have to think this might be his last season. Do you start planning for that in the draft or how do you handle that?) – “I think you’re always looking at your roster. You’re always trying to take a two-year look into the future, what it could be. We always knew that possibility could be with him. We’re very respectful of his time and to his credit, he is an incredible communicator. I’ve gotten to know him over the last couple years – he is a fantastic person. So I’m very glad he is coming back, because he has impacted that room so much with those young guys and helped Austin (Jackson) and all those guys grow and Liam (Eichenberg), so having him back is important. But you always look at every position when you kind of go through it and try and look and try and anticipate what some of the issues could be in the future.”
(I think it’s been about six weeks since we got you at the Combine. Just seeing an update on the QB Tua Tagovailoa contract situation? Has there been progress? Do you feel Week 1 is a hard deadline for this to happen or is this something that when it happens, it happens?) – “I think it’s something that when it happens, it happens. We’ve had communication with him and I’ll just leave those between the organization and his representation, and it’s been good so we’ll just keep working towards it. Him and his agent are very understanding that this is now the draft, so he’s letting us focus on that and then we’ll turn our attention to that after the draft finishes.”
(QB Tua Tagovailoa’s decision to start working with a private quarterback coach in the offseason, how involved were you and the team with that process?) – “No, you’ve got to give him all the credit. He is just like last offseason when he attacked to stay healthy and doing the jiujitsu or judo, whichever one, but he’s just – watching him work and how he wants to be great. He took all this stuff on his own and told us what he was going to do, so you’ve got to give him all the credit on that.”
(I guess following up, obviously last year he was coming in, wanted to gain some weight. His build, this year he’s kind of trimmed up a little bit. Had you guys given him any idea of where you wanted to see him as far as his build and his weight?) – “No, I think this again is to his credit. He’s trying to do everything he can to do what he can to be great. And that’s been from Day 1 when Mike (McDaniel) and him connected here, working through the first season and then making the changes offseason, working through last year, staying healthy, leading the league in passing and now this is his next evolution. As Mike has told you guys, we feel like there is a whole other step that he can take, so we’re excited about his future.”
(I wanted to ask you about Defensive Coordinator Anthony Weaver in terms of this scheme, what he wants run. You’ve been here with so many defensive schemes, so many different fronts. Do you have a full understanding of what he specifically is looking for?) – “Yeah, he’s been very clear which is great. He communicates well, and he’s had great examples of the types of players he’s been looking for, so it’s been fun working with him. I think our scouts and even the coaches, it’s been pretty seamless in terms of making those adjustments. Even if there has been some division on some of the college guys, just what he’s looking for, what we see and just incorporating why. So we have a pretty good idea. I mean, you guys – probably a little bit of some of the Baltimore stuff, but he’s also got some things I think he wants to implement on his own. I’ll let him talk about all that stuff and go through it as you guys meet with him throughout the spring and summer.”
(What’s that process like – for instance, we know Head Coach Mike McDaniel is obsessed with speed, that obviously is something that you have to adapt to – but what’s that process like, always having to adapt to what a new coach or a new defensive coordinator wants?) – “It can be challenging at times, but again, it’s part of the job and the business. I think the most important thing is trying to get everyone on the same page as soon as possible, so you can adjust through that offseason for the free agency and through the draft. I think having clear communication and having some idea of what they’ve done in the past helps, but I think a lot of it goes to the coaches. Like Anthony (Weaver) deserves a lot of credit for coming in here, being so prepared and having everything ready with visuals and everything for us to go through so that he made that transition a lot easier for everyone.”
(I guess in terms of positional value, I kind of always heard like, quarterback, protecting the quarterback, rushing the quarterback. But then you see receiver position guys getting $25 or $30 million. Have you seen the league change in terms of how you view positional value and which are the most significant?) – “Yeah, I think we’ve all seen it. I think from everywhere from defensive tackles to wide receivers, obviously the quarterback position. I think now it’s become more of a league of whoever your good players are, are going to be pushing to get that amount of money. I think it’s exciting for the players. I think the one thing it shows is that teams will do that and take care of people. It’s just – with a salary cap league, to me and this is my opinion, it was like an unprecedented year of change for rosters throughout the offseason. I hadn’t really seen a year like that in a long time where people were forced to make changes, but it’s exciting and I think it’s good for the players that they can get – now it’s not just the quarterbacks or left tackles. I think being able to spread it out and helping the team for the players that work hard and make this game great, I think it’s exciting for the NFL and I think that’s why people love the NFL.”
Mike McDaniel – March 25, 2024
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(DT Christian Wilkins. The Dolphins could’ve franchise tagged him for $22 million. Another team gave him $27.5 million. I’m sitting there thinking, why not just tag him for the one year? What are some of the things that I should know, what are some of the things that fans should know about why you all didn’t just tag him for the one year?) – “There are compounding variables in that. I’d be the first to say, I absolutely love Christian Wilkins as a player and his game. But there is this whole thing about the salary cap, and when money goes to one place, it doesn’t go to another. Our job is to facilitate the best team, and unfortunately this is a process that’s not easy, but you’re looking at it from a reflective standpoint. Successful organizations encounter this all the time, where you have homegrown talent, your job is to maximize what they are as a player, and then you have problem-solving situations year in and year out that changes the complexion of your team. The bottom line was we’ve never doubted Christian as a player, but you have to make some tough decisions when you’re thinking of the whole scope of the team. Realistically, it’s a lot more difficult than we want all the best players. There are times like that when you have good players on your team, something that you’re hoping to – a problem derived from drafting a good player and developing him is that we’ve made a multitude of moves with our relationship towards the salary cap, that it probably wouldn’t have existed with that. That’s part of the business that from my vantage point as the head coach, you either want to be able to retain every player that you have, or you want to see them have a grassy meadow of an opportunity to go fulfill their dreams elsewhere. I think that’s something that the fan in me I can totally understand, but (General Manager) Chris (Grier) and I have to think about the whole complexion of the team and the opportunity cost with every player that we do sign.”
(On lessons that can be learned from an extension standpoint with DT Christian Wilkins and OL Robert Hunt) – “I think you learn lessons in everything you do. I think from a head-coaching standpoint, I’m very proud of those two guys individually. It wasn’t like it just jumped on our radar. These are things that we were discussing. We were in contract talks with Christian last year. We had an offer that we thought was very fair, and Christian chose to bet on himself. In those situations, I think the best result is the team gets a player that’s highly motivated, that earns the contract that he gets. You have to keep the scope of the entire team, and the competitiveness that you can put forth at every position. Those situations may arise that way. I don’t think anything from those two players, that whole process, is necessarily going to affect the process of players moving forward. Every individual is different. I think one thing that I did take away was the best-case scenario for our organization is that if there is a more lucrative scenario that they want to chase outside of the team, both players, with Christian and with Rob, it wasn’t like it was easy for them to leave. The relationships that they were leaving, the emotion that they had in the building, on a day that is celebratory for most, I think that’s what I want to stay connected to. It’s relationships above all else and transparency. And sometimes when business doesn’t work out, that doesn’t mean relationships have to be fractured. I was very proud on every level, our communication through the process, and it all comes back to the fact that there is a finite salary cap. Sometimes we can’t be the kids spending the money; we have to be the parents that have to look at our budget and make sure we can pay the water bill.”
(How would you characterize your organization’s approach this offseason? You obviously lost some key players but added some veterans.) – “I’m very proud of the orchestration, particularly between the coaching staff and the personnel department. Let’s not fake the funk and act like it was an easy problem to solve. We’re always solving the problem of roster and trying to make it better. I saw an orchestration of multiple people on all fronts being very communicative. I think we found really, really good players that really want to play for the Miami Dolphins organization. And we were able to really cover – we had a lot of holes to fill … Free agency is still ongoing. But in the middle of March or the third week of March, our roster (is not) complete. That’s never the case. There probably will be some free agent activity before it is all said and done before the draft. Then there will be the draft that we’ll add pieces. And then it will be after the draft where some movement occurs. I think the problems were challenging on the front end. No one wavered. We really resourced all of their brain power within the building. I’m very fired up about the individuals that have come into the building since the league year started and are all about pushing us forward into 2024 because we have exciting things to do and big goals to accomplish.”
(Where do things stand with WR Odell Beckham Jr.? It was reported that he visited last week.) – “So things went great with him. We did make him an offer and business takes time, especially with players like Odell, who’s had a phenomenal career and still has really good football in front of him and has options. I think those conversations will be ongoing. We’ll see where they go. I don’t live in the world of crystal balling and I do stay in my lane as a coach. I’m definitely ready to coach him if we can come to an agreement, and I think both sides are trying to work towards that. We’ll see what happens.”
(S Jordan Poyer, you’ve faced him in the division for a couple of years. What was intriguing about bringing him to the team?) – “It was a classic ‘if you can’t beat them, join them.’ (laughter) No, I think he’s a really, really cool player that I actually have experience with from my year in Cleveland in 2014. I think one of the most exciting things about his addition is he has an attachment to the city of Miami, wants to see goals that we have as a team accomplished, and to hear him have conversations with Jevon Holland and just exuberance about both players taking their game to another level, that gets you excited. I think that’s really good news for the Miami Dolphins organization because at the end of the day, you want guys who are fully invested, that are excited and energetic towards the goal and come into the building every day and work. I know that’s what he is going to do and I know players on the team are excited to have him.”
(In the postseason press conference, you were asked about giving up play-calling possibly and you said you would think about it. Have you made a decision on that and what was that decision?) – “Yeah, I’ve thought about it long and hard and I think one of the things that we’ve done this offseason is really lean into the facilitation of full communication and the development of our staffs in all three phases. I think from a play-calling perspective, for now in the spring, I’m going to call plays. And I plan on doing it in the fall. But we’ll always adjust if necessary. As long as you’re ok with me calling plays, I’ll call plays. (laughter)”
(WR Tyreek Hill has had some off-field headlines recently. Have you guys talked about that and how have those talks gone?) – “Yeah, absolutely. I think all things with regard to players on our team, it’s of paramount importance that you have communication. One of the things from our perspective is I think it is very important as an organization that we’re in the avenue of finding, gathering and learning all information possible. I think that’s kind of our obligation to all parties involved, to have information. One of the good things about this offseason in regard to Tyreek Hill is our communication with him has been phenomenal. Working through different things is part of the coach/player relationship. You don’t wish unfortunate things on anyone. But our No. 1 obligation to both player and the organization is to find out all of the information possible and then work with the player. In Tyreek’s case, we’ve been very transparent. He’s been very candid with us. We’re working with him on all of those things.”
(What kind of player and person is LB Jerome Baker?) – “He was a really cool player in the last two years for me because he’s an incredibly smart human being that gives you some of his really dynamic personality when he feels comfortable and you’ve earned it. Seeing how his teammates were around him, and then as the first season went on and I earned more and more of his trust, and him giving me his personality and being vulnerable to me, he’s a guy I can understand why all of his teammates that he’s ever played with absolutely love him. You talk about a guy that is extremely, extremely smart and can handle a lot of things, I’ve firsthand witnessed him be the main communicator in basically three different versions of defense. Wonderful human being. I can’t say enough good things about Jerome Baker and excited for his opportunity in Seattle.”
(This is kind of a broad question, but is there one Kyle Shanahan story you have that you kind of carry with you that you think has made you a better coach or better man or maybe both? Anything like that?) – “I’m not sure if it was happenstance. I was answering another question maybe yesterday in regards to him, but the first thing from my perspective, he was such a big part of my career from the onset. He was the first person that told me that it doesn’t matter what I look like or who I am, if I can help players accomplish their goals, players will listen to me. Moving forward all the way to 2016, something that jumps off for me in terms of shaping my understanding of my current job as a head coach – 2016 with the Atlanta Falcons, he was the offensive coordinator and play-caller and there was a third-and-2 in the Super Bowl against New England. I’m not sure if you guys know about it but Atlanta didn’t win. Sorry, I didn’t want to ruin the ending for you guys here, but I think it was 28 to, I don’t know, 12 or a teen digit and it was a third-and-2, and because of injury during the game, we had a shuffle in the backfield. And I watched him call a play that was designed for Aldrick Robinson, guessing a certain coverage and put in the play based upon guesses of what the defense might show that they haven’t. The bottom line was, it was the third quarter of the biggest game of our lives and he made a perfect play call and because we had some injuries during the game, our protection was a little off and we got sacked. So I watched him be fully prepared, do everything in his control, make a play call that was highly scrutinized, and you kind of understand that for me, that brings me peace in my job to not over – you only can do what you can control. You’re always responsible for the results. And to me, I learned so much about how in high-stakes situations, it doesn’t matter sometimes how much you prepare, how well-orchestrated a scheme is or everything that you can control from a coach’s perspective. Football is a team sport and a lot of things are going on, and sometimes it doesn’t fall your way and you have to move on and do your best moving forward. I hope that answers your question.”
(I’m sure there are a lot of players you would still like to add, if you could. But given what you’ve already added and what you might want to add moving forward, if you could fill one more position with an impact player, would it be No. 3 receiver, would it be on the defensive line, offensive line? What would that one player bring you?) – “That was a very well-thought out way to ask the question. I think for me – and I share this vision with the coaching staff – so often, you can fall into the trap of spring, even summertime, you’re chasing that feeling of accomplishment of you’re looking at the depth chart, looking at the roster and you want a piece or name that makes you feel good. And it’s not about magnets or depth charts. It’s about human beings and who’s the best player. So as long as we have very capable football players at every position, you’re trying to position yourself where, ‘ok, who’s the best player at what they do and let’s evolve around them.’ How I talk about skill position players in general, at this stage, where we’re at with our roster, that’s the kind of approach that we look at for the roster. Who is the best player, and we’ll adjust by position. If you’re super fired up about a third receiver, whether that’s free agency or the draft, then you evolve into more three-receiver sets. And then if you have an opportunity at another run stopper, you’re able to work more on two-shell defense because you can stop the run with – you kind of evolve to where your opportunities are. That’s where you kind of have to stay at, at this point, where you have to be very calculated with your free agent acquisitions. And then you have to make decisions not based upon necessarily position as much as team impact with your draft picks. So I’m not intentionally trying to be gray. It’s gray in that way where you’re ‘ok, well, this player, he’s good at this. And if we get this player, we can’t have this player. Which version of the team is the best?’ Which is why it’s an exhausting process and why Chris Grier just grinds me to a nub. (laughter)”
(On updating LB Jaelan Phillips and LB Bradley Chubb’s rehab) – “Yeah I’d love to. They have been doing phenomenal. Those two in particular, remember that line that I was talking to you guys about all season with Jalen Ramsey about no timelines? So, after action report, since you guys didn’t want to bring it up, I think that worked well. No timelines. He came back faster than you guys thought. (laughter) It’s also from a psychological standpoint. You don’t want people to chase the wrong things. I bring Jalen Ramsey up because both of those two individuals, Bradley Chubb and Jaelan Phillips, are extreme versions of, ‘hey, we need to make sure they aren’t chasing a timeline because as competitors, they will achieve that timeline and it might be at the worst for their bodies.’ So relative to timelines, we specifically don’t have those for those two. We’ve had to mandate that they have a week off of rehab just recently, both of them, because they literally live there. They have a pseudo-tape on the floor parking spots for their little scooters that they’ve graduated from. They’re both really doing exactly what you’d expect from those two individuals, which is absolutely attacking that process, but doing it from a perspective that they don’t want to get healthy for one week, they want to get healthy for the whole season. So that’s what they’re working towards.”
(On if he thinks QB Tua Tagovailoa will be at the offseason program) – “I think with intentionality, I try to keep myself as head of coaching. The contract and contract negotiations, those things take time. I do expect Tua (Tagovailoa) to be in OTAs only because my working relationship with Tua. For two years, I’ve watched Tua gain some unbelievable residuals towards the season in that process. It’s part of the reason Tua is who he is because he’s always learning, never staying the same and always working on his craft. I know the one thing that he likes to do now in his life, besides be a kick ass dad to Ace and Maizy, is play football with his teammates. That’s what I expect. I don’t really put too much thought beyond that. I understand the business, but I also understand my job with Tua is to make sure that his football is continuing to evolve and the best days are in front of him, which are both of our goals.”
(Because of some of the roster deletions, some of the expectations, Las Vegas oddsmakers, NFL analysts, have been lowered for the Miami Dolphins in 2024. What are your thoughts on this idea that this might be need to be a reset year?) – “Well, you’re talking to a guy that is very well-versed in expectations or lack thereof just in life. I don’t really attach any emotion to it. I can tell you one thing, every single player that was on the team last year and the year before, and every single player that we’ve added this offseason, and every single coach that we’ve added this offseason, their expectations are to help fulfill goals unaccomplished. There’s been zero time spent thinking anything less bold or less aggressive then the way we approach every season. To trivialize a season or to say – for me, I have a hard time expressing what our teams going to be like as the head coach without ever being around the team. I think everybody’s individual expectations are extremely high. The more people lower their expectations, it’s kind of erroneous or irrelevant, but I know that starting April 15th, guys are very, very hungry to deliver on what they know, which is an opportunity to be on a team that has the ability to grow from what we’ve learned last year and what we went through, and have zero thought as to down, rebuilding, whatever those words are. That makes zero sense to me. Fans are going to pay to try to watch us play football and people don’t go to games to watch people lose. People’s careers, this will be the most important year of every single player’s career because it’s the only one that exists. We’ve talked about that before.”
(How would you describe the impact OL Robert Hunt made on your offense last year?) – “He’s been a big part of what we’ve been doing on the offensive line since I got here in 2022. He’s a guy that really has grown and become a professional football player from the day we walked in the door. I think he’s a guy that’s a tremendous asset for the Panthers and what they’re trying to do, and I’m happy that he was able to really hit that milestone of that contract for him in his career. And that’s something that again, if we were priced out because guys have really grown within the organization, that’s a good thing for the organization, it’s a good thing for Robert and I’m happy for him.”
(How odd will it be coaching in the division without Bill Belichick?) – “Well, yeah, it’s bizarre for me. I think I was in high school the last time he wasn’t a coach in the AFC East. So from a competitive standpoint, you want to go against the best. I have no doubt that the New England Patriots are retooling in their own fashion to be their best selves. But in terms of an individual to go against, there’s not anybody more difficult from a defensive standpoint to try to forecast what they’re going to do in that next game. There’s not anybody better at facilitating technique and fundamentals across the board. So to say that I’m somber and have been mourning the loss of Bill Belichick in the AFC East would be a flat out lie and I wouldn’t lie to you. (laughter)”
Anthony Walker Jr. – March 19, 2024
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Tuesday, March 19, 2024
LB Anthony Walker Jr.
(You’re a Miami guy, Monsignor Pace High School guy. What are your memories of the last time you played football in South Florida as a high school football player?) – “Yeah, that was the last time I played football there. My senior night game was against Belen Jesuit. Obviously team rival, school rival. Was able to get a win. Like I said, it was the last time I played football down there. I didn’t get a chance to play there in college and then in the NFL, I think I’ve had a couple opportunities but was either hurt or didn’t play that game. So, I’ve played against Miami but haven’t played in Miami. So it’s the first time my family will be able to be closest to me for practicing and games and stuff like that. So it’ll be a cool opportunity and I’m looking forward to it.”
(Were you a Dolphins fan growing up?) – “I was not, I was not. (laughter) It’s weird. My dad grew up and was in love with the Dallas Cowboys. He told me I had to become a fan or I couldn’t live in his house. So I became a fan really quickly. (laughter)”
(As far as you joining the team, how do you feel your impact will make an immediate impact? You were a captain on the Cleveland Browns and you bring some leadership coming down to South Florida. So how do you feel like your impact will transform this defense?) – “Yeah, just for me being myself every day. Being the same guy every day. Intentional about my work, intentional about the details. And I’ll just do that every day. How that feeds off on others and everything like that, only time will tell, right? But I think me coming in and not doing anything outside of my norm, just being the same guy every day, showing up every day, priding myself on being the same person, being the same teammate and letting my work take care of itself. However the chips fall after that, we can’t predict. But all I can control is what I do every day and me showing up every day. I take pride in that.”
(Was your decision hard to join the Dolphins? Or was it just mostly having the opportunity to come back home?) – “It wasn’t hard at all. I stressed to my agent it was very, very important to get me out the cold. I was sick of it. I hadn’t been home in a while. I was in the Midwest since I was 17 years old. It was about time I got some warm weather and when he said Miami and I was like let’s get it done. Obviously being home and all that stuff is great and everything like that, but an opportunity to continue to play this game at the highest level is something that I’ll always cherish.”
(Fill us in on the knee injury. What was the injury? How far back are you now?) – “Yeah. So basically in September 2022, on a Thursday night game against the Steelers, I tore my quad tendon. I missed the rest of the season that year and then rehabbed and came back last year and in Week 12, 13, it wasn’t anything significant. I didn’t think it was or the team didn’t think it was. We thought it was the soreness or whatever. It ended up being a low-grade infection, or something inside the knee, so basically no structural damage, but just had to clean it out, antibiotics and all that stuff. Like I said, I don’t know how it came. They don’t know how it came. It could be anything from the first time I had surgery to anything. Obviously, it was all negative, all my tests were negative and everything like that. So just followed the protocol with the antibiotics and the rehab. And I’m back full go training and everything. So I’ll be good to go.”
(So Defensive Coordinator Anthony Weaver comes over from the Ravens. What do you know about the Ravens style of defense? Particularly as it relates to the linebacker position and how do you think that aligns to your strengths?) – “Yeah. Very aggressive, very downhill. Obviously playing against them the last three years, trying to go against that defense was almost impossible at times. But again, just the linebacker play is downhill, physical football. Then being able to protect the second level, the middle of the field. I think that’s something that they did really well in Baltimore and that’s something that I pride myself on. Protecting the middle of the field and making sure that if the team wants to attack the middle, they pay for it every time. Whether that’s the run game or pass game. When you have elite corners, elite DBs and an elite pass rush, obviously which Miami does, it makes it a lot easier on the linebackers. So I think if you watch the Ravens, their linebackers were downhill flying, blitzing and everything like that. But they also control the middle of the field and the passing game. You put it all together, that’s how it should look.”
(CB Kader Kohou is wearing number four. CB Jalen Ramsey is wearing number five. Where does that leave you?) – “(laughter) That’s a great question. Something that I’ve been dealing with since I signed with the Dolphins. We’ll take care of it when the time comes. But yeah, I made a joke to one of my friends. I was like, ‘I’m going to ask Jalen Ramsey for number five.’ He was like, ‘He’s going to give you a high five.’ (laughter) But those guys man, you talk about two of the premier defensive backs in the NFL, those two right there. So it’s kind of out of the question with those two. But we’ll see. We’ll see what number I’m able to get. I would love to stay in the single digits. That’s kind of become my forte since they’ve allowed that for linebackers. But if I have to get another number, it’s not a big deal. I’ll make the best of it.”
(There is a lot of talent on this defense. Can you give me your scouting report of the Miami Dolphins defense with all the pieces you have now?) – “Yeah, I think they rush the passer really well. You have two elite edge rushers. Obviously you lose big ‘Wilk’ (Christian Wilkins) in the middle, but again a lot of talent up front. A lot of talent in the defensive back in the room. The linebacker room is loaded as well. David Long is one of my guys. I’ve known him for a very long time now playing against him when he played in Tennessee and I played for Indy, so I’ve grown a relationship with him over the years. I know he is excited for just another opportunity to go out there and play. Jordyn Brooks is another key addition. I’ve been watching him for years in Seattle. Always plays really well, good linebacker football. So I think the team itself is loaded with talent, but that only goes so far. I think I’ve been a part of some talented teams in Cleveland and Indy, and we just haven’t been able to put it all together. I think that’s the tale of football, right? Can you put it all together? You can have all the talent in the world, but can you just put it all together? I think that’s the challenge that we have to embrace and take on, and I think we can do that here.”
(I wanted to follow up regarding the number four jersey in Cleveland. I heard you didn’t even ask for anything in return and you were still handed a Rolex. Tell me how that went down and how is the Rolex treating you?) – “(laughter) The Rolex is treating me really nice actually. But honestly, I mean franchise quarterback, highest paid player in the NFL at that time, why would I even try to make it hard on him? I saw we got that done and I literally text the head coach and equipment and Deshaun (Watson) in a group chat and said, ‘Hey man, you got number four. I’ll figure it out.’ That’s literally how it went. Obviously I wanted him to feel as comfortable and as welcomed as possible. I know he’s worn that jersey pretty much all his life. It was a no-brainer for real for me. I was able to get number five, a number that I had worn before as well. It was all good. And then one day, I was literally during a press conference after practice in OTAs and he handed me a Rolex, which I thought was pretty dope and pretty cool, on top of donating money to my dad’s football team, Monsignor Pace High School, and actually paid for my suits that year during the season. He’s a great teammate and nothing but all love for him. Very appreciative of that.”
(You touched on it a little bit, but wanted to get your thoughts more on the other linebackers there. David Long, joining him, and Jordyn Brooks coming aboard with you as well.) – “Yeah. Again, two elite linebackers that have been playing at an elite level for a very long time. It’ll be good to compete with those guys and see what we can bring to this team. Obviously, David Long has been here. He played really well watching him all last year. Again, Jordyn Brooks, everything he brings from Seattle. Great coverage ability, able to blitz, stop the run, everything like that. So I think we have a really good group that is going to push each other to be better. It’ll be fun to compete with those guys.”
(Just to touch on, you said your dad was the head coach at Monsignor Pace? I’m just curious, when you were playing in high school were there any local players that made it to the NFL that you looked up to or had contact with that helped push you to get to where you are today?) – “Yeah, that’s a great question by the way. Obviously, there’s a lot of talent in South Florida. You think about guys that come way before me that I grew up watching. Me and my dad, our favorite thing to do was to go to high school games and college games and watch the University of Miami and watch Miami Northwestern High School play football and play at an elite level. So, I can give you three guys off the top right now. Sean Spence played at the University of Miami, played at Miami Northwestern, played in the league. Lavonte David was also on that state championship (and) national championship team with Sean Spence in high school. So those two right there, I’m very close to those guys as far as those guys being my mentors. But we’re like best friends now. We literally talk every day. I talk to both of those guys every day. I watch film with those guys all the time. Those are two. Then obviously you have to throw in Teddy Bridgewater and what he means to the Miami community and all he’s done. Again, for me to look up to since I was a kid, to see him play at Bunche Park and then Miami Northwestern then go to Louisville and then all the stuff he does in the community, just someone to look up to that does everything the right way and in a positive manner.
(Larry Little went to Booker T. Washington, he’s a Dolphin alum. He won a Super Bowl. What would it mean to you to win a Super Bowl for your hometown team?) – “Yeah, obviously you play this game and it’s a blessing to play this game. You’re able to do so many things with it if you do it the right way and come in contact with a lot of people. But at the end of the day, we play this game to win. I’m not saying that as a cliché. We play to win the game. For real, we really do. But you play to win the Super Bowl. That’s something that I’ve always wanted to accomplish. For it to happen with me playing in my hometown would be pretty special. It would be great to be apart of, knowing this organization has done it before and they want to get back to those winning ways. To be a small part of that would be great.”
(You mentioned earlier the low-grade infection you had. Was there ever a point before they decided it was low grade where it was a concern for you? Were you hospitalized or anything like that?) – “Yeah, I was hospitalized for a good while. I had no idea. I didn’t know what it was. You think the worse, right? You think, man, will I be able to play this game again? Even worse than that. My dad was there with me the whole time. I was really appreciative of him for that. My teammates, my coaches, everybody kept me in high spirits. The doctors were great and everything like that. So I am very fortunate that it was only a low grade infection and I can continue playing football. But definitely a scary moment for sure.”
(How long did that period last where you were kind of in the dark?) – “Yeah, about six weeks. Yeah, about six weeks. Like I said, I didn’t play the Chicago game and had to miss the rest of the season and then two weeks after that was still there going through that period. There was a longshot that I would play if we made the Super Bowl in Cleveland. But that was the best-case scenario. But we’re good now. Here now. Looking forward to the opportunity to play in Miami and go out and compete with my teammates.”
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