Mike McDaniel – October 2, 2024
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Wednesday, October 2, 2024
Head Coach Mike McDaniel
(I’m sure we’ll get to the depressing news that LB Jaelan Phillips announced shortly, but just a quick thing with regard to WR Odell Beckham Jr. It was nice he was a full participant if you had practiced fully according to the injury report. Does that suggest that he will be ready to play Sunday for you if he has no setback the next couple of days?) – “It’s one day that we saw him in a walkthrough setting. Tomorrow will be his first full-speed action and we’ll assess from there. Want to make sure people are ready when they go out on the football field, but he’s been working very hard not just to practice, so we’ll see what tomorrow has in store.”
(And on LB Jaelan Phillips just how crushing is this and for a young man obviously like him to have to go through this two years in a row, it’s pretty depressing, no?) – “It’s not exciting at all. Especially when you watch someone work so hard to earn every rep. It’s tough and I think Jaelan (Phillips), as he has continually impressed me since I’ve gotten to know him, he recognizes that this is – in a contact sport, this is a contact injury and he doesn’t know the whys necessarily currently, but he knows that he is not going to be worse but going to be better for all those things. So I was very impressed with – you don’t try to forecast how anyone’s going to react to that, understanding that there has to be a multitude of emotions. He’s very positive and already working the process, and as football goes, you have to prepare numerous people to fill a role like that and I know the guys have a lot of motivation to accept that challenge because it’s a great one.”
(You guys have had it seems like a year’s worth of adversity in a month. How do you not let this snowball, be able to get back to what this team was supposed to be?) – “It’s a lot of people that have the appropriate intent, a lot of relationships that you have to – you really get to see if things are what you think they are and it’s the ultimate test of a lot of things that you say that you believe. It does one of two things; it splinters people or it brings them together. Fortunately or unfortunately, this is not the first time, anybody that’s been in the NFL long enough, that you don’t start the way that you want to. And then you have things that you can’t control that there’s distractions aplenty in this league and all sorts of different things that can get you worried about the wrong stuff and you don’t have anywhere to hide when you’re losing. So that’s the tonality of it. I don’t hear much of, I don’t know, calculations of the bad things that have happened. I think guys are very, very intentionally trying to fix things that aren’t up to our standard. So you don’t have time – in this league, everybody has their own stuff going on. Nobody cares about the trials and tribulations or the things that you have to overcome. The whole crux of it is whether it’s early in the season or it’s late in the season, you will have adversity and sometimes it comes in bunches; sometimes it doesn’t. But you get to find out, guys get to see truly what I believe in; I get to see how they respond to it. And ultimately you hope and you believe that you’ve invested in the right people. I think the only way to prove that is daily attack of things that are uncomfortable and whatever we weather, whatever comes in our crosshairs, you just have to problem-solve because everybody’s got their own problems and we’re focused on trying to solve the New England Patriots problem that we’re trying to win a football game.”
(Speaking of LB Jaelan Phillips, what was the specifics of that injury? We just know from what he posted that it requires surgery and he’s out for the year.) – “I guess it’s what you could categorize as, it was a contact injury, something that happened in the game. He went back in based upon the fact that he could do no further damage. They braced it up and adrenaline of the game, he was all right. You worry about injuries just in general, but particularly in guys that are coming back. But contact injuries are unfortunately kind of the roll of the dice that kind of live outside any – it’s really a shame because you spend so much time getting yourself in a position to practice, and then that practice time is so minimized due to the fact that when you’re healthy enough to practice – he’s started in this league for a while – but you’re getting going. He’s a phenomenal player so he’s still able to impact the game in a great way, but I just know he was starting to get in a rhythm. But there’s contact injuries that it was a freak one at that because it was probably the first time that I’ve had friendly fire as they say. (Jordan) Poyer and him having – I can’t remember what quarter it was – but they both got injured on the play aggressively trying to take down the ball carrier. It was a partial that the medical experts needed to go fix and beyond that I’ll leave to Jaelan (Phillips) to speak on more, but proud of him and how he’s handling it and how he’s focused on the right things because circumstance could trick you into being in a pretty dark spot, but he’s focused and hoping that – I just know that he’s of the right mindset to come back with this and use it to his full advantage as rough as it is right now.”
(Just if I could follow up real quick – I’m not a doctor, I have no idea if this correlates – but it looks like it was the same leg as his Achilles tear. It sounds like this was though just a result of contact not necessarily a byproduct of that leg?) – “No, for sure. The medical experts wouldn’t have cleared him if it wasn’t, but specifically a contact injury that the only way you could avoid a contact injury – so like that to me… when our doctors clear people to play, they don’t take that lightly, so I’m always very confident. I think that any time that you have a contact injury that those are kind of unrelated more often than not.”
(Is it possible that by returning to play that he may have compounded the injury without even – obviously he never intended to do so – but is that possible?) – “Again it’s the contact part, like I guess because he came back he did have contact, but you’re always – just understanding, rudimentary understanding of the body – that’s why you have to be so deliberate and intentional with not talking timelines and things like that because all of those things are built because that’s non-negotiable to bring somebody back and cause… I think I’ve trusted early with just the way they handle all the players and continually earn my trust so I don’t think that was a factor at all. If it turned to flag football, that’s the only way to avoid it; it was a contact injury.”
(You mentioned needing contributions from several players. Can you speak to your faith in the rest of the edge rusher group including a couple rookies in LB Chop Robinson and LB Mohamed Kamara?) – “They get to collectively put forth a lot of work that they’re absolutely positively prepared for. The situation as it presented itself, there was a tremendous amount of gained reps to learn from and grow through in training camp, and the key thing is that you’re not trying to be Jaelan Phillips and just one person be that. I think as we understand each other as a defense and how we utilize personnel, you adapt and it’s strength in numbers. It’s a collective step up and it’s kind of directly in relation to what the whole team is trying to do right now with just in the nature of what the team is working through right now. It’s not one person necessarily, but I am confident in the collective because they’ve given me reason to be confident by their daily output.”
(Question about repercussions around here – WR Tyreek Hill had the ball that was a lateral, he didn’t go after that aggressively. TE Julian Hill has had a lot of penalties, LB Anthony Walker Jr. has had a few on special teams. Without going into stuff that should stay within closed doors, do you guys talk to these players? I don’t think they run sprints or anything, but do you show them video? What is the corrective action there?) – “The corrective action, when you’re negatively affecting the team, my recourse – I think it’s my duty as the head coach for every player and coach involved in the thing to literally hit it straight between the eyes, talk about it in a team meeting. Most teams, guys, they want to be a part of the solution and not the problem. But at the same time, we’re all accountable, and first and foremost myself, for yeah – that’s not good football. You can’t go backwards before a play starts. You can’t turn the ball over. We have an entire team meeting devoted to turnovers on a weekly basis and the ownership of the ball and taking the ball away. So these are things that in a competitive situation, you can have scars or you can have lessons and I think the accountability that Tyreek Hill is exhibiting to his team, he didn’t try to shy away from that, and I think the whole team learned something that I thought – or you think you know until it happens and you’re like, ‘OK, so if it’s going to happen once, let’s use that as he can be the teacher and let’s not have anybody else not learn from that mistake.’ You’re trying to grow your team, sometimes there’s – when the football isn’t up to standard, you don’t make it rosy; you just tell it exactly like it is. That’s what’s owed to the whole team and when you’re doing things that hurt the team, they should be held accountable.”
(Regarding the offense, I know you guys see a lot of seven-man fronts, a lot of two deep safeties. Is it as simple as just running the ball and getting them to bring a safety down? I know that they do things to discourage the run up front, but is it that simple?) – “You’re trying to crack codes every week that the opponents get paid, too. And they’ve collectively, with their coach and their executions of their game plans, they’ve done a better job than we have. There’s always adjustments, that is football. I’d like them to happen immediately, and I am not used to having the lack of offensive production that the players on the team, the fans, just everybody is not used to. So you try to problem solve and that is a steadily evolving process – that’s not just schematics and it’s not just players. You find success when everyone is connected and the right solutions are being presented and the right things are being executed. There’s nowhere to hide and it’s not fun when you’re not achieving, so the great news is you have opportunities to come together as a football team and focus on absolutely, positively the only things that matter. In situations like these, if you want anything to change, that’s the only thing you can do. You want to see people go above and beyond in what their job responsibilities are and not be complacent because the second you’re complacent with whoever you are – if it’s not me, it’s you. That’s the way we’ve kind of approached it so day by day, rep by rep, there’s no path of least resistance if you want to change the result.”
(What are the main one or two teaching points you need to emphasize to QB Tyler Huntley in order for him to run this offense as effectively as he needs to in the second week of starting?) – “I would hate to think that the best execution of the offense in its entirety would be your first week running the offense. I think that it’s having a standard and not getting defeated as you continue to learn and get the finer details. I think he’s a professional and there was a lot of things that were very impressive when you put into context the timeline, the language and how he’s able to do things that our guys are used to, and then there’s a lot of room for growth, as well as getting to learn him, not just from soundless tape. Getting to coach him on something and see how that hits his ear and see what he does with that coaching, patternizing some of the stuff that he’s comfortable with, all of those things that you do, but there’s no substitute for time in this business when you’re working at the position. So absolutely, positively, did he learn a ton and was this walkthrough today or was the team orchestrated stuff today absolutely better than last week? Yes, it was. I think he’s sinking his teeth in to trying to not just do but have ownership, and I think all of the guys feel like they have to do a better job around him and he feels like he needs to do a better job. I feel like I need to do a better job, and I don’t see another formula for a better product than everyone trying to do their jobs better.”
(Just your biggest concern playing a team like the New England Patriots on the road?) – “Absolutely, positively it’s a team that you’re going to have to earn the victory, and they play a really cool style of ball that is physical and something that I think to go on the road and earn the win, you’re going to have to earn the win. Right now, I wouldn’t want it any other way. I think it’s a division opponent that we know each other well. I see the on-tape growth in the game and the players on offense and I see the fundamentals and technique consistently across the board that have made them a very good defense for a long time and there’s guys playing hard, very physical across the board. They will compete and you will get their best, so I think it’s a good opportunity for us because there’s going to be no gifts. The only gift in my household is for my daughter who’s four-years old today, by the way – shoutout Ayla.”
(Happy birthday Ayla!) – “Thank you – for her. (laughter) But she’s excited about it as well. She wants to see dad’s team compete and earn a win, so we have a lot of work to do in the meantime, but it’s definitely going to be a challenge. It will be fun.”
Tyler Huntley – October 2, 2024
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Wednesday, October 2, 2024
QB Tyler Huntley
(Each week you look a lot smoother just getting in the huddle, calling the plays and everything. Where are you at on that?) – “Yeah, definitely. You feel more confident in more reps and doing things multiple times so definitely. Got a little bit more reps under my belt and getting ready for the week.”
(When you saw that deep one to WR Tyreek Hill, how close were you guys? How quickly did you want that one back?) – “Man, we were close. If I had gotten one before then, I know I would have landed it. But you know it was close, and in the game it’s tougher because bullets flying, but next time, definitely going to connect.”
(Do you think this week it’ll be more just you knowing the playbook more? Or will it be a less complex offense that you guys are trying to delve into?) – “No, I’ll be able to know the playbook better because Coach is putting things in things. I’ll it’ll be better.”
(Was it so much the playbook or the timing on a lot of that motion stuff? How tough was that to get down and how far along are you on it?) – “It’s pretty complex, but just knowing exactly what your snap point is and actually repping them, you’ll feel way more comfortable. Definitely.”
(Was that the issue with all the procedure penalties on that one drive? I mean it looked ridiculous.) – “We just had to be set in certain areas while sending the motion, and we just had a couple people moving at the same time. We’ll get that cleaned up.”
(You talked about last week how starting for the Dolphins would be a dream come true. What was it like when you were actually out there, in the moment, going out there wearing all the colors? What was that like for you?) – “Yeah, it was bittersweet. Just being out there in the stadium. Pulling up to the stadium for the first time, my first time pulling in the way that I did – yeah, it’s bittersweet.”
(How different is it going to look this week? A lot of fans are disappointed in obviously the points scored, but how different can it look from just you being here this extra week?) – “We just got to come out and execute. We convert on those late downs that we missed last week – we convert on those and it’s a whole different ball game. A couple passes away from really breaking through on the game and I just hope that we come out this week and just execute how we’re supposed to.”
(What was the energy like at practice today? Everyone seems pretty positive like this is going to turn around.) – “We got urgency. We got to get it going. Division game on the road, we got to be ready to go play.”
(Would a game plan that allows you to use your legs more benefit you and the team?) – “That’s hard to say, you know what I mean? I don’t know how to answer that because it could go either way. I want to get the ball in those playmakers’ hands. I don’t want to be running all that, that’s why we got running backs. (laughter) So definitely, I just want to continue to get the ball into our playmakers’ hands.”
(WR Tyreek Hill’s reaction towards the end of the game, he said people don’t know how to read lips, that he’s just trying to get his guys going. What was your reaction on that?) – “Definitely. He’s just trying to fire everybody up. We were still in the game late. If we would have gotten the two-point conversion, we would have been only eight points down. It’s still a one touchdown game, so he was just trying to make sure everyone was still in it. That’s all that was.”
(How much do you think a second week as a starter, that week of practice can really help you on game day?) – “Just like I was saying, the more reps, the better you feel. We’re just going to keep building off of that. I’ve actually got a game under my belt with these guys, and we know what to expect out of each other. We’re going to go out and play.”
Tyreek Hill – October 2, 2024
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Wednesday, October 2, 2024
WR Tyreek Hill
(We saw you toward the end of the Monday night game, it seemed like you were shouting at someone. Can you explain just what was going on in that situation?) – “I’m at a good spot in my life, man. I wouldn’t refer to it as shouting, that’s just me just motivating my teammates. I was simply telling 25 (Jaylen Wright) that we need more of that, because he had a great run there toward the end of the game. I was like, ‘I need more of that. I need more of that 25. No. 9, I need more of that. I need more of that 18.’ That’s just me motivating my team. There’s no ill will. Me personally, my teammates know me, I never break down and I never call nobody out in that moment. If I’ve got a problem with somebody, I’ll pull them to the side and tell you what’s going on. That’s the man that parents raised. But I was simply just saying, ’25, I need more of that,’ because dude was balling and he was the spark for the offense.”
(Was that as frustrated as you’ve been on a football field in quite some time?) – “No, it wasn’t frustration. That was just me just motivating my teammates and saying I need more of that.”
(I thought that was a bad camera angle – good meme, bad camera angle?) – “You know what man? We need some professional lip readers in this world because you know what’s crazy is my mom sent me that same video. She was like, ‘Hey, what’s going on?’ I’m like, ‘Um, nothing? You know how I get during football,’ it’s me motivating my teammates, me just showing my passion and me just being a leader because we want to win. If 25 is rolling or whoever is rolling, I’m going to say, ‘Keep that train rolling. Keep that train rolling. Keep feeding him Coach. Let’s go, let’s go.’ See, if you read my lips right there, you’d probably think I said something crazy. Put that on mute. (laughter)”
(Have you talked to Head Coach Mike McDaniel about getting you the ball? In a nice way, I’m not saying yelling, because it seemed like without QB Tua Tagovailoa, the team would rely on you more and that hasn’t happened. So have you talked to Head Coach Mike McDaniel about different ways to get you?) – “No, no, no, not at all. As a leader man, my job is to do whatever is called, whatever play is called. If it’s meant for me to block, I’m going to be a good teammate and block. If it’s meant for me to be a decoy, I’m going to be a decoy. And if it’s meant for me to get the ball, then I’m going to do my job. I feel like if you pressure the head coach and say, ‘Hey man, give me the ball. Give me the ball,’ he’s got 100 plays on the call sheet. They’re going to be thinking about getting you the ball and also situational, it’s like ain’t got time for all that, bro. Coach McDaniel, he’s already great at what he does, ain’t no use in me putting another bug in his saying to get me the ball; he knows who his playmakers are, he knows who he’d want to get the ball to and who he trusts in situation, so that’s how I see it.”
(When you redid your contract most recently, you made the contract you told General Manager Chris Grier “Don’t get me traded.” I don’t know if you’ve been on social media much in the past few days, but there’s speculation that a certain team you used to play for is short on wide receivers and might be in the market for a wide receiver. Putting two and two together, what would you say about any speculation that maybe is interested in you?) – “I’m just focused on right here and right now. We’ve got a beautiful team here and I want to be a part of it. We’ve got a great situation here, my family loves it, I enjoy it, the weather is great, the fans are great. So we’ve got a beautiful situation here. Obviously, my parents always taught me control the controllables, and I only can control so much. So with that being said, we all know the NFL is a business. Whatever happens, happens. Moving forward, I would love to be here. I love being here. I love the guys. I love my locker mate, Jevón Holland, he’s a maniac. He’s the guy. He brings me nice snacks sometimes.”
(What did you see from QB Tyler Huntley on Monday that gives you confidence that for the next two games you’ll be all right?) – “’Snoop’ (Tyler Huntley) is awesome. For him to be here for three weeks and for him to be prepared the way he was prepared for that Monday night game, in my book that’s trending upwards. Because our offense is so complicated and there’s so many motions and words in the play call, and for him to get all that down in a week or so, it’s tremendous. I can tell already by him stepping into the huddle, he’s already confident. He’s reading the play call, not even looking at it, so he’s ready to roll, man.”
(You’re saying there could be a huge difference between Monday night and what we see this coming week?) – “I mean, for sure. It’s like when Denver played that one guy at quarterback during the COVID year – he just came in out of nowhere. But now ‘Snoop’ (Tyler Huntley) has a chance to understand the system, understand how guys play now. He’s now had a chance to see how me and (Jaylen) Waddle move, had a chance to see how (De’Von) Achane move, understand his offensive line, what’s going on up there, you know what I’m saying? It all ties in together, man. Once he had his chance to figure all that out, it’s going to be smooth back there.”
(How close were you guys on that long one?) – “Oh, it was real close, real close. We’re going to do a good job of working on that all week, even if the legs are tired. I know – my parents always taught me, also Mike (McDaniel) preaches this, make it suck during the week. If that means running five deep balls trying to catch them from ‘Snoop’ (Tyler Huntley), I’ll do it. All for the betterment of this team, so that way when it comes Sunday, we can enjoy the touchdowns.”
(Let me ask you a question about Georgia. What’s going on there? Have you had a chance to talk to family or anything like that?) – “Yeah, so recently there was a hurricane in my hometown – power wiped, everything down for two weeks. Hurricane Helene, she doing her thing down there. Unfortunately, there was a moment last week where I didn’t even talk to my grandparents for three days, I was worried. But everything is fine now, the community is doing a great job of leaning on one another, working together, getting generators and water and stuff like that. My only concern right now is what do we do next. Right now me and the Dolphins are in efforts of trying to help the community out, sending all kinds of resources down there, seeing if we can help both communities out. This is Pearson, Georgia, and Douglas, Georgia. Two great mayors, those guys are doing a great job of getting the power back, getting the water back on. I’m just thankful everybody was safe; nobody was really hurt that was recorded – that’s a big positive thing.”
(Did you family have any property damage, any homes lost or anything like that?) – “There were a lot of homes that had trees that fell into them, a lot of homes that got affected by the rain and the wind. My grandad, he actually had two trees fall into his home, so he’s having to deal with that. The crazy part about it is we’re from a small town, and he’s still living in it, even with the tree inside of it. I’m like ‘Bro, what are you doing?’ The beauty about all of it is – I always look at the pros of every situation. This is a chance for our community to lean on one another, work with one another and rebuild the community together. It’s going to suck, but my parents always taught me to never make excuses man. Just rebuild, get back on track. Obviously, I’m going to do my thing to help the community, me and the Dolphins.”
(Sorry if it’s too personal, but how does your family usually feel about asking you for help? Like you said he’s still living in the house even with two trees in it.) – “Depending on what family it is. If it’s like a second cousin, they’re going to ask you regardless of how they feel. Obviously if it’s mom, dad, or grandparents they ain’t going to ask you. As far as sisters and second cousins, they are going to ask you. They are going to text you. You could be in the middle of a game having the worst game of your life, they’re going to text and say, ‘Hey, remember you said you’re going to loan me $500?’ Can you at least say have a great game? (laughter) I do a good job of that. My wife and my mom, they do a good job of telling people no for me. I’m in a great situation. Obviously, a lot of people know my situation. If you’re not in my circle, I’m not going to help you out. I’m not going to cripple you and make it even worse. That’s not teaching people if you’re just giving handouts, because I was never given a handout. I had to work my way up in this league, fifth-round draft pick – a lot of people wrote me off and said I was this, said I was too small, my hands are too small, I couldn’t play the position, but look at me now.”
(So grandpa is too tough to get out of the house, is that what you’re saying?) – “Grandpa ain’t moving. He ain’t moving, he ain’t going nowhere.”
(We heard WR Jaylen Waddle say after the game that playmakers got to do more. Head Coach Mike McDaniel said yesterday that if you’re operating at 90% efficiency when everybody is healthy, when you’ve got a backup in that’s got to go to 95%, 98%. From your perspective, wat does that actually look like for you guys?) – “I think one of our captains said it best, whenever it’s time to make a play, just make a play within a play – don’t go outside the techniques and fundamentals that you’ve already been taught. So that’s what he means by 95%. It doesn’t mean go outside of what you’re doing or run the wrong route, because that throws off a lot of quarterback timing. If you run a slant route, catch the slant route and do a little bit extra, get jiggy with it and take it to the house. That means you got to give a little bit more effort to get open, not just get the catch and just get a first down. How about let’s extend that, take it 70 yards, or take it 50 yards. That’s 95% to me.”
(How hard is it to keep that effort up when you’re having problems consistently keeping first downs?) – ‘It’s hard. It’s definitely hard. We just got to do what we do. We got to continue to play ball no matter what, no matter who is at quarterback.”
(You’ve obviously experienced ups and downs – more ups and downs in your career. Is there a time you can compare this to where you’ve had talent around you and still struggled on offense the way this team is?) – “There was one year when I was with KC, we had a bad year. We were struggling offensively and then we turned it around. I can’t remember what year – I was going to tell the guys about this story later in the week. It’s good that you asked me that because that kind of reminded me to go back and look back at the years. There was one year we had a terrible year – we’ll we didn’t have a terrible year, we had like a terrible stretch of games. We turned it all around whenever guys started to trust the process, trusting what Coach was calling, going the extra mile after practice, getting the extra reps in with the quarterback and stuff like that. A lot of people think it’s the end of the world; it’s really not. It’s still early on in the season, and it’s all about what we do toward the end of the season. It’s either we be a part of the (solution) or we continue to build on the problem. We’ve got a lot of guys on this team that want to be a part of the solution part.”
Mike McDaniel – October 1, 2024
Tuesday, October 1, 2024
Head Coach Mike McDaniel
(Is the LB Jaelan Phillips knee injury season-ending or will it keep him out long-term?) – “We’re still acquiring information on that, working through it. He was in good spirits last night. He was in good spirits today so we should have more concrete information moving forward here soon. I don’t think that – I’m pretty comfortable saying that he won’t be available this week on a short week, but the information that’s presented to us will be able to provide clarity on is that a multiple week thing or whatnot.”
(You had a situation where he got injured early in the game. We saw him on the sidelines. I know you probably didn’t pay attention to this, but he was very adamant with the trainers that he could go back in, not an issue. Is that one of the cautionary tales that you worry about where players try to push through pain and things get worse?) – “Absolutely. I think it’s one of the reasons it’s so important for the training staff and the players to have a good relationship. You’re going through the various testing to make sure that there are not the worst-case scenarios involved and then you’re listening to the players and I know with our training staff, they don’t minimize that each and every player, this is their dream. You try not to take football opportunities away from them, but there’s a balance in that and they do a very good job at being able to read between the lines and I think there’s – Jaelan Phillips has been through a lot of watching football and the testing that’s in place is absolutely as good as I’ve been around so you’re making gut decisions based upon how the body is feeling. You’re going through your various tests with the muscles and the joints and then you have to allow guys the opportunity to be honest with you. so his response through adrenaline was what a competitor would be and there thankfully wasn’t enough issues at hand to be able to hold him out with integrity, but that is something that you’re – it’s one of the reasons why we focus on building those relationships so that each party can trust one another.”
(You’ve now played four games which means you have a number of players we haven’t seen up to this point who are now potentially eligible to start practicing. Which of them if any will be practicing this week?) – “So planning on opening the window tomorrow officially for Odell (Beckham Jr.) so that will be a new practice player and we’ll see how that plays out as well as Cam Smith.”
(Has there been any update on guys like WR River Cracraft and LB Bradley Chubb?) – “Only that it has been a positive. There hasn’t been setbacks or really unexpected presentations throughout their rehabilitation. I think Bradley (Chubb) had a pretty severe injury that he’s doing very, very well in his progression and then I think River is right on schedule so no setbacks to really articulate.”
(You’ve talked a lot about the responsibility you feel as head coach of this team, certainly the fan base. There were some boos last night. What do you tell fans that are I guess jumping off the bandwagon and wondering what’s next for this team?) – “I guess it didn’t hit me with surprise. I think people invest and have to go and believe in a team that has bottom-line, the droughts that this organization has incurred. I don’t take that lightly. So I would be dishonest if I told you that I didn’t expect that. The worst part about all of that is you have people that I can relate where weeks are ruined with losses and the worst part about it is you don’t have any control. So that’s not a fun place to be in. I know sporting events where I’m rooting for a team and I’m not coaching in it, I get much more angry when there’s failure than when I’m coaching and I can actually problem solve something. It’s to be expected. This is the big leagues. To feel entitled to blind support; that’s not my cup to tea. I think you have to go to work, problem solve and try to fix things as best you can and I don’t think we’re necessarily owed anything I think people believe when you give them reason to believe and if people jump off the bandwagon – I’m not really villainizing the people who are jumping off the bandwagon; it’s more we gave them reason to. So that’s to be expected. I don’t think people pay what they pay to go to Hard Rock Stadium to watch us lose, so whatever results incurred by our game day failure, we deserve.”
(Now you’ve had a night to sleep on it, if you did sleep at all, and morning to review the tape. What are your big takeaways as to what needs to be corrected in this offense in the immediate future while QB Tua Tagovailoa is out?) – “I think the answers aren’t somewhere in a different orbit. The answers are in-house in terms of there’s some very concrete direct conversations that need to be had and I think it’s fair for me to want to keep those in-house considering just the way I don’t believe the press conferences and the media is where to air out your dirty laundry; however there is across the board from coaching to execution of plays, the bottom line is to play winning football, you have to have 11 people executing their jobs in a tied-together fashion and it’s not happening. So you don’t absolve yourself of responsibility in the least. You really force yourself to have a hard look at everything you’re doing and then once you assess that – and the team wants to know while they’re playing, they just know the results aren’t there. They’re responsible for their jobs, but the team wants to know where are failures are coming from so you have to get ready for the conversations that may be hard in the moment, but you owe it to the football team and to everyone involved to be very, very direct because the bottom line is we have things that we are preparing and have reasons by way of what’s in front of us by the practice tape, we feel certain ways going into a game and then we’re not getting those results through execution so I think it’s not as easy as ‘do something different,’ but you do have to do some things different because clearly there’s a gap in preparation and game day execution. So no shorthand way to do that. You have to diligently look at each and every responsibility and what you’re doing well, what you’re not doing well and hit it right between the eyes.”
(I want to talk about the onside punt. I don’t really know how else to describe it. Do you feel like the team and players were prepared to execute that last night?) – “So that was our first live-action of it. It’s a new rule this year. You have a landing zone and generally just like all punts, all field goals; you’re trying to be accurate when you’re kicking a football from your foot and the target zone is small. It’s a difficult kick to hit, but it’s also very difficult. It’s a higher percentage theoretically to get the ball back on what is – onsides are typically like at 4 percent conversion rate anyway – so it’s not something that guys were just out there seeing what would happen; this is something that is coordinated and something that we’ve worked on, but unfortunately with the lights on, we didn’t execute. You’re never shying away from trying to do whatever you have to do to win the game. We thought that gave us the best chance and clearly on that rep we were mistaken. You try to avoid onside situations for the reason of it being low percentage, but then you’re trying to give yourself the best chance to win and we felt good about that going into the game and we’re going to have to clean that up as well.”
(Are QB Tua Tagovailoa, T Terron Armstead and CB Kendall Fuller – are any of them out of protocol or are all of them still in protocol?) – “I think (Kendall) Fuller and (Terron) Armstead are doing better. I’m anticipating tomorrow to get an uptick in participation and hopes of getting cleared this week. And quite honestly where Tua is at in his protocol, I think it’s important for me that we did right by him from a health perspective and for the organization from a health perspective. So before the bye week I hadn’t planned on checking on that process at all considering he’s on IR, but he’s doing well and very active. So we’ll know more after the bye week.”
(Given that QB Skylar Thompson was at least dressed last night. Are you hoping that you might have him for the New England game? Are you going QB Tyler Huntley for sure or where do you stand on that?) – “As it stands right now, the injury that he sustained, it’s been kind of (laborious) getting back so we’re planning on going with Tyler (Huntley) and I think after reviewing the tape, there’s reasons for guys to be excited about that because while the output wasn’t nearly what we wanted offensively, there were some things to build upon that we’ll keep working through and excited to do that tomorrow.”
(I wanted to get an update on OL Isaiah Wynn and then also S Jordan Poyer left the game with I believe it was a shin injury and where is his status in terms of this week’s preparation?) – “Same story. Nothing to report on Isaiah Wynn besides the fact that he’s diligently working and (Jordan) Poyer, we’ll find out more in the next coming days. I wouldn’t rule him out or in for this game. He’s a warrior that I know will play through anything that he’s able to play through so we’ll give his body a little time and he’ll be diligently in the training room trying to be a part of this New England game.”
(Another weird special teams play after the blocked punt or deflected punt that LB Duke Riley nearly touched before a Titans player did. What was the conversation on the sideline with him after that? Did he think he had to go grab it because of a deflection?) – “I think you don’t need to go any further than live speed. You could see his teammates were eagerly trying to figure out what was going on. It’s a bang-bang play and we have verbal communication for guys to stay away from the football in that situation if it goes past the line of scrimmage on a partial block. It’s no different than a shanked punt. I think that was something that was uncharacteristic, but things like that happen in football games. The bottom line is the No. 1 thing relative to winning and losing is preventing or creating turnovers, takeaways, those types of things and that was a misstep for Duke (Riley) that’s generally very, very, very reliable in those phases. So it was unfortunate that we even made it close and another opportunity to re-emphasize all those things to kicking, defense, offense. You just need to be aware of possession and how important it is.”
(At any point over the past couple weeks, has it felt like this offense is being run by players it wasn’t built for? It seems like it’s tailored around QB Tua Tagovailoa’s specific skillset. Has it ever felt like maybe QB Skylar Thompson and QB Tyler Huntley I guess need a little bit of adjustment to it?) – “It just feels like an offense that’s not good enough generally and whether that’s coaching or playing, we’re all in it together. It’s a bottom-line business. I think there’s strengths and weaknesses that everybody provides, but realistically from my history within the offense my entire coaching career; there’s tools and mechanisms that allow it to adjust. Really half the time you could say the plays don’t matter – what I call – until we have 11 people executing something in one direction. I think there’s perfectly capable players to do the things that we’re asking them to do going into the game. We all feel good about it. We’re not getting that on game day so I wouldn’t say that it’s not tailored to; when you have injuries, when you have adjustments in the lineup, people have to step up and if they’re executing their jobs at 90 percent generally, it needs to be 95 to 98 and we’re not getting that right now so bottom line is that it’s definitely not one person and there’s a lot of things that are going on in the pass game that have to do with line of scrimmage. A lot of things on the line of scrimmage that have to do with the receivers and the eligibles getting open in the timing of the play so collectively we just need to do a much better job.”
(I ask this question knowing that if the alternative happens, a player got hurt in the preseason or training camp, it would have been how and why did you put him at risk; but do you feel like this team could have benefitted more from practice, more time together in preseason games?) – “Yeah, I mean everything that wasn’t the case – you’re factoring those things in. I think that you do the best that you can with the hand dealt and if you are unable to participate in a group activity for whatever reason, there needs to be an uptick in urgency in every single rep that you do thereafter. So I know there’s a lot of teams that are going through things that are similar to us and there’s a lot of teams that are able to execute and a higher degree so I don’t spend much time in hindsight. That is very calculated. Everything that we tried to do, adjusting to whatever scenario that’s presented to us and we’re professional football players and coaches and so it’s our job to put forth a better product and if you’re grasping at straws to figure out why it’s okay; that’s not the answer. The answer is to diligently really maximize accountability across the board and collectively come up with a solution.”
Jaylen Waddle – September 30, 2024 (Postgame)
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Monday, Sept. 30, 2024
Postgame – Tennessee Titans
Miami Dolphins WR Jaylen Waddle
(Is there a sense of frustration? How do you not let this game affect the next one confidence wise?) – “It’s definitely frustrating. We definitely are better than what we’re showing out there on game day. We ultimately go out for the game day, so to not have the success that we put in the work for every week is definitely frustrating. Man, wins and losses, 24-hour rule – it’s obviously a short week, get back to it.”
(We know how key QB Tua Tagovailoa is to this offense, but how do you guys get it going without him, whether it’s QB Skylar Thompon or QB Tyler Huntley or whomever?) – “Like I said, playmakers got to be playmakers. We’ve got to be better than good. When your starting quarterback is out, you have to be extra open to clear it up for the quarterback. He’s new here, and we just got to go out there and make plays for him.”
(You’ve probably never been through a stretch like this in your career, so how do you get past it?) – “Man, 24-hour rule. We back to work, it’s a short week. We got a division opponent this week, a really good team in New England. Good thing about this league is that you can go out there and get another shot at it next week.”
Jevon Holland – September 30, 2024 (Postgame)
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Monday, Sept. 30, 2024
Postgame – Tennessee
Miami Dolphins S Jevon Holland
(It’s obviously very early in the season, but 1-3 is not a great place for a team to be in. How do you get back on track and get this train headed in the right direction?) – “You really just got to stick together, kind of just revert back to all your fundamentals. That’s what it is really about. Whatever is happening now or happening the week before, you just have to let it go and move on to the next week. You have to have a clear conscience and have an open conversation just about what needs to change or what needs to happen. Have a real conversation with each other and move on.”
(What was Head Coach Mike McDaniel’s message to you guys after the game?) – “Exactly that, what I just said, stick together. We’ve got to be honest with each other and people have to take accountability and step up and that’s basically it.”
(What did you learn from the 2021 season that can help you this time around?) – “Really, what I just said, just sticking together, honestly. That was like a main message was stick together, trust that it’s going to turn around at some point, and we’re just kind of in this slump. That was the emphasis, that the defense should give the ball back to the offense. The offense, however many times that you get the ball, just keep on trying to score, keep on trying to get first downs, keep on trying to have successful plays, playing together, trusting each other and trusting the process.”
Emmanuel Ogbah – September 30, 2024 (Postgame)
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Monday, Sept. 30, 2024
Postgame – Tennessee Titans
Miami Dolphins LB Emmanuel Ogbah
(How do you guys, everyone is talking about accountability and putting in the work, what is the going to be the mindset when you guys get back and prepare for New England?) – “Just go back and watch film. See what we messed up on, what we have to improve on. It has to be a group effort, no pointing fingers. There is still a long season ahead of us. You have to be willing to come in and work and push ourselves.”
(Did you see what happened to LB Jaelan Phillips on that play? What was the reaction knowing how much hard work he has put in to put back?) – “No, I didn’t see it, I am praying for Jaelan. That’s my dawg. He’s like my little brother and I am just praying for him and hopefully everything is good with him. I know how hard he fought to come back from the Achilles. My heart goes out to him.”
(Feel like you’ve got the guys in the locker room, the talent to make this thing work.) – “We’ve got the talent, but we’ve got to put in the work. We cannot keep losing. I am tired of (expletive) losing.”
Alec Ingold – September 30, 2024 (Postgame)
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Monday, September 30, 2024
Postgame – Tennessee
Miami Dolphins FB Alec Ingold
(Is it not really fair to judge the offense and judge the team while the starting quarterback is out?) – “It’s a performance-based industry. I think every man here has a job we have to execute. The quarterback is obviously a very important piece of that puzzle, but we need 10 other guys to be performing and executing. It’s a performance-based business that we’re all a part of, so I think it’s more than fair and I think that’s where you know we’re doing the same thing internally. And to shy away from that because you’re not getting the results I think is weak-minded and I think we have to we have to attack that; we have to lean into this uncomfortable moment to see what type of team we are and what type of human beings we are.”
(How tough is it going to be to get out of a funk like this?) – “It’s just the work, man. It’s just the work, and I think to have the courage to continue to go all in, to continue to chop wood, carry water, to continue to persevere, to continue to have the courage to be your best self, to put yourself out there, it’s hard, man. It is, but I mean, that’s why it’s the NFL, that’s why you have the guys here, that’s why you’ve had success in the past. So I think that’s where we need to get back to and it starts with working; we all have to have supreme accountability of what we just did.”
(Was it a decent week of work and practice leading into this?) – “I don’t think any single person would have expected this outcome based on the week of work. Obviously it wasn’t good enough and that’s something that we need to go back to and all ask ourselves how much more can we give to one another?”
