Cordrea Tankersley – June 6, 2018
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Wednesday, June 6, 2018
CB Cordrea Tankersley
(What have they told you about the boundary corner job that you obviously started a lot in last year? Have they portrayed it to you as an open competition? What’s your feeling on how they portrayed it?) – “I feel like we all have an even competition. We have competition all over the field. I go out with the ones, I go out there with twos. I definitely feel like we are getting even reps.”
(What’s the next step for you in terms of your development as a player?) – “My next step is just to become one of the best corners in the league. I’m learning from the best. I’m still learning from the guys on this team. I’m also learning from guys I look up to, and just trying to perfect my craft.”
(What do you need to improve on, based on what you learned from last year?) – “Basically, just stepping up and being more aggressive. I feel like I need to be more aggressive. This is my second year, so I’ll definitely take what I learned last year and step it up a notch.”
(What are the things you learned last year?) – “The biggest thing is the speed of the game – adjusting to the speed of the game and try not to get star struck. Kind of stuff like that.”
(When you look at this defense right now, what sticks out to you about it?) – “I think we’ve got a lot of speed. I think we have a bunch of aggressive players – people who want to go out there and compete. I think that’s the difference between this year’s team and last year’s team. We have a lot of mature people, people who are willing to step up and compete.”
(You have to help us answer this running debate about who’s the fastest wide receiver since you have to cover them. Who is the most difficult to cover down the field?) – “Man, they all give you a little different taste; but I’d definitely have to say Jakeem. That man be rolling.”
(Did you, in the offseason getting ready for OTAs and minicamp, did you work with any other corners around the league to make your game better in the offseason?) – “I did a lot of stuff on my own. A lot of people like to do their own stuff, with people who they trust and stuff. So, I just go with the people I trust. Me and Jordan Lucas, we did some work and stuff together, but I mainly was doing stuff on my own.”
(Is there a veteran corner in the league outside of this team that you kind of lean on for advice? Or even a guy that is retired that you say is a guy you want to model your game after?) – “I haven’t talked to any other guys. I definitely just try to model my game after like ‘X’ (Xavien Howard). He’s proven he’s a lockdown corner, so I definitely try to model after him – someone I can see and compete against every day.”
(What have you seen from WR Jakeem Grant so far?) – “You can’t see him. (laughter) He’s definitely stronger than last year. He’s got that dog mentality. He’s definitely one of the guys that definitely wants to be here for a long time. So, you can definitely see the determination he puts in the offseason.”
(A comment from Head Coach Adam Gase that he told us in March, he said “We would love to see Cordrea come back with the mindset of that’s his spot and he’s not going anywhere, and really be aggressive as far as not letting anyone take that spot that he’s having.” Did he convey that to you in a conversation?) – “Oh, definitely. It’s a no-brainer. I kind of had the idea myself. ‘It’s my job to lose’ kind of ordeal. He definitely let me know that, and it’s just extra motivation.”
Jakeem Grant – June 6, 2018
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Wednesday, June 6, 2018
WR Jakeem Grant
(What does this year hold for you?) – “I don’t know. I’m just out there working and trying to get better each and every day. I’m just out there trying to compete. I’ve got Devante (Parker) in front of me right now and I’m just always competing against him and competing against every receiver out there, just showing everybody that I’m here this year and I’m ready to roll. That pushes everybody to be great. As a collective unit, that’s all we want to do is to be great.”
(When you see that they brought in a couple of guys obviously and a couple are coming back, how is this all going to work with so many talented receivers?) – “To tell you the truth, I have no idea. Whenever we did that, I was just happy actually, because I’m a guy that like to compete. When they brought in Albert (Wilson) and I saw him for the first time, I was like that’s a guy that’s almost the same height as me. So I’m like, ‘Okay, I’ve got to compete.’ That just added fuel to my fire, not just because those guys came in but because I want to get out there and show coach that I have the big-play ability and I am a receiver and not just a specialist. I was attacking the game just like that and just showing him each and every day that I’m a receiver and you can depend on me, just like you bring guys in and things like that. I love that Danny (Amendola) and Albert are here because they add more weapons to our offense and things like that. I’m going out there and competing against those guys just like I’m competing against Devante (Parker), (Leonte) Carroo, Rashawn (Scott), Isaiah (Ford) and such. I love that those guys are here. They bring a lot of energy and a lot of playmaking ability.”
(As far as WR Danny Amendola, have you learned from him? Thus far it’s early, but Xs and Os, technique or intensity?) – “Definitely. I would say the big thing is learning coverages from him. He knows the defense inside and out. I’m picking his brain every single time we’re in our offensive meeting because we’re sitting right next to each other. I’m like, ‘Danny, what coverage is that?’ Just understanding that, being on the outside looking at the coverages, you get a read on them and then know if you have to convert a route or not. Also, in the return game as well, just picking his brain. He’s been around the league for a long time and it’s good because we went to the same college. We already have that brotherhood right there. Having a veteran guy like that in the receiver room is great.”
(What do you think of a guy that throws his helmet at practice in May at practice?) – “(laughter) It’s all good. That’s showing that his love for the game is real. Him doing that, it shows that he wants to be nothing but great. He plays with a lot of attitude and swagger. You can’t ask for much more from him.”
(Where has your game grown since you’ve been in the NFL? CB Cordrea Tankersley just said that he thinks you’re the toughest deep cover. We’ve seen you play on the outside. We’ve seen your hands improve in the return game. Where do you think your biggest growth is going to come?) – “I’d say route running, hands, everything he said. I look to perfect everything. I feel like in previous years, I didn’t have it all down. Now that my head is all the way in the playbook, I feel a lot smoother and I feel a lot of confidence going into OTAs and into mini-camp. It feels great because now I don’t have to think about what I have on this play or what I have on this or that. Knowing what you have, that builds confidence. This is going into my third year. I’ve got to make the most of it. I’m just improving all the way around. Like you said, hands, route-running, being able to get in and out of breaks and just becoming a threat and being available so the coaches can rely on me to put me in the game, knowing I can make that big play.”
(CB Cordrea Tankersley talked about how strong you are. Can you talk about some of the offseason work that you did? You were doing a lot of work down in Lubbock.) – “Yes, I was doing a lot of work and a lot of explosive movements. Basically, I have to have an edge. Being a short guy, I have to be strong. Going in there and blocking safeties and all things like that, they’re coming downhill flying and I have to be able to hold my ground. I have to be strong with that and also getting off press releases and fighting hand-to-hand and being able to hold my landmark. I have to be a strong guy. I already have the weight and the size against me, so I have to be a strong guy. A lot of people always say, it’s only because you have three kids. That’s daddy strength. (laughter) If that goes with it, I’m cool with it. I always pride myself on being one of the strongest guys on the team, pound for pound one of the strongest guys on the team. I just pride myself on being strong.”
(Did the end of last year give you an edge and confidence that you can play in this league?) – “Definitely. Toward the end of the season, I started hitting the playbook really hard. Coach started giving me a chance and throwing me in there and I knew that I had to make a big play. I let them know that this is who I really am. I can make these plays and I can do this and I can do that. That built confidence in me. Once that happened, I just let it roll over into the offseason and just training and training and saying, ‘Why can’t you do that almost every play that you’re in?’ That’s been my mindset every time that I go out and train.”
(You’ve been around WR DeVante Parker. It’s your third year together now. You can talk a lot. He doesn’t talk so much. What can you tell us about his mindset going into this year?) – “(laughter) He doesn’t (talk) at all. I call him the monster. I feel like he turns it on. I feel like he’s a complete beast and I feel like he has to get out of his comfort zone and just go out there and be the beast that he is. I feel like he’s a very sharp route runner. (He has) great hands. Of course everybody says the injuries and stuff like that; but DeVante Parker is a beast. I’m telling you right now. If you throw any ball up there, any ball his way, he’s coming down with it. You can see previews of his big-play ability and I feel like this is going to be a great year for him. He’s attacking the game much stronger than he did last year. He’s up there running. He has one of the top speeds going into it. We have this little speed testing and his top speed is up there with the top. His approach this year is way different than it was last year.”
(Can you see WR DeVante Parker feeding on a lot of the doubts that have been around him the past couple of years?) – “I think he definitely wants to go out there and prove to people that he’s better than what people thinks he is. He’s not a guy that’s continually getting hurt. Mostly he’s just focused on his game and just perfecting his game and just wants to go out there and give it his best and give it his all. There’s no telling. He’s going to be great. Without doubt, he’s going to be one of the top receivers in this league. I feel that personally because I sit there and watch him day in and day out and his grind. I feel like he can go out there and do it all.”
(Can I get names, spelling and ages of your kids?) – “Jakeem Jr. is five. Kaley is 3. Kylie is 3. Those are twin girls. Those are my babies. That’s what keeps me going.”
(I know you said you embraced the signing of WR Danny Amendola and WR Albert Wilson; but that does give the team four receivers that have started a lot of NFL games. Did you wonder at all where you might fit in? Did you and Head Coach Adam Gase have any discussion about it or any reassurance that you’ll still be given a chance?) – “I never had a discussion with (Head) Coach (Adam) Gase about it. Typically when you get two guys to sign with a team, of course you’re going to wonder where you fit in. But that wasn’t my main focus. My main focus was, ‘Okay, they’re going to bring two guys in? It’s time to compete. It’s time to bring out every trick in the book and show these guys that I belong on the field.’”
(What’s the fastest miles per hour you even ran on the GPS thing?) – “I have no idea; but I always average every practice in the 20s. That’s my job. We always do it every single day, to see who’s the fastest and who had the fastest miles per hour in the receivers room. I’m always in the top three, so as long as I’m in the top three, I’m good.”
(Who’s the fastest person on the team?) – “Me, of course. Hands down. Neither one of them – not Albert (Wilson), Kenny (Stills), neither one of them. No.”
(What distance is this? The 40 and 100?) – “It doesn’t matter. You pick the race. It doesn’t matter.”
(Is there a race in the future?) – “Is there a race in the future? If you guys want a race, there could be a race.”
(For charity, it would be good.) – “Yes, for charity.”
(What race?) – “It doesn’t matter. As long as we’re not running a marathon, a 400 or anything like that, I’m good.”
(You would lose the marathon?) – “Yes, definitely.”
(You’re admitting that?) – “Yes, I’m admitting I’d lose the marathon because, I’ve got short legs. (laughter) My lower back starts to get tight. Yes, I’ll just worry about running 100 meters.”
(What was your initial reaction when they signed you Texas Tech buddy WR Danny Amendola? To get a chance to play with him.) – “My first initial response was I texted him. I was like, ‘Bro, you’ve got to be kidding me. You’re not going to be here in Miami with me.’ He was like ‘Yes, bro. I am.’ I was like ‘Man, that’s crazy.’ Because I never got to play with him. I’ve always watched him, watched film on him and everything like that. I watched him in the NFL. I’m like, ‘Man, I get to see this guy I’ve been looking up to since I’ve been in college come and play right along with me.’ It felt great. I get to pick his brain in the return game and as a receiver. I get to learn things from a veteran guy that I know. I was happy. I was truly happy because he was coming and we had that brotherhood. I met him plenty of times when he came to Lubbock. I was like, this is going to be awesome playing alongside of him. That was it. I was happy.”
(Your dance moves we saw out there. Can you give us a scouting report?) – “I was just loosening up out there. Dancing, doing everything, just having fun. I think that was the biggest thing that I wasn’t doing last year. I was on edge trying to show the coaches that I can do this and do that instead of trying to get out of my shell. That’s me this year – being me and letting people see who I really am instead of being up-tight and trying to make play after play, and that’s when mistakes come in – trying to impress people too much instead of being yourself. That’s me. You’ll see a lot of dancing out of me, a lot of joking, a lot of doing this, a lot of playing; but when it really comes down to it, I’m just showing you all who I really am.”
Matt Burke – June 6, 2018
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Wednesday, June 6, 2018
Defensive Coordinator Matt Burke
(What are your early first impressions of S Minkah Fitzpatrick?) – “He’s probably about as advertised. He’s really sharp. He’s thirsty for knowledge and for more, and we’re trying to overload him a little bit. We keep giving him more and he keeps taking it. He spends a lot of extra time in the building on his own, working out (and) studying film. I was here really late last night and Minkah popped up to get with (Defensive Backs) Coach (Tony) Oden for about an hour and a half until about 9:30 last night, to get some extra in and to get ahead. We are moving him around to some different spots and trying to play him in some different places to get a feel for sort of what his best fit is or what the best way to utilize him is, and he’s responded well. He’s been around the ball. He’s got his hands on a few and been close on a couple of others. I’m excited to keep working with him, for sure.”
(What’s going to be your approach going forward over the next five practices and training camp with boundary corner? We’ve seen obviously some CB Tony Lippett out there. We’ve seen some CB Bobby McCain. We saw CB Cordrea Tankersley. Is the plan to give each of them equal reps?) – “Absolutely. Yes. I mean we don’t have any positions set in stone right now. We’re rolling a lot of guys at a lot of positions and we’re trying to play guys inside and out, back and forth, safety and nickel. I mean, we’re moving guys around and again, trying to load them up and see what the best fit is for each guy and what the best combination is to win some ball games for us.”
(At Sam, it seems like LB Stephone Anthony has been the guy for you a lot.) – “Has he?”
(What has LB Stephone Anthony done to …) – “I think we’re doing the same thing at linebacker. I think a lot of our other linebackers are younger guys right now. So Steph’s been here. He has a little bit of history in the scheme, so I think there’s just a little bit of comfort level with him in terms of knowledge. So we’re probably putting him out there with those guys a little bit more right now, but we flip-flop some spots a little bit. We’re going to try to get some guys some different work there, too. I think that is probably a little bit maybe more the dynamic of trying to let the younger linebackers kind of get up to speed a little bit before we totally throw them in the fire.”
(You used LB Stephone Anthony obviously a lot the last month of the season last year. How did he earn that and how did he do?) – “He earned it by the same way all guys earn it. He’s been working hard. Again, it’s always difficult, I think, to come in the middle of the season, come from a different scheme and pick things up. Again, obviously, we had some injury issues last year and some other things at that position, which kind of sped that process up; but he works really hard. He works really, really hard. He’s, again, I think I mentioned this last year, he’s a big athlete. He’s almost 6-foot-3. He’s 240-something (pounds). He can run and we like those body types. I think it’s good for him to have a full offseason. With us again, it’s tough coming in, transitioning from one system to another, so I think we’re trying to really overload him a bit and give him a full offseason, a full year of coaching with us, and see what he can do.”
(Speaking of evaluating, how much can you tell when they’re not in pads?) – “Nothing (laughter). No, it’s good. The evaluation process right now is, obviously, more movement based and those sorts of things, but really it’s going to be able to focus on getting sort of the mental side of things and how much: A) they’re picking up, and then what are the next steps and the nuances of the defense comes and how they’re reacting to that. Obviously we don’t finalize any evaluations until we play some real football and we start hitting people and doing those sorts of things; but again, to me it’s a good time. It’s a good test of … It’s more like a mental evaluation. Again, can they learn the different spots? Is there somewhere, down the road, that we can eventually play just from a knowledge and mental learning standpoint from those spots? And then you’re evaluating movement skills and, obviously, especially in the back end in terms of covering. I think it’s great going against our offense with, you know, with the receiving corps they have and the tight ends now and the backs. I mean, we have different types of athletes that we’re matching up with so you kind of get a feel for those types of things, too. That’s really the evaluation. I know you guys always try to take my caveats away, but everything’s got a little asterisk on it until we put pads on and see what we’re doing.”
(You guys have done very well at finding undrafted rookies who’ve contributed, especially last year with guys like LB Chase Allen. Is there anybody that impressed you, one or two guys that have impressed you so far?) – “I think all of those guys have flashed at times. Everyone has made a play here and there, and I think we’re always looking for consistency. Jalen Davis has done a little bit. The linebackers, they’ve all had their moments. I’ve probably dog-cussed them all a couple of times but they’ve all had their moments. Mike McCray had a pick yesterday; I don’t know if you guys were there for 7-on-7. Jalen’s been battling it in the slot a little bit and outside and those type of things. Cayson (Collins) is actually showing a little bit of ability to absorb some things. He’s got some savvy about him and stuff. Again, especially with linebackers, it’s always hard. Going back to the pad thing, it’s really hard to judge those guys. To me, that’s one of the harder positions in this time of year to evaluate because they’re not doing the things we’re going to ask them to do totally; but there’s been a couple of guys. They’ve all been working hard – the whole group. Honestly, we’ve been really satisfied. Again, coming early, staying late. That’s a tribute to (General Manager) Chris Grier and those guys. We’ve had a couple of years in a row now where we’re getting the right type of guys that are putting the work in. So I have no complaints with any of those guys, the work ethic, and what they’re trying to do out there. Again, sort of the nature of a rookie, they’re going to have some plays and they’re going to have some flubs and we’ve got to work through those.”
(This is for a league-wide story that we’re doing. I heard that you’ve got some pretty good safeties. We’re asking all 32 defensive coordinators if Eric Reid is good enough to compete for a spot on this team?) – “I have not evaluated Eric Reid, so I probably can’t give a fair assessment of that. I know he’s played a lot of football in this league and he’s had some level of success. That wasn’t part of our evaluation process this offseason, so I probably can’t really speak to that.“
(Because of the state of your roster?) – “Probably. We didn’t really make any moves safety-wise until after the draft. Obviously we got Minkah (Fitzpatrick) and we feel pretty good about how we’re working with those guys there.”
(How important, in your world, is players mentoring players? And do you find that when that happens, they can often gain something from a teammate that they may not necessarily gain from a coach?) – “Yes, absolutely. To me, it’s two levels. One, sometimes they get sick of me and me screaming and yelling and throwing things, so at some point, my message probably gets stale. So, it always helps to have that reinforcement. I do believe that it is a player’s league. Those guys see things out there. I mean, I learn from veteran players as much as other players. I’m always asking, ‘Hey, what’d you see here?’ or ‘Why’d you do that?’ It’s a different perspective, so for a veteran-whatever – a defensive end – to grab a young guy and say, ‘Hey, you might want to try this move,’ or ‘Hey, they lined up in this formation, so you’ve got to be alert for this.’ Those types of things, that’s very helpful. We encourage that. We encourage that if you have something to contribute and something to help … I know there’s always that fine line where there’s competition, but it’s also teammates, and we’re trying to get each other better. It’s funny. When you start looking, we don’t have a lot of old guys on our defense. I think we only have two 30-year-olds. Three? Let me check my math on that. So we don’t have a lot of old guys, but we’ve got a handful of guys that have played a lot of football, and they’ve been good about trying to work with the younger guys and getting them up to speed. So, that’s always helpful. It’s a different voice – a different perspective – and again, they can see some things and sometimes word it and can relate it in a way that I can’t all the time or one of our position coaches, so it’s definitely helpful.”
(You’ve had DE Cam Wake for two years now, and you’ve seen him coming off an injury and then productive at a high level. What sets him apart from other NFL players that you’ve dealt with?) – “Yes, I mean again – sometimes I feel like a broken record talking about Cam – it always just amazes me, at his age … I hate to keep saying that. He probably gets mad when I keep bringing up his age and telling him he’s old and stuff. I actually talked about it in a defensive meeting this morning.; but the level of, sort of, physical ability that he keeps himself at – the shape he’s in – to be out here and again, I’m sure you guys have seen, especially in that room, we’re really emphasizing getting to the ball and running and chasing and he’s the first one down field turning and getting after things. To me, his conditioning and the way he keeps his body in shape … I mean for how long he’s been here, the joy never goes out of it for him. He’s out smiling, loves practice, loves getting better, and competing. It’s rare to see a guy at that age and with that many years in … Again, he come out, loves to work, wants to get better, works in the weight room and all of those things. You’re not around guys like that often.”
(After all of these years, what does DE Cameron Wake get out of OTAs?) – “There’s always something to get better at. Obviously, you have a couple different voices in the room with (Defensive Line) Coach (Kris) Kocurek and that stuff. I think he’s always attuned to trying to get a little tip on a stance or something he’s seeing or maybe try a different pass rush move. Or going back to the other question, we have Robert (Quinn) here. Obviously he’s another accomplished edge rusher. Some stuff that Robert has done in his career, to be able to go back and forth with those guys. Again, I don’t think he sees it that way. I don’t think he sees himself as a finished product or that his accomplishments are over. I know there’s some milestones coming up for him and those sorts of things. He’s a joy to be around. He really is. He just keeps coming to work every day and trying to find something little that gets him better, and I haven’t seen him slowing down a bit. It’s been fun to be a part of, for sure.”
(What’s the sweet spot for DE Cameron Wake as far as reps?) – “We’ll see. In general, our plan in that room would be to wave groups (in) and to roll different groups. Not just because of Cam – don’t put all these age quotes in there, he might get mad at me. Not just because of Cam’s age, but with all of those guys, we feel, philosophically, we will be better off having fresh guys. Whether it’s two, three, or four snaps at a time, whatever it is, and then roll the next group in and let those guys get water or oxygen or whatever they need. Then, get the next group out. So, building depth there was important for us to be able to play that way. Again, I don’t anticipate necessarily getting a hard number on it for him, but one guy may be different from another guy. He may be able to take two to three, four or five reps and one game he’ll take one rep; but we want to get guys going full speed for as many reps as they can and get up to par. Our goal is to have enough depth there so that we can wave those guys can always have fresh Cam Wake and fresh Robert (Quinn) and (Andre) Branch and Charles (Harris) and Will Hayes and whoever else wants to join the club. That would be the plan.”
(DE Robert Quinn, what are your impressions? What do you notice?) – “He’s a unique athlete. He bends probably as good as anybody I’ve ever been around. It’s weird to watch sometimes, to be honest with you. He comes off the corner and sometimes you think he’s actually rushing too high and gets past the quarterback, then he just turns his foot and plants it and bends it. His knee is about two feet off the ground and he can really hug it. It’s pretty fun. Again, he’s another guy that doesn’t really say much. He just kind of comes out to work. He’s got a smile on his face. But just from an athletic standpoint, to me, he has a rare bend ability. That’s his trait and it’s almost disarming to watch at times, the way he can corner.”
(Can you take an important question about beards? G Josh Sitton said he’s been kind of taken aback by how hot and humid it is here, and he made need a haircut and a shave. You have kept yours, obviously, and seemed to have survived just fine. Would you lose your respect for Josh Sitton if he shaves?) – “No, I would never say that. I have a lot of respect for Josh Sitton. Quote that. (laughter) He’s been getting after us pretty good. I don’t know. Every man makes his own decision. I’ve had my beard for about 10 years now, so I’m used to it. The heat doesn’t bother me. I’m sweating a little right now. But no, I wouldn’t lose respect for him. He’s a good player, he’s playing hard and he’s tough. What else can I say about him? He’s a real man. (laughter)”
(Offseason trip this year?) – “I’m going to Bora Bora to do some diving. I’m going to go to Olympic National Park for about a six-day backpacking trip. We’ll get dropped off at the trail head and go live out of a backpack for a little bit. Those are the only two right now. I’ve had some stuff going on the last couple of months so it’s been hard to plan some things, but we’ll get out of town for a little bit.”
(Will Head Coach Adam Gase be able to reach you by cell?) – “Probably not. Whether I have cell phone service or not, he probably won’t be able to reach me. (laughter) So the answer is no.”
Vincent Taylor – June 6, 2018
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Wednesday, June 6, 2018
DT Vincent Taylor
(How different is it for you this year compared to last year?) – “It’s a lot different. I don’t see myself thinking as much as I did coming in. Last year I kind of didn’t know what to expect, me going from college to the NFL; but now, I’m familiar. I got my feet wet last year so I know what it’s like.”
(When you heard the Dolphins were going to move on from DT Ndamukong Suh, what was your reaction?) – “I mean it’s hard losing a guy like Suh just knowing what he’s capable of doing; but at the end of the day, it’s a business decision. I know all of the things when I was coming in, what he taught me, so I learned some of the things that he taught me. Like I said, it is hard losing a guy like him and trying to replace a guy like Suh.”
(Did you see opportunity?) – “Yes. Me, I was learning from him. Last year I played some snaps when he came out, so this year hopefully I can bring those numbers up and us as a defense, replacing him will be hard.”
(DT Ndamukong Suh has an interesting reputation. You actually worked directly with him. What was that year like?) – “It was good coming in my first year to be able to learn from a guy like Ndamukong Suh. What more could you ask for?”
(How did DT Ndamukong Suh treat you?) – “Good. People always ask me how was Suh in the locker room. Suh was a great teammate (and) a great guy. I think he’s like a big kid. He likes to joke. Suh is a great guy.”
(What kind of goals do you have for yourself this year?) – “Really just go out there and improve from last year. Last year I think I had two blocked kicks. If I could increase that, try to get some sacks under my belt and get more tackles. Any way that I can help the team.”
(Do you think it bothers the defensive tackles primarily that DT Ndamukong Suh’s name constantly keeps getting brought up?) – “Again, it’s hard to replace a guy like Suh, so that’s going to come up a lot. But I think with the guys we’ve got and with (Defensive Line) Coach Kris (Kocurek) here, he’ll help us get to that level we need to be at to play.”
(Is there going to be a different kind of feel this year to the defensive line? A lot more rotation and a lot more keeping guys fresh? What does that mean for you as far as conditioning is concerned? When you hear this are you like, “Man I’ve got to get on it?”) – “Yes. You should always be on it no matter what the circumstances are; but just knowing that, that allows guys to play faster and give it all they’ve got since we’ll be rotating a lot. I think guys can go out there and (Defensive Line) Coach Kris (Kocurek) has us running to the ball. If you do that every play, you just know another guy is coming in to pick up where you left off at, so it’ll only help us out as a unit.”
(What do you see different about this defense so far this year?) – “We’re attacking more. That’s one of the things (Defensive Line) Coach Kris (Kocurek) is big on. We’re attacking more. I think that’ll help us out. We’ve got ends that are setting the edge and will help us guys in the middle.”
(Does it provide extra motivation for you, DT Davon Godchaux, DT Akeem Spence and DT Jordan Phillips to show that even though DT Ndamukong Suh isn’t there, the d-tackle group can be just as good last year, if not better?) – “Yes. With (Defensive Line) Coach Kris (Kocurek), that’s what he’s there for. He’s helping us out and telling us that a lot of people outside this building don’t believe in us. But with Coach Kris, he’s motivating us and I think we’ll be just fine.”
(From an outsider’s point of view, I wanted to ask you about WR Jakeem Grant and what you see in him. We know he came on late last year but on the field, off the field, personality-wise, are you seeing a difference in him this year?) – “I’m very familiar with him. He played at Texas Tech and I played at Oklahoma State, so I remember playing him my last year. We played up there. The opening kickoff, he took a kickoff right to the crib, so that just goes to show you what kind of player he is. (He’s) very fast. I guess they’re having a debate right now who’s the fastest out of him, Kenny (Stills) and (Kenyan) Drake; but he’s a special player.”
(So who do you think is the fastest?) – “Me? Playing against Jakeem (Grant) and seeing what he did to us in the Big 12, he’s a pretty fast guy, so I’d probably say him.”
(So who is the locker room debate between? WR Kenny Stills and RB Kenyan Drake and WR Jakeem Grant? Is that the three finalists?) – “And Albert (Wilson). He’s a pretty fast guy. I’ve seen him run, so he’s pretty fast also.”
(When you’re a defensive player and you’re playing for a team with a bunch of speed like that, how much more difficult does it make when they can open you up that much?) – “It’s hard. I know when we played K.C. last year, they’ve got a guy named Tyreek Hill. Practicing against Jakeem Grant, that helped us out as a defense. (Defensive Coordinator) Matt Burke came up with a great game plan. It’s pretty hard.”
(When you watch DE Robert Quinn, you think what?) – “Flexibility. (He’s) very flexible. Just the way I see him bend the corner and how low he gets, and just getting around all of those tackles, he’s a very special player. He’s very flexible.”
DeVante Parker – June 6, 2018
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Wednesday, June 6, 2018
WR DeVante Parker
(I know you had a little thing with former Dolphins WR Chris Chambers. What did you think about his offering to help you and what do you think about outside voices chiming in on your performance?) – “About that, I come up here and … The coaches, I do everything the coaches tell me to do. I just listen to what they’re saying. They tell me what I need to do and I just do as they say. I come up here and just work hard every day. They tell me what I need to work on and I just do that.”
(Is it irritating to you? I know this appeared on Twitter. Is it irritating that your name is in other people’s mouth in that fashion?) – “No, it’s not irritating at all. I guess they had to say what they needed to say and it’s the way it goes.”
(What do the coaches tell you to do? How has your offseason been?) – “My offseason has been real good. I’ve been here I would say just about every day working (and) running. The trainers are just getting my body right and I’ve been working hard and grinding.”
(I could see then when you’re putting in these man hours, when you hear somebody who doesn’t know the situation, that could rub you wrong.) – “You’ve just got to ignore what anyone says outside of the building. They don’t know what’s really going on in the inside, so you’ve just got to ignore the situation.”
(What’s this year hold for you? What’s this going to be for 2018 for WR DeVante Parker?) – “Like it always means, just stay healthy. But if you’re not, you’ve just got to fight through it and play through it.”
(We just talked to WR Jakeem Grant and he said that there’s no question in his mind that you’re going to be one of the great receivers in the league. Do you think it’s just a matter of health? That’s the only thing that’s stopped you from doing that?) – “Yes, that’s the only thing. Just stay healthy and if I’m not healthy, fight through it and play through it.”
(I’m doing something on first-round picks and how tough that is on you or what it does to you. Can you tell me, coming in, did you feel “Yes, I’m a first-round pick. I have to impress.” Did you feel that teammates knew that you were a first-round pick and were aware of it?) – “I’m pretty sure they knew when I was first coming in. I think I was having a great camp and everything. Well, I didn’t go through camp, but OTAs and the rookie camp. I was doing great. Before my injury, Jelani (Jenkins) even told me I didn’t look like a rookie coming in. I wasn’t trying to impress anyone. I was just doing me.”
(How much added pressure is there on a first-round pick? Does that come from you or do you feel it from the media and fans and your people back at Louisville? How often … Everybody knows you are a first-round pick. How is it dealing with that?) – “I would say there really is no pressure unless you make it pressure. If you come in saying that you’re the greatest and something like that, coming in and just talking smack, that’s the only time where there can be pressure.”
(I take it that you would say WR Jakeem Grant is a more astute judge of talent than former Dolphins WR Chris Chambers?) – “I’m with Jakeem every day. He sees me working and knows what I’m doing. He’s with me inside the building so he knows what’s going on.”
(Do you feel that you’re the best receiver on the team? Is that important as a receiver to have that kind of confidence?) – “It is good to have that kind of confidence; but I just come in and go hard every day and try to be the best.”
(When you heard the Dolphins were picking up your fifth-year option, what was your reaction?) – “That they had a lot of confidence in me and they knew what I could do and the ability that I have. They just knew that I had a lot of talent there.”
(Obviously it’s guaranteed in case of injury, but you still have to go out and earn that, right?) – “Oh, yes. I still have to go out and play and just get better every day.”
(What have you seen from WR Jakeem Grant? He’s been getting some pretty good reviews from CB Cordrea Tankersley and Offensive Coordinator Dowell Loggains. What have you seen from Jakeem Grant?) – “I’ve seen a lot from Jakeem. He’s been very aggressive this offseason and just attacking the ball and everything. (He’s) high-pointing everything. He learned all these different positions and he’s doing a great job.”
(Aside from trying to make sure that you’re healthy, what is it that you’re working on the most to try and improve?) – “Finishing my routes. Sometimes I come out and I ease up and then if I see the ball, I speed up. At that point, it’s too late.”
(They’ve got this “who’s the fastest guy” conversation going on and I don’t hear your name involved. What’s up with that?) – “The GPS says I was second. With the GPS I was at 20.9 miles per hour and somebody else (had one time) faster than that.”
(Do you think you’re getting ripped off on this conversation?) – “Yes, I think I am getting ripped off. (laughter) But it’s fine. It’s alright.”
(Where would you finish in a race?) – “In a race? Among receivers? Top 2.”
(Who would be with you?) – “Probably me and Jakeem (Grant).”
(What about WR Kenny Stills?) – “Kenny? He’d be third. (laughter)”
(How much will having QB Ryan Tannehill help? I would think that would be a huge thing for your development, no?) – “It’s a huge development with Ryan back. We have a great connection. Timing, everything is good. Coach did a lot of things with him last year and we weren’t able to use that because it was a different scheme with him and everything. It just wasn’t there.”
(When you think about the first three years of your career, what were some words you would use to describe it?) – “Not where I want it to be. That’s just it. It’s as simple as that.”
(Have you done anything to change in terms of flexibility or anything else that would help keep you healthy? Anything different?) – “No. Right now I’m doing the same thing I’ve been doing that’s been working. I go to the trainers. I do extra mobility stuff with them. You’ve just got to keep at it and keep doing it.”
(What would be a successful year for you personally?) – “You’re talking about yardage-wise or something?”
(Whatever goals you might have.) – “At least hit 1,000 yards or something, and a few touchdowns.”
Darren Rizzi – June 6, 2018
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Wednesday, June 6, 2018
Associate Head Coach/Special Teams Coordinator Darren Rizzi
(In the practices that have been open to us, K Jason Sanders has had a much higher percentage than K Greg Joseph on field goals. Is that reflective of how it’s been throughout the offseason program? Has he been better, substantially better, in terms of overall percentage?) – “No, it’s been about even. Greg missed a couple today on the one end with the left to right wind. (There are) a couple of things we’re working on. The other thing today is Greg, with the first group, I think with the first operation I think (he was) 5-for-6. So on the days you guys haven’t been here, I think both guys have been pretty much what you see is what you get. There’s a couple of things we’re working on with both guys. I’m kind of pleased with where they’re at. With rookie kickers, you’re going to obviously always have a little bit of stuff to work on. Both guys have a great demeanor and a great start so far. I’m happy with both.”
(An encouraging 7-for-7 yesterday for K Jason Sanders. Have you executed the mechanical change that you want to do with Jason yet, whether there’s a clear difference now in his mechanics than what he was in college?) – “There’s never going to be … When you bring a guy like that in, whether it’s Jason or Greg (Joseph), there’s never going to be a wholesale change in what they’re doing. You guys know I always liken it to golf. It could be your stance, it could be an elbow … When you’re golfing, it could be a little small thing. With kicking, it could be something as simple as an inch or two on your plant foot or your walk-off or your aiming points. It’s very, very simple things. The things we are working on are not wholesale big changes that we’re trying to make. They’re very, very … They’re tweaks, if you will. Both guys have been really good. I think what everybody has seen is both guys have really good leg strength. Both have a lot of pop on the ball. Both have really gotten the ball up well, meaning elevation on the ball. Their kickoffs, which you guys haven’t seen them do a lot of, which I have seen obviously on my own, they’ve done very well on. I’m kind of pleased with the progression so far. I’m really not overly concerned about either right now. I really think they’re kind of going as I pretty much expected.”
(Is LB Raekwon McMillan going to play on special teams?) – “We train everybody on special teams, Raekwon included. Right now, obviously as roles get defined for guys, we’ll see what happens. I know the 10,000-pound elephant in the back room because he got hurt last year. I get it. His first play in the NFL, he ran down a punt and got injured. Rookie linebackers play on special teams. It doesn’t matter if they’re drafted, undrafted, first-round, second-round, 10th-round, 90th-round. Rookie linebackers and defensive backs and running backs and receivers, they play special teams. It was extremely unfortunate that happened. We’re kind of easing him in. We’ll see what his role is with when we go down and as this thing happens; but if you look at some of the things that we’re doing, he’s not really training on all four. But he’ll have a role in some way, shape or form.”
(What’s the return game look like so far? Obviously you can’t do a whole lot.) – “Obviously Jakeem (Grant) is … We know what Jakeem is, for the most part. At this point, we’re trying to really get more of a stable of returners and see who those are going to be. I think if you look back yesterday during our punt period, we had some guys back there. Obviously (Danny) Amendola is back there, (Albert) Wilson is back there, Drew Morgan is back there. Those are guys that can really field punts. Kenyan Drake is a guy that can do it throughout his career. He’s got to improve a little bit still. On kickoff return, we’re still trying to fudge with this new rule a little bit. We worked on it today in a little bit more of an individual basis. We’re kind of trying to see what we’re going to do in the back end there. You have to have eight guys up now. There’s only three guys back and where you put those three guys is going to be a little bit … There’s going to be some schematics to it. There’s going to be some game-planning to it. There’s going to be some Xs and Os types of things. If you look back today at our kickoff return, we had a bunch of guys back there. Obviously (there are) new guys that haven’t been here, (like Albert) Wilson, (Kalen) Ballage. Obviously Senorise (Perry) has done it. He’s been here. So we’re looking at a bunch of different guys. Torry McTyer is a guy that did it last year in the preseason that’s been back there. We’re trying to kind of figure out how we’re going to do it, whether it’s one guy deep, two guys deep. I think we have, as you guys know that have been here and covered this team for a long time, I like to have as many options as possible. We’re just trying to get as many guys to work at it as we can this time of year. Then as we get closer to the preseason games and all of that, we’ll kind of try to narrow it down a little bit.”
(Would you be alright if it is Week 1 and you don’t have a clear cut punt returner? Would you be alright with that?) – “Like one guy doing everything? Yes. I think you guys know, I’ve done that in the past. Obviously when Jarvis (Landry) here, he was a guy that we used situationally. I think Danny Amendola is obviously … He was really last year, he was New England’s primary punt returner. So if you look at our roster, we have two primary punt returners on the roster, if you look at it that way. Danny has taken a number of reps in his career. I think here would probably be a little bit more of a situational thing. I don’t think he’s going to be back there every time, for sure; but again, it’s great to have as many guys on the roster that can do it, the better we are.”
(Going back to LB Raekwon McMillan on special teams for a second, will it be in the back of your mind? Might you dial it back 5 percent or 10 percent…) – “I’m going to coach every guy the same as I’ve ever coached. If you start coaching guys based on injury history … I think you guys know me well enough by now. We’re going to coach everybody the same. Listen, it was a really unfortunate thing that happened to him last year. To his credit, he’s jumped right back in. He’s doing our drills. He’s doing everything. Obviously right now, if you looked at it, he’s going to be a starting linebacker for us today. That may change. Who knows? He’s certainly not going to be maybe a three or four core (special teams) guy, but everybody is going to have some type of role on special teams. We’re not going to start making decisions based on injury history. You’re not going to have anybody left on the field. We’re certainly not going to do that. He’s going to have his role and again, we’ll define it as we move along.”
(Of the undrafted free agents, were there any really, really good special teamers in college?) – “Undrafted free agents? The rookies? I’m just thinking through in my head. A lot of the rookies have really flashed athletically. Obviously at this point, we haven’t been able to go in pads, and that’s going to be a big determining factor for obviously special teams, when we start putting the pads on in training camp. I’m thinking through kind of by position-by-position. Offensively, I’ve kind of liked Buddy (Howell). Buddy has done a good job right now as a running back so far on special teams. As far as the defensive guys are concerned, a couple of defensive backs have flashed as well, (and) a couple of the corners. Linebacker is obviously … (Cayson) Collins is a guy that athletically has moved around pretty well so far. (Mike) McCray as well. We’ll kind of see how that goes. I don’t think any of them had an extensive, elaborate special teams career in college; but they’ve all … So far, I’ve been very pleased with the class as a whole in terms of moving around and getting things picked up. That’s really the biggest thing right now.”
(With punts, what to you would be the ideal mix between WR Jakeem Grant and another player, whether its WR Danny Amendola, as you mentioned or whether it’s somebody else? Would you ideally like to split punt returns among a couple of guys about evenly? What’s your vision?) – “I think it’s an annual thing. It’s a yearly thing on how that’s going to play out. It’s not … I don’t have an ideal thing in my mind. If you ask any special teams coach, I think sometimes going with the one guy in a particular year, that can do it all, is great. I think in other years where you may be able to give a guy a rest or a blow or whatever you want to call it, and you can kind of make it a committee type of thing, that’s worked well for us here the last few years – the committee approach. It takes kind of one guy, the onus, off of just one person and makes it more of a thing where we can have a couple of guys do it. Again, the biggest thing … I’m going to go back to the same answer I gave before. To have the most amount of guys on the team, or a group of guys, that can do it and go into the game with that, to me that’s the … What you don’t want to do is have one guy only on the team that’s your primary returner and no one else can do it. That’s when you run into issues. So having guys, having a stable of guys, that can be returners for you, to me that’s really the ideal situation.”
(What are you doing this summer? Have you been to Bora Bora?) – “Well, I haven’t been to Bora Bora. Do I look like a Bora Bora guy? (laughter) No. I get a little down time. Obviously I have five kids. I’m going to spend some time with them and we’re going to probably keep it a little bit more local than Bora Bora. (laughter) The Bahamas might be the outreach for me. (laughter) And I’ve got some basketball stuff. My daughter plays AAU basketball so I’ve got all of the travel with her this summer. She’s got some tournaments going on all over the U.S. – Louisville, Chicago, Atlanta and all of that kind of stuff. My boys have baseball and football starts up, so I’m going to kind of be a dad for the summer. You guys know this job takes us away for a lot that we do, so I’m going to try to be a dad as much as I can. I’ve got a daughter that’s going into her senior year of high school. I have a son that’s going to be a sophomore and plays football at St. Thomas. So I’ll spend some time with them and relax a little bit and enjoy. We all know, as you guys know that cover a team, it goes quick. It goes real quick, so we’ll be looking forward to a little down time when that comes. But I will definitely not be in Bora Bora. (laughter)”
Charles Harris – June 5, 2018
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Tuesday, June 5, 2018
DE Charles Harris
(Head Coach Adam Gase was saying that he thought the defense had a pretty good day today. He said the offense was installing some things. I thought you may have gotten to QB Ryan Tannehill once. How did the defense do, specifically the pass rushers, today?) – “I think we did a great job. We got off the ball and we finished at the ball. That’s the first thing that we’re trying to do is go back to the fundamentals. Make sure we work on our technique, make sure we’re just getting there. Over time, we’re actually becoming creatures of what we’re doing or creatures of habit. I think we’re all getting to the ball a lot more easier than we did the first day. I feel like we’re really inclining and getting better and better each day.”
(What were your thoughts when you heard the Dolphins traded for DE Robert Quinn?) – “I’ve got somebody to learn after. (He’s a) big time great player (and a) great guy. It’s funny because William Hayes was telling me about him when we were in L.A. last year. He was telling me about Robert Quinn. He was telling me ‘That is somebody you need to model your game after. You need to talk to (him).’ We were supposed to go to his house last year when we were in L.A. playing against (the Chargers). We didn’t get out there but it’s crazy that he ended up coming to our team and everything like that. So far he’s been a great guy to go to for any questions. He’s a really low key humble guy and he just does his job. He’s a great mentor.”
(You guys have five defensive ends that may be starters on other teams. How is that going to work? You have a bunch of guys.) – “Shoot, we have Alpha, we have Bravo and we’ve just got to roll. We’re just rolling. In practice we’re going hard, we’re going fast. It’s just crazy. There isn’t any drop off. That’s the biggest thing. We just roll them in, roll them out and shoot. We just keep the pressure, constant pressure, on the offense. I feel like they’re definitely getting better, especially the offensive line. They’re definitely getting better off of us because we’re bringing that tenacity each and every day.”
(Alpha, Bravo what does that mean?) – “Just our groups. Military-type stuff. We’re going in there on a mission. We’ve got Alpha coming in first, we’ve got Bravo coming in next. Then we’ve got Charlie too. I know all of that stuff but we can keep going.”
(Are you on Charlie? It makes sense right?) – “(laughter) Right, right. It would be dope, though. ‘Charlie, come on!’ ‘Alright!’”
(I was asking S Minkah Fitzpatrick and QB Ryan Tannehill about being a first-round pick and how you deal with the expectations. How was it for you last year? Was that something really heavy? Were you aware at this time of year, did you come in thinking I’m the first-round pick and everybody knows it? How do you deal with that?) – “It’s not something you can hide. (laughter) It’s just like that. I feel like once you accept it, it just is what it is. I feel like the biggest thing and the one thing I like about Fitzpatrick is that he doesn’t look at himself as better than anybody else. He knows that when he goes out there, he has to go out there and work every single day. That’s what he’s been doing so far. I know that he’s going to keep on doing that. That was my mentality last year too. I knew that nothing was given to me. The grades and the rounds and all of that stuff, that’s all what you did in college. When you get to the NFL it’s a clean slate for everybody. It’s just a matter of going out there and working each and every day. You just can’t get complacent.”
(Do you feel that expectations are greater on a first-round pick than say a second or third-round pick?) – “Obviously. (laughter) I think that goes without saying, there’s more pressure. But it’s about your mindset, it’s about your mind state. Pressure is outside of yourself. It’s about how you react to it and how you respond to it. It’s only pressure if you allow pressure.”
(We talked with Head Coach Adam Gase about 20 minutes ago and I asked about you. He said that you’re one of the last players he’s worried about right now. When you hear that, is that encouraging and what do you think you need to worry about at this point?) – “What he just said, (I have to) worry about myself. That’s really the only thing I’ve got to do is just worry about myself, make sure I come in here every single day. Like I said, I had goals before I came into OTAs as to what I wanted to be for my team. I’m making sure I’m doing that every single day. (I’m taking a) positive attitude on the field and making it fun. We were going through a special teams drill and probably nobody wanted to do it; but creating a competition during special teams drill. It’s just the simple things I’m trying to do to make sure that I’m a great teammate. That’s the one thing I really want to be. I forgot your question. (Laughter)”
(Can you talk about what moved you to donate that money to your high school?) – “God just put it in my heart. We actually did it a long time ago – back in like January or February. Right before I got my mother her house, I had done that, the donation and everything. I had contacted the school district as soon as I got back home on my little break. People get to certain positions and they say they’re going to do something. When you’re younger, you say ‘I can’t way until I’m here’ or ‘I can’t wait until I’m there so I can do this or do that.’ But when you get there, a lot of people forget. That’s what I’m trying to do. I’m trying to make sure I remember all of the things I used to say and the things I wanted or the advantages I wanted that other people had. I just wanted to make sure I could provide those to the best of my ability without putting myself or my family or anybody else at risk financially. So I’m making sure I’m being smart. That one move by itself … I’ve got so much love in Kansas City, from everybody there – my friends, coaches, just everybody. It’s just crazy. It just takes that one little spark to make the entire city say, ‘Okay, we all want to give back.’ Or ‘We all want to do this.’ The Kansas City school district and the actual public are kind of enemies right now. Back in the day, they had a lot of money and they messed it up. There were a lot of corrupt stuff and they just kind of blew it. It’s just about getting back to the basics of trusting our school district, that they’re going to get better, that they’re going to do the right things. I met all the people up there at the Kansas City School District. I know them all and I feel like they have a great leadership team. I feel like they can really do something. That’s why I made such a big donation to them.”
(In what ways is the football player here today different or better than the guy that would’ve been standing here exactly one year ago?) – “The guy here today, I know who I am. There are a lot of voids coming out of college that go into being a real adult. There are a lot of voids and a lot of things you have to do to find yourself. There are a lot of things you have to go through. I feel like this past year, I went through all of those and I know who I am and I know who I want to be. I feel like once you find that security and once you find the anchor in something, can’t nothing else waiver you. I feel like my mindset, my spiritual side, my emotions, just everything is just at a point that I’ve never been in my life.”
(You mentioned your goals. Can you share some of those with us?) – “No. (laughter)”
(One?) – “You’re going to see them. Being a great teammate. That’s a simple goal. That’s overly stated. It’s always said, but never done. It’s something I’m putting a conscious effort towards.”
(What is your anchor?) – “Jesus.”
(I don’t know if you’ve been following this at all but there is a controversy going on with the Eagles and their White House visit. Putting that aside for a second, as a player, is the idea of a White House visit motivating at all? Or is that something that just happened?) – “No disrespect to that situation at all – that doesn’t have anything to do with what I’m about to say – but, I don’t think about it when I go out there. I don’t think about the White House. I’m trying to win each and every day. That’s not a part of anybody’s mental … That’s something that comes with after you get the bread, after you get to the highest platform and you win, then that’s on your mind. When you’re at the bottom, you aren’t thinking about that. Those guys made their own decisions and that’s that.”
(When QB Ryan Tannehill was in here a couple of minutes ago, he brought up DE Robert Quinn and how he bends when he’s coming around the edge and how he get’s his hip like two feet from the ground. You can do some of that stuff, right? Tell me about the observations you have and how your coming around the edge stuff is coming along.) – “’Rob,’ (Robert Quinn) seeing him practice and seeing him going through cornering drills and stuff, it’s just like ‘Dang, how do you do it?’ It’s also motivating. For me, I look at it as I had the most bend on the team. Seeing him going through all of that is like, I’ve got to get my stuff together. He shows that it’s possible. It’s just a matter of working towards it. Some days after we do cornering drills, I might stay out and do a little extra. I may do stuff on my own to learn how to corner better. Like I said, he’s a great guy to learn from. He comes in each and every day and he goes hard. The thing about it is he’ll teach you how to get there. The flexibility stuff that he does, I’m just trying to emulate it all. I know I can get as low, if not lower. It’s going to be a good one.”
(DE Cam Wake used to have great bend, what happened to it?) – “I don’t know. You have to ask Cam. The man is getting up there, isn’t he? (Laughter) No, he’s still got it though. Cam’s still got it. Today he got a challenge against a rookie. I think it was a pop-up drill or something. He just had to show him who he was. It’s motivating to see your old head just come out and be like, let me take this little guy out. (laughter)”
Tony Lippett – June 5, 2018
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Tuesday, June 5, 2018
CB Tony Lippett
(How tough has this process been coming back from a major thing? Where are you now as far as close to 100 percent?) – “I’m really close. It’s been a tough grind, but it’s been pretty good. I learned a lot about myself. I learned a lot about the body. I just try to put one foot forward every day and just keep grinding, getting better every day and just trying to get back to 100 percent.”
(What has been the hardest part?) – “The hardest part was probably during the season, just not being out there and not being able to play and just seeing everybody grind, seeing the team doing their thing and sticking together and things like that. That’s the hardest part for me because I always want to be out there.”
(If you suffered this injury 15-20 years ago, you might not play again. That was just the nature of medicine then. Are doctors telling you that you’re on track to be the same player you always were?) – “Oh, yes. I’m definitely on track to be the same player I always was. I’m just knocking off the rust right now and I’m just grinding every day, getting better every day. I’m going out there and competing and just knocking off the kinks.”
(Did you ever have a “why me” feeling? Because you did start 13 games and have four interceptions in 2016 and you seemed ready to take the next step, and then the Achilles.) – “I’d probably say I had that as soon as it happened. Then when I went into the training room, I was just like I’ve got to take it one day at a time and just grind. I couldn’t really have a “why me” and a “poor me” feeling because I feel like everything happens for a reason. God put me here to make things happen and just take it one day at a time and just continue to grind. So that’s what I just did every day.”
(Did you ever talk to DE Cameron Wake and guys that have been through it before, in terms of things to do and how to speed up the process?) – “Yes, I talk to Cam all of the time about his whole process through it. I talked to Brent (Grimes) and all of those guys just kept me upbeat on where they were at Month 4 or Month 5 or when they first started walking again, first started running, and when it felt better down the line. I’ve always just asked for advice from them and a lot of other players around the league that had this injury or witnessed it up close and personal. I’d probably just say they help me out as much as they can.”
(Other than “hello”, we haven’t really spoken since you got hurt. I don’t even know if I know what happened. How did you get hurt?) – “(laughter) It was just in practice one day. I just went up, a regular jump for the ball, and I just came down and I just knew something wasn’t right. It just happened.”
(How are you approaching what you would like, ideally, your role to be on this year’s club?) – “Right now, I’m just taking it one day at a time. I’m just getting better, knocking off the rust, and just trying my best to be 100 percent when we get back to camp and when we get back now. I’m just grinding right now through these days and just going out there competing.”
(You’ve got a lot of young guys in that room at the corner position. Guys that are one, two or three years in the league. Is that a little different for you guys, just having everyone so close in age?) – “I would say yes. It’s weird having a younger group; but I feel like we’ve got some experience. We’ve got a lot of experience in there and we’re knowledgeable and all, so we’re not that young, young group that didn’t have any experience out there. We all just try to knock knowledge off of each other and continue to pick each other up every day, and just go out there and know we’re competing for one goal, and that’s to make this team better and win.”
(You saw QB Ryan Tannehill when he was playing well in 2016. How does he look now compared to back then?) – “He looks good. I was with him every day when we were rehabbing and things like that. He’s a competitor. He looks good. He loves being back on the field right now and that’s what we need. We need a great leader up front that’s going to call the shots and make plays and be confident doing it. “
(What did you see in him during rehab? Determination? Frustration?) – “I didn’t see any frustration. I just saw him attack every day like he was still in season. He was still going to meetings. He was still doing this. He just attacked every day he could and he just grinded. It made me grind even more.”
(What did CB Brent Grimes tell you may be the last thing to come around for a cornerback after this injury?) – “The last thing to come around? Probably just the long speed. That’s probably the last thing he told me.”
(Do you feel any weirdness? Does it feel strange, painful at all? Or can you not even tell you had surgery?) – “No, you can’t really tell at all. I mean sometimes it gets sore, but I don’t feel pain or anything badly. It’s just getting used to doing this again.”
(We saw you sit out one day. Do you work every day or is it every other day?) – “No, I work every day. I just had a little soreness that one day; but this is practice seven? I’ve been in the other six of them. I’m just trying to get out here and grind, get better when I can, and just take it one day at a time.
W(hen you were playing your very best in the 2016 season, tell me about some of the things you had figured out that were working?) – “Really, watching the film and knowing your opponent. I would say that and knowing the game plan and just watching a lot of film. Basically, like I said, get better one day at a time, work on your technique in practice, know what the team is trying to do to you, know what the players are trying to do to you and take all of that in. Then you go out there on Sundays and try to execute the game plan and execute what you’ve been watching all week.”
(There’s a controversy going on with the Eagles not going to the White House. I’m curious, as you were growing up as a sports fan, did you pay attention to those White House visits, and did you say “that will be me one day visiting with the President at the White House?” Was that a goal?) – “I mean I didn’t pay that much attention to it, but I always saw when teams would win the championship or something like that and go take a visit to the White House or something like that. I would love to do that because it’s the result of you winning the championship and things like that; but, the rest of it, I don’t really know.”
(Would it be sad if that tradition ended?) – “I don’t know. I guess we’d have to find a new tradition. I don’t know.”
