Ndamukong Suh – September 13, 2017
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Wednesday, September 13, 2017
DT Ndamukong Suh
(What was practice like today in a new environment?) – “It was good. I think it was very similar to what we have in Davie, minus the humidity and the blistering heat; but other than that, I think it’s a normal Wednesday practice for us. I feel like we did some good work, but we’ve still got to go watch the film”
(How do you keep things normal in this circumstance?) – “I think it’s all about our mindset, understanding what’s your task ahead of you, having that mindset of what you need to accomplish, and going out there and attacking it; and then, obviously, executing when the time is right.”
(A lot of guys looked at having a bye week in Week 1 as a negative. Are there any advantages that you can take to it?) – “We got to watch a lot of football. We got to see our opponents this upcoming week play in a real game, so we had a week of experience of seeing what they like to do; but there’s a handful of things that you can look at it from positively and negatively. At the end of the day, we’ve got to go out there and practice, understand what we’ve got to do against them, and anticipate what they want to do against us.”
(Is there any approach that you’ve got to take to play 16 straight games differently than you would normally?) – “No. In my opinion, I think we have some built in byes with the Thursday night game. We obviously can earn ourselves a bye going to the playoffs. So I think at the end of the day, we’re in a great position to be successful and it’s all about the mindset of being successful in these first eight games that we have, I believe, before our Thursday night game, and then go from there.”
(What is the biggest challenge when you relocate a team, as a player?) – “I don’t think it’s that big of a deal honestly, because we did this last year. We were away for two weeks when we played, coincidentally, San Diego and then played L.A. (Rams), so it’s something that I think this team is used to and it shouldn’t be an issue, by any means.”
(What did you gain from that experience last year when you guys were sequestered away?) – “I think the biggest thing that I gained, and that most of my teammates gained, was the ability to spend time with each other, have a bunch of dinners together, hang out with each other. (It’s) kind of like camp again; but obviously in a much lighter situation. It’s not as grueling, so I think that’s a good piece about it.”
(What was the experience like watching what was going on back in Miami and trying to figure out if there was damage and what was going on? What was that like being over here experiencing that?) – “It was tough to some extent, because obviously you can really only follow what the news gives you. Things weren’t really depicted to us in the best light; but there were a couple people I knew that were there and I spoke to them and checked in with them. Other than that, you’ve just got to wait and see.”
(How much of a distraction is it knowing that such a massive hurricane has hit your guys’ state in preparing for your first NFL game of the season? – “I think as mature adults, as well as professionals, when we’re in work, we have to understand what our task is and deal with it in that particular moment. Obviously, the real world is always going to be there, so when we’re not in meetings or in practice, we get back to the real world and handle the business that we need to take care of, and that’s really my approach to it.”
Jay Cutler – September 13, 2017
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Wednesday, September 13, 2017
Quarterback Jay Cutler
(In all your years, this has to be the strangest start of the season for you by far.) – “Oh, it’s not even close. I mean, to come into camp halfway through training camp and then have to evacuate and come here and miss … having the first game cancelled. It’s been a wild ride.”
(Having said that, how do you treat it differently or can it be normal?) – “I think it’s a great setup for us right now. We’re living right here – the weight room, meetings, a great practice facility. So it is what it is. I mean there’s a little bit of a transition for guys, but I thought they battled today and we had a good practice, so we’ll continue to go on that.”
(On spending more time with his teammates) – “Absolutely. I mean it’s like training camp essentially. That’s kind of what our mindset is. Everyone is together. We meet together. We eat together. There’s nowhere for anyone really to go. So it’s a good experience for us.”
(Have you been sequestered away with a team in a situation like this before?) – “I don’t know. I mean I think we probably had some snow situations in Chicago where we were delayed or we couldn’t go on a day and we had to stay together; but nothing to this magnitude.”
(With your family, did they come with you or …?) – “Here? No. They’re in Tennessee. So they were away from the hurricane and they’ll come out at some point this week.”
(Is it hard to stay focused on the first game with all that was going on in Florida?) – “We were ready to play. We were ready to play Thursday or Friday, so the guys were locked in. Our game plan was ready to go. It’s unfortunate we didn’t get to play it; but I thought they gave us ample time on Wednesday to let us know we’re out of here and you know guys, I think most of the guys were able to leave Florida and the ones that weren’t, (Owner) Mr. (Stephen) Ross was kind enough to get a plane and get everyone out.”
(Is there any sort of time period where you have to reset, restart the focus that you had built up?) – “Yes. I mean think that’s valid. I think that’s valid and I think most of the guys got here either Sunday or Monday and that was kind of the day to start kind of prepping that our bye week is over and we’ve got to get football going. I mean we were a little bit rusty today since we haven’t practiced. We got a little bit going yesterday, but I’m sure that as the week goes on, we’ll get back into it.”
(What makes you confident that the offense is going to be able to hit the ground floor running in Week 2 now?) – “We might not. I mean we don’t know how it’s going to go. We’re going to practice as hard as we can. We’re going to prepare as much as we can; but like any game, like any NFL season, there’s going to be some ups and downs out there and these guys are … It’s a resilient group, so we’ll just battle through them.”
(Did you watch the Chargers game on Monday night?) – “I did. I did.”
(Did anything stand out to you with their defensive play?) – “I thought they played a tough game. A division opponent like that, they fought back there in the third and fourth quarter. I think Philip’s (Rivers) always going to give them a chance to win throughout the game; but it’s a good defense. The front seven is good. The secondary is talented. So we’ll have our hands full.”
Adam Gase – September 13, 2017 (Conference Call)
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Wednesday, September 13, 2017
Head Coach Adam Gase (Conference Call)
(I’m curious. How disruptive was the storm and did it impact your guys’ ability to prepare for the Chargers here or did you guys actually get extra time on the Chargers because you didn’t play in Week 1?) – “More extra time. I got out here on Saturday, Saturday morning. I was able to start a little early and I think a lot of other guys on our staff did as well. We were trying not to get too far ahead though because like the first game of the season, you spend two weeks on a team thinking about that, you start making things up as far as what a team might do. We tried to keep it as much to a normal week as possible just so we didn’t overdo it. A couple of us were here in the hotel rooms, so we really didn’t have anything else to do, so we probably spent a little extra time on it.”
(What are your impressions about what you’ve seen from Chargers Head Coach Anthony Lynn here in his first year?) – “Offensively I can see his fingerprints working with those guys and then defensively, it seems like that defense is kind of built in his personality but with (Defensive Coordinator) Gus (Bradley) as well. I see a bunch of guys just playing hard and fast and that model of his background, trying to do a good job protecting the football and then creating turnovers.”
(By Head Coach Anthony Lynn’s fingerprints on the offense, do you mean that it seems more run focused than the Chargers maybe have been in the past on game film?) – “I don’t know if I want to go all the way in saying that. Some of the run game things, you can see some of the stuff that he’s done in the past. But it’s always … When you kind of have a staff that’s already been there you can kind of come in and with a fresh set of eyes and there’s some suggestions you can always make as far as to help (Offensive Coordinator) Coach (Ken) Whisenhunt out as far as his experiences, whether that be he likes doing gap scheme over outside zone or inside zone, and just trying to figure out the right way to use the running backs or how he sees it. It’s good for that offensive staff just getting a different perspective when you’ve got an offensive guy coming in and a lot of those guys have been together. So you can see that he’s had a little bit of an influence on some of the scheme runs they’ve done.”
(Chargers QB Philip Rivers is entering his 14th season, but what do you like about him at this point in his career?) – “It’s hard to put my finger on one thing. I’ve been on the other sideline so many times. I’ve always loved the way he’s competed. I love the fight that he has. It doesn’t matter what the score is, it’s never over with him. You’ve got to play a full 60 minutes. He always makes the big play. It just seems like you’re trying to go for the knockout punch and then all of the sudden, he makes a play and it’s a tight game and then he either figures out a way to win it or it’s going to come down to that last drive of the game, whether it be the team that I was on, on offense or them on offense. I don’t know if there’s been too many games that I’ve been involved with against him where it’s been too lopsided. Early in my career in Denver, there might have been a few games where they smacked us around pretty good and they were rolling really good with those big receivers. He’s a guy that seems to put the ball where he wants to put it the majority of the time.”
(Obviously QB Jay Cutler is super familiar with your system from Chicago, but is it fair to say that his challenge will be being more familiar with the guys around him and where is he in that process?) – “He has spent so much time with those guys since he’s gotten here. He’s been in Miami, really, his family stayed back in Nashville, so I think he’s bugging (the receivers) more than the other way around because I don’t know if he’s really got that much to do. He spends so much time with those guys, running routes after practice, they watch a lot of film together. It seems like those guys have been spending a lot of time together to make sure that they’re getting caught up to speed with how he sees things, how they see things. It seems like they really did a good job of trying to speed up the whole familiarity process between receivers, backs, tight ends and the quarterback.”
(Was it pretty easy for you to nudge QB Jay Cutler out of retirement, given your experience together?) – “That might be a better question for him. I guess in my brain, I would say yes, but you’d really have to ask him. At first, I think he was just (asking himself) ‘Can I get back in there after not doing anything all spring and most of training camp?’ It’s really the pass rush. You’ve really got to get used to being in that pocket again (and get) the feel of where to slide, when to take off, when to stand in there; but it seems like what he has to go up against in our defense every day, he got caught up pretty quick.”
(Everybody knows that your situation is not optimal right now, it’s not like it was supposed to go. Can you name three things that you feel really good about your team right now because of the situation that you are in?) – “I feel good about our leadership with our players. Our veteran players have been outstanding through this whole process. I feel really good about the resiliency that we have as a group. We’ve been together now a year and a half and we’ve battled a few things, nothing necessarily like this. It’s a different obstacle we’re going through because it’s really a non-football related type of thing; but the resiliency this group has, these guys are fighters. When any adversity hits, these guys just put their head down and keep working.”
(As far as Sunday goes, it’s such a unique situation. I don’t know that anybody knows exactly what to expect having an NFL game in front of 27,000 people. Is it even possible for that environment to have an effect on an offense with noise? Are you curious to see what it’s going to sound like in a stadium that size?) – “It’s really something I don’t really worry about. We’re treating it like we’re on the road anywhere else and we’ll prepare accordingly, and we’ll adjust in-game if we have to. It’s not something that I’m really focusing on.”
Adam Gase – September 13, 2017
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Wednesday, September 13, 2017
Head Coach Adam Gase
(Is everyone here? Was everyone able to get here?) – “Yes. I think the last guys arrived pretty late last night. I know Cam (Wake) was … Cam might’ve been the last one to get here. He stayed back. We just had to find a flight for him and get him out here.”
(How different is this in terms of difficult in terms of the distraction?) – “I think our guys are handling it well. You always kind of hope for one thing as a coach. You’re not really sure until you lay eyes on everybody when you have that first meeting. When we got here, our guys seemed focused, ready to go. I think they’ve been itching. They had a good couple days last week in practice. I think they’re just ready to play some football.”
(What is your message to the players considering – obviously not the ideal – what’s your message?) – “I’m not really worried about this group. They’ve been through a lot over the last year and half with some of the challenges we met last year and going into this year. Everything hasn’t always been smooth, but these guys, they battle and they fight and they handle adversity as good as anybody I’ve been around.”
(Can you touch upon how the process went into this decision?) – “It was really just trying to figure out what we were going to do for this week, when we were … The timing of everything. Once we just decided we’re going to go to L.A., just get out there early and start figuring out travel plans, that’s really where everything started going to the works. It was quick. Everybody did everything extremely fast and we were able to get a bunch of people on that flight out here with the families. We were scattered; everybody was scattered all over the country. So, it was just about getting us regrouped here by Tuesday morning. The guys did a great job. (Senior Director of Team Operations) Scott Bullis (and) his whole crew did a great job making sure everybody got out here and we had flights for everybody. Guys did a good job too of being responsible and checking in, making sure that we knew what was going on with them.”
(What did you address with them yesterday and how close is today to what you would normally have for a Wednesday?) – “It’s our normal Wednesday. The only thing I said to them was ‘Control what you can control. We’re going to play a game Sunday.’ We’ve got to get ready. I think these guys, they were glad to be back out there. I could tell there was good energy this morning in meetings. When we get going in practice, it’ll be fun for those guys. It feels like it has been forever; but it has been a week. Not playing a game and watching all the other games, I think they’re ready to go.”
(Can you look at any advantages of not having a game last week and possibly having two weeks of rest?) – “This is our opening game. You wait all year for that first week of the season and we didn’t get that opportunity last week. I think our guys are just ready to get going on it.”
(How does this compare in terms of the logistics and everything to the situation last year with the week in California?) – “It’s pretty smooth for us because we only have to walk 50 yards and we’re on the practice field. Us not having to travel anywhere and our meeting rooms are set up – we have a good set up – it’s really convenient for us that this was available for us.”
(Do you have any players that benefited from a little extra time? You signed a couple guys right at the beginning of Tampa Bay week and LB Rey Mualuga was still trying to get down to a certain weight.) – “Really it was … We were pretty healthy going into that first week. We felt pretty good about it. It’s really just another week. I don’t think really anything has changed for us that much.”
(When did you shift gears to the Chargers?) – “Probably not until like Saturday. You don’t want to get too far ahead. You start doing that and start making things up in your head.”
(So you wanted to see the Chargers play before you…) – “We wanted to get as close as we could to that game. Them playing on Monday night, we had to at least get going over the weekend. Everybody was scattered all over the place. I got here Saturday morning, so it was really getting set up and getting our situation settled – the coaching staff – and get the players here.”
(How much football did you watch on Sunday and Monday?) – “A good amount. It’s an interesting … Usually on the bye week you watch a little bit, but you almost avoid it a little bit. You’d rather not watch it sometimes. We hadn’t played a game yet. You’re watching guys that you’ve worked with before or friends of yours to see how their season is going to start off. That was interesting to kind of be a spectator that first week.”
(To follow that up, to be able to see the Chargers for a game, to get a little film, to see some of their personnel, how much is that going to benefit you?) – “It’s like being in Week 2. It’s no different than what it would have been for us if we would have played the first week. Seeing those guys in action, watching the defense, seeing them fly around in a different scheme, it’s really just carry over from what we saw in preseason and they’re always going to have something different each week. Watching their offense, you can see how explosive they can be. Myself, being in this division before, it doesn’t look far off from what I’ve seen in the past. I think between (Joey) Bosa and (Melvin) Ingram, they’ve really got it going right now.”
(How much concern are you sensing on the part of players for friends and family and property back home, because they are people too?) – “I think a lot of our guys, once we started today, they’ve wired in on what we’re doing. They’ve handled a lot of their business and communicated with the people they need to communicate with back home to figure out what’s going on and our guys have done a good job of keeping focused on what we have to do today. That’s kind of our job.”
(The Dolphins have said that they’re going to help Florida after the hurricane. What’s the plan there?) – “That’s going to be probably something that I worry about when we get through this game. We’ve got a decent flight home so we’re going to have time to discuss. I know some things have been kicked around already. I’ll probably know more of what our starting point is after this game on that flight back, and then Monday and Tuesday, obviously, we’ll be able to figure out what we’re going to do.”
(Given the stretch that you’re in right now: Los Angeles, New York, London, how much of a relief was it to find out that you will, at the end of this, go home and practice in Davie?) – “The fact that we can go back to our facility, our houses, that’s nice. Get back on the east coast and get ready for that next game. We weren’t sure what it was going to be and just to get that answer that soon, that was nice.”
(What kind of a sense do you get from QB Jay Cutler about his desire to play having had his debut delayed a week?) – “He hasn’t changed. He seems like he’s just ready to go play a game, just like the rest of the guys.”
(You have some very high-energy guys. Did you have guys in the last couple of days that seemed like they were bouncing off the walls because they had to wait another week?) – “I don’t think so, I didn’t see that. I saw guys that came here looking for the information that they needed to get ready for this next game, and I just think that they’re ready to play a game.”
(You guys got set up pretty fast. How accommodating was the city and the facility?) – “Everybody’s been great. I got here Saturday and it kind of had already started. The Rams helped us out with a lot of stuff. I don’t know how many IT guys they had sent over here to help our guys. They sent over a whole bunch of stuff as far as equipment that we needed, and made it easy for our guys to get things rolling before our stuff got here. Everybody’s been great and making sure we’re taken care of. It just seems like all hands were on deck to help us out.”
(Did you and your family travel with the team or did you guys leave earlier?) – “No, I left on Wednesday, so I was out of Florida on Wednesday after we found out what was going on and then my family was gone that night.”
(Did you suffer any damage from the hurricane to your property?) – “I have no idea. I haven’t asked. I’m not worried about it.”
(Now that we’re pretty close here to the first game, are you pretty settled in on cornerback and defensive tackle, as far as who’s going to start?) – “We’ll find out Sunday. We’re going to practice this week and see how it goes and then we’ll figure out what we’re going to do on Sunday.”
(What were your thoughts being here and watching all of the hurricane damage back home?) – “It’s a strange perspective, just kind of recognizing a lot of the things, watching it and getting text messages from people back there. You’re so far away. It doesn’t really seem real when you’re watching on TV; but knowing that that’s where you’re from and wondering how everything’s going to play out. There are a lot of friends that we have that are staff and players, that stayed back. So we were getting a lot of information as far as what was going on. We had a lot of guys scattered throughout Florida, too, so we were just getting constant updates with people that were still back there. It’s tough because you know that it’s going to take some time to recover and get things fixed, and it’s going to have to be a lot of people pulling together and finding a way to get things back to the way they were.”
Ndamukong Suh – September 13, 2017 (Conference Call)
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Wednesday, September 13, 2017
DT Ndamukong Suh (Conference Call with Los Angeles media)
(First of all, I hope everything is good for you back in Florida after Hurricane Irma What’s this week been like, football-wise, preparing for a game coming off of something so important back home?) – “First and foremost, thank you. (It is) much appreciated. In regards to football, in my personal opinion, it’s just back to business as normal. I got here on Monday. I’ve been watching film the last couple of days, and we’ve had our first couple of meetings already, so really it’s just having an opportunity to take my mind off a little bit of what’s going on back home in Florida and focus on what’s important out here, and then obviously we’re not worried about football and taking care of that stuff. Obviously the real world hits hard, but it is part of life.”
(It’s a unique situation, you had your game canceled and you have so much time to prepare for the Chargers. How did you guys go about that? Did you watch the Chargers game on Monday night? When did you guys really start prepping for this Chargers team?) – “Yes, it was definitely different. I think everybody’s situation was different. Some guys stayed in Florida and then flew out with the team. I personally left a little bit earlier; I went to go train back home and get prepared in that particular way for myself, assuming that we were eventually going to come out to LA earlier, looking at how the storm was preparing itself and moving along through the weekend. And tell me what your last question was? Sorry, I missed that.”
(You had so much time to prepare for an opponent, almost like a bye week. When did you guys start watching film on the Chargers and did you watch their game Monday night? How did the preparation for the Chargers go for you guys this last week and a half?) – “Like I said earlier, I started Monday and obviously we got into it as a team today for the first time, and also watched some film as well on Tuesday, in working with my coaches. I did watch a little bit of the game on Monday; but for me, I prefer not to watch so much live TV as I like to rewind and look at different things and whatnot.”
(What did you see, in the film you’ve watched so far, that may be different from Chargers teams from the past that you’ve seen, with the new coaching staff and any new personnel you’ve noticed?) – “Yes, (they’ve got) a fairly new offensive line. Matt Slauson is the main consistent guy, I think as well as with their right tackle (Joe Barksdale). Watching overall, primarily in the run game, they have some of their head coach’s (Anthony Lynn) inklings of how he likes things to be done. I think he’s been a running backs coach for the majority of his career and at this stage, that’s as far as I’ve gotten. I’ve watched a little bit of the pass game and obviously seen what they’ve done; but I have an idea of what they plan to do. At the end of the day, understanding and playing against them many times, I believe they’re going to have a particular scheme for us up front, as well as our overall defense, so I really can’t just say that overall they’re going to do this against us.”
(You guys are in a unique situation because of QB Ryan Tannehill’s injury you brought a quarterback in late in the process with QB Jay Cutler. How has he come along and is he up to speed with where he would have been had he been at camp and what’s his effect on the locker room?) – “Jay, in my opinion, has stepped in and it’s been a great situation. I think it’s awesome what he’s been able to do and accomplish with (Head Coach Adam) Gase in Chicago when he was the (offensive coordinator) there. I think the offense he’s familiar with. It didn’t seem like he had too many hiccups. I think the biggest thing that they’re going to have to get used to on the offensive side of the ball, going up against them in camp, is just the timing – different athletes, different guys that he has. I think we’ve got a great core group of skill players that he’s excited about. Obviously, I’ve spent some time with Jay and talked to him and whatnot, so I think overall, we’re not going to find out how great he’s going to be and how great our offense is going to be until we have live bullets, which will be this Sunday; but I think we’re moving in the right direction from obviously going up against him in practice.”
(With Defensive Coordinator Vance Joseph leaving, how different has the defense been or has it been pretty much the same philosophies and schemes as you had last year?) – “I think (Defensive Coordinator Matt) Burke has definitely had his own taste on it, which I enjoy. I’ve been with Burke since really my rookie year. We both were rookies in Detroit together, as it was his first linebackers job officially in the league and me coming out of the draft. Vance is a great coach, I enjoyed him and congratulated him on his win this Monday (against the Chargers). I definitely miss him because he’s a great person, but I’m excited with what we have here with (Defensive Line Coach Terrell Williams) and Burke, as I said before. I’m excited about the season and what we’re going to be able to do. I think we have a great plan and as we’re getting into this week, and really seeing what we’ve got prepared for Tampa, if we played that game, I have a lot of excitement and enjoyment looking forward to the season overall.”
(This is going to be a unique situation, I think for everybody on Sunday, where no one really knows what to expect at an NFL stadium with 27,000 people in it. You’ve played, obviously, in huge games throughout your career. Do you think it can even be loud with that amount of people there? What do you think the environment is going to be like in a stadium that’s so small?) – “Honestly, I’m not too concerned about it. It is going to be a smaller stadium, and obviously less fans, and things of that nature. I can’t think back to a situation in the pros or especially not in college, as Nebraska has 90-100,000 people; but I guess I would just go back to saying it’ll be similar to a high school or a small college, wherever it may be. I could say going out to Florida (International) I believe is where we had our first prep practice and live scrimmage my first year down here in Miami. I can think back to that. That was a smaller stadium and what not; but at the end of the day it’s not really a big focus for me. I think it’ll be loud and exciting and I look forward to just playing.”
Jay Cutler – September 5, 2017
Tuesday, September 5, 2017
QB Jay Cutler
(With this hurricane headed our way are you having second thoughts about coming to Florida?) – “(laughter) No. It’s still warm right now. Obviously we’ve got to be prepared for what’s coming, but I think everyone in South Florida has kind of been through the drill and is well prepared.”
(How weird is it to not know where or when you’re going to play this game?) – “Yes, I mean it is what it is. I mean luckily enough for us, we started Monday, so we’re kind of ready … ready to go. I mean if they want to do Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, we’re kind of open to anything and this team is young and flexible and they’re ready to rock.”
(In Houston after Hurricane Harvey we saw athletes like JJ Watt, James Harden take the lead and try to galvanize the community to help. Do you see that and you think what as it pertains to what could possibly happen here?) – “I think it’s great. I think it definitely gives you a blueprint for what could happen here and what the aftermath could look like and what is, for football players and other pillars of the community, I mean sometimes you’ve got to step in and help out.”
(A couple of network commentators who have said this is the best offensive talent that they believe you’ve played with. Do you agree with that?) – “Every year is different. These guys can definitely play football. I don’t really want to compare these guys to really anybody else because you never know. Really, it takes 11 guys – up front, the guys outside, running the ball, play color – but I like this group. It’s a really good group.”
(Can you put into words what this opportunity for the Dolphins means to you personally?) – “I mean it changes day to day. I’m excited though. Coming to work with these guys and with (Head Coach) Adam (Gase), it’s been a lot of fun. Every day’s a new challenge, but every day is exciting and I’ve just enjoyed it. It’s been fun.”
(Do you appreciate having a fresh start in some sense at 34 years old?) – “I don’t know. I feel grateful I was in the same spot for eight years. There’s a stability to that. There’s a factor you can kind of grow there; but there’s something to being said with a fresh start. Every situation is different.”
(What do you feel like you have to prove at this point in your career?) – “That’s for you guys. I’m really honestly on Tampa Bay. We’re one game at a time here and today was third down and that’s kind of where my mind is at.”
(You were obviously at peace with ending your career after last season had it turned out that way and I know you’re not in the mood for big picture questions, which I totally get but would there be something …) – “But you’re going to ask it anyway (laughter).”
(But would it be satisfying or significant for you to go out on a winning team in a winning … you know contributing to winning again as you had done earlier?) – “Right now it’d be satisfying to go 1-0 and that’s kind of where we’re at. We prepare for Tampa and if we play here, if we play in … you know I’ve heard anywhere in the Southwest. It depends on where we go. If we start 1-0, that would be satisfying, then we’ll move from there.”
(Going no huddle, is that something that would be appealing for you to do a lot? Have you and Head Coach Adam Gase talked about that?) – “Yes, it is part of what we do here. It’s (in our) arsenal. It’s a piece of the puzzle, though. If we can go no huddle and if we’re picking up first downs, if we’re going three-and-out, three-and-out, then we’ve got to re-assess the situation and maybe slow it down and make sure everyone’s on the same page. We haven’t talked about what we’re going to do this game. We kind of have everything up and we’ll play it by ear as we go.”
(You mentioned playing somewhere in the Southwest this weekend?) – “I made that up. I haven’t really actually heard that. (laughter) That was just … I was just kind of throwing that out there. We can play in … I don’t know where we could play.”
(I was going to ask if there was any scenario that’s been discussed with you guys and you mentioned that.) – “No. Do you know something? (laughter)”
(No. no.) – “I mean everything is up in the air. I don’t think they’ve really come to any conclusions. You guys know about as much as I do. You guys probably know more than I do.”
(You had a rough time against this Bucs defense last November. What’s your recollection of this group in your scouting report?) – “Their front seven is really good. You’ve got to take care of some guys up front. The secondary, they’ve gotten better. They mix things up. They’re not afraid to blitz you. They’re not afraid to bring some zeros. A talented group and anytime you play somebody in the first game, they’ve got all offseason to get ready for you. Everyone wants to start 1-0. We’re going to get these guys the best punch.”
(Do you know anything more in South Florida or this area than an hour drive from whereever you’re staying?) – “A few restaurants and that’s probably about it. I mean I’ve been … how long have I been here? Three weeks or so. So I mean it’s pretty much been football and I assume it’s going to continue to kind of just to be football until, if we get a bye this year. I don’t know.”
(How conditioned as a professional athlete are you to leave all that stuff behind when like a hurricane like this is coming at us. Just to think about what you have to do on the field?) – “I’m in a different situation than probably most of these guys because my family’s not here. A lot these guys have a lot on their plate and moving their families and you’ve got people coming in and your house and your cars. I’m kind of one of the few lucky ones that, I’ve got a car here and a bag full of clothes and that’s kind of it. But you’ve got a lot of guys in that locker room that are going through a lot of things in their head and we’ve got to be mindful of that and kind of help them any way possible.”
(How do you keep that from affecting if you play a game, affecting the results of that game?) – “I think these guys are smart enough and kind of mentally tough enough to know when we’re in the building, we’ve got to put some stuff on the backburner. I think the Dolphins organization does a great job of putting people in place to help, help these players in any way possible so they can concentrate on the field.”
(So I assume this is your first hurricane?) – “Yes.”
(And how’s your family with that?) – “I haven’t …. I think they’re fine. I mean I think (my wife) Kristin … We’re probably leaving, I’m assuming? I’m assuming we’re leaving, probably? I don’t know. But if we do, I don’t know. We haven’t had many conversations about it. I’ve kind of been focused on Tampa.”
(How much would changing the bye week, not having a bye week, sort of impact the football team?) – “It’d be tough. It’d be tough, but we’d make it through it. Obviously we’d have to. But I mean our guys kind of need that bye week to get healthy and kind of push through the second half of the season. This is kind of my latest bye week I think I’ve ever had. It’s what, (Week) 11 or 12? Whatever we’ve got. But it’s not an ideal situation not to have a bye for us.”
Jarvis Landry – September 5, 2017
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Tuesday, September 5, 2017
WR Jarvis Landry
(What do you think about the storm coming? Worried for the community? Worried about your own property? Worried for your friends and family?) – “Of course. I think at any time, especially like this, the concern of safety for everybody that could potentially be affected by this is of high concern. I think for us, it’s just finding safety, finding shelter, evacuation routes if need be and kind of go from there.”
(I know you’ve been through this before, but is it tough to worry about football, your own safety and you were getting so hyped up for the first week of the season. Is it kind of tough to balance all that?) – “In a way, but I think for us, one of (Head) Coach (Adam) Gase’s biggest things is when we step in this building – we step in between the lines – we’ve got to be where our feet are. For us, when we’re here, we’re just trying to focus as much as possible as if the game was tomorrow, Sunday – whenever it is. That has been our main focus, main concern and outside of that, our families and taking the necessary precautions to evacuate if need be.”
(Can you talk a little bit about QB Jay Cutler and your impressions of him over the last month and what kind of season do you think he’s capable of having?) – “He’s a stud. He’s a stud. He threw a couple post balls today that got the team fired up a lot. Just the way he has handled himself around the building, just the way he has come in here and communicated with us so well, from the o-line to the receivers to the running backs, it’s really trickling down through the team. It’s allowing us to develop chemistry that is going to allow us to do special things this season.”
(When you have a quarterback like QB Jay Cutler with that level of aggression, in terms of the passes that he throws, how excited does it make a receiving corps?) – “Very. When you have somebody like Jay (Cutler) back there, it’s honestly … There’s not a matchup on the field that he’s not willing to take, especially with DeVante Parker, Kenny Stills, Julius Thomas – even when the backs come out of the backfield – to have an opportunity to really pick where he wants to throw the ball and trusting everybody to make plays and he is going to put it in the right spot for us to have an opportunity to do that. Having a guy like Jay even to extend plays, it’s going to be big for us.”
(What’s QB Jay Cutler’s personality like? What does he joke about? What do you guys joke about with him?) – “Jay is laid back. You would think he would be a bit of a talker, but he’s laid back. He’s here to win. I think that’s his biggest thing. You can see that in the way he handles himself in the building. Again, the way that he communicates with his teammates and with the coaching staff to make sure that we’re one accord.”
(Head Coach Adam Gase said during camp that he and QB Jay Cutler kind of have similar personalities. Do you see that in the huddle? Does it feel like maybe Adam Gase is in the huddle there with you guys?) – “At times. He and Jay definitely have a unique relationship. You can tell that they spend a lot of time together there in Chicago, and it has carried over. You can tell that their relationship continued when Gase came here. The way that those two guys handle themselves, it’s all for the betterment of the team, and that’s the biggest part about the whole thing.”
(QB Jay Cutler has done well in no-huddle throughout his career. Do you expect to do more of that this year than you guys did last year and do you like that approach going fast, no-huddle?) – “We’re hoping to. Whatever puts us in the best situation to run more plays, run more effective plays, not allow the defense to substitute as much. Jay definitely loves to go on the ball, so that’s something that we’ve been trying to emphasize a little bit. It has helped us with our conditioning. Not only being the heat but it has helped us run a little bit more and get our wind up. So, it’s definitely something that we want to take to our advantage.”
(Giants WR Odell Beckham Jr. and you are going into the season tied with career catches. Have you had conversations this week as the regular season is about to start?) – “No, they haven’t. Our relationship has always just been like a friendly competition, brotherly competition, kind of understood, not said. I wish him all the best this year. I wish his whole team the best. I wish we get an opportunity to play him in the Super Bowl. That’d be epic right there.”
(Do you anticipate seeing much of Buccaneers CB Brent Grimes in this game?) – “Yes, I hope so. Honestly, we’re looking forward to the matchup, period. This is the first game of the season. We’ve been waiting for this for a long time. A lot of anticipation, a lot of hype built up from last year. We want to come out and take it one game at a time this season and Tampa Bay is the first team that we get a chance to do that with.”
(Would moving this game to the bye week would it drastically impact you or the season?) – “Like 16 weeks straight?”
(Yes.) – “Yes, man. Listen, it’s a long season. Let’s be honest about it. It’s a long season, and I think the stretch after our bye week is probably one of the toughest – if you want to be real about it – probably the toughest in the NFL. That bye week will give us an opportunity to kind of get some guys healthy. In this NFL, in the league, you’re going to get banged up week in, week out. For us, that bye week, it comes at an appropriate time. For us, to keep it there would be huge; but I know there are unfortunate situations and it’s out of our hands and it’s up to the NFL and the teams to decide what happens; but we could use that bye at that time.”
(So you would rather – not to put words in your mouth – but you would rather the game be relocated than pushed to the bye?) – “I would play today if we could. Obviously, again, that’s up to the team, the NFL, both organizations. If it is moved and we’ve got to play 16 weeks in a row, it’s something that we’ve got to do. We’re going to embrace the process, embrace the challenge and we’re going to make it happen.”
Ndamukong Suh – September 5, 2017
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Tuesday, September 5, 2017
DT Ndamukong Suh
(What are your thoughts about the concerns about the hurricane relative to preparing for a football game.) – “Honestly, we’ve gone through this last year. Looking at that situation and looking at where we are right now, all we can do is really focus on football. Let the higher ups from (Head Coach Adam) Gase and our ownership and our front office be concerned with the game and us prepare. Whether we play it Thursday, Friday, Saturday or Sunday, I believe this team will be ready.”
(How much would moving the game to the bye week – Week 11 – impact you from a football standpoint and from a team standpoint?) – “Like I said, I don’t know what the plan is and I’m not going to really focus on it. I’m just going to be prepared to go against Tampa’s offense, and that’s what I think everybody else is planning on doing. That’s the message that we are, as leaders, going to continue to emphasize on and then when we know we have to play, we’re going to play.”
(Are you worried on a personal level? You have a family, home, everything with a Category 5 potentially heading at us. What are your thoughts about that away from football, about the community and how dangerous this could be?) – “I’m definitely concerned about the community in South Florida as a whole. Really the whole state, especially with a state of emergency. Luckily, my family doesn’t like me so they’re up in Portland, Oregon and Detroit and up north. (laughter) They’re safe for the most part but myself, we’ll figure something out.”
(Any message to the fans about thinking about them or anything like that?) – “Oh yes, I’m definitely thinking about them. Please be safe. Be smart. Obviously listen to all of the messages that are given to people and like I said, be smart.”
(Is there any sort of level of frustration on the players side just wanting to know when the game is going to be?) – “No, I wouldn’t say so. I think our mindset and personally, my mindset, is all concerned about the (Buccaneers) offense and understanding that. This is our second day of practice and (we’re) getting real familiar with Tampa and their particular offense. I’m excited. I’m looking forward to when we will play; but not too concerned because whether it is Thursday, Friday, Saturday or Sunday, it’ll eventually hopefully happen soon.”
(When you’re playing a team without a starting running back – Buccaneers RB Doug Martin has been suspended for this game – how do you prepare in terms of who you prepare for with the backs?) – “I think you prepare for multiple backs as you do for any game. At the end of the day, we know Doug is most likely going to be out. I believe he is suspended; but Jazquizz Rodgers is a great player. I played against him when he was in Atlanta. I’ve known him since he was at Oregon State and I look forward to playing against him and whoever else he has in their committee.”
(What lessons have you taken from last year’s slow start to avoid that and have a fast start this season?) – “I think it’s good for this young team – even though I’m an older guy – that they went through that experience and knew how to fight their way out of it. At the same time, when we look at this particular season coming up, we know it’s a situation we don’t want to put ourselves in. It wasn’t easy to get out of and we didn’t get out the best way; but at the end of the day, it’s a new season. We have new focuses and we understand what we need to do and that’s taking it one game at a time.”
(Most of your season you’ve played 82-85 percent of the snaps. Do you see any change in that? Do you foresee any change in that this year?) – “I’m a guy that loves being on the field so it’s very hard for me to pull myself off. Even though I may be getting older or whatever it may be, I honestly go back home and train to play every single snap as possible. At the end of the day, I’m going to be out there and go 100 miles an hour when I am. When ‘Coach T’ (Defensive Line Coach Terrell Williams) pulls me out and asks me to sit and whatever it may be, obviously we’ve got great young guys that can play in (Davon) Godchaux and Jordan (Phillips) and Vincent (Taylor). If I happen to be on the bench for a couple of plays here and there, so be it. I’m going to cheer those guys on; but when I’m back on, I’m going to go 100 miles per hour.”
(So how does that work? Do you ask out? Do they make you come out? How does it get determined when you’re not there?) – “I don’t know if there’s a true method to the madness. I think if we’re on a 10-play drive and I’m only at 60 percent, it’s time for me to come out; but if I can still go at 100 miles an hour after 10 or 15 plays, I’m going to keep going. I think that’s what the great thing about our defense and our defense is that we’re all interchangeable. All of us can come in and play any particular position whether it’s end, tackle and vice versa.”
(Have you watched any episodes of Hard Knocks this summer and if so, have you taken anything from it?) – “No, I haven’t watched any Hard Knocks. I saw that (the Buccaneers) were on it but no, I didn’t take the time to peak in as I was in camp myself.”
(Your career parallels that of Buccaneers DT Gerald McCoy quite a bit, going back to your days in the Big 12. Is he somebody you’re friendly with and how would you compare your game with his?) – “That’s probably why I was laughing because Gerald was on the face of Hard Knocks and I saw his video. We were together on, I believe, an ESPN shoot this summer. I’m definitely friendly with him. I’ve seen him obviously coming out. We’ve known each other since college. (He’s a) good dude. I love being around him when we’re not going against each other.”
(Speaking of shoots, you were in a commercial there with New Orleans Pelicans C DeMarcus Cousins. How was it and what was that experience like?) – “That was great. I love being able to work with other guys, especially from other sports. Guys that I’ve respected and seen them grown up in their own ways. Especially when he was at Kentucky, he was with some other younger guys that I know from back home that he played with. It’s always fun and exciting to do cool things together so I look forward to more opportunities like it; but it’s good to be around those types of guys and see how they view the world.”
(When they made that pitch to you in terms of playing on your personality, what was your initial reaction to it?) – “It’s always fun to make fun of yourself and be lighthearted. I think as you get mature, you can do more and more of that.”
(Who was the better actor between you and New Orleans Pelicans C DeMarcus Cousins?) – “I don’t know. You have to look at the body of work and he’s done a little bit more. (laughter)”
(In the commercial, there was a license plate that said BLM. Is that more of a subliminal message or is it…) – “Honestly, somebody brought that up to me. I didn’t know about that until somebody mentioned it to me so I really can’t speak on that.”
(As pro athletes, you guys are conditioned to just think about what’s going on here. Do you almost have to be like that when you have a situation like this where there is so much uncertainty?) – “I think to some extent, yes, especially when we’re in the building; but I’m not going to sit here and lie to you. When I go home, I’ve got to take care of my house and do certain things, check in with my parents and make sure …. My dad keeps texting me ‘Make sure you get away and do what you have to do.’ At the end of the day, like I said, we come in here and when we’re in these walls, we focus on what we need to focus on. And then at the same time, you have to be human and understand what’s going on and be able to adjust and adapt to certain situations.”
(How do you feel physically after going through all of training camp and then having a little bit of a break there?) – “I feel great. I think ‘Coach T’ (Defensive Line Coach Terrell Williams) did a great job for us older guys. There are very few of us but I feel honestly great. I look forward to going into the season and playing all 16 plus.”
