Adam Gase – October 17, 2016
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Monday, October 17, 2016
Head Coach Adam Gase
(Adam, we know, obviously, what DE Cameron Wake can do as a pass rusher over many years. We saw DE Andre Branch get 1.5 sacks yesterday. How did they play? And not only yesterday, but what’s your perception of them as run defenders – those two guys?) – “I thought they both did a good job. (They did a) really good job of executing the plan that ‘V.J’ (Defensive Coordinator Vance Joseph) and those guys had in place. When they tried to run the ball, they were … a high percentage of time they were in the right gap and doing the right thing. Obviously, everybody had mistakes across the board, whether it be players or coaches. The good thing is a high percentage of time we were right. So, that gave us the best chance to have a lot more smaller gains.”
(Why go with that switch now at this point?) – “Every week we’re always going to look for the best lineup for us for that week. That was the lineup we wanted to go with this week. I know Vance and myself – just in the discussions we’ve had – we felt like we needed to move some pieces around (and) see what we could do different.”
(So, it was matchup specific?) – “I think a little bit of it was the fact that we got crushed by Tennessee, and they ran the ball all over us. We’re not going to stay the same. We’re never just going to shrug our shoulders and be okay with poor production, so we made a change.”
(Adam, there was a real sense of a turnaround yesterday. How confident are you that what happened is something you can build on?) – “I think it all goes back to when you come back today, you fix what you need to fix on film and then when you come back Wednesday and you’re 0-0 again. If we come back and think that winning one game is more important than whatever happened the previous weeks, then that’s when you’re going to put yourself in a bad situation. We need to come back Wednesday, and we’ll start over again. We’ve got to get ready for our next opponent. When we hit Sunday, nobody is going to care what we did the last week.”
(How’s TE Dion Sims?) – “He’s in the concussion protocol. That’s where it’s at right now, and that’s out of my hands.”
(Adam, your highs don’t seem too high and your lows don’t seem too low. Has that always been the way you’ve modeled yourself, or did you learn that from someone?) – “I think a little bit of it was the experience that I have had, whether it be being with Coach (Nick) Saban, leaving college to where we won quite a bit – won an SEC championship – and then going to Detroit (and) being there for five years and then just realizing this league is very difficult. The talent is so tight and every week is so different. You just never know what team is going to come out on top every week. It doesn’t matter where you’re ranked in the power rankings. Nobody cares on Sunday. It’s about guys going out there, doing their job, being ready for that game. That’s why when you lose a game, you do everything you can to not let one become two. Same thing when you win. You do what you do as well as you can, you win, you clean things up and you try to perform better the next week and try to make it two wins. In this league, you can’t go one way or the other. You better be ready to go the next week.”
(You’ve been critical at times of your own play calling. When you went back and watched yesterday’s game, what were you glad you did?) – “I think Kenny (Stills) coming back after that first – I think it was a third-and-10 and we threw an incompletion to Jarvis (Landry) – and him coming back and he told me, ‘Next third down just take a shot. They’re going to sit all over anything.’ So, that’s what we did. It was the 2-minute, I think, when we had that double move with Jarvis. That’s good player information coming back, because you can’t see everything all the time. You’ve got guys up in the booth, but the players are your best source of information, because they can tell you exactly how a guy is playing (them). Him coming back, that was big for me, because that put that in my head – wrote it down – and then once we got that opportunity again, it was giving one of those guys a chance to make a play. Ryan (Tannehill) did a good job of getting the ball out there. Jarvis did a great job of making that catch, because that was not an easy play just for the fact that he took a good shot to the back. But that was a big play in the game.”
(Adam, you’re pretty much even keeled, but there was a point there in the middle of the third – toward the end of the third – you got everybody together and there was a message – a clear message – there. Were you feeling in a good rhythm?) – “I don’t even remember, so that’s not good.”
(You have three players that are eligible to come off PUP or NFI. How far away is DE Dion Jordan from being able to practice? Do you think CB Chris Culliver will be limited this week or might he be able to go full-go?) – “I think we’ll have Zach (Vigil) and (Chris) Culliver be able to go through individual (drills) and see where they’re at. I don’t expect the same for Dion (Jordan). We’ll see where that is. I think this is going to be really week-to-week for us at this point, with all these guys. You can feel good at about one guy thinking, ‘We’re way ahead of schedule,’ or ‘We think we’re in good shape,’ and all of a sudden they go out there and it’s not right. We’ll have to go about our process (with) trainers, sports science – that whole crew that we deal with – doctors, and we’ll see where it ends up at the end of the week. We’re in no rush for anything. We just want to make sure those guys feel as good as they can before we actually activate anybody.”
(What makes you confident that the success that you guys have running the ball can be sustained?) – “Because of the five guys up front. That’s, maybe, the biggest difference for us. We actually had our five starters. Jay (Ajayi) did a great job as far as he saw a hole, he hit it. That’s part of the process of going through a new offense. Guys start feeling comfortable, they understand what’s going on, they know what their job is. The receivers did a great job of blocking. Tight ends did a great job. Guys knew exactly what they were doing, they knew why we were doing it and that started with the fact that the preparation was great. We had a good week of practice. Guys took extra time, made sure they knew why we were doing everything. When you do that, it gives you your best chance. And then obviously, with our five starting offensive lineman getting ready to play, it made a big difference.”
(How does disguising coverage as long as you guys did pre snap, how does that benefit the defense?) – “I think it gives them … It’s like being a step ahead. It makes the quarterback think maybe that half-second more than he wants to. You know in this league, the rush is coming quick. You’ve got to make a decision. When you’re a little bit late, that’s going to (cause) problems. That’s why we were constantly … We want to give that pass rush a chance to get going. If we can do some things and disguising coverages to where it makes them hold onto the ball a little bit longer, that’s beneficial to us.”
(Adam, was there any level of apprehension before the game regarding the offensive line, because it was their first game together, the five of them?) – “No. I felt good about it. Thinking back to the (preseason) Dallas game, that was really probably the last time where I really felt like we were rolling. So, I felt really good.”
(Adam, there was a play in the game where QB Ryan Tannehill rolled hard left and threw across his body down the sideline deep. What did the tape show you on that throw? It looked like one of the best throws he has had in a long time.) – “Especially rolling to the left, he never set his feet and then he threw it a long ways it seemed like. I don’t know the exact yardage. I know it was over 50 yards, but it was a good throw. Good play by him, because the scheme was really garbage, and he didn’t have anywhere to go, and he made a play.”
(How did RB Arian Foster get through the game?) – “I think okay. Obviously, you could tell that he wanted to have an extra gear there. I know he was trying to hit it a couple times. I don’t know if he’s really even close to 100 percent, but I know he felt like him being dressed and being out there and trying to contribute was beneficial to us, because his leadership means something to a lot of guys, and he does so many things right for us. He made some good plays in that game, especially in the passing game and the protection. I know even though he’s not 100 percent, he brings a lot to the table, and I know a lot of guys … He’s one of those guys. He has a calming effect on a lot of people.”
(QB Ryan Tannehill’s escapability showed in this particular game. Do you think that’s something that he could build on going forward, and do you think that can be in him?) – “I think a lot of guys will build off of this game. As far as what he was able to do, this game was good. I think it starts with the fact that our o-line was very good in protection. He didn’t get hit a whole bunch. The one time that he got hit was on that third-and-10, which was really good protection. We kind of just got stuck there in the back of the pocket. He was trying to hit that thing in rhythm and kind of got too deep on his drop. The other time was a quick pass and he just got bumped a little bit. I don’t know if he got hit really the rest of the day. Those guys did such a good job it made his job easier, and then all of a sudden it opens up the running game, because they start playing a little more two-high, because they’re trying to stop the passing game, and then all of a sudden the run lanes were opening up. It’s all phases of the game playing off each other, but it started with the o-line being able to be very good in pass protection, and then they were very good in the run game.”
(What has surprised you most about RB Jay Ajayi?) – “I don’t know if anything surprises me, because he did yesterday what he had showed us all through the spring. He had done it in training camp practices. I think I’ve said it; he had a rough seven days between the last preseason game and the first game, or 10 days, whatever it was. But every other part of it, he has been the same guy. I felt like yesterday was a good example of letting him get into a rhythm, and he’s a big man running down a hill at a good rate, and he can break tackles, and he knows where to go as far as what we’re doing in our run-scheme. If we get him going, we just keep trying to get him the ball.”
(How much did you enjoy WR Jarvis Landry on the first punt return coming face-to-face with a Pittsburgh player instead of going out of bounds are trying to evade him and basically lowered his shoulder?) – “That’s his game. He’s never going to shy away from anybody. We talked about trying to set the tempo for us. We felt like that was a big deal. We need to start playing more physical as an entire football team. I think he saw an opportunity there and he took advantage of it and wasn’t going to shy away from contact.”
(How big has it been for you guys to have this long home stretch to kind of get things turned around and not really have to worry about travel?) – “In this league, you go with the flow with those kinds of things. What we have is rare. I don’t know if anybody’s really been able to do this before. The fact that … I know the answer to that, I was joking on that. I know being able to be home this week, a bye and then home again, that’s good for our guys for things as far as injuries and being able to kind of sleep in your own bed and not worry about making two-day trips and staying in hotels. That’s always kind of a refreshing thought for players and coaches.”
(You have (Dion) Sims and (Jordan) Cameron in the (concussion) protocol. Have you seen enough from (Thomas) Duarte on the practice squad to justify maybe bringing him up or might you have to look outside?) – “I’m not sure what I’m really looking to do right now. (General Manager) Chris (Grier), (Executive Vice President, Football Operations) Mike (Tannenbaum) and myself will get together tonight and we’ll kind of plan out what we want to do. But we’ve got a lot of options, whether it be him or someone else, or not bring anybody (in). We’ll just see how this whole thing shakes out.”
(TE MarQueis Gray and TE Dominique Jones, did they exceed maybe what you expected yesterday? We saw some great blocks and obviously 90 receiving yards between the two of them) – “They’ve been doing a good job. ‘D.J.’s’ (Dominique Jones) been with me a couple of times. I’ve always felt comfortable with him. That was one of the main reasons he’s back is he knows the system. He knows how to operate in it. He did a good job and run blocking. ‘Q,’ (MarQueis Gray) he did an unbelievable job as far as being able to step in and he knew exactly what to do. And Dion (Sims) was doing a great job as far as the physicality part of the game and ‘Q’ (MarQueis Gray) did a great job of stepping in and keeping that rolling. They were very aggressive with the outside linebackers and d-ends. It was good to see those guys really step up.”
(Any update on TE Jordan Cameron and his possible return?) – “Not really. He’s still in the protocol. We’re kind of just going through the steps that we have to go through. It’s one of those things that you have no control over it. I talk to him just to see how he’s doing and get as much of an update as I can, but the league kind of handles all this and then we just play off of that.”
(Is there point where you’re going to have to make a decision on TE Jordan Cameron?) – “I don’t think we’re on any time table or deadline or anything like that.”
(What impresses you about Jarvis Landry, technically speaking as far as a receiver?) – “I think what he’s trying to do as far as, you don’t have many guys that are going to try to set the tempo of the game. Even that first reception he had, he wasn’t trying to run out of bounds. He tries to cut it back in and takes on the defender head on. He’s always trying to get every inch he can and you appreciate guys like that because it’s rare. I mean you don’t see a lot of guys do that. You don’t see a lot of receivers really fight for every inch. When he is the primary guy and he knows it, he’s going to make sure he gets open. When you have a guy like that, it’s kind of that I won’t be denied attitude, it makes it really easy for the quarterback because you don’t have to look anywhere else.”
(And the effort WR Jarvis Landry gave you on Pittsburgh’s onside kick?) – “Yes. That makes you … I know this, when I saw them go in that direction, there’s a comforting feeling knowing that he’s the guy that’s going to be handling the ball. He’s one of those guys that will just get the job done, no matter what it looks like, no matter how hard he’s going to get hit. That ball went up in the air, I saw him going at it and I was like, ‘We’re good.’ And that’s a good feeling to have.”
(Speaking of onsides, take us through your thinking in the first half?) – “We were looking to steal a possession and it didn’t work out. But it was good. It was a good thought. That’s kind of what … We wanted to be aggressive in this game. We felt good because we had so many guys healthy. We felt like we had our team ready to go for this game and those guys were ready to go. We told them we weren’t going to play scared in this game. We’re not going to play … We were going to play to win.”
(What was the difference from the defensive standpoint, outside of the edge setting, that made you guys so successful in the pass coverage?) – “I think the first thing that helps is they had 53 plays instead of 76. They did a great job that first series of getting off the field. We had a long drive, they’re on the sideline, they’re fresh, they come back out, three-and-out and we have a long drive. I mean it just … It makes life a lot easier for those guys when they don’t feel like on offense we are going three-and-out, three-and-out, three-and-out and they’re trying to hold everything together. That’s how we built this defense was we need to figure out a way to get a lead so those guys can do what they do. And then, we have good pass rushers, and we want to get a lead so the other team has to throw it, so we can go after them.”
(This might be a dumb question. You have a touchdown called back on T Ja’Wuan James, the illegal formation?) – “That wasn’t Ja’Wuan’s (James) fault.”
(They called it back. They check … don’t they review every touchdown? Couldn’t they check the formation?) – “The penalties … Once the penalty is thrown, that’s it. You’re not going to get that one back. And (the officials) weren’t wrong. I thought they were but they weren’t wrong. (laughter)”
Ndamukong Suh – October 16, 2016 (Postgame)
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Sunday, October 16, 2016
Postgame – vs. Pittsburgh
Miami Dolphins DT Ndamukong Suh (transcribed by Jason D. Silver)
(What was the feeling in the locker room? We could hear it from here. It sounded like it was pretty enjoyable for you guys.) – “Yeah. I think we played a pretty good game without looking at the all the film and all the details, but obviously came out with the W. That’s what we wanted to accomplish. We always want to accomplish it when we are at home and especially take care of our home field advantage.”
(Pittsburgh you’d expect, I’m sure, of them to come out and run the ball. Much like you saw last week. What were you guys able to do differently to keep them from success?) – “Personally I think we understood exactly their running game. In my personal opinion it’s not very complicated. They just have great running backs and a pretty good offensive line – allows their running back to find holes and make plays. He’s very patient. We allowed them not to be patient. We made him make decisions and had to go and tackle him and that’s what we did.”
(You guys had one sack in the game but put on a lot of pressure and make Ben (Roethlisberger) move back and move around the pocket. What were you were guys able to get done there?) – “We knew we were going to have an opportunity to get back there, especially with Ben, him holding the ball and when we got an opportunity to get back there we wanted to make sure we put him down on the ground no matter what. Obviously got to him. He went out for a little bit, came back in. Still wanted to put pressure on him.”
(How much confidence for this team does a win like this bring to you?) – “I think it’s good. I think we understand that we can still play at a very high level and it’s about cleaning up our mistakes. I think for the most part we did that and it proved us right that we could obviously come out with W’s when we do that.”
Cameron Wake – October 16, 2016 (Postgame)
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Sunday, October 16, 2016
Postgame – vs. Pittsburgh
Miami Dolphins DE Cameron Wake (transcribed by Ted Leshinski)
(Cam, defensively you guys made a lot of plays and put a lot of pressure on Ben Roethlisberger and caused a lot of problems for him, knocked him out of the game. How did you feel going into this one?) – “It started way back probably Tuesday evening, Wednesday. It started with good a plan from the coaching staff and the guys buying in. Everybody saying, ‘Listen, I’m going to do my part,’ not over complicating, not thinking about all the stuff going on but just beat your man. And if everybody does that individually, we should have a good day. It started from the top and coach put a good plan together and guys executed.”
(You got the start. You got more opportunities. Does that give you a better chance to get a feel of the game and to play a game to the level you want to play at?) – “Well, everything seems to be a little bit more fun when you win. I’ve been a guy who believes in the process, believes in the coaching staff. They told me that I’d probably get a little more action this week, with the situation of the game and the plan, and I just made sure I was prepared for it. Things kind of worked out to the benefit of everybody and it was fun being out there.”
(How do you build on this game and help it to benefit you going forward through the rest of the season?) – “Well, the process doesn’t change. Regardless of what happens on Sunday – whether you’re out there licking your wounds or celebrating – Sunday night, Monday afternoon-ish, that’s kind of where you’ve got to put everything behind you and move forward. So, of course the guys and everybody are feeling good about themselves and I told them to celebrate tonight, but tomorrow afternoon it’s time to move on to the next one. I know the guys will enjoy it. We got another one coming up soon so we’ll have to be ready.”
(It was a strange week. You start the week off with a couple of guys being released, changes being made. Did any of that affect the way you guys played going into this game?) – “I like to think that football is a game for men. Part of this game is you lose guys – whether it’s a shoelace, hamstring or business. We made some changes on the roster but again, that’s not new. That’s happened over and over again through the history of football and you have to know, ‘Hey, next man up.’ If that’s the situation, you’ve got to be ready. You’ve got to be ready to go and you’ve got to move on with the guys you have in the locker room. I think the guys we’ve got here know what’s expected of them and, of course, the guys went out and they played hard today on both sides of the ball.”
(Cam, what can you say about how your DB’s did back there? It seemed like they got into Antonio Brown’s head a little) – “Well, a pass rusher’s best friend is always the guys in the back end, so doing whatever they can do to help, the quarterback makes bad decisions or maybe throws the ball errantly; and up front we’re doing the same things, trying to help them out and today they played to the level that’s expected. It’s not surprising to me. It’s not something out of the ordinary. I think that’s the way we expect them to play, day-in and day-out. We’ve being saying it for weeks – (we have to) play complimentary football, whether its offense, defense, front end, back end, all around. That’s the only way you’re going to win. You can’t just have the DB’s playing great and the front line stinking up the place; or the offense playing great and the DB’s dropping the ball. It has to be all facets – front to back, side to side, playing together and that’s the way you win games.”
(Cam, off the ball on the snap it seemed like you were really fast, even more than usual. Did you feel like you timed it better?) – “I looked faster than usual? What do you think? I guess I ate my Wheaties this morning, I don’t know. (laughter) I just felt good going out there and getting after it. I’d have to go back and watch the tape to see if I agree or not. But again, just getting out there and getting into a rhythm. My number was called and just going out there and doing my best to help the team, that part was fun. Of course the win helps everything feel a little better, and I look forward to the next one.”
(We saw one of the Steelers defensive players late in the game throwing up on the field. Did you feel like they were gassed?) – “Was it hot? (Laughter) It felt like a beautiful summer day out there in South Florida. That’s kind of what we’re used to. I didn’t notice anybody throwing up. To me, it’s just another day in South Florida. We practice in this every day. We play in it every day. What’s the temperature in Pittsburgh? I have no idea. It’s probably autumn already up there. That’s just part of football. Later in the year, we’re going to be in places where it’s freezing cold and you’ve got to deal with the elements. But, again, I think that’s why it’s the greatest game in the world because there are so many other factors you’ve got to factor in. You’ve got to beat not just your opponent but the heat, or pain, or whatever it is. That is just the nature of this business. You’d have to ask them if they were gassed.”
(Cam, what part about the way the defense preformed today can fit into sort of the ideal identity of the group moving forward?) – “It’s just complimentary football. I spoke about it earlier; it’s about the front end and back end playing together. You can’t, like I said earlier, you can’t have DB’s playing their butts off and the front end dropping the ball. It doesn’t work that way. You’ve got to play together. For weeks we’ve been saying, ‘Hey listen, once we get this thing a full game, 60 minutes, front end, back end, offense, defense, playing together, playing complimentary, I think everybody will be happy with the outcome.’ Today, that’s something we did well and, again, it’s fun for now but we’ve got to make sure we move forward and continue to build off that and take it into the next one.”
(Do you believe in the idea of statement victories or signature victories, and if so, would this qualify?) – “A win’s a win. It’s hard to win in this league. I don’t care who it is. I don’t believe in a win like a statement – to who? To you? Oh well, it’s a win. It’s a game where every game, every time you got to go out there, you’ve got to fight, you’ve got to scratch, you’ve got to claw. So to me, every game’s a statement.”
(At the beginning of the season you seemed comfortable with the plan they had for kind of limiting you a little bit to get going. Do you feel physically ready now for your regular work load?) – “Regular is a relative term, I guess. I’m ready for whatever situation calls for my services. If it’s the way it was before, if it’s the way it was today. I know that the situation of the game or the plan for the week can change. That’s just the nature of this game. When my number is called, I’m going to go in there and do everything I can to help the team. I’ve been comfortable with that since the day I stepped on the field.”
Branden Albert – October 16, 2016 (Postgame)
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Sunday, October 16, 2016
Postgame – vs. Pittsburgh
Miami Dolphins LT Branden Albert (transcribed by David Norwood II)
(Opening Statement) – “We wanted to a statement today. We don’t want to get overconfident, but we are healthy – all five of us. I wanted to see what we can do, and I think we did a good job. We can play ball. We can play physical.”
(Are those power inside runs in terms of what you guys were doing?) – “We were doing everything today – whatever coach called. It was inside, double team, outside zone. We did it all today.”
(How comfortable were you given you had everybody out there?) – “I felt good. We had all our guys for the first time. It was good. (We) had our Pro Bowl center (Mike Pouncey), our Pro Bowl right guard (Jermon Bushrod). I was the left (tackle), Pro Bowl left tackle. We had our two young guys playing right (tackle) and left guard, so it was good today, man. It was a good feeling.”
Ryan Tannehill – October 16, 2016 (Postgame)
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Sunday, October 16, 2016
Postgame – vs. Pittsburgh
Miami Dolphins Quarterback Ryan Tannehill (transcribed by Sara Perez)
(A little different than last week, you were protected well today. Can you talk about the job that the guys up front did for you?) – “Yes, (the) guys up front did a heck of a job all day – first and foremost, running the football. They pounded the guys up front and created running lanes. Jay (Ajayi) ran hard, (the running) backs ran hard, just falling forward (and) getting those tough yards. In the pass game, they kept me clean. I was able to go one-two in my progressions, and when you’re able to do that, you can actually throw the football and make a few plays. (It was) huge having those starters back in the lineup for us and the whole front just played really well today. Guys played hard the whole game; tight ends stepped up. Dion (Sims) went down and had MarQueis (Gray) and ‘D.J.’ (Dominique Jones) really step up and come in and play well for us. I think it’s something we can build off of, for sure.”
(How comforting was it for you to walk into that huddle and see those five guys there all together for the first time this season?) – “It’s huge. It’s huge. Just having our starting line in the game is huge. The ability obviously, to protect, to push in the run game, obviously changes the whole game for us. The confidence I had stepping into that huddle was huge. We had a couple of guys go down at times in the game and had (Kraig) Urbik and (Anthony) Steen come in there at different times, and ‘Bush’ (Jermon Bushrod) move out to tackle. So, (they) still got shuffled a little bit, but they had kind of set the tempo, the tone for the game early in the game and so when we had those other guys step in, they did a good job too.”
(When you come into this game, did you have any thought that you’d have RB Jay Ajayi rush for 204 yards in a game like this against a physical defense like Pittsburgh?) – “I probably wouldn’t have said 200. I knew we were going to come in and be aggressive rushing the football, but when you can rush for 200 yards – I don’t know how many total we had – but when you have a guy go over 200 yards and definitely the team over that, you’re going to be in a good position to win a lot of games. Obviously, you’re not going to be able to do that every week, but if you can establish a run like we did today, get positive yards in the run game, get first downs in the run game, it really opens up a lot of the playbook for us and things down field. It takes pressure off the pass-rush and the receivers because there’s just more time to get them the football.”
(This seems like the first game all season we’ve been able to see Adam Gase’s offense through 60 minutes and a lot of different things out there. Were you happy being able to get everything, to do the different plays, to do the different things that he wants to bring in this offense and see it out here today?) – “Yes, it’s huge. When you’re staying on the field converting third downs, getting first downs on first and second down, it’s huge. You get some momentum, you get to run more plays, have more chances to have explosive plays and that’s what we’re looking for. I think all year we’ve been looking for our offense to come out, play well and keep the defense off the field. We’ve had our defense on the field way too much through the first quarter of the season and really that’s kind of what we’re looking for – to get a lead, to get our defense some rest on the sideline, let our pass-rushers come out and pass-rush. So, you can kind of see when we get in that position what can happen.”
(Early in the game you were moving the ball, but you had a penalty that erased a touchdown, you had a dropped touchdown pass and you were settling for field goals. Was there a concern that we’re not maximizing, this could come back to hurt us later on?) – “Honestly it never crossed my mind. Obviously, (we were) frustrated to leave the field without scoring a touchdown when you have opportunities to; but I felt confident in the way we were moving the football, the way guys were making plays that, ‘Hey, it’s a long game of course.’ As the year goes on, sometimes those things are going to hurt you. We need to be able to make those plays and get it corrected; but the way the guys were moving the ball up front, the time they were giving me in the pass game, just gave me a lot of confidence that we were going to be able to move the ball the whole game and get down there and have other opportunities. We came into this game saying, ‘Hey, let’s move the ball and get points.’ So, coming away with a field goal when you’re down and tight is not what you’re looking for, but we were moving the football and getting points and now we just need to be better with our efficiency once we get inside the red zone.”
(Ryan, is this an indication of what this team can be and what does it mean for your team going forward?) – “Yes, it’s definitely an indication. Like I said, we finally played complementary football – we let our pass-rushers rush, kept them off the field, moved the ball on offense, converted on third down and kind of played the way we want to play. It’s definitely a glimpse of what we can do, now we just have to build off of it and show up every week like this.”
(Ryan, besides the obvious, not getting sacked, your uniform stayed clean – does your body feel different right now even after a game like this where you’re not taking those hits?) – “What do you think? (Laughter). We’ll line you up there and let you get hit a few times (laughter). (You don’t have any red blotches on your body) – “Yes, not too bad. Like I said, it’s a different game whenever you’re able to go through a progression and not get hit, give me a clean pocket to let our receivers get open, able to go one-two to three in the progression and that’s huge. You’re able to just keep getting positive plays and not have that negative setback that makes it second-and-long, third-and-long. When you’re in third-and-manageable, you’re going to have opportunities to keep moving the chains.”
(LS John Denney had spoken to the team yesterday, is that accurate?) – “Yes.”
(What did he say, how did that come across, longest tenured player on the team.) – “Yes, we have a player speaker every Saturday night. It was John’s turn and he did a great job. Just telling us you reap what you sow and if you want to expect success on the weekends then you have to put in the work during the week and it’s a true statement, no matter where you are in life – whether you’re playing football or working in accounting. The work you put in is going to directly affect the success you have. It was good – a guy who has played a lot of football, been around, seen a lot of good football players throughout his time here and it’s a great lesson to live by.”
(You’ve mentioned the word ‘confidence’ and how the blocking up front gave you more confidence and allowed the team to build, can you explain to folks that don’t play, that haven’t played how that affects performance, how that affects how you feel about the game and your job?) – “Yes, it’s huge. Just knowing that you’re going to have time to get to number one, to get to number two in the progression is huge. Just having that confidence that you’re not going to have a free runner come and hit you before you’re able to really do your job. So, it’s huge and I think our guys set the tone early with doing that and then were consistent throughout the game.”
(Ryan, it’s a pretty muggy day out there, did you sense the defense wilting in the second half a little bit? They were on the field a long time and they looked like they were gassed.) – “Yes, it’s big whenever you can put those long drives together (and) keep pushing the ball down the field. I think right at the end of the half, we were on the goal line after the big play to Jarvis (Landry) and I saw a couple of their linebackers puking on the field. When you get in that position, when you’re able to use South Florida to our advantage – we train in this every day and we’re ready for it. So, obviously it does affect us too, but we should be in better shape and able to handle it better than anyone that comes down here. So, we need to be able to use that to our advantage and to do that, we have to stay on the field and keep marching the ball down the field and we did that today.”
Adam Gase – October 16, 2016 (Postgame)
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Sunday, October 16, 2016
Postgame – vs. Pittsburgh
Miami Dolphins Head Coach Adam Gase (transcribed by Michelle Stone)
(Coach, you didn’t get the chance to enjoy your first win here at Hard Rock Stadium. This one, it feels a little better to you?) – “Yes. That was good, team football right there. That’s what we’re looking to do. I’m sure there are going to be some things we’ll want to clean up, but that’s what we need to be more consistent with.”
(When you look at this game, that offensive line being intact for the first time, how much did that affect the game?) – “You tell me. A lot, right?”
(204 yards rushing for RB Jay Ajayi, 474 yards.) – “It makes a big difference when you have holes and the quarterback is not on his back.”
(Can you talk about the day that RB Jay Ajayi had for you?) – “He did a good job of being patient. He did exactly what we talked about all week as far as what we wanted to do run game-wise, the scheme. The line did a great job of pushing those guys vertically and letting him get some space and stick his foot in the ground and go. He was very good at what we were trying to do today.”
(How much is the game easier for QB Ryan Tannehill when all of the other things are going well out there?) – “When you’re not getting pressured and hit every other play, it makes a big difference. That’s any quarterback in the league. When you’re protected, you’re able to run the ball, you can get an eight-, 12-play drive, you get a little bit of a rhythm. It makes a big difference.”
(Your tight ends made a big impact in the game. Everyone that was in there it seemed made big plays for you.) – “It was a shame that – Dion (Sims) was playing really well – (and) he goes out. ‘D.J.’ (Dominique Jones) and ‘Q’ (MarQueis Gray) did a great job though of coming in and being ready to go. ‘D.J.’ – for the fact he has only been here a couple of weeks, and kind of getting thrown in there, and all of a sudden he had a huge role. Both those guys, they played tough. We didn’t lose anything in the running game. They were aggressive at the line of scrimmage, even though that’s not really their forte. They did a great job.”
(CB Byron Maxwell on WR Antonio Brown made some good plays as well.) – “The way that (Defensive Coordinator) Vance (Joseph) had the defense set up – how they wanted to play him – the guys executed exactly what we talked about all week. They did a great job of making adjustments on the sidelines and just making sure that everyone was good technique-wise. That was going to be the big thing for us: we needed to do a good job as far as if we’re supposed to be outside technique, we stayed there, and we pushed him to the safety. At the end of the day, I’m sure we’ll go back and look at a couple of things as far as our tackling, but guys were flying at the ball, trying to make plays, and were trying to gang-tackle.”
(Defensively, what was the best thing that you guys did, whether it’s keeping QB Ben Roethlisberger in check, RB Le’Veon Bell, WR Antonio Brown, the two sacks, the two interceptions?) – “Anytime you get turnovers and you change the field and you get points off turnovers, that’s always going to be big. That’s going to change the game; it shorts the field. Those guys did a great job as far as … When I say they executed exactly what (Defensive Coordinator) Vance (Joseph) wanted them to do – (with) listening to what they talked about and what they practiced and watching them practice – they did exactly what they were coached to do.”
(Do you think releasing guys after five games in any way affected or motivated the rest of the team?) – “I don’t know. You’d have to ask them. For me, it was just time for us to make a change.”
(Speaking of changes, RB Arian Foster didn’t play a whole lot. RB Jay Ajayi played a lot. Injury related?) – “Coming into the game, that was kind of the plan. We were probably going to use Arian a little more on third down, and keep Jay in there and let him get going, get a little bit of a rhythm. Arian, he was trying to give a little bit of a burst. That was my fault leaving him there on the third-and- 1. That really wasn’t smart on my part. He’s trying to fight for us. He’s trying to be out there, because he knows his leadership is valuable. Him just being on the sideline is valuable when he’s able to play. If he can give us a couple plays – even though he’s not 100 percent – for him to come out there and want to be a part of what we were doing, that was outstanding effort on his part. Obviously, I put him in a couple of bad situations.”
(Adam, big picture, as you just talked about – you were staring at 1-5 down the barrel if you don’t get it done today. Just talk about the importance of not only winning this game today, but beating a team like Pittsburgh.) – “This game was just the next one. That’s not how we go about it. I’ve never think about it like that. I’ve never look at records. Until someone tells you you’re out, I never worry about it.”
(Did today suggest to you what this team can be if guys are on their stuff?) – “I think today does make me feel like when we play team football, it makes a big difference when our defense has 53 plays over 76. That’s because the offense actually stayed on the field for more than three-and-out, three-and-out, three-and-out. That’s why when the offense gets going, that helps the defense and vice versa. When the defense is three-and-out, and we’re getting eight-play drives, it makes a big difference. You can see what happens: those guys get going, we’re able to play coverage, all of a sudden they’re in there with four, we don’t have to pressure, everyone does what they’re supposed to do. It’s a big difference.”
(Adam, RB Jay Ajayi didn’t travel to Seattle Week 1. Today he rushes for 204 yards. Can you just explain how far he’s come from that point to today?) – “He just had about a bad five days. I’m sure all of us have had that five bad days at some point in your life. That’s what happens sometimes. We’ve got a lot of young guys. We had a meeting the other day with maybe it was 26 guys – first or second year players. That’s a lot of guys. We’re going to have guys make mistakes. We’re going to have some growing pains, and we’re going to have some issues as far as guys being late, guys not being where they’re supposed to. We’ve got to grow through that; we’ve got to grow up quick.”
(You’ve had tough Sundays before this where you felt confident. Does this serve as proof, as evidence, that you can be this kind of team? Does it help you going forward coaching your guys?) – “I think the thing that today proved to a lot of our guys, and a lot of our coaches, (was) what you possibly could be, but this league’s week-to-week. What we do today has no merit on what we’re going to do next Sunday. Nobody will care. Once we hit next Sunday, no one’s going to care what we did this week. So, we have to go back to work. We’re 0-0 again on Monday, and then we’re going to get ready for the next game.”
(Can you talk about the decision to play DE Cam Wake in running situations and DE Mario Williams didn’t play as much?) – “We decided to make some changes. That’s all it was. We felt like that was the right move for us for this game.”
(Can you sum up what this past week has been for you from where you left a week ago here to tough decisions to changes results-wise? Was it just a typical NFL week?) – “It’s the same as it has always been. Make some moves, and that’s a part of the business, get to Wednesday and start everyone at practice. And then you can’t wait until the next one, because then you can forget about the last one.”
Jarvis Landry – October 16, 2016 (Postgame)
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Sunday, October 16, 2016
Postgame – vs. Pittsburgh
Miami Dolphins Wide Receiver Jarvis Landry (transcribed by David Norwood II)
(Jarvis, it’s been a long time since this locker room had this much joy, how good does it feel to get a win against a team that a lot of people kind of picked you guys to take an L?) – “It felt great, it felt great. Like I said earlier, to see all the hard work and effort these guys put in every week; for this to be the outcome. It feels great, it feels great.”
(Jarvis, what did you see on the onside kick?) – “The ball, my job on that play is to pretty much go up and get the ball. Regardless of the circumstances, obviously understand that I’m going to get hit but trust in my guys in front of me to go get those guys. If not, the whole point of that play is for us to get the ball. For me I just want to get it at its highest point and that’s what I did.”
(How good does it feel to finally get everything you guys have practiced on the field all at one time? Finally coming into play) – “Again, we put it in during the week. We put it in during the week, from just coaches forcing Jay (Ajayi) to run to the end zone every time he touches the ball. Then, our receivers coach forcing us to run behind him every time. Coincidentally, that’s how it ended tonight. For us it’s something again, that I’ve seen these guys do week in and week out. You know for it to end like this against a team like that, it says a lot.”
Mike Pouncey – October 16, 2016 (Postgame)
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Sunday, October 16, 2016
Postgame – vs. Pittsburgh
Miami Dolphins C Mike Pouncey (transcribed by Frank Brill)
(What was the jersey exchange, did you have to get a game worn Maurkice Pouncey jersey and that’s the only way you could get it?) – “I’ve got a lot of them but that was the first time we were playing against each other in the NFL so that jersey is going to mean a lot more than just a regular jersey.”
(The offensive line has been a beleaguered unit this year and part of that has been because of injuries, how did it feel to see that group play well today?) – “It was great. It was the first time all five of us were on the field together at the same time this year, and it looked really good. This is something our football team can build off of. This offensive line has been taking a lot of heat the first four or five games of the season and it feels good for it to finally pay off, all the hard work.”
(Has there been a sense in that corner of the locker room of guys wanting to redeem themselves and to play with a little bit of an edge?) – “I wouldn’t call it that. For the most part, everybody that’s involved and that knows what’s going on, they were always supportive of us. It’s the outside noise that didn’t really believe in us; but today, hopefully we proved them wrong.”
