De’Von Achane – December 4, 2024
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Wednesday, December 4, 2024
RB De’Von Achane
(You’re probably the only person that chose another teammate’s charity foundation, The Tua Foundation, for you cause and cleats. Why did you make that decision?) – “He’s on my team, why not? He’s my QB1, so I can’t go wrong with choosing his foundation. There is a lot of people with their own foundations. I thought why not go with Tua (Tagovailoa); you can’t go wrong with that.”
(The last four games, not as much team rushing production as the previous four when you guys were on a hot stretch. What do you think has lead to that and what can you guys do to get back into some rushing production?) – “I just feel like teams just realized we were running the ball a lot so they started putting people in the box, but that just gets us going and opens up me in the pass game. I feel like we’re not going to get away from it, keep going but it’ll just open up different things for us.”
(How difficult was that fourth down situation or that goal line situation for you guys not to be able to physically punch it in?) – “It was frustrating. Like you said, we always want to score when we’re down in the red zone, and I feel like us scoring right there would’ve changed the game. If we score that touchdown, I feel like we go into a one possession game and the game is different. The outcome is different, we have momentum and we go down and get a stop, the whole game changes.”
(What do you think the Jets defense does well?) – “They got a great defense from their d-line to their DBs. I feel like they got a great defensive line. They come up the field and get to the QB. I feel like us, this is our first time playing this year, but we also play them twice, so I just feel like we got to key on the details and learn from when we first play them to the second time.”
(You had the guardian cap on and now you’ve gone a few games now without it. What was that decision making process?) – “There was no decision. I wore it to begin because of my mom, but I just felt like I didn’t need it anymore. I got a better helmet, so I just felt like I don’t need to wear it anymore.”
(Did you change your helmet?) – “Mmhmm.”
(OK, what was it then? What is it now?) – “It’s like the same, it’s just got more cushion inside.”
(In terms of this team, how critical is it to finish out strong? I guess you know the odds of what happens if you lose a game the rest of the way.) – “At this point on, I think every game is a playoff game. We know we’ve got to play every game like it’s our last, and I feel like that puts us in a position to go out here and make sure everybody puts it all on the line, 100%. I feel like we can’t take no days off.”
Tua Tagovailoa – December 4, 2024
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Wednesday, December 4, 2024
QB Tua Tagovailoa
(Obviously you don’t play Aaron Rodgers, but what’s it going to be like being across from him, playing a team that he’s on considering how much he’s accomplished throughout his career?) – “I would say first off, a lot of respect to Aaron (Rodgers) and what he’s done throughout the course of his years playing at Green Bay. Obviously, we got to play against him two years ago, and he’s a Hall of Famer. Whether he looks like the same way he did in years past or not, you’re just going up against greatness regardless. The mindset that he has and to be able to still play at his age is really remarkable, and I’ve got a lot of respect for his game with how he goes about his business and how he does his things. I’ve got a lot of respect for him.”
(Does it feel like this matchup was a long time coming? It was so long ago that he went there and then missed last year and you face him for the first time late this year, so it’s been like I don’t know how many months-) – “Yeah, it’s been a long time coming but it’s super cool. I’m excited to see him go out there and have fun with his guys and play. Hopefully they don’t do too good against our guys, but we’re going to come out there and we’re going to compete as well and just admire good football if he goes out there and does his thing.”
(I think Aaron Rodgers turned 41 this week. Can you imagine yourself at age 41 still in the NFL?) – “I don’t know. I don’t know, that’s a long way to go for me. That’s a long way to go for me, so I’ll take it one year at a time – 26 feels good right now.”
(I’m sure you’ve heard the questions and concerns about this team’s toughness. As one of the leaders, how do you respond to people saying that this team is not tough mentally, physically, can’t handle the cold?) – “I would say that comes more from an individual in the way that I look at it. It comes from individuals and collectively you’ve got to all have that same mindset, that’s why we have team football, that’s why you’re in team sports. I think you’ve got to look at it as are you mentally tough and are you physically tough, they have to go hand in hand. If one of those things has a kink in it, it could go one way or the other. That’s what I would say with that.”
(How did you assess your game personally in the cold? Are there some positives that you can take away for the next time you’ll be in those environments?) – “There’s positives and there’s negatives, especially when you lose. There’s things that you wish you could have had back in that game, and there’s things that we just needed to clean up and be better with and more crisp.”
(You’re not new to the idea of people having a lot to say about you, whether it’s your play, the team you’re on or whatever. With some of the narratives, as Head Coach Mike McDaniel calls it, do you or the team feel like you have something to prove?) – “I think we as a team, as a collective team, we think we always have something to prove. Whether things are going right or things are not going right, everyone is going to have something to say whether you’re doing good or whether you’re not doing good. Sometimes guys read into it and they read too much into it and you can get it. And it goes both ways, right? Whether you lose and then you go down the rabbit hole of trying to respond to people, or when you win and you buy into what everybody is telling you and what not. I feel like that’s something that – around the league, it’s not just us – that is something that will forever be a battle for a lot of the guys playing in professional sports.”
(How surprised are you this team is 5-7?) – “Very surprised. I don’t think that shows the character of who we are as a team. It doesn’t show the work that we’ve put in this offseason together. Nobody else will say it but me, and I feel like this has a lot to do with myself obviously putting myself in harm’s way in the second game, going down – basically leaving my guys out to dry, that’s what I would say. Anyone can have an opinion about, ‘It’s football. It’s this, it’s that.’ I do take heart to that as well and still don’t want to do that to my guys again.”
(Speaking of which, there was obviously a play that got a lot of attention this past weekend with Trevor Lawrence. When you saw that play, you thought what?) – “Well I actually heard from a couple teammates what had happened and they were having conversations about it, then I went and looked at the play, that was crazy. I thought that was crazy. He was giving himself up and defensive guy came and smoked him. Then again, I don’t know the reaction time with being a defender trying to go and make a play on a guy, so like I don’t know all the logistics with that but I felt like he did have time to sort of, even if he was going to launch, he could’ve launched out of the way knowing that Trevor was giving himself up. To that, I hope Trevor is doing OK. I hope his family is OK. I know that can take a toll on your family more than yourself sometimes, and I hope his wife is OK as well.”
(There was a comment that Tom Brady was suggesting that maybe there should be a penalty if quarterbacks slide too late, trying to take a look from the defender’s point of view. How do you weigh all of that? I’m sure it’s – things happen so fast, it’s got to be difficult.) – “Yeah, that’s what I would say too, it’s difficult, and I would say for the defender for sure because they’re trying not to give up as many yards as possible. So for them, it kind of goes against what they’re trying to do essentially. I’m glad I don’t make up the rules and I’m glad I’m not in any of those meetings to give my two cents or whatever. I’m glad those guys in the higher ups are going to be able to talk about that one.”
(On a lighter note, I wanted to ask you about Moana 2. I saw you took your teammates and a lot of the younger kids to the movie. My personal opinion is Moana is the best Disney movie because it’s educational about cultures. As somebody who is popular, infamous – you represent your culture, very popular to Samoan and Polynesian community. How important is that representation to you? Not just the movie, but knowing that an entire culture of people look up to me?) – “I think it’s really cool, and when you look at it, it’s so cool because maybe a lot of people don’t understand that it’s necessarily not one culture; it’s many different cultures sort of mixed into one. Now in Moana 2, you kind of see more of other cultures than you did in the first Moana where it kind of felt like it was more Samoan, more Tongan, you can see some Hawaiian in there. And then in Moana 2, you can see Māoris in there, you can see Fijians are in there as well. You can see a little bit if you know or if you can understand, and I thought that was cool. My personal opinion, I didn’t think the songs were as good as Moana 1. Maybe that’s a hot take. (laughter) But I thought the songs in the first Moana stuck more than the second one. Overall the kids enjoyed it, glad we got to get out with a couple of teammates and spend some time with their kids and their families.”
(How much is the tattoos and the things like that about representing who you are and having all those kids look up to you?) – “Yeah, it definitely is a representation of who you are and your ethnic background. Different meanings of symbolism and you can sort of tell, ‘Oh this guy is Māori because the way his tattoo looks. This guy is Tongan, this guy is Samoan.’ But yeah, they just all have different ethnic background meanings to them.”
(And what are you?) – “Samoan. And then Hawaiians have their own as well. They also had in Moana 2 a good amount of Hawaiian ordeals in there, too.”
Chop Robinson – December 4, 2024
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Wednesday, December 4, 2024
LB Chop Robinson
(Head Coach Mike McDaniel talked about Jets QB Aaron Rodgers today, about facing greatness. Your first go around to face Aaron Rodgers, what are your thoughts on that?) – “Aaron Rodgers has been in the league since I was like, I think I was 1 year old in his first year, so it’s been a long time, a guy that I grew up watching and I’m just excited to go against him. He’s been in the game for a long time, went against honestly everybody, seen everything, so it’s just honestly going out there and just scheming him out.”
(I know you look up to LB Bradley Chubb, what was it like finally getting the chance to practice side-by-side with him?) – “It was crazy. I actually told him when we were warming up, I was like, ‘Damn, I’m actually on the field with you now. First off, we were just in the film room, out there on the field just side-by-side, but now I’m actually working with you.’ I was like, ‘that’s crazy.’ He was like, ‘yeah, we’re going to keep it going.’ So it’s just a dream come true and I’m just blessed.”
(When you watch the highlights, or any of his tape from last year, what do you notice?) – “He’s just very relentless. I’ve been watching him since he was back at N.C. State, so I feel he’s been the same guy in college. He elevated in some things, but him, just his effort and just going, especially in his pass rush. He’s just going, he never stops. That is something I wanted to take from his game.”
(On Aaron Rodgers coming back from that injury. Some are saying that his age is showing, tell me what you see in this quarterback right now, at his age and the situation the Jets are in.) – “To me, from when he first started playing to now, I feel like he’s still doing things that’s amazing. Especially at his age, he’s a little older now, so just doing the same thing he was doing back then, just not as much because of his age. But to me, he still looks like Aaron Rodgers out there.”
(I bet you’ve had a lot of these moments through your rookie season when you’re on the same field playing against guys who you remember watching when you were a kid. Does it seem like it’s getting old either? Cause it’s kind of like you’re getting your craft going, but you’re also soaking in some pretty amazing stuff.) – “Yeah, I’m just soaking it all in. You only live once. This has been a dream my whole life to get to the league, to not only be here, play with guys that I’ve been looking up to since I was in high school and everything like that. Honestly, I’m just blessed and soaking it all in day by day.”
Mike McDaniel – December 4, 2024
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Wednesday, December 4, 2024
Head Coach Mike McDaniel
(Last month the running game is at 2.96 yards per carry. Are you at the point where you’re considering personnel changes either potentially at guard or giving more carries to RB Raheem Mostert or maybe carries to RB Jeff Wilson Jr. who obviously has the toughness which every team likes? Are you considering any of those personnel changes?) – “I’m considering not telling you and the Jets our game plan, but yeah, I think rest assured there is never anything that, first and foremost, that I don’t take on personal responsibility for. That’s the job and your job is to try to problem solve, find solutions for players, scheme and results. And so there’s a lot of things at bay. This is the same conversation in ways that we were having prior to I think the New England game and much of the NFL season is finding solution, not necessarily overreacting to result; but taking result very seriously as it should and trying to benefit your team with some solutions in personnel, schematic. Those are very much all on the table always in situations that you don’t have the results you want.”
(What do you think of facing Jets QB Aaron Rodgers as a Jet for the first time ever? It feels like that move happened so long ago.) – “You’re pumped as a competitor to go against greatness for sure. Outside of that, I think there’s challenges that each and every team present and those challenges are specific to scheme and players and one of the best to ever – like a lot of people throw footballs in general and when you’re top tier of those who have ever done it, it presents its own challenges, but you attack that with a collective effort, tonality. For him, you’re talking about how we defend pass routes, how pass rush is, how run defense is because he’s a very, very difficult quarterback to go against when it’s run pass even. When you don’t know if it’s run or pass and have to defend both, he’s an elite ball thrower. So I think it’s kind of weird that it did happen so long ago and it’s the first time just based upon where the season is at and where the schedule fell, but looking forward to the challenge and very much focused on that.”
(Do you want your guys looking at social media right now knowing that things could be negative? Do you want them to use that as fuel or do you want them to totally ignore that?) – “I think I’m fortunate enough to be – I think I was in college when the iPod came out and the first Nokia cellphone and when Facebook started. So I acknowledge how ever-present (social media is). Like it would be if I’m asking them to not be on social media, maybe I feel better, but I’m more so like I’m trying to be in front of expectations of what things occur. Like literally it’s like clockwork each and every year. Your expectations need to be settled when results aren’t what you want. Listen, there’s a lot of people, fans that really want to see you do well. And I know one thing: when something doesn’t go your way and you have no control over it, it’s maddening. So stuff is going to be said. What I talked to the team about is yeah, expect it and – I think it’s kind of ironic – to expect something else would be… you’re entitled to something that other people don’t get. This is a big boy business. The people that don’t know your situation will have a lot of comments on what you’re doing and how you’re doing it, but you can’t on one side of your mouth get mad about that and then accept the cheering and the praise. It’s one of those things that right, wrong or indifferent; in this generation, it is noisy either way. So I’m either coaching, managing expectations through success, trying to keep people levelheaded or trying to not have people worried about the wrong stuff when stuff that they can’t control in terms of what people say after a result that our team can control – we lose a game and as a head coach, I expect it. I’m not looking to be above and beyond and I think the more that you can talk to players about understanding the why, I think the better off you are. But to be absolved of the noise is impossible unless you are extremely antisocial for a lot of these guys.”
(The idea of toughness has been talked about this team a lot. Do you think that toughness is something that comes from the players or it has to come top down? Like can you instill a tough attitude in this team or is it if the players don’t have it, they don’t have it?) – “I think again, I expect any and all things to be on the table when we don’t fulfill first and foremost our own expectations which we haven’t hid from and fallen short. I think you have to be – as a coach, I try not to focus on anything but factual things that can improve players and teams. So if I have an example of weakmindedness or situations where a guy is turning something down or how he’s loafing because of a result; those are things I can coach. And I think you bring to attention – I think holding people accountable is part of how as a coach you can impact toughness. I think overall it’s a violent, competitive sport that when things don’t go your way, a lot of things get thrown out there. Who’s to say who’s right or wrong. If you disagree with that sentiment, to me, there’s only one emotional reaction and that’s the focus on proving that wrong. But to sit here and debate ‘tough, not tough’ – all I know is dudes are aggressively tackling each other, taking on hits and I assess the tape because that to me is fact. You could hypothesize innumerable amounts of things whether it’s player, coach, all that and in situations where if you’re worried about the toughness of your team, to me, you study the effort, intentionality and how people are playing when things are tough, when things are down. So to answer your question, I’m very aware that the narrative exists and with absolute certainty I know the narrative will exist unless it changes; there’s one way to change it and that’s winning a game against the New York Jets and you know what? People still might not call you tough. Cool. I’m very much – I take it very serious that as a head coach, to be responsible for things that can help, to be accountable and to bring forth information that’s actually helpful, not finger pointing. Accountability is first and foremost for me and then players, you can’t hide in this league game after game, so we’ll either have people talking about our toughness or we won’t.”
(Were there a few turn downs or loafs on defense that angered you?) – “I am alive, I have ears and eyes and I hear the stuff after the game. So the coach in me is very like, ‘turn the page’ and I’m like a hawk eye. I’m looking at each player and not only what they’re doing but as a coach you have like a filing system of like, ‘I’ve seen this player in this situation multiple times’ and I saw strain, I saw technique and fundamentals that fell short as the game progressed; but it wasn’t turning down. For me the tackling – if you go and look at it – every missed tackle you have a defender whose feet are stopped at the point of attack. I understand in the heat of the moment and the frustration especially when you put so much into it. I can understand right after a game, players feeling X, Y or Z. So I think it’s important as the head coach that I have factual evidence and then we go as a team and assess it. And it would have been ugly if there were guys loafing or turning it down from a team perspective, but that’s why you do things as a team, because however motivating I am, it’s not as motivating as that locker room and peer-to-peer accountability. For me we have enough leaders that it’s important to that if that gets on the radar, I’ll have four or five players demanding that they’re not on the field with a guy and that’s what you want.”
(I know there’s a lot to be gleaned from the next couple days in terms of how LB Bradley Chubb and LB Cameron Goode look in practice since we haven’t seen them in a long time, but given that it’s very rare for you to open a window and have that player play that Sunday, can you rule out that either or both might play or where do you stand with that?) – “To me it’s really easy with guys that have – their window is opened because of them. I think there’s nothing more difficult as a player than getting injured at the end of a season, having to rehab through the offseason and start the season in that same regard. So you want to talk about having to be intentional and deliberate with your daily activities and mentally strong; so them having their window opened is something they earned and I don’t discount what you’re saying at all. I think you’re dead-on, I think it is rare; however I wouldn’t take an opportunity away from someone that was ready for it especially when they dive so deep to get the opportunity. So that’s why I kind of just let it play out literally not for any sort of competitive advantage or whatever; I’m going to let the players play, watch the film of themselves, go back to practice again with pads on, do the same thing again. And then right, wrong or indifferent; if a guy feels 100 percent ready to play that has done what they’ve done in front of their teammates – the walkthrough today, it was really cool to see the response of teammates when those guys got reps. And when they’re ready, which I’m also not trying to – like my expectation is that that takes time. It is the first football practice in a year. So I’m not expecting anything, but you don’t rule it out just because. Bottom line is want them and their earned opportunity when they feel ready to execute what’s asked of them and that they’re able to play, and fortunately with those two guys, such a great relationship with them and I trust them that I won’t have to – we’ll be able to talk through it and be responsible because they’re competitors but they also understand that they want to be right, too, for the team.”
(What type of work are you expecting them to get? Are they going to get looks work or base defense work this week?) – “Both. You’re understanding that their window is open, but time will tell if they’re playing. You can’t shortchange the people that are playing right now to not be ready for the game. They also can’t take every rep, so you get them involved and in the process, but you can’t overdo it. But their game has to be right so how do you make it up? You make it up on look teams as well, so you try to balance it that way so that everyone is afforded the appropriate opportunity for this Sunday.”
(I think last week LB Anthony Walker Jr. shouldn’t miss extensive time. How is he doing and how did LB Tyrel Dodson also do with his opportunity?) – “So ‘Walk’ (Anthony Walker Jr.) is doing well, intentionally not practicing today, but if I know ‘Walk’ I’m expecting to see him tomorrow and we’ll be prudent with that. ‘TD’ (Tyrel Dodson), like I can’t say enough good things about him. Coming in here and being a Mike linebacker and assimilating with his teammates and earning their respect; for me as a head coach, I can observe from a mile away when players earn the respect of their teammates simply by how they interact and how they celebrate or how they communicate and I think it just says a lot about him how the confidence of the defense didn’t waver with a guy communicating calls to each and every one of them that they just heard his voice for the first time a couple weeks ago. So I think he did a phenomenal job being ready to play starting-caliber football in this defense and doing so with a game plan on a short week, so really, really happy with him on the team and he did a great job.”
Mike McDaniel – December 2, 2024
Monday, December 2, 2024
Head Coach Mike McDaniel
(It wouldn’t be Monday without asking you if LB Bradley Chubb or LB Cam Goode will begin practicing this week?) – “Well, of course their window will be opening. Yeah, those two, they’ll be out there practicing on Wednesday and to me, those are the I think very impactful just to have them on the practice field. That’s never lost on teammates when you have an extensive injury that happens in-season so then you are finishing the season rehabbing. The offseason program, they’re watching them rehab. The beginning of the season, they’re watching them rehab. While everyone’s on vacation, they are here rehabbing. So it’ll be exciting to get their windows started and they’ll be practicing on Wednesday.”
(Can you speak to the boost that can provide the defense to have an edge rusher of LB Bradley Chubb’s caliber and obviously everything LB Cam Goode does?) – “I think just from a team standpoint, any time you have, like I said, guys that are sacrificing day in, day out, right in front of you, just having them to start practice; that in itself, beyond the players but the people, you inherently don’t take as much for granted when you’re out there watching them go through it and been fortunate enough to be for all the teammates that will be out there with them. They’ve gotten the opportunity to play, I know those two won’t take any practice rep for granted and I think that just in general is an added lift regardless of what happens between the lines on whatever Sunday.”
(Did you get any clarity on CB Kader Kohou’s back? Just making sure that it’s not something that would sideline him.) – “Yeah, he’s still working through it and I know it’s not something that’s in the conversation of a roster adjustment or whatever. Whether or not he’s going to be ready for this game, that’s a little too early to tell, I think.”
(How about CB Cam Smith?) – “His injury was a little more severe. What that means for – I would say that would be week-to-week. Discussing ways to attack it, but it was a rough injury that will keep him out for this week. I know that much.”
(CB Kendall Fuller?) – “Optimistic, optimistic. He is still in protocol, but optimistic just based upon conversations with the experts and him. Optimistic that he’ll be out there this game, but we’ll see how the protocol progresses.”
(I don’t think we followed up with you on the QB Tyler “Snoop” Huntley activation, would it be competition now coming up for that backup job between him and QB Skylar Thompson?) – “No, but the plan is that I wanted to see ‘Snoop’ (Tyler Huntley) operate and everything, but the plan is to have him back Tua (Tagovailoa) up this week.”
(You’ve seen plenty of QB Aaron Rodgers, WR Davante Adams in your time as a coach, what makes that connection, and the Jets passing game if you can, special or difficult to defend?) – “It’s all the working history that those two have, you can’t replicate. Like it’s hours upon hours, so when you talk about pass game in the National Football League, if it was a seven-on-seven league, it would be a much different league. The big component in the pass game is getting open in the timing of the play because of pass rush. So those hyper split-second things that happen on every given down, you talk about a tenth of a second can be the difference if you know what someone’s going to do and a completion explosive. You wait one-tenth because of uncertainty and it’s a sack-fumble. The two extremes of pass plays, everything is dependent upon guys being on the same page in super contested situations. So you talk about the way that they can orchestrate the old west coast ‘Lookie’ route – which is he can break in or break out within five yards. I mean they have some of the all-time best clips and have done it Week 1, Week 17, playoffs. They’ve done it a ton so that working relationship goes a long way in football, so I think you have to be that much more sound in your technique and fundamentals and rely on your teammates to own their leverage and if you’re an outside leverage player, to rely on the player that has inside leverage that’s zoning, or vice versa. Those things are paramount, otherwise they’ll take advantage of any sort of indecision with convicted play, so it’s something that you have to prepare to not make it a competitive advantage that inherently they would have unless you are on your Ps and Qs and ready to defend them.”
(A question about the offense. The offense that we see this year, is it here to stay, the offense we’re seeing now? Or next year, do you go back to the WR Tyreek Hill, WR Jaylen Waddle-centric offense?) – “I think it’s important that you don’t – there’s a saying about like ‘swim uphill,’ or go against the current or something. Whatever that is, you want to score points on as many possessions as possible. You do that by getting first downs, getting yardage, getting in field goal range and then punching it into the endzone. I think the more you execute at the zones that defenses are giving up to defend Tyreek (Hill) and Jaylen (Waddle), the more that it comes full circle. To me, the offense hasn’t really changed from a concept standpoint; it’s been an emphasis on how to take advantage of people overplaying those two. So I think you saw it in the past game. It was the end of the game, but it was a coverage that they had been running all game. We had a 30-yard completion in rhythm to Tyreek that was something that was heavily influenced by Jonnu (Smith) sitting down in the five-yard area that when you turn those five-yard completions into 14-yard gains like he did earlier in the game, I think that same offense that you’re referring to, it’s all about how defenses are choosing to really attack you and what they’re willing to concede and if they’re willing to concede certain things to double those guys, we have to execute in full tonality. Not only the other eligibles, not only the quarterback, not only the protection, but Jaylen and Tyreek have to threaten the defense the same way if they were getting the ball. And if they do that, and defenses are made to pay, I think within that game, that 30-yard completion that I’m referring to probably wasn’t open earlier in the game. It’s much of executing from an entire tonality, an entire unit, all 11 people and you can pick your poison when you’re running appropriate offense. And if they want to bring a five-man pressure or blitz or bring six, you have to be able to execute there. If they want to drop an extra guy in zone, do a three-man rush or a two-man rush; that’s the game you’re playing. So I think the more production that we see across the board, I think just in this last two game sample set or maybe the last three games, you’ve seen some explosives and some more production closer to what we’re used to from Tyreek and Jaylen. They’ve been ready for the opportunity, but it’s also been based upon having to be able to be productive doing other things to make them defend the flats or the short curl areas or whatever they’re giving up to give that extra attention to those two.”
(Speaking of that production TE Jonnu Smith already has career highs in receptions and receiving yards and has a few games left. What have been some of the keys behind the success?) – “I think his development first and foremost within the offense, I think he’s really gravitated towards the timing and understanding, how being open when the quarterback is ready to throw it to him and being able to use his speed on the stems of routes vertically before he snaps down or does any sort of break. That’s been huge for him and I think he signed on for the journey with a vision of, hey, I think I can really take advantage of where defenses are going to try to really load up that intermediate and third level of coverage and that space; I can make people pay. And then in coordination with all the work that Jon Embree has done with him and Tua’s ability to be confident and convicted when he goes to him, he’s getting the ball and probably he’s getting better ball placement for his run after catch than he’s ever had before which is based upon Tua’s skillset and what he is elite at. And then just honestly the momentum, every time Tua throws it to him I think he’s positively reinforced based upon his teammates because his teammates – Jonnu brings juice when he touches the ball. You can feel the violence with which he carries the ball and approaches tacklers and he’s not a fun guy to tackle. He’s a hard guy to bring down and certainly someone that I think at the beginning of the season probably was fourth or fifth on the table of priorities of people to attention to on offense and I think he’s climbed his way up simply taking advantage of the opportunities presented. So I think it’s the whole, really the operation from the quarterback to Jonnu and Jonnu is making the most of those opportunities by the amount of separation he’s achieving in his routes and then his mindset – understanding what he brings to this team with the ball in his hands and taking that personal.”
(What are the ways that you and the coaching staff measure the physical and mental toughness of the team?) – “There’s no shortcut to that. I think it’s very, very important to remove emotion and critically assess how people respond to all sorts of things, whether there’s a similarity in the amount of mental toughness you need to have if you have a two-score lead or you’re down by two scores. Either way, you should be focusing on the job at hand, your specific role, your technique, your fundamentals, and letting the four-quarter game play out as such. And so you find out a ton in winning, you find out a ton in losing. You find out a ton in just how people respond to all the different things thrown a professional football player’s way. Regardless, we don’t execute our jobs in a vacuum. I think it’s a big indicator when there’s a lot of noise – good or bad – so if people are crowning you to be the Super Bowl champion midseason or people are talking about next year in the middle of it, either way you really get a vision into where your team’s mental fortitude is at. I think the journey from 2-6 to 5-6 told me a ton and it gives me a certain sort of expectation now being 5-7 moving forward. You want to know if a team can really focus itself on the opponent – honestly, that’s the only thing that really matters. For us, that’s the New York Jets. As tough as the last game was against the Green Bay Packers or as cool as a three-game win streak, all of it is erroneous. You have to prepare yourself for the next game and that’s where it’s imperative to be mentally strong as a football team, and based upon kind of our circumstance as a football team, we were blessed with adversity early. So you feel like you have a mentally tough football team based upon that and expectations based upon my experience with them. Our whole football team will have an opportunity to showcase mental toughness and internal fortitude this week coming off a loss. But you’re tested constantly in the National Football League just based upon the longevity of the season, how difficult each week is and how many times you have to pick yourself off the canvas to have a successful season. Because outside of the ’72 Dolphins, that’s what every team has had to do to have success.”
(How is T Kendall Lamm doing?) – “He proved who he is once again for us. The injury that he sustained during the game, getting on the elbow, a lot of people don’t even sniff the field again. That’s a very painful injury. He came back and could have played longer if we asked him to. I think he’s a veteran that knows how to take care of his body and has a very high pain tolerance so he’s doing all right.”
Chop Robinson – December 2, 2024
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Monday, December 2, 2024
LB Chop Robinson
(I don’t know if you heard LB Jordyn Brooks’ comment afterwards that he thought the team was affected by the elements up in Green Bay. You’re somebody from the north, you played at Penn State, did the elements affect you? Did the elements affect the team in your opinion?) – “It was definitely different coming from here. Not being at Penn State for a while and going back to the cold, but I felt used to it. It’s definitely getting back into it and getting warm and everything, but the main thing, we just got to tackle, make the plays that were in front of us.”
(Does that happen to guys that come from those environments, but then you spend some time from Miami, you’ve been in warm weather for several months, and then once you go back that first time back it kind of hits you?) – “I mean, yeah. It hit me the day before when we got off the plane but I’m kind of used to it, so just got to go out there and just execute honestly.”
(Besides the missed tackles, what else came up when Defensive Coordinator Anthony Weaver talked to the group today as areas he wants shoring up in?) – “I mean that was the main thing, juts missed tackles. There’s times where it could have been a one-yard gain or two-yard gain, but we turned that into eight yards. The main thing is just tackling and stopping the ball.”
(Is it different with the fingers, like grabbing when it was cold? The hitting obviously hurts a little more when it’s cold but is it the wrapping up and stuff with the hands? Is that what gets affected by weather mostly?) – “Yeah, you could say that plays a factor but honestly at the end of the day, you just got to tackle, wrap up, run your feet through contact – that’s the main thing. I feel like we were wrapping up but not running our feet through contact, so just got to work on those.”
(You spent years at Penn State, you played in the cold like we talked about and then you come down here after getting drafted. You get off the plane and that humidity hits you in the face. So I guess my question is, what do you find more difficult, adjusting to that heat and humidity coming from the north, or coming from the south and going up north to play in cold?) – “I wouldn’t say either one is difficult, it’s just adjusting to it. Either the cold or the heat, whatever you’re in, you just got to adjust to it and be able to play in it. I wouldn’t say it’s difficult, it’s just something you got to get used to.”
(What do you think are some of the things that are contributing to your pass rush wins? The run you’ve been on of late that have now also translated to accumulating some sacks.) – “I would just say listening more to my coaches, just taking all the information from all the vets and all the older guys, watching film with them, working extra with them. It’s been paying off, so I’m just going to keep doing that.”
(What was the best thing about the run that you were on? Was it seeing the actual result with the sack or maybe the affirmation that you’re doing the right thing? 3.5 sacks in four games, what was the best thing about that?) – “Just taking in the information from the vets, doing everything that I could to make plays and make things happen, and once I took the information from the film room and on the field and took it to the game, it worked out for me. So I’m just going to continue that and then take it one day at a time.”
(What does that moment feel like when you’re doing the “Chop” celebration, and you have like eight guys behind you doing it with you?) – “It feels good, especially having Zach (Sieler). I feel like every time I did it, Zach was always right beside me. So just seeing Zach after every time I get a sack, it feels amazing just having the whole team do it with me.”
(How do you feel your pass rush arsenal has increased over your rookie season?) – “I feel like it opened up. I feel like once I came in, I would just focus on speed, that’s the only thing I had. But once I started to learn more against the tackles I was going against and talking with the older guys, I was able to open up my bag and figure out different moves, and I feel like it’s been working for me.”
(We hear that being wider has helped you, it’s given you the option of a two-way attack. Is that accurate? Or what has being wider, lining up wider, done for you?) – “It sets up different rushes for the tackle. I could use my speed; my main thing is getting off the ball, so once I get off, if he sees me so wide, he might try to run out to me. I could take the inside or power him, so it just sets up different moves for the tackle that I’m going against.”
(Are you using the power move more? It seems like you’re kind of running through offensive tackles more than you did, maybe six, seven games ago. Is that accurate or am I imagining that?) – “You could say it’s accurate. I always started off with that because I feel like a lot of tackles I’m going against, they see my size and they’ll be like, ‘He can’t power.’ So once I bring it to them, I just put them in their mind as it messes up their game a little bit.”
(I think you were two years old when QB Aaron Rodgers got drafted into the NFL. Did you grow up an Aaron Rodgers fan?) – “Yeah, my older brother, he was actually a Green Bay fan; he loved Aaron Rodgers. So I’m excited to go against him, excited to go against the Jets, excited to go against my former teammate (Olu Fashanu). When the game comes, I’m just excited to play.”
(What will a sack on QB Aaron Rodgers mean to you?) – “It would mean a lot. Just watching the guy when I was a baby, and then my older brother, that was his guy too. So just doing whatever I can for the team for the win.”
(Have you and OL Olu Fashanu talked this week? Or is there any Penn State talk there or Dolphins-Jets? Are you guys texting at all this week?) – “He texted me the other day just asking, ‘I better get that jersey.’ He told me that he better get that jersey after the game, and we’re definitely going to make that happen.”
(How was playing at Lambeau Field? How did that compare to I guess Seattle or some of the other places you played this season?) – “It was good. It was a lot of experience, a lot of history at that stadium so just going out there and just soaking it all in. Since I was a kid, I’ve been seeing it on TV, so it’s honestly a blessing just to be out there.”
(What are some of your memories of going against OL Olu Fashanu?) – “I would just say really one-on-ones everyday in practice. When I first got to Penn State, I kept hearing the hype about Olu (Fashanu) and then once I went out there, I tried to just burn him off the ball and he put me down to the ground. I was like, ‘OK, yeah. He’s the real deal.’ (laughter) So I would just say honestly, the one-on-ones that I went against him every day in practice, and he made me better.”
(And you would get your payback on him?) – “Oh yeah, 100%. Always got my payback.”
Zach Sieler – December 2, 2024
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Monday, December 2, 2024
DT Zach Sieler
(We were just having a talk about tackling in cold weather. How much tougher if at all is it to tackle in the running game in particular in cold weather?) – “I don’t think it’s tougher to tackle. I think we’ve got to do a better job on surfaces that aren’t ideal of breaking down and keeping our feet under us to make those tackles. And then running to the ball, swarm tackle.”
(What’s the spirit of the team right now? This team has been pretty resilient group. The five-game losing streak two years ago. All of the defensive injuries late last year. What is the team’s mindset right now?) – “We’ve got to take it one step at a time. We’ve got five weeks left. We’ve got to beat the Jets this week, we’ve got to roll. I don’t think there’s any step back or any hesitation from anyone. There’s no sense of that whatsoever. It’s make this push and let’s get this done.”
(Obviously you need help to get into the playoffs. Did you take a peek at standings at all or do you just figure you take care of your business and everything else takes care of itself?) – “I haven’t. That’s it. Absolutely.”
(What was said as much as you can tell us about the missed tackles? I don’t know if you guys have watched the film or anything. What’s been said about that?) – “What I (responded to the first question). Same thing. We’ve got to keep our feet. We’ve got to keep our feet. We’ve got to swarm tackle, run to the ball and play violent.”
(I’ll ask you what I asked WR Jaylen Waddle a minute ago. And it’s a narrative if you want to call it a narrative, but it’s something that’s been said and was certainly said after Thursday night’s game, that this is a speed team and not a physical team, not a tough team. What’s your response?) – “Shoot, I guess we’ve got to prove it wrong. If people think that, we’ve got to go out there and beat it. I don’t think that’s the case. I think we play physically up front. I think we play physically all around. I think we’ve got to make sure we’re showing that on Sunday.”
(Is there a mental switch that happens when you get into these December and later games? Or have you guys already had to turn that on with how the season has gone?) – “Ever since (our record was) 2-6 we’ve had to have that on. It’s definitely a mindset when you’re at that point. It’s like, hey, we’ve got to scratch and crawl out of here as best we can and it’s still possible. So it’s just a matter of winning these next five and it starts this week with the Jets.”
(What do you think of facing those Jets? Obviously a team you have a lot of familiarity with but haven’t seen them in such a long time and haven’t seen them with QB Aaron Rodgers either.) – “Yeah, I think they’re a great team. They’ve got a lot of weapons, they’ve got a great quarterback. He played a lot of ball. I think he’s probably one of the only ones that has played more ball than Calais (Campbell). (laughter) So definitely got to make sure we get in our playbooks and get into film study and see what’s coming at us.”
(All the good vibes you guys had from the three-game winning streak, I know that was a tough loss at Green Bay, but do those vibes still exist, the lessons that you’ve learned and all of that kind of stuff?) – “Absolutely. Obviously to get to this point, we’ve went through a lot and we’ve done a lot. And I think those games were a testament to that and I think it shows how powerful we can be; we just need to put it together in all three phases this week.”
(Have you given any thought either in the offseason or even during the season, under Head Coach Mike McDaniel you guys have had many streaks – win streaks and losing streaks – why do you suppose that is?) – “I guess I haven’t thought about that. I don’t know. I haven’t put much thought to that. I think it’s a matter of just the team in general and what we’re going through. We’ve got to stay tough when we’re winning and we’ve got to stay tough when we’re losing and either get out of it or keep it going.”
Jonnu Smith – December 2, 2024
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Monday, December 2, 2024
TE Jonnu Smith
(What can you say about your season? You’ve got – if I’m not mistaken – career highs in receptions and yards, you’ve been a main part of the offense through that three-game winning streak. What do you think of your season and maybe your last two seasons even.) – “All praise to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, first and foremost. Just having individually, the best year of my career, so that’s one thing that I’ve always understood that individuals don’t win football games. Lighting up the stat sheet doesn’t win football games, but I understand that individuals having individual success, if the bulk of the team is having individual success; then that’s going to lead to a bunch of wins, so I’m just trying to do my part and be the best version of myself for this team to put us in the best situation to win games.”
(Head Coach Mike McDaniel has talked a lot about overplay, capitalizing on overplay as an offense. How have you seen defenses adjust over these last few games as you’ve gotten more and more involved to try and take you away from the offensive gameplan?) – “We’re just taking what the defense gives us, man. You can’t play everything. You can’t have your cake and eat it, too, in this league. So we just continue to try to take what the defense gives us and just continue to execute. Like I said, you can’t guard everybody, you can’t guard every area of the field; so it’s just very imperative to us to capitalize when we see big space and opportunities to make big plays, whether it be down the field or underneath.”
(What’s the mindset of this team right now?) – “One game at a time, one game at a time. We’ve still got life, very optimistic, a lot of warriors in our locker room, a lot of fighters in our locker room, proud to be a part of this team, 100 percent and we’re going to continue to fight, continue to put our hard hats on and go to work.”
(This offense had a stretch of games where the run game got going, then now it hasn’t been as much. Now QB Tua Tagovailoa has been throwing the ball around to you and even some to WR Tyreek Hill and WR Jaylen Waddle, what do you think are some of the ways that can lead to some more balance? Both getting that run game and that pass game working together.) – “Yeah, we’ve got to find some obviously tranquility within the offense, you know what I mean? When I say tranquility, I mean more so balance, not peace. You don’t want a peaceful football team, that wouldn’t be a good football team. (laughter) But you definitely want to find some more balance in the offense and just get things back to where we know they can be. Like I said, it comes with evaluating the film, holding each other accountable, looking ourselves in the mirror, seeing what we can do better, and we started with that approach today and that’s just going to kind of be the mindset going forward.”
(Do you feel it is an emphasis for the team to get the run game back going?) – “Absolutely. If you want to win in this league, you’ve got to run the ball, plain and simple. I know even as a pass catcher – obviously would love to be in an offense where you throw the ball 40, 50 times a game. But if you’re not running the ball well, you’re just not going to win in this league. If you’re not going to run the ball consistently, consistently well, you’re just not going to win in this league so that’s just a point of emphasis that we strive to reach in this organization.”
(What do you think has been the key over these last three games? This has got to be one of the best three-game stretches of your career. What do you think has been the key?) – “Yeah, oh man, like I said earlier man, for me personally my faith in Jesus Christ has allowed me to just go out there, play free, play confident, you know what I mean? My faith has allowed me to know that I’ve been blessed with a gift that can’t go to waste, so it’s got to be daily work put in. Whether that be me staying after practice, me going out there before practice, recovering my body – rest is also a huge part of maintaining a high performance because you’re nothing without your body in this league – in any professional sport. So definitely got to take care of your body, but just keeping my mind right and again, just coming up here every day, being joyful that this amazing opportunity I’ve been blessed with to play this game that I love, that I still am in love with and just go out there, be free and be the best version of myself.”
