Ring of Honor DT Tim Bowens – August 5, 2024
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Monday, August 5, 2024
Ring of Honor DT Tim Bowens
(Opening statement) – “Like I told the guys, it was a shock, but I knew something was going on when they called me down here to some kind of meeting – I’m like, ‘You guys never call me for a meeting,’ but I’m really thankful and appreciative that the guys really appreciate me like that. I really didn’t think much of it, but I’m really thankful and grateful and honored. I can’t wait to call mom and tell my mom, tell my family, tell my kids. I don’t know what to say right now, I’m just humbled and thankful and grateful.”
(How would you describe the approach that you took to the field?) – “I told myself just go out and do what I need to do and knew what I had to do. So I was pretty much to myself in my own little zone or whatever you call it, but that’s the way I took it.”
(When you look back at your career, what are you most proud? You were up front for two Hall of Famers, Zach Thomas and Jason Taylor and they give you a lot of credit for your work. What do you consider about your career and the things you did?) – “Just being healthy and being on the field and trying to coach up the younger guys behind me and around me. A lot of people might think I didn’t do all that, but I really did my homework. I did it my way and just because I’m not as vocal as a lot of guys, it’s still in me. It’s still in me.”
(Can you describe today how it all developed? How you found out?) – “They were calling me about a meeting or something and I’m like, ‘Uh, something is going on.’ I played it out with them. I just said, ‘OK, I’ll come down. I’ll come down,’ but it was a shock. It’s still a surprise, I’m just thankful and grateful that I’m here to accept.”
(How did they tell you?) – “Just had a little meeting right now and Zach (Thomas) gave me a little warm speech that he rehearsed. (laughter) I know he rehearsed it, but I appreciate it. I appreciate it, I appreciate it.”
(As Zach Thomas was going into the Hall of Fame last year, he brought up your name quite a bit in crediting you. But now that you have the podium, I’m going to give you a little time, what’s the best Zach Thomas story?) – “There’s so many. Which one am I going to give you? I can’t remember the game, but Zach (Thomas) hit somebody and he got knocked out. He was coming back to the huddle and we were trying to get him out, because he was looking over at to the sideline, he couldn’t get the plays. So I don’t know what defense we played. (laughter) But Zach is just the ultimate teammate, a leader. We worked hand in hand – me and him, we worked hand in hand. We didn’t have to say too much. We didn’t have to communicate with each other too much, we just knew what to do on the field together.”
(This group of Dolphins has spent a lot of time in the preseason talking about setting a tone, being physical, being bullies even, being aggressive. If you had the whole Dolphins defensive unit in here, what might you say about that?) – “Well, me – I wouldn’t be the talker, I’d be more the shower. Just go out and do what you got to do. The d-line sets the tone for the whole team, so there’s no words to be said about that, you just go out and do what you got to do.”
(What are some of your best memories as a player?) – “Well No. 1, getting drafted and still not really absorbing it, even right now. I still can’t believe that I got drafted in the first round for the Miami Dolphins. But my biggest thing is just meeting my teammates that are here right now and just being around them and having the greatest coach to ever coach draft you and have confidence in you. It means a lot and having one of the greatest defensive linemen, in ‘Mean Joe Greene,’ it means a lot.”
(How much has this fanbase meant to you the last few years? Have you heard from them the years, maybe see them at the stadium?) – “Well, I try to go incognito, but as big as I am… (laughter) A lot of people don’t even know. I can walk by people and they won’t know who I am, but some people do. It’s just great to know that people appreciate what you did.”
(I feel like I talked to you about wrestling once, you were a big wrestling fan. Did you ever consider how things might have gone if you tried professional wrestling?) – “I don’t know, it all would have depended on – I don’t know if some of you guys that were here remember Norman Hand. Me and Norm went to ICC (Itawamba Community College) together, Ole Miss together and he got drafted here. So me and Norm were big, big wrestling fans. So we considered wrestling if the football thing didn’t work out, but I’m glad it did. (laughter)”
(If my math is right, I think you only missed two games in your first nine years. How were you able to maintain that level of durability in such a high contact position?) – “A lot of beer. (laughter) I really can’t say, just good genes, I guess. The almighty just blessed me to stay healthy. It hurt me when I missed my last year, I really felt like I just let the team down. But those two games that I missed, it’s just really me being me, I can’t say what it was.”
(What are you doing nowadays? I think last time I talked to you, you were just kind of chilling.) – “Yeah, that’s it, that’s it. When you get your body beat up like that, I think you want to chill, right? (laughter) But I don’t just sit in the house all day on the TV or whatever, I get up and move around and do what I got to do. There’s always something to do, trust me.”
