Ryan Tannehill – August 21, 2016
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Sunday, August 21, 2016
Quarterback Ryan Tannehill
(On evaluating a team during the preseason) – “It’s tough to tell. Obviously, it matters and you want to go out and perform well, but like I said last week, it’s a process. You’re trying to build off of what you did the week before and throughout every day in practice.”
(On how the third preseason game differs from the others) – “It’s a little more realistic as far as a game. Obviously, it’s a short week, and it’s not a full game plan. We’re still working on some things that we want to work on at practice, but it’s the most realistic game as far as putting together a little bit of a game plan and having an idea, watching some tape of the team before you go into the game.
(On the significance of the third preseason game) – “I wouldn’t say it’s any more significant. Obviously, you put a little more time into the actual game, so you expect your guys to go out and be a little more prepared and execute better. It’s more of evaluating ourselves and wanting to be functioning at a high level.”
(On the quick snap he took and then ran for the first down against Dallas) – “It just kind of popped up. We were expecting to get 1 yard or 2 yards – or whatever it was – for the first down, and the way the d-line slanted (and) came across (Mike) Pouncey’s face, I had to bounce it and there was a little gap there, so I hit up the gap and slid. It was a surprising play for me as well, but it was a fun part of that drive.”
(On what he and the coaches have talked about regarding his athleticism in the run game) – “It’s part of our run game for sure just like it was last year. It’s not something where it’s going to be every snap, every run that we have. It’s a changeup for us. It allows us to give the defense a different look, give the ends a different look. If the opportunity is there, then (it is) an opportunity for me to pull it and get out on the outside. I definitely think it could be a good thing for us. We want to move the pocket in the pass game as well, change the launch angles for the defensive ends and give the tackles a chance to pass block in a different way and give (the defense) something else to think about.”
(On how much growth he has experienced under Head Coach Adam Gase) – “(I am) trying to get better every day. I think the more time that I spend in this offense – that all these guys spend in this offense – the more comfortable we’re going to get and the faster we can play. When you’re playing fast, you can let your talent really show. I think the closer we get to the season, the more and more we’re going to see it and expect to keep making progress.”
(On his growth as a quarterback so far this training camp) – “I’m getting more comfortable by the day. Every rep that I take, (I) file that away, learn from it and keep moving forward.”
(On whether the run game is knocking rust off and will continue to develop during the preseason) – “Yes, that’s definitely some of it. I think we don’t do a whole lot of live tackling in practice in run game, so the blocking is a little bit different as well as the run. We’re still knocking the rust off. (We) had some big runs. We had a couple nice runs. Isaiah (Pead) had the big run down the left side (and there was) some really good blocking on that one. We’ve seen some flashes, but we have to be more consistent.”
(On his second touchdown pass to WR Kenny Stills) – “It wasn’t exactly where I wanted to put it. I underthrew it a little bit, but I thought Kenny made a great play (in) tight coverage. (The ball) snuck over the defender’s head, and Kenny made a nice catch on it.”
(On what allows WR Kenny Stills to have success in the red zone in a confined space) – “I think he’s an all-around receiver. I think he has put a lot of time into growing his game and to becoming a complete receiver. I think he gets stereotyped a lot into, ‘He’s a pure speed guy. He’s a guy who’s going to take the top off and stretch you down the field.’ Obviously, he can do that. He’s one of the fastest guys in the league – definitely on our team – but he’s a complete receiver. He’s comfortable running the inside routes, third downs (and) obviously in the red zone (as) we saw. I’m excited about the progress he has made, the effort, the time he has put in over the course of the last year, really focusing on the details of the position and becoming a complete receiver.”
(On what RB Arian Foster brings to the team) – “Arian is a veteran guy. He has been around a long time and has a lot of experience in the zone read game, so he’s definitely going to be a help for us there, as well as coming out of the backfield. He has a good feel for coming out of the backfield, feeling the zones and has good hands to be able to make the catches.”
(On how much he knew about RB Isaiah Pead before he joined the Dolphins) – “I didn’t know a whole lot about him. I knew of him and saw a little bit of him on tape, but he has really impressed me since he has been here (with) the way he works. He’s constantly out there working. He’s a tough player, physical. I was giving him a hard time about his speed. He is a fast player, so I was giving him a hard time for not scoring on the long run; but he has done a good job for us. It’s a tight competition in that room. There’s a lot of talent in that room. That’s a good thing. A good problem to have is when you have guys battling it out day in and day out. They’re going to keep pushing each other.”
(On his message to TE Jordan Cameron after a dropped touchdown pass against Dallas) – “Just keep playing. It was one mistake in a season-long campaign. (You) can’t dwell on it. Obviously, (we) want to make those plays, but he’s going to make a lot of plays for us. He has to keep his head up, keep working, and he’ll make it next time.”
(On what TE Jordan Cameron can add to the team when he is at his best) – “He’s extremely athletic. He’s a talented guy. You like your matchups with him on safeties (and) definitely on linebackers. He’s a guy we want to get rolling here and be able to take advantage of mismatches there.”
(On whether the role of the tight end in this offense is more about blocking or pass catching) – “We definitely need both roles from our tight ends. There’s going to be a lot of situations where they’re going to be pass blocking and run blocking, and then we’re going to be putting them all the way on the outside and trying to create a mismatch out there. They have to be a full player – a complete player – and be able to run routes, not just tight end routes, not just corners and flats. They have to be able to run receiver routes as well, because we are going to put them on the outside and try to stress teams in that way.”
(On being a new father) – “It has been fun. It has definitely been fun. I don’t see him a whole lot – because of the season and the time I have to put in here – but when I do get a little time at home, it is nice to be able to hold him and even change a few dirty diapers along the way. (laughter) He’s getting big. He’s already growing. It’s crazy how much you see him change over the course of a week of not seeing him. It’s not something I really expected to be able to see that change or difference in him, but it has been fun.”
