Stephen Ross – January 10, 2022
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Monday, January 10, 2022
Chairman of the Board/Managing General Partner Stephen Ross
(Opening Statement) – “Good morning. First, I’d like to thank Brian Flores for all that he’s done for the Miami Dolphins. He’s a very good man and I wish him the best. I’m sure we’ll see him again as an NFL coach. So now, I’ll take any questions.
(I’d like to ask you what role, if any, the quarterback position played in this decision? Was there a question over whether QB Tua Tagovailoa is your man for the future? How much does QB Deshaun Watson play into it and was there disagreement over which direction you should go at quarterback?) – “First of all, let me be clear, it played no role at all. I have a lot of confidence in Tua and I think the next head coach will work with him, or whoever else, but I have a lot of confidence in him. I have watched him grow. I think he’s a fine young man and he is right now the quarterback and that will be dependent upon the new head coach but I have a lot of confidence in Tua.”
(Obviously the decision came to a shock for some of us. What went into the decision to fire Head Coach Brian Flores and keep General Manager Chris Grier in charge?) – “Well, I’ve been looking at this over three years now and watching the organization grow. I think an organization can only function if it is collaborative and it works well together. I don’t think that we were really working well as an organization that it would take to really win consistently at the NFL level.”
(From a performance standpoint, how would you assess what General Manager Chris Grier has done in order for you to say that his job is satisfactory?) – “I think if you look at our roster, I think we have a very fine, excellent roster of young players. This was all done in the last three years. We had an old, aging roster before that was leading us nowhere but to mediocrity and I think that if you look at our roster today, you see our salary cap and the players we have, I think we are well suited for the future.”
(Did you ever end up speaking to QB Deshaun Watson? I know there was a report that you were granted permission and do you plan to explore acquiring Watson again this offseason?) – “I have no plans. It will be up to the head coach in terms of what he does with the quarterback. Tua (Tagovailoa), as I said before, I have a lot of confidence in Tua. It is really going to be dependent on who the next head coach is and the direction that he wants to take at that position.”
(With your comments about the state of this roster’s talent level, what more do you think that this roster can accomplish as currently constructed?) – “I think one – it’s the roster, it’s the way the organization functions and communicates together. I think that really is very important in building a winning football team and sustaining that over the long-term.”
(It sounds like this has much to do with communication issues or compatibility off the field as it did the performance on the field?) – “I think if you look at it, it’s really communication and collaboration. I don’t think there is any organization in this country that unless you have excellent communication and collaborative efforts within the whole organization, that you can really win and sustain yourself in the long term.”
(Your thoughts on Jim Harbaugh and do you have a coach in mind as you’ve made this move?) – “(laughter) I have no coach in mind at this point. We’re going to do a thorough review and interview process. Jim Harbaugh, I love Jim Harbaugh. He had the opportunity once before to come to the Miami Dolphins. But he’s at the University of Michigan as everybody really knows. That is the school that I graduated from and I’m very involved in it, and I’m not going to be the person that takes Jim Harbaugh from the University of Michigan. I hope he stays there. He is a great coach.”
(You’ve hired now three head coaches. In the past, they have all been career assistants and first-time head coaches. Is having an experienced head coach something that is important to you or would you consider coordinators?) – “We’re going to look for the best man. Certainly having the experience always helps. I’m sure, if we believe we found somebody that is exceptional that’s been a coordinator or some other position in football, I certainly would look at that very seriously. Our mind is open. We’re looking for someone that could work together in taking this roster and taking it to its next level.”
(Was there any indication from any players on the roster or even General Manager Chris Grier that players didn’t want to play for Brian Flores or any coaches on this staff?) – “I’m not going to comment on that. Different people rub people different ways. I have to look at it in totality and everybody has their own opinions. But that was not the reason.”
(You mentioned collaboration a lot during this time. You hired the people that were in place to collaborate, so I’m wondering what your responsibility for making that collaboration happen and your responsibility for having it fail?) – “I’ll take all responsibility. I am the owner of the team and if it’s not working, it’s really up to me. That is why we are making a change.”
