Saturday, August 27, 2022
Postgame – Eagles
OL Austin Jackson
(What did you guys do better in the run game tonight?) – “I think we were more assignment sound … I think that’s a great start. It starts in practice too, getting on the same page and communicating.”
(What do you like about what Head Coach Mike McDaniel does in the run game?) – “He’s great. I think he does a great job of teaching the system that he has in place. He has a good understanding of fundamentals and techniques that he believes in to be successful. He convinced all of us to buy into it. Rightfully so. I love the scheme he has set up. I think we’re able to do a lot with it.”
(What was your reaction to that first play, QB Tua Tagovailoa to WR Tyreek Hill?) – “We’ve been doing that in practice for like months now. It felt good to get it live and in front of everybody to see …”
Saturday, August 27, 2022
Postgame – Eagles
DB Elijah Campbell
(They always say corners have to be instinctual. That play was definitely instinctual.) – “He’s (Reid Sinnett) a great quarterback, experienced as well. Quarterbacks make mistakes and you just have to capitalize on those mistakes. It was just something we trained – it was a little bit of a gift. You can’t drop it. If I would have dropped it, it would have been like ‘Dang, how do you drop it?’ It was a pretty easy pass to intercept.”
(The offense put up 48 points. I know the team’s got to feel pretty good about 494 yards of offense as well. I know that that’s got to feel really good.) – “Our offense is – they’re something special. I’m looking forward to what they’re going to do this season. The way they started the game just coming out fast, it was pretty impressive. And then to continue it all four quarters, it was nice to watch.”
(How would you evaluate your preseason overall, how it went? With decisions about to be made, how do you feel right now overall?) – “I thought I made some decent plays with the reps I got. Obviously there’s always some things to clean up. I was moving around from a few positions, so it’s a learning process with that as well, playing safety, corner and dimebacker. I thought I gave my best and it’s up to the coach’s hands. I felt like I did good enough. You never know – it’s a business. We got a few days to see.”
Saturday, August 27, 2022
Postgame – Eagles
QB Skylar Thompson
(Obviously it’s not easy, but you definitely make it look easy out there. Just talk about how much fun your having, getting the opportunity to shine.) – “Yeah, well you know that sums it up. I’m having a lot of fun. I think having that approach, going out there and making the game fun has helped me play looser and play one play at a time. The big thing for me is just continuing to grow. There’s still things in the back of my mind that I just want to get better at, but that’s what makes playing at this position fun. There’s always room for improvement, always room to grow. I’m super excited to watch the film and see what I can get better at.”
(Do you think you made it?) – “I think I’ve done everything I can do in my control. I really appreciate my teammates doing a great job of playing for me. Going out there, guys are making plays for me, blocking me, protecting me, allowing me to be at my best. That’s what I’m most grateful for, just getting the opportunity to go out and play this game at this level. That’s what I’ve been dreaming about my whole life, and all the other stuff is out of my control. I just try to have fun and put the team first in everything I do and control the things I can do.”
(Your first NFL preseason is complete. Could you have ever imagine that it would go the way it did for you?) – “I mean, I have a high expectation for myself, I always have. I’m not really surprised. I put in the work going into this and studied my butt off, worked my butt off to get to this point. So whenever it gets out there on Saturday’s, the work is done. That’s just the process I’ve went through and I’ve trusted and that’s really helped me out on game days.”
Saturday, August 27, 2022
Postgame – Eagles
RB Raheem Mostert
(You guys ran the ball effectively and that was something that we hadn’t necessarily seen, what did you think about that– and can you be consistent in running that?) – “Yeah, the preseason is all about fine-tuning things, especially the last game. You want to figure out what we want to work on. I know the running game hasn’t really been there the previous two games, but when you have to sit back and watch the film each week and critique yourself as an individual, as a player— especially, in the running game. It is very vital that you go out there in the last preseason game and try and put on what has been missed the past few games. That’s what we’ve been trying to do and it has worked.”
(What do you like most about the way Head Coach Mike McDaniel draws up a run game?) – “I’m used to it. I know exactly what he is going to be doing. I’ve been with him for six years, so nothing really shocked me other than his personality. He’s starting to become a little more different than what I was used to because he was quiet a little bit – a guy that was mostly behind the scenes. Now, he’s a frontrunner, so it’s just awesome to see him grow.”
(I know it’s preseason and you have the offense probably a little more productive than we will see in the regular season, but were guys kind of scratching the surface of what we might see in the first two series?) – “Yes, guys were scratching the surface. I know me personally, coming back from an injury I was a little skeptical about how I would be getting my first carry. But once I got that hit in me, it was all new again, all fresh and I was just ready to go – ready to get more handoffs, ready to get more action out there. I picked up a blitz, so I felt good. That was really vital for me, because like I said I haven’t been in contact – it would have been a year in September.”
Saturday, August 27, 2022
Postgame – Philadelphia
RB Sony Michel
(The run game had big game tonight. How did it feel to finally let that loose and show fans that “hey we can put it together too”?) – “It was great. To just get out there and have opportunities to run the football and I think we ran the football pretty well.”
(And for you guys to also put it in the end zone as well and for you to be back home, to hear those cheers for you finding pay dirt?) – “You know that’s the goal whenever we run the football, anytime we’re on offense, is to try to get it in the end zone and that was our goal and we were able to accomplish that today.”
(The first play of the game, to see that up close and personal finally come together, Tua Tagovailoa to Tyreek Hill, what were you guys thinking?) – “It’s just kind of practice execution. We see that every day in practice. And it was able to come to life today and it’s always great to see what you practice come to life in the game field.”
Saturday, August 27, 2022
Postgame – Eagles
QB Tua Tagovailoa (transcribed by ASAP Sports)
Opening statement:
TUA TAGOVAILOA: First and foremost, I would like to extend my condolences to Jason Jenkins and his family. I think what made this so hard is that it was unexpected. He was extremely close to a lot of us on the team. From when I got here I was extremely close to him. I grew close to him waiting for Anne (Noland) and just being able to talk stories with him before my media. I couldn’t imagine what his family is going through right now and waking up not thinking that this was going to be his last day here. I want to send my condolences to his family. I think through our team win I’m glad we got to do that for him.
Q: What stands out to you about the kind of man Jason was and what he represented for this organization?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: I would say that Jason was a beacon of the community. That’s what I think of when I hear of Jason’s name. This guy is always wanting to do stuff for other people. ‘Hey Tua, how can I help you with this? How can we help with your foundation? Hey, how can we do this to make that better or do you want to come do this community service event?’ Things like that. That’s what I think of when I think of Jason. Someone who is extremely selfless.
Q: You found out after the game?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: Just found out after the game.
Q: What must have it been like in the locker room when McDaniel gave you the news? It must have been hard.
TUA TAGOVAILOA: It was emotional for a lot of guys and a lot of guys that have been here for quite some time that got to know him. We won a game. We expected Mike (McDaniel) to be the very optimistic guy after the game giving out game balls and that wasn’t the case. Mike got a little emotional in there. There were some other guys who were able to talk that also got emotional and he broke the news. It’s tough. Anything having to do with a life of someone who had great relationships with people in the organization, it’s hard.
Q: Can you tell us about the first play, hitting Tyreek Hill deep, and what that meant to be able to connect with him the first time on the field with him?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: It was good. We had to decide with plays what openers we wanted to go with. So knowing that Tyreek was playing, he wanted a go ball. We gave him a shot. The throw wasn’t to my liking. That whole spiel. If it was a better ball, if it was probably more in front of Tyreek, you know, we could have scored on the first play probably. You know I think it’s a credit to the practices that we’ve had with the Eagles and how hard our guys have been working. Not just this week but all training camp and OTAs. It’s really good that people finally can see the hard work that we’ve all been putting in together.
Q: What do you think overall of the three scoring drives there that you had?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: I thought they were good. Obviously there’s always going to be things to get better at, but I credit all our success to our o-line. They worked their butts off extremely hard throughout OTAs and then coming into training camp. They’ve worked extremely hard to get defenders to read keys and make everything look the same basically. None of that would have been possible within the run game and then the play pass game without our o-line.
Q: When a coach wins a toss, or a team wins a toss and you elect to receive and the first thing the coach tells you is to throw it deep. I mean what’s that like as a quarterback? What kind of feelings does that bring to you?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: I would say when we were given the play, Mike (McDaniel) didn’t necessarily tell me who to go to with the ball, but for me it was one of those deals that if we got a specific coverage from their defense that regardless of who was on Tyreek (Hill) or not, we wanted to take that shot. And so we got the premier look of what the play consisted of and that’s why we took the shot.
Q: Mike (McDaniel) said before the game that he knew what was going on with Jason (Jenkins). Could you tell a difference with him on the sideline at all?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: Couldn’t tell a difference with Mike on the sideline at all. Couldn’t tell. He hid it pretty well. No one on our team had any idea or any clue that any of that had happened. It’s a sad day for us here the Miami Dolphins and our organization. We lost someone really, really good.
Saturday, August 27, 2022
Postgame – Philadelphia
Head Coach Mike McDaniel (transcribed by ASAP Sports)
Opening Statement:
MIKE McDANIEL: Let’s go ahead and get started. I’m sure you guys have heard that we lost a dear member of the Miami Dolphins organization, Jason Jenkins, Senior Vice President of Communications and Community Affairs. Yeah, we’re just going through the process in grieving with the team. I just told them about it. Right now football pales in comparison to what all the people that were really affected. The list is long from Jason and his walk of life and his wife, Elizabeth, and his children, Liya, Aiden, and Sloane. I haven’t been here that long, but his investment into the team and the community, it didn’t take long to see the great work he did. I mean, I didn’t see a day that — there wasn’t a time — there wasn’t a day that passed that I saw him that he just didn’t light up the room. Like I just told the team, it’s important for those who loved him and were touched by him and all the members of our team to lean on each other. That’s what we’re going to try to do. Our hearts are heavy, as they should be, for an unquestioned professional that’s made his mark on not only the team but the National Football League. Like I told the team, I thought their effort today reflected what would bring him joy as best we could. This was unexpected and very hard. Thoughts and prayers just go with his family. I’m not really sure what I do after this.
Q: If I can ask you a question about the relationship you had with Jason? You said you haven’t been here very long. What impression did he leave with you, and how do you think this organization will remember him?
MIKE McDANIEL: As consistent as I have ever seen, from his wardrobe to his spirit. He was the nines. That’s why it makes it so tough. This is a healthy, healthy guy that just brought it every day. You know, he worked at the stadium. I’m not sure how many people that I feel like I know from the stadium. I would love to know more, but on a day-to-day I don’t get to interact with all the people as much as I would like. For him to make such an impact, it was obvious. You can’t make that impression. You get to talk to them maybe once a week, but the impression that he made, there’s no fooling that. You could see the relationships, the eye contact, how people looked at him, how he embraced others. He was the consummate professional. I know for guys that have been around here for a while, they knew him like a family member, and I think it’s incredibly impressive, and it just speaks to the human being and his impact on all of us where I could see that in my brief time around him. I mean, he was a force of positivity. The organization has been through some stuff, and it was very impactful to me just how many people in the organization were passionate about doing their jobs well and about the Dolphins, and he was the top of the list. He was just full of life. That’s the hardest part. There’s no words to describe. He had a great family. His wife is awesome and his children, and it’s just tough. It’s a tough one to swallow, and he will be missed, but he will not be forgotten. I can tell you that much.
Q: Did you get word like all of us during halftime, or did you know a little bit beforehand?
MIKE McDANIEL: No, I got word before the game. And so there was a — you know these things happen in life. You never expect them. As the head coach, I didn’t really know what to do. This was maybe a couple of hours before the game that we heard he was having trouble. Then speaking with the people that had worked with him for the longest that had spent intimate time with him for an extended period of time, I was really at a loss. Like, hey, what do I do about this because I just couldn’t stop thinking about everyone that’s affected. And I got some strong advice from in particular Chris Grier and Brandon Shore specifically that said that it didn’t matter that it was Preseason Game 3. He understood what was on the line for all the players. I mean, shoot, this particular game, I don’t even know the head count for how many people from the community that he had at the game that wouldn’t otherwise be able to see the game, and what he would want most is to see us all do our jobs as best we could. In that vein, I had to push forward, and we thought that the best thing — the thing that he would want, as best we could decipher, would be that we let the players know after, so that’s what I was just doing before we got started. It’s been a tough day for all those reasons.
Q: In the back of your head did you maybe call that first play just to kind of maybe to tribute or maybe just to lighten up the mood or something like that?
MIKE McDANIEL: Somebody said something. I can’t even remember at this point. Maybe it was Chris (Grier). I think it was Chris that said, ‘dude, he would want you to do what you do.’ So that’s all I thought of. It at least gave me direction because you’re, like, ‘Okay, what am I doing?’ But, no, when Chris said that, I was able to, all right, say, okay, I have a job to do, and then it was just all right. Once we got to the two-minute warning, it all came back. We do the best we can, like all of us. This is a part, a fixture of life. It’s a part of being human, and it’s impossible. It’s inhumane. We do the best. We all experience those things. I hate it because you feel like you can — as a head coach, you’re supposed to do stuff. You’re supposed to lead, or you’re supposed to do things, and there’s nothing for me to do, you know? I can’t make this one better, but I think we all can relate to that.
Q: I know it’s tough to talk about the game after that, but that Tyreek pass on the first play of the game, what was it like to see that right off the bat their first time playing in a game on the field together?
MIKE McDANIEL: I was just happy for those two individuals because they’ve invested a lot. I was happy for the team and the organization really because they’ve invested a lot. They know — let’s just say it was cool to see them not blink and do what they love doing. Really good players. I’m happy to call them my teammates.
Q: Are you sending the league a message with calling that on the first play? I think you did it in a scrimmage, two deep passes like that.
MIKE McDANIEL: We’re really just trying to work on our craft. You don’t know what defense they’re going to run out there. You have to execute the play, and I was happy that it was a tough look, but Tua is making that decision to throw to him while at the same time his back is to the defense. It takes a lot of training, but we were pretty confident that if we got the right look that, they would execute it. That’s why they are who they are, and that’s why we all believe in them so much.
Saturday, August 27, 2022
Fourth Quarter – Philadelphia
LB Elandon Roberts on WFOR broadcast with Kim Bokamper
(Last preseason game, where do you see your defense as you stand right now?) – “I think we’re in a good spot. We’re coming out of preseason and we’re not – we got two weeks to prepare until the first game, so we’re just going to take it one day at a time and get ready for the season opener.”
(These days it’s pretty rare to bring a whole unit back, but you guys seem to have done that. You have another year with Defensive Coordinator Josh Boyer. What can this defense do to elevate themselves from last year?) – “I think with everybody back, we have an opportunity to work on things. Every year the league is so different and you’re bringing new people in and stuff like that, you have to teach a whole defense over. With us, we were able to keep the same guys, so we were able to take steps in different directions with our defense and whatnot. We’re at a good point where we just have to continue to take it one day at a time.”
(You were really playing well towards the end of the season. Can you jump off of that hill and go up higher?) – “I think the momentum with that is good, always. You know you want to leave a season and go into the next season with the same momentum, but I think for us, we just kind of put the season behind us and are looking into what we can do as a defense, as a team to make sure we start the season the right way.”
(You look like you had a lot of pressure up front and you’re getting a lot of coverage behind. That’s going to make things very interesting this year?) – “Yes, it’s going to be a fun season.”
Saturday, August 27, 2022
Third Quarter – Philadelphia
LB Jaelan Phillips on WFOR broadcast with Kim Bokamper
(You got to rest in the second half, but you put some good work into the first half. How are you feeling after this training camp? We have got a couple weeks to go until the first game of the season. Are you getting pretty excited?) – “Absolutely. I think that this camp has been really good for me personally just to be able to grow. I really feel like I’m kind of getting into gear now as the season approaches. I’m super excited for Week 1, but still got work to do, for sure.”
(You didn’t waste any time. I think the first past rush of the year, you almost made that hook and got in on him?) – “Hey man, it will come eventually. It will come. I’m just trying to apply pressure, trying to be tenacious in my pass rush and my run game and everything like that. So yes, I’m feeling good out there.”
(How different has this been from your rookie year? You didn’t get a lot of practice early on and kind of got a slow start. You’re ready to come out of the box pretty fast, it looks like, now?) – “Yes, the preseason is super valuable for the exact reason that you just said. Being able to get comfortable playing and just within the scheme and everything, it’s definitely invaluable going into the season.”
(What did you learn last year that you’re putting into action now?) – “I’d say it’s more from a momentum standpoint, just in my preparation and just in the way my process leading up into the game. It kind of rids me of anxiety and rids me of that worry, and I just feel confident and ready to go.”
(Along with playing football, you do a lot of work in the community. You reach out, you want to get to these kids and you want to help them. What drives you in that?) – “It’s one of the most important things, just using this platform that we have. We’re so blessed to be in this platform and be in the NFL, because kids listen to us and people listen to us in general. So I think the most important thing for us is to set an example, not only for the kids but for other people to show that giving back is so much more important than doing something that’s going to feed your ego. You want to feed your soul, so I love giving back and doing the most that I can do.”
Saturday, August 27, 2022
Halftime – Philadelphia
Head Coach Mike McDaniel on WFOR broadcast with Kim Bokamper
(You don’t waste any time getting this offense going. QB Tua Tagovailoa and WR Tyreek Hill on the first play, it had to feel good for you?) – “I think it felt good for them. They’ve put in a lot of work, but it doesn’t matter until you do it in a stadium in front of fans. So I know they were happy to get started the right way. It was an awesome read by Tua (Tagovailoa). That’s not easy, and it was an awesome read by Tyreek (Hill) tracking that ball, so I was happy with that.”
(One thing you talked about was trying to find this running game. Well, you’ve certainly found it. RB Raheem Mostert comes out with a big run, RB Myles Gaskin getting some effort and RB Salvon Ahmed. Are you seeing your running game do what you want to do?) – “There’s – any time you run the ball with sustained success, it takes a group of individuals working together. So I was happy with the effort, with the (running) backs breaking tackles, but it was good to get a little rhythm going and be able to get some runs called. So there’s a lot of work that goes into that, and I was proud of the guys to be able to reap some of those rewards.”
(Defensively, you got a nice fourth-and-1 stop and a lot of pressure on their quarterback. That had to feel good?) – “That’s an important part of our defensive unit. They take a lot of pride in working the fundamentals and technique. I thought that was on display, and I’m hoping for more of that in the second half.”
(About 30 minutes left in this game, are there still jobs to be had out there?) – “Absolutely. Absolutely, any time you’re on the field in a professional football game, that tape lasts forever. So all the guys are very focused to make sure that the standard that was taken first half, there’s no let up and that standard continues in the second half.”
