DT Davon Godchaux
(You guys made such strides against the Chargers holding them to under 100 rushing yards. What was the difference in that game?) – “The Chargers? I feel like in the second half we came out flat. We’ve got to play (well) for all four quarters. I don’t think we’ve done that this season, so we’re going to try to take this approach against the Washington Redskins – a team that just fired their head coach, is coming in looking for a win. We’re looking for a win, too. Both of us haven’t won a game, so we’re looking for a win. We know nobody is going to give it to us. We’ve got to come out fast.”
(What did you guys do better that game in terms of stopping the run?) – “I think everybody just played their gap, made plays, read their keys. It’s really nothing different. I look at like – (against) the Cowboys, we had it pretty good before halftime. Ezekiel Elliott ran free on our pass-rush group. I think (against) the Chargers, we really locked in; but we’ve got to come out fast in the second half.”
(How much pain is it to have the worst rush defense in the league?) – “It’s very painful when you look at that. I don’t try to look at it; but hey, it is what it is. The stats are there; but at the end of the day, we just try to get better each and every week. Coming in this week with the Washington Redskins, they’re looking for a win and we’re looking for a win. The best team is going to win.”
(But you’ve got to take that personal?) – “Oh, 100 percent you’ve got to take it personal. At the end of the day, I look at it like to have a great defense – look at the old school Pittsburgh Steelers defense – you’ve got to be able to stop the run. If you can’t stop the run on defense, then you have no great defense. So I think it all starts with stopping the run. You see guys like Taco (Charlton) – you want to get the sacks. Everybody wants to get the sack. Everybody wants to do this, but at the end of the day, you’ve got to stop the run. If you don’t stop the run, you don’t have no fun. (laughter) I learned that from ‘Coach O’ at LSU (Head Coach Ed Orgeron).”
Thursday, October 10, 2019
RB Kenyan Drake
(Coming in this week – obviously you had the bye week – what have you learned about preparing and what went wrong in the first four or five weeks of the season?) – “We just really have to buckle together, have a game where we play four competitive quarters. I mean it is just what it is. Every day making sure that – I sound like a broken record, but that we continue to get better with the things we are good at and obviously hone in on the – I guess make sure that we shake back on the stuff that we haven’t really been good at. It’s as simple as that.”
(Is the offense starting to come together with all the new pieces?) – “Yeah, I mean we go out there – we field a team every week so it is just about making sure that we have the plays that we need to make when we need to make them, have timely drives, not have self-inflicted wounds in terms of turnovers and penalties that put us behind the eight ball in terms of down-and-distance. We just want to play clean football. That is what we plan on doing this week.”
(Head Coach Brian Flores said yesterday that QB Josh Rosen will be the starter for the remainder of the season. Does that really make a difference with this offense in terms of you guys knew you had him already but does that make a difference at all him saying that?) – “Him having I guess the full confidence of the guys he has on the field, everybody has to go out there and do their job at that point. That is just what we are focusing on. Let them kind of handle the day-to-day operations and everything else that comes with putting people where they need to be; but when you get on the field, level on offense and level on defense and just going out there and handle your business. We look forward to doing that for the rest of the year.”
(QB Josh Rosen says he knows this is basically a tryout for him. When you hear him say things like that, does that motivate you guys to go out there block better, catch better, pass better or play better? There is a lot of outside talk about what they’re drafting next year.) – “I feel like the most important focus is on right now. I am glad he has the wherewithal and is proactive in terms of knowing I guess the bigger picture, but right now it is you know we are playing against a hungry Washington team that is hungry for a win like we are looking for a win. Somebody has to win and somebody has to lose, so in order to be on the right side of those, that’s what we are focused on.”
(You had a couple of nice runs in the last game with a few more lanes. Do you think you are close to popping off that big one?) – “Yeah, I mean I think the older I have gotten and playing this position especially at this level, it is about taking what the defense gives you and putting yourself and the offense in the best position to be successful on a down-to-down basis. When the big runs come, they will come. I am not necessarily pressing for them or looking for them. I mean I kind of put me in the position that I am currently with I guess having two fumbles on a short resume through this season. That is not something that I want to kind of harp on; but at the end of the day, those things happen and they happen because I was trying to do too much in a situation that just required me to get the yards that were there. So trying to focus on that would be counterproductive to what this team needs right now and that is somebody to be reliable to go out there and get the yards that are there and if you need to break plays, plays will be there to break when it happens.”
(How have you managed I guess that balance – obviously the team needs a spurt and you have the ability to do it, but like you said you don’t want to shoot yourself in the foot with turnovers.) – “It is just really about being where you need to be at a given time. When there is a play to be made, if you have the ability to do it, that is what you will do. It will be second nature because you have the instincts and that it what we are all here for: to make plays and help this team win games. Now whether that is – we have to have 11 guys on the field doing their job at any given time for anything to be successful. So with that being said, that includes me, myself or whoever else has the ball in their hands to go out there and know that with having the ball in your hands comes the added responsibility of carrying the organization on your back at that one given time and understanding that the keys to the game is to make sure that you don’t have turnovers and do things that put the team in a bad situation where the defense might have a short field to have to defend, if you go out there and I guess try to make a play that is not there. So it is really just about understanding the situation, going out there, playing ball, making the plays that are there and doing the things you need to do to help this team win games.”
Thursday, October 10, 2019
DE Taco Charlton
(In terms of this defense – well, you’ve been here two games – but you guys have been struggling against the run. What is going to be the turning point that helps you sort of contain the run?) – “Just keep working together. That’s it. We just (need to) keep building. We’re a young team with a lot of new faces, so you just have to keep working and keep building that chemistry. When that chemistry comes and once we know how each other plays, we’ll get along in the pass and the run.”
(So you think it is just guys being unfamiliar with each other?) – “Yeah. Like I said, we’re just young. We’re just young. Once you get these reps in and see how we work in practice and everything like that, and we know each other, that’s how you benefit and that’s how you make things work.”
(I know Defensive Coordinator Patrick Graham told some of the TV announcers that he told you that he always wanted to coach you after he had seen you at the Combine. How pleasing was that to hear?) – “It was good. To have a coach that wants to coach you and wants to be around you and wants you to succeed is always a blessing. So I was blessed to be here and be put in this position where I’ve got not just him but a couple of coaches that want to coach me and want to believe in my ability and want to see me do great things.”
Thursday, October 10, 2019
Head Coach Brian Flores
(I know the goal is always winning and if you can develop guys, I’m sure that is a goal as well. Sometimes there are examples where you might have to pick one or the other. I will give you an example and want your thoughts in general on this. T Isaiah Prince, he’s obviously a developmental guy (and) you are eager to see what you have in him, but a veteran like T J’Marcus Webb might give you a better chance to win right away. So in a case like that and in general, do you say winning is the clear-cut priority or do you say player development is on par with it, close to it, in terms of what your personal priorities are?) – “That’s about six questions there. (laughter) So, I will start by saying that to me the most important thing is everyone going through an individual process throughout the week. That is meetings, that’s walkthroughs, that is the preparation, that is practice and their fundamentals, so everyone’s individual development and the process – to me, that is at the top of the list for me. As far as one player versus another – you mentioned Prince versus Webb – I think everything is case by case. Yes, you always want to develop young players but you want to develop all of the players on your team. Every week we are going to try to give ourselves the best chance to win the game or what we feel is the best chance to win the game. So, all those things you take into account. I don’t think there is a specific set way for anyone. For me personally and for our coaching staff, it’s not set. It’s not specifically, ‘we definitely want to do this,’ or ‘we definitely want to do this.’ I think every week we are trying to put this team in the best position to win, but I think the process of actually going through that is of the utmost importance for this group. Development is very important. I think we are trying to do that at all positions; but look, these guys work extremely hard and trying to put the best players out there that we feel can help us win. I don’t know, did I miss anything? (Laughter)”
(No, no that was good.) – “(Laughter).”
(Yesterday C Daniel Kilgore and I am paraphrasing here – he told everyone that the perception of this team and whatever terminology is being used – tanking, rebuilding – is not there. We, he said we as players, we go out there and work our backsides off every day. Do you like the fire in someone like that when one of your captains goes out there and says that?) – “I think that is the approach that we need to have. I think that is the approach that we have as a total team. Yeah, I like that. I mean what coach wouldn’t want that? I think that is – to me, that is standard operating procedure for any player in this league. Kilgore works every day. The game is important to him. It is important to everybody in the locker room so it doesn’t surprise me at all. I think that is how this team is wired. We’ll go out and try to win every game; but that really starts Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, in practice, in meetings. That is where it starts and I think that is what he meant by working every day to try to improve, get better and really execute on a consistent basis.”
(But when the approach isn’t there to back up the results, how do you continue to reinforce that ‘hey, we are doing the right thing?’ Because you guys have not been competitive in a game yet.) – “I think at the end of the day, that process – and maybe that process needs to be changed – but I think from a work standpoint, from a trying to improve and get better standpoint, that is the only way I know. I think continually getting better in practice, continually working to improve their execution, continuing to work and improve the communication – from my experience over time, that works and we will continue to do that. I have seen that from this team and I think that’s what Kilgore was kind of mentioning. I think you see some of those things on a daily basis and if we just keep continuing to do that and the process is right, the results normally take care of themselves.”
(Regarding veteran leadership on this team, I am wondering what you are seeing whether it is more pronounced because it is such a young team or whether it is a little more laid back because these guys haven’t been together for very long or is it about what you have seen earlier?) – “I have said this before: leadership to me is guys that work hard and put the team first. You show leadership. We have some older players – whether it is Bobby (McCain) or (Daniel) Kilgore – or some young players from Christian Wilkins to (Jerome) Baker to Walt Aikens. We have guys who love to play, it is important to them and they do all the things necessary to lead a group – to lead a group of individuals. I think all of those guys I mentioned, along with a lot of players on this team, are doing all of the right things. I mean it is a team of teams. You need leaders really across the board – so your nickel group, your dime group, your 11-personnel group offensively, your kickoff coverage unit. You need leaders really across the board. I mean it is something that we try to develop on a daily basis. It is something we talk about and I think we are getting better in that department and hopefully it improves over the course of the season.”
(A lot of leadership is developed by making plays on the field. How is that going with this team?) – “I would say leadership – I mean a lot of people say that it is developed by making plays on the field. Playmaking is developed by making plays on the field. Leadership, to me, happens behind the scenes and it is the preparation on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday. Normally when that process is right, then you end up making plays on Sunday and kind of the whole thing comes together. I think if a guy goes out there, gets a tip ball and catches a couple of interceptions, that doesn’t necessarily make him a leader, in my opinion, at least. So I think it is something you develop and leadership is something you do every day. It is not a one-off. So that has kind of been my opinion and my approach and my message to the guys who have that type of potential on this team.”
(In what ways has coaching this younger Dolphins team been different for you than more veteran New England Patriots teams in the past?) – “I mean I have coached a lot of young players, guys who were young, guys who weren’t familiar with a standard or a process or a way to be a professional. I think that is a part of coaching – is helping young players do that. I think that places – I was in New England last – I think it is something that you try to develop. It is not something that happens overnight. It’s something you develop over time and I think it is something that we are building towards here. This is a young team. There are a lot of guys that are eager and willing and want to do it the right way, and I think that is what you are looking for more than anything. I think if they continue to work on that, working with the eagerness to do it right, I think over time the leadership will develop.”
(Yesterday S Bobby McCain said something that kind of caught my eye. He said “as a team we have got to bring more energy when guys make plays. That is understandable when you are 0-4 and everything, but still you have a job to do so we have got to bring more energy.” What is your reaction to that?) – “I think energy, enthusiasm, urgency – all of those things are important to a football team and Bobby knows that. We talk about leadership – that is something that we have talked about as a team. I think we need a lot of things. We need more energy, more enthusiasm, more urgency, more execution. I see where he is coming from. I think more energy comes from better execution. When you have better execution, you can make more plays and when you make more plays, there is more energy. So there is a little bit of a – there is a process to that. We just have got to get better with the process and I think – There was a lot of energy in practice yesterday. I expect there will be some more today and hopefully that builds into over the course of the week and that we are an energetic, enthusiastic, tough and physical team on Sunday.”
(An Xs and Os question: You mentioned Washington Redskins Interim Head Coach Bill Callahan’s running background. How do you prepare for that knowing you prefer running nickel and dime sets in your back and in your secondary?) – “Well, he is – He has got every run that has ever been installed so we’re really preparing for really everything. I know you mentioned nickel and dime sets, so they have got some 11-personnel runs, they have got some 10-runs, they have got some 12-runs, they have got some heavy-grouping runs. So we have to really prepare for it all. I don’t necessarily think we would put out a dime grouping with a big personnel grouping, so – but if it happened, and that happens occasionally, we have to be able to kind of make the adjustments and play that play. But preparing for Coach Callahan and the myriad of things they could do in the running game and pulling guards, tackles, centers, misdirection – they do a lot. We have got to do a good job of reading our keys, believing what we see, setting the edge, tackling. It really boils down to basic fundamentals and techniques, so it is going to be tough. He is a good coach and they do a good job in the running game. We need to be ready.”
(Do you look at individual matchups maybe like that one – the Washington run offense versus your run defense – and say that can be the deciding match up for this game?) – “Everything could be the deciding match up. That is kind of how I look at it. Every play counts and I am not exactly sure which one it is going to be – it could be the run game, it could be the pass game, it could be a one-on-one match up with a tackle and an end, it could be a one-on-one with a punt return – I am not necessarily sure. We try to hit them all and we try to be precise and execute every one of them because I am not necessarily sure and I have coached in a lot of games where there is a play in the kicking game, a play offensively, a play defensively, it’s in the first quarter, the third quarter, an onside kick. It could be anything. So we try to prepare and put our guys in the best position to execute and to play at a high level on really every snap, because I am not necessarily sure which one it is going to be. That is the difference between winning and losing. That has always been my approach and I think it will always be that way. “
