Monday, September 9, 2024
FB Alec Ingold
(How good did it feel to convert those two third-and-1 runs? And on the second one, can you take me through the play where it looked like you got hit in the backfield before you were able to plow through?) – “Yeah, it felt great. I think it was – we had a few of those opportunities that just pop up in the flow of the game and to keep the offense on the field was awesome. As a fullback, I didn’t really have to do much. The right side of the offensive line just kind of rode that wave. Austin Jackson down-blocking, we have that out block with Durham (Smythe), or Julian (Hill), or whoever man, and the hole was there and we just made it work. So I’m glad we could keep the offense on the field, Jeff Wilson Jr. was humming at the end of the game. Tua (Tagovailoa) was on one. Everyone was fiery getting in and out of the huddle, so just to keep that momentum, those little things are the big things so it felt good.”
(On the second one, I was not wrong that you got hit in the backfield, so what was going through your mind and the determination to plow through it?) – “I just tried to get – in my mind, I was mentally thinking get as skinny as possible and get through that hole. I tried to embody Raheem Mostert as best I could, but no man. I think it’s all mindset; like he’s going a little sideways, I’m going forward, you got to be able to make that work, especially when you’re at that point in the game. You got to be at your best when your best is required in the fourth quarter, set up ‘7-dawg,’ Jason Sanders for that game-winner. That was all we needed.”
(It seemed like the Jaguars made a real concerted effort to take away your run game early on at least – the second half RB Jeff Wilson Jr. really got it going for you guys. What did Jacksonville do that was effective and how can you improve going into this week?) – “I think we talked about that new defensive coordinator over there getting those guys rolling. Their edge defenders are really tough – really high paid, really high motor guys. Linebackers were flowing down hill, so – you got big Arik Armstead in there too. They had quite a bit of defensive players that were making plays. As we were able to make adjustments, as we were able to see things on the sideline, communicate, I think that’s what opened up those lanes in the second half. And I think that’s just a testament to the team man, sticking together. Obviously it wasn’t pretty in the first half, but when you have guys that have been intentional about the way that we’re working through things, we can talk to each other, speak the same language and be able to iron it out on the sideline to be able to put up some points, get some drives rolling. Even when things are moving slow and it doesn’t feel great, you’re able to kind of get all that rust out, burn all those fumes out and be able to get what we need in the second half. So I was really proud of the guys; the communication on the sideline was elite. Yeah, we made those adjustments together as a crew and it was great.”
(I think you have won your first game against the Bills with the Dolphins and then have lost four straight since and 11 of 12 for the franchise overall. Can you take us into – what are the feelings inside the locker room toward Buffalo?) – “I mean we don’t like them; they don’t like us. It’s not a really big secret, we’re all very familiar with each other. It’s a Thursday night game, a short week so adversity is an opportunity. Really excited any time you get to play the Bills. They’re atop the AFC East as long as I’ve been here and that’s the type of game you want to play in primetime with all the guys rolling deep and being able to lay it all out there. If you’re a competitor, you love playing the Bills. You got a heck of a lot of respect for them across the board. You’ve got to play really sound football for four quarters to be able to compete and that’s what we got to do. We’ve got to put one together.”
(I was going to ask about the Bills as well, but I wanted to ask you about the compressed time frame. What time did you get out of the stadium last night? What time did you get back to work today? And what’s on the agenda to get ready for one of the biggest games of the season?) – “Yeah, fans were rolling deep yesterday so we didn’t get back until maybe 5:30 (p.m.) and got to just hang out by the house, grill out some dinner and then we’re right back at it 7:00 a.m. this morning. So it is a quick turnaround but you’re also just playing football, right? It really does boil down to the simplicity of the game, being able to execute, take in a game plan, playing ball, making those adjustments. Nobody’s bodies feel great, but I think that’s that extra layer of want to that you really need to bring into those Thursday night games, and it’s an exciting opportunity for us. So anytime we can be back at Hard Rock Stadium on a quick turnaround, I’m not complaining about that.”
Monday, September 9, 2024
LB David Long Jr.
(I wanted to ask you, given what happened and how weird thing were before the game yesterday. can you give us a picture of how you guys were able to come together and focus on the game after you found out what had happened?) – “It really wasn’t that tough for us to stay focused on the task at hand. We knew with the challenge we had in front of us that was a good team across from us. We knew we couldn’t go out there and play around and focus on things that were out of our control. We talked about it and locked back in and ended up going out there and handling business.”
(What were the key changes do you feel in the second half that lead to the difference in performance in the first and second half?) – “I think people just woke up. We went in there, we realized that we were not playing ourselves on the defensive side of the ball. We went in there and got each other right. As far as the coaches coming in there and announcing the things we were messing up on and holding each other accountable. We know we have too many elite players on that side of the ball for things to be going the way they were. It didn’t take much for us to have some self-reflect and go out there and hold each other accountable at halftime. We went out there and handled business.”
(You’ve had at least a couple occasions where you’ve gotten to play against QB Josh Allen. What are some of the keys to stopping him in your estimation?) – “Discipline football and tackling. Strong quarterback that can make things happen with his feet, so you know how you have to be discipline. He can make you pay when you’re not. I’ve played against him many times, and this team has as well, so we know what we got on Thursday.”
(I know this isn’t a question specifically about how your defense performed. I want to talk about the mentality that it takes on those third-and-shorts situations, those fourth-and-1 situations. You’re a physical linebacker. What type of mentality do you have to have to keep the offense from converting on that play?) – “I feel like that’s where you can a find out a lot about your team on those tough downs. That’s where the great football is played because it only takes an inch, either to stop them or to get the first down. We made key stops a couple of times yesterday. It’s just to attest to who we are. We know it’s not easy to win in this league. It usually comes down to one or two plays and you got to take advantage when the opportunity presents itself. I was actually happy we were in those positions because especially early, you get an idea to see who is going to bow up and then who’s not. I think we all showed that some adversity is nothing to us. Actually, we like being in those positions and it shows a lot about us.”
(How’s the hand, by the way?) – “It’s straight, man. I’m cool, ain’t going to put too much on it.”
(I wanted to ask you about your impression on how Defensive Coordinator Anthony Weaver called his first game with you guys? Do you have any good stories form the sideline or was he up in the box?) – “He was on the sideline. I think it was great. I think he called some plays to get some people to show their strengths, especially at the end of the game. Guys just making plays. It wasn’t just like extra effort, especially with ‘JP’ (Jaelan Phillips), ‘O’ (Emmanuel Ogbah). We just wanted it more. I think it showed. I think he called plays to just let guys play their game which is important, especially to the elite players on this side of the ball that got to show their strengths. It was good. Looking to build on it throughout the season.”
(What are your impressions on how LB Jaelan Phillips did his first game back?) – “Man, listen – we literally just left film. I don’t know if y’all watched it but that boy has a motor. That man has motor and it shows. It shows that he was just eager to get back out there with the guys. It’s going to be a long season for these tackles, not going to lie.”
(So much is made by fans and some media about how players from former teams can help their current team. Is there anything that S Jordan Poyer can offer you guys, without saying what it is, is there anything strategically, or even nuances of Buffalo’s offense you think can help you this week? Or is all of that totally overstated and you know enough just from having played them a lot?) – “I would just say just that – you answered the question. We know them enough. ‘JP’ (Jordan Poyer), even with him being over there I don’t think it’s much. Even if they did, they would probably know, so any calls, any pre-snaps, they would probably change it, of course. It’s not like, ‘JP, give us a blueprint.’ Just go out there and we know we have a plan when we get it, and play to that. But no, I’m not worried about that.”
(I wanted to go back to the question about the incident involving WR Tyreek Hill before the game. I’m wondering if you were able to see any of the social media videos about what happened, and for you personally, what was it like seeing a teammate going through that? Was it scary? What have you been able to reflect about what happened?) – “I wouldn’t say it’s scary. It’s something that I’m used to seeing. But it was just wild that like – I saw the video, but I didn’t see the caption or anything at first, but then I saw it. It’s crazy that mentally he could lock back in and go out there and finish the game that he did, because that could’ve threw him off his game. He probably could’ve had a bad game and just let that mess with his mental. But he didn’t. He went out there, got past it at that time and made stuff happen. It was a good attest to him and his focus and discipline.”
(I wanted to know about the run defense. You guys allowed 128 yards on 26 carries. But the biggest play of the game, S Jevón Holland’s strip, came in the run game. How do you balance that? How did you guys do overall against the run?) – “I think we did OK. I know I could’ve done better, but as a whole, as a defense, we we’re just meeting. We know we have some things to harp on a little bit, but all in all, we feel like we have the tools to make stuff happen and we just want to be great. To us, that was too much, but big plays here and there, they weren’t consistently running. They had a couple of plays where they were just big gains, but it’s easy fixes especially with the leaders on this side of the ball. It’s an easy fix.”
Monday, September 9, 2024
S Jordan Poyer
(Do you expect any emotion Thursday playing your former team that’s different from a regular game? After these teams have seen each other so much, is there anything you can share with defensive teammates about the nuances of Buffalo’s offense? Or is that whole thing entirely overstated and there is really no inside information that you can give them?) – “I’m excited to play this week. Obviously, a team that I played with the last seven years. I’m very familiar with a lot of guys they have over there. I still have a lot of good relationships over there. I’m thankful for all of my years out there in Buffalo, but I’m excited to play, for sure. I’ve definitely been connecting with the guys on this team. Like I said, we’re going to be ready to play. We’re excited to play; this is going to be a fun game on Thursday night.”
(This whole topic of sharing inside info, is there anything to it or is there really nothing you can say that your teammates haven’t seen on tape playing Buffalo so often?) – “I’m sure there’s really a whole lot they haven’t seen playing tape. We’ll continue to talk throughout the week, and we’re excited for the opportunity on Thursday night.”
(From practicing against QB Josh Allen for so long, but now preparing to play against him, what have you gathered are some of the keys to containing him?) – “Probably some of the same things that you guys have seen. Yesterday he went pretty crazy doing what he’s always been doing, running around, throwing the ball, hurling over people. Great player, man. I’ve seen him do some crazy things over the years, so I’m really excited for my first opportunity to finally play against him. It’ll be a fun night on Thursday night.”
(Being so familiar with him, are there any tendencies in his play specifically that maybe weren’t always expressed to him that you have in the back of your mind possibly?) – “Yeah, I’ll keep those within the team.”
(But they exist?) – “They exist on every player. We’ll keep those within the team”
(Not to put too fine a point on it, but do you think you were brought here, among the reasons you were brought here, would be to beat the Buffalo Bills?) – “I don’t think that was one of the only reasons why I came here. One of the reasons I came here was because I’ve seen this team over the last seven years grow and become who they are. I wanted to be a help in becoming a part of that steppingstone of winning the AFC East and going on a run in the playoffs. This is just part of it. This is just another game for us to win, go 1-0 this week. What a cool opportunity for Thursday night.”
(Are there any group text blowing up this week?) – “No, there’s not.”
(I wanted to commend you for what you said earlier in the season when you had a press conference with us about the mentality that most Dolphin fans knew, but probably don’t publicly speak about it, especially amongst the team in terms of the Dolphins folding when adversity hits. One, did you get heat for saying that inside the locker room, and how do you go about changing that mentality?) – “I think you saw a little bit of that yesterday – down, what, 14-3. There was probably a lot of people that could’ve counted us out, probably a lot of people that did count us out in that game. We just stuck with it, just kept playing. Kept playing football. I swear I’ve been saying this for years now, a coach used to tell me this, is every game you just keep playing, the game is going to always come down to the last play, the last series, the last drive, it doesn’t matter the score. When you at the games over the weekend, that was a game. When you look at the game last night, the last drive, the last series, Detroit drives down with the ball, game over. You just keep playing. Adversity is going to hit; every team is going to go through adversity and you being able to handle those moments, that’s what it’s about – the moments. Handling the moments, and I thought we did an amazing job with that yesterday. It was really cool to be a part of this victory, and we’re excited about this week.”
(The touchdown pass yesterday in the corner of the end zone to WR Brian Thomas Jr. Looking at the all-22, it just looked like it was just a really good throw. Sometimes it’s a good offense rather than a defensive mistake. But I’m curious, from your perspective what did you see on that on that play and how did it get completed?) – “Yeah, it was a good throw. I think just us and the secondary playing together and continue to play together, we’ll continue to communicate things. There is this couple of things out there that we could do better on the back end that are super easy fixes. We’ve got a super talented, we’ve got guys that have played this game for a long time. So just small communication things that will help us continue to get better.”
(Was that Cover 4? I’m trying to learn.) – “We’re playing football. It was Cover 2 and then Cover 4 based off of releases and there were certain communications. Things that we got to communicate, that we’ll continue to communicate and get it figured out. We gave up 14 points to an NFL team in the first NFL game of the season. I think going into the second half, we shut them out pretty good so that’s what we’re going to continue to build off of and continue to thrive off of.”
(I just wanted to get your reaction to what happened with WR Tyreek Hill prior to the game and how were you guys able to respond?) – “What a crazy situation. He’s a boss for getting (detained) and then going out there and going for – what did he go, for 130 something yards? That’s just absolutely ridiculous. We love Tyreek (Hill), man. It was super cool that the guys that were around him, Calais (Campbell) and Jonnu (Smith) and I think there might have been another person, were there to help support. It’s just a tough situation, we’re glad that he was OK. I saw his press conference after the game. What a leader he is for saying the things that he said and I’m just going to keep it at that.”
(I wanted to ask you a little more about what you just said. Was there a turning point before the game, something someone said, whether it was Head Coach Mike McDaniel or someone else, that got you guys focused on the game and able to overcome that very weird situation before the game?) – “I think everybody kind of realized on their phones on Twitter when it happened. He came in the locker room, and he got dressed like he was playing and we were all ready to go. It was like it never happened, really, and he went out there and went crazy on the field like he always does. What a crazy story. That’s something, shoot, I’ll tell my grandkids when I’m 70 years old. ‘Yeah, that boy Tyreek got (detained) and went out there and went crazy on the field.’ (laughter)”
(I’d like to ask you about the Buffalo connection. I understand usually ex-teammates don’t communicate the week of that game. Going back over the summer when you first signed with Miami, was there any good trash talking between you and the Bills, sort of like “See you in September,” kind of thing? What do you remember?) – “Absolutely, there has been, for sure. (laughter) I’m going to keep it at that. The boys know we’re coming; I know they’re coming, so it’s going to be a fun Thursday night.”
Monday, September 9, 2024
Head Coach Mike McDaniel
(Have you had any update on the situation with WR Tyreek Hill, any clarity on what happened and just kind of how to move forward with this for him?) – “Really the time since yesterday to now I think for me personally, it’s been hard for me not to find myself more upset the more I think about it. That’s because of my teammates and trying to put myself in that situation that they’ve described emotionally, and then knowing more than that – I think the thing that (explicit) me up, honestly, to be quite frank, is that knowing that I don’t know exactly, I don’t know what that feels like. I think it’s very, very important that two things should be true – I think you let due process work and information to be gathered to appropriately project an opinion. However, I can’t get away from the fact of what I know their experience to be. You try to put yourself – if I’m Calais Campbell and I’m 38 years old and you’re going to work, whatever personal innocence that you have relative to – you’re a gigantic, strong, just a miraculous man that has done right in all ways, shapes and forms. There’s just elements to that that is very triggering, but I also do think that it’s supremely important to wait for information to be gathered before any rush to judgement. Regardless I know the feelings expressed to me are unsettling. Two things did come from the adversity: I’m super proud of teammates being teammates, and I’m super proud of our guys understanding the civic responsibility of a platform and intending to do right by it.”
(We’ve heard all summer how close this team has been. To see two, not only just teammates but new teammates in TE Jonnu Smith and DT Calais Campbell stop and come to his aid, I got to imagine that’s a pretty powerful coaching moment for you.) – “It’s what you hope your team is comprised of. Situations that you can’t plan for sometimes give you the best window into where your team is at. I’m very proud that they see each other as teammates and hold that in regard the way they do. You spend as much time, you are so interwoven into the story of their lives that you hope that teammates understand that we are extended family. I was very happy that a guy in a situation like that didn’t feel alone.”
(You’re clearly very aware and have perspective that probably we don’t about the impact of race in this country – police, excessive use of force, racism. I’m curious, has that perspective changed over time, or is this something that’s always been something that’s really emotional for you?) – “Well yeah, because it’s two part – I guess my journey has left me aware, but at the same time there is a huge level of I don’t know, because I’m not – simply by my appearance, I don’t have a history of feeling profiled. I’m not sure if that makes it – for me in particular, I just feel pretty helpless at times. Situations like that it’s not about the emotions that arises for me, it’s about the people in it. It’s probably more visceral because yes, I do spend a lot of time prioritizing empathy, and then when you know you can’t truly understand, the unknown is what crushes me. I can only forecast. My forecast, what if it’s worse? Since I was young, the racial relations and all things involved in that has been just kind of one of those things that I’m on the outside looking in at everything going on. I know from one thing, my appearance lends me to the journey of many not alienated.”
(With that being said, how impressed were you the way WR Tyreek Hill was able to bounce back from all of the pregame drama?) – “I was very, very impressed by him, individually and collectively, his teammates. I was just very impressed with everyone. To me, the teammates minimized whatever was going on as much as possible. I think the teammates, they did a great job of understanding what the game means to Tyreek (Hill) and tried to assist him as best they could to be able to do what he loves. Especially when you’re hitting the expert level of anything, there is a safe place there that you know the ground rules firmly and that you can do what you really love to do. I think that protecting that from a teammate standpoint and supporting him was very, very powerful.”
(In the past you’ve discussed the difficulty of wanting to have the answers for your players but sometimes having to accept that you don’t have them. You can’t reach that. So what do you – you mentioned not being able to know what that experience feels like – what can you tell guys like WR Tyreek Hill and DT Calais Campbell in a situation like this?) – “I think it’s better to listen more than anything. I think life is super humbling, and I think it’s important to recognize when your words don’t mean (expletive), like what am I going to say?”
(What was the process like in the locker room? It was such an odd incident to happen right before a game, and I sense that something had to have happened in the locker room for things to – for everybody to get their heads back in the game and just get their focus where it needed to be. Was it something you said, something WR Tyreek Hill said or how did that work?) – “There were some key players that are leaders of this team that I think did a great job of communicating to other players via word of mouth when they were getting close to arriving to the locker room and they were met by teammates in the locker room. So I think that in itself – you try to put yourself through their timeline – and however long it lasted, there was certain feelings during the situation, but then the second they got in the locker room, to have numerous people come physically to them to greet them and support them, that’s how it was handled. You want to make sure your guy is OK and, in that process, you want to make sure that they do not feel alone.”
(We’re a day removed from this incident. Happened more than 24 hours. Miami-Dade Police Department has made a commitment to transparency. We don’t have the body one camera video yet which might clear up a lot. I’m not sure whether you thought about that or talked about it. Do you have any thoughts about their releasing that video and is there anything you can address relative to the importance of them releasing that video?) – “I think you let the process take its time. It’s one thing for timeliness of it. I think for anyone to have an opinion, if there are facts, they should have facts before they have an opinion. So I don’t pretend to know all the things involved in that process, so for me to even have an opinion about today and having expectations for it to be released today, I think that should be short-sighted on my part. I don’t know what goes on with that and I think that there’s a lot of things they have to – I’m confident that everything will get reviewed, and I am confident that this is too much in the spotlight to just sweep under the rug. So I feel like what I don’t know now, it’s not my time to know, but I think facts supersede everything. I think it’s important for people to allow a fair process for all information to get distributed because that’s I think kind of the – I just think that’s kind of a super important pillar for me to stand on for my scope, is that I don’t think it’s fair to anybody to rush to judgment. That’s why my emotion comes from the journey and the experience from my teammates and extrapolated to other things; that’s where the emotion comes from, but I think you have to let the process play out. I think that’s super important.”
(You’re obviously very emotional about this. I’m sure a lot of guys on the team are emotional about it. How tough is it to get focused on a game for Thursday?) – “I think there’s a good amount of – I would venture to guess one of the favorite parts of being in the NFL and being on an NFL team is that we are able to immerse ourselves into something that’s a tangible goal that you have some control over. I think that a lot of times it’s therapeutic to be in the process of NFL game week and a Thursday night division opponent. There’s a lot of very constructive things to think about and sometimes that can be our greatest gift – that gift of supreme distraction, if it were. So I think our guys are highly motivated to – especially when the world creeps in on you and rattles you a little bit – there’s I think, some comfort in our known prepare for an opponent, know your assignments, and play together type of orchestration of football that is timely for… I don’t know about this particular situation, but in times, there’s just been innumerable times of things happening in all ways, shapes or forms to players, and they find the comfort in the process and the commitment to each other and the team. So I think when I see guys, what is it tomorrow? What is tomorrow? When I see all the team together tomorrow, I have a pretty sound expectation of guys being very, very focused on our next opponent which happens to be in the division. They happen to play in Buffalo.”
(Do you believe at all in the thought that a team has another team’s number, so to speak? Given what has happened in the last 15 matchups or so, even preceding you, and how much is it to clear that mental hurdle to beat a team like that within your decision and doing it so early in the season?) – “I think there’s always – I worry about the risk of people modeling a current team or a specific opponent on a new team based upon old things. So there’s a lot of players on this team that didn’t play Buffalo with the Miami Dolphins last year. There’s a lot of people that the first time that they played Buffalo was last season. So to be all encompassing, for me I’ve never subscribed to it, but you have to make sure that your team is there and that your team doesn’t see it that way as well because you can wish stuff into existence. To me, I think it’s very involved in fanbases which we feel and it’s very motivating for our ultimate goals and what we want to do with the season, but to have someone’s number, I think on either side, you’re kind of dismissing all the things that have changed that make this new team what it is. I think for this team, we know the stakes of it, but at the same time I don’t think anybody is thinking about the Buffalo Bills as anything but the team that’s won the division for however many years in a row that has had very successful seasons the last handful of previous ones and know that collectively, they will play hard, determined, physical football. Beyond that, I think these are two new teams playing against each other. I know if you’re on the opposite end, I’ve been – I think I was in San Francisco, I can’t remember how many we won playing the Rams in a row, but on the winning side, you’re fearful of people thinking that it’s just the decal that’s winning these games because it’s a very competitive league, and if you take anything to be an assumption, like you have someone’s number, you will get proven wrong quickly. I think the two teams playing is absolutely one of my favorite things in the National Football League because you have – I think it starts with fanbase. When you know your fanbase wants no part of losing to another team, you can feel it in the stadium, you can feel the energy and those stakes. Bottom line is you get in this business for stakes like that, so it should be really fun football that will be hard earned. It will definitely physical, and I think the winning team will have to earn it. And so we’ll be in a situation where we’re trying to prepare ourselves this week to be that team, and I absolutely know, with full conviction, that the boys in Buffalo will be doing the same.”
(A football question about WR Jaylen Waddle, CB Jalen Ramsey and LB Jaelan Phillips. I know Waddle finished the game, but how is he? CB Jalen Ramsey, how is the hamstring? LB Jaelan Phillips, how is the Achilles? Have you seen them and what is their status for Thursday as much as you know?) – “The ones going into the game, simply by the snap count, it was a positive experience for Jaelan (Phillips) and Jalen (Ramsey). You heard how I – they spell them differently, so I say them differently. (laughter) I think they probably had some more snaps than we might have had in our minds, very careful to not put something in their head, but I think that playing over 50 percent of the snaps for both of those guys was – the only way that happens is you’re testing the waters, and you feel very good about what’s occurring. So those were positive things, absolutely. Jaylen Waddle was from upstairs; he was called into the tent based upon want they saw and independent neurologist cleared him. So I think he should be good to go as we move forward.”
