Thursday, November 30, 2023
OL Rob Hunt
(What’s this process been like for you watching all this and actually being dressed for a game and not playing? That goes back to your rookie year.) – “That was weird for me. Being dressed and not playing kind of sucked. But the guys have been doing a really good job of being smart and myself being smart with the situation. I’m thankful that we did it that way. To get back in a jersey and on the field felt good because I’ve been out. I haven’t been there. Being dressed made it feel like I was having a step in the right direction. This week, hopefully we can take it the way we usually do.”
(As a veteran, as a guy who has been a warrior who’s played every game, do you understand Head Coach Mike McDaniel’s standpoint of basically saying I’m resting or holding you guys out until elimination games? Games that ultimately would decide your fate in playoff seeding and basically December games.) – “I don’t know about all that. But I do know if a guy is not healthy and we’ve been honest with each other and the training staff and they know we’re not healthy, I agree with the situation of just let’s take care of this the right way early on and then we’ll be ready for whenever we have to make our real push in December and January. I agree with whatever Mike has going on and the training staff and I follow their plans. Like I said, whatever they need me to do, I’m here to do. Take it step by step, day by day.”
Thursday, November 30, 2023
WR Tyreek Hill
(What is your reaction to Kevin Fitzgibbons getting suspended?) – “It was something that I already knew. Me and K-Fitz, we’ve got a long history together. The news is something that I already knew. I told him don’t let this get to you. Just hold your head up. You’re still young. Continue to do what you love. Me and him are going to continue to work together. I told him I was going to cover his salary, whatever the NFL was going to pay him or whatever. I told him I was going to make sure that I do what’s right and take care of you, make sure you’re not out of a job. That’s my guy.”
(Did you try to get in contact with the NFL in any type of way?) – “Oh yeah, I did. I did. I did. I went through every avenue. But they’ve got their reasoning and I was just like, look, you guys have your reasoning. You guys already have your mind made up so that’s it. That’s all I can do. There’s nothing that I can say, ‘hey, I’m going to sit out or not do this or do anything.’ Those guys already made a decision and they stuck with it. So as men, we’ve got to abide by what they say.”
(You commented a couple days ago saying that you think that this current Dolphins team is better, more talented, than your Kansas City Chiefs team that won a Super Bowl. I was wondering if you can elaborate on that. What sticks out to you about this team being even better than that team?) – “Just look at the stats, man. The stats speak for themselves. Also, the salary cap. That’s all I’m going to say on that. A lot of people may not want to agree with me, but they know I’m right. They can be like ‘oh, we have this player.’ So what? Look at the salary cap and look at the stats this year. That’s all I’ve got to say.”
(You guys were 8-3 last year and then lost five straight games. Why do you think you guys are in better to shape to avoid that this year?) – “Man, we’ve added a lot of guys, a lot more veteran guys who really understand the situation we’re in. We’re definitely in a better spot. Obviously we’re at the same point we were at last year. Coach just has got guys flying around the ball more, more attention to detail. It feels different this year. We’re on a roll right now. It’s a beautiful thing to be a part of.”
(Wide Receivers Coach Wes Welker said that you are the best wide receiver that he’s ever been around.) – “For real?”
(Yeah. I mean, obviously even better than Randy Moss.) – “Oh, wow. He said that?”
(Yes. He said you were better than Randy Moss.) – “Well, I’ve just got to accept the compliment. That’s awesome for your position coach to say something like that. But I believe he was just saying that so he could get me to practice though. (laughter) I believe he was just saying that to try to get me to practice.”
(But cheetahs don’t get hurt though.) – “Yeah, cheetahs don’t get hurt. Right now, I’m just soaking a little injury right now. But I’ll be alright though. I’m going to shake back quick. That’s what I do.”
(I’ve got a question about RB Raheem Mostert. Do you think he’s underrated?) – “Yes. Obviously, he’s been on a lot of teams. People didn’t value him the way that the Miami Dolphins value him. Not even the last team he came from which is the 49ers. He’s a real good asset to this team. The leadership that he brings each and every day. He’s just a tremendous guy to have on this team. I obviously love having other fast guys on this team so it’s a beautiful thing.”
Thursday, November 30, 2023
Offensive Coordinator Frank Smith
(With left tackle sort of uncertain for Sunday, what skillset about T Kion Smith made him appealing to you, Offensive Line Coach Butch Barry and Head Coach Mike McDaniel? What does he do well?) – “Very athletic. Good initial movements. Has lower body power. Like everything, when you come from a smaller school and you display those physical traits, sometimes it’s just getting the consistency to really be able to dive in and learn the why of things. That’s why his training camp, he really devoted a lot of time with (Assistant Offensive Line Coach) Lem (Lemuel Jeanpierre) and Butch and really worked on understanding deeper components of the offense and what defenses are doing. We’ve been very pleased with his development. He also gives us versatility. Because again, he plays guard, tackle, and that’s kind of the nature of how we built the group is having guys who are versatile. He’s been doing a really good job for us.”
(Obviously you guys have a long history with T Terron Armstead in terms of him playing hurt or playing through things. Where is the comfort level with him continuing to do to that, especially with his quadriceps injury and how he performed against the Jets?) – “I think just so much is to the makeup of him. Just knowing him from when he was a rookie in New Orleans when we drafted him to now, he’s just a very consistent person. He understands the physical tolls on a game and what it’s going to take, and his preparation and how he goes about his business and his drive to be one of the elite players at the position, I think. That just all takes into pushing through things to get yourself to game day to be there for your teammates. He’s a consummate teammate, a consummate pro. When you have a guy like him who tells you he’s good to go or he’s not, you believe it because he’s proven it over years and he’s a very good communicator. I have all the confidence in him when he’s really available to help us.”
(When you look at this team as it is preparing for December football, what do you see compared to say last year? Obviously, you’ve made some changes to the way the run game has developed, the way the offensive line has protected QB Tua Tagovailoa. You have some things going for you, but what’s the biggest difference for December football from last year to this year?) – “I think a lot of it is just it’s year two. Guys really understand so much more of what we’re trying to accomplish and they can really not spend as much time maybe – like they’re seeing the plan. They’re seeing consistency of it as opposed to a nuance here or there where it’s kind of grouping it. You see can see just an overall understanding. It’s the same thing of the consistency of a lot of guys being able to play together. You look at how many teams – it’s a challenge in any sport for guys to come together and be extremely successful in year one because there’s just so many different personalities and different communication styles. And then also with what happened in year one. You make the playoffs and it doesn’t go the way you want to, but you see how close and what you are. That just sets your inner drive and what’s going to push you. I always, for years working for Sean Payton, those first five years, I got there two months after they won the Super Bowl. He used to always talk about the Super Bowl is the greatest meal of your life. Every day after that, you’re just chasing the taste. You want that steak again, you want that mashed potatoes again, because nothing else tastes like it. It’s just that drive and it always resonated with me, because I was sitting there going like, yeah, you can resonate with what that feeling is. Once you make the playoffs, you can see it and it’s so close. I think that’s a driving force for so many of our guys because to be your best on a daily basis, the way you’re judged by your peers through the history of the game will be winning championships and how much you win. So I think all those things are reasons why we’re hoping that this next month, we’ll see the growth that we kind of feel like we’re pushing towards.”
(If both of your rookie running backs are ready to play this week, De’Von Achane and Chris Brooks, what could be the determining factor in who’s on the active game day roster in the whole running back room? Would it be special teams or would it be more situational plays from scrimmage?) – “Both. Whenever you’re going through roster decisions for each position, you’re weighing all the factors that play in. That’s the communication between Chris (Grier), Mike (McDaniel), Danny (Crossman), Vic (Fangio) and I. Each game has a different need, and what are the needs at the position groups? What’s the need in special teams? Who fills what role? Who, conversely, might be down that now you have to change spots because that’s the team’s component. It’s never as easy as like – because I think we talked about it earlier in the year where it’s like, it’s never as easy to say, ‘hey, he’s active.’ Why isn’t he planning? Well, especially at this point in the season, there’s a domino effect of the whole encompassing roster that affects our decisions for who we can bring up to the game.”
(I wanted to ask about third-and-short, fourth-and-short struggles converting. Obviously, it’s a difficult down but you guys generally prefer to pass. Or at least the numbers say you prefer to pass in those situations. Is that based on work that you’ve seen in practice, things that haven’t worked? Or is it just the mentality and philosophy that, hey, we’ve got one of the most accurate quarterbacks, this is how we prefer to utilize those plays?) – “It kind of relates into all of that. Nothing is ever as simple as just, ‘hey, it’s this, so we do that.’ It’s more of, alright, when we go into the plan, we devote time to all the situations and when we look at that situation, we have a philosophy in which we want to attack it. Then some days, some weeks, it’s third-and-one, two, and three kind of get grouped together. It just depends upon who we’re facing and why. Yes, we have an extremely accurate quarterback and a very good skill core that we trust. We have a line that we know from this last game that when we had to run the ball and they know we’re running the ball, we were able to run the football. Those are all good signs. The biggest thing is that when you look at us as an offense and you see we have an ability to move the football. One section isn’t as good as the other because the disparity between the two is drastic. You’re top five in most categories, and you have this one where you’re at the bottom. So it’s one of those where, always, there’s never a quick fix to anything. It’s being aware of an issue, communicating the issue, and how do we get better and maximizing our players in those situations. Us as an offensive staff, we do devote time to, are we calling the right things? Are we calling the right play at the right time? Are we getting coverage looks that we want to be aggressive in the attack? Or do we want to run it? There’s multiple factors that go into it. But ultimately, yes. We know that’s an area that we have to improve on. We’re aware of it and we’re hopeful that this next opportunity and the next couple ones, we can really offset it, because the reality is, it’s a 17-game season. When you look at all encompassing, at the end, its entirety. That’s when you can really formulate – we’re hopeful that we’ll turn the corner. And you never know. You might have a game where all of a sudden you get four third-and-ones, and you convert all four. The section overall is the percentages of your ranking versus the league. Well, how many did the other guys have? If they had 10 and you had 20, your percentage would be off compared to theirs statistically. So it’s just opportunities and execution. The more opportunities you get, the more opportunities to execute. That’s why at the end of the year, you look at some teams and they had 25 third-and-ones, and you go like, dang. And you had 12. Or you had 18 and they had 32. It’s a hard metric to really compare yourself in the league and especially on that one yard because it’s not like everyone has 20 reps, 20 opportunities, everyone’s the same, here’s the measure. That’s the variable. So that’s why sometimes stats, we have to look at it from us as offensive coaches, as we look at it as a staff, our ability to move the football, if we were unable to move the football and then really struggle there. As opposed to, we were able to move the football. This area we can improve in. Okay, how are we going to do it? Here’s how we’re going to do it. Here’s how we’re going to improve. Here’s our emphasis, if that makes sense.”
(Just going back really quick when you were saying the driving force for so many guys, last season was a winless December. What has been the biggest growth that you can see already from the accomplishments to this point entering December football?) – “When you’re in year one, it’s all new. You’re working towards something that’s this goal and it’s all a part of the initial communication of what the expectations for the program are for the long term. In year two when you get into it – you don’t have a history in year one, you don’t have anything because many guys are new to the roster, many guys are new to the city, all things are new. Now, most of us have been together. There’s that consistency of knowing this time, knowing what it’s like, knowing what our expectations are, seeing the results and history from last year and okay, how do we affect it. And then you’re never communicating about what the end goal is. That’s the offseason and okay, here’s our plan to get there. It’s every day of you break it out from if our goal is this, long-term, intermediate, now short-term, if your daily goals are what the mindset towards that ultimate goal, that means your daily production, your daily output, your daily process is going to be at a high level because always in your mind, you don’t want to get the result that you had before because you remember what it’s like. I want this, so therefore how do we get it? I think that’s the great thing about this football team, is that they all together have that drive, have that daily process towards how can I get better today? Because if I get better today, that’s going to help everyone tomorrow, this weekend, next weekend. I think that’s the greatest thing is that you have a bunch of guys who are very accountable and want to be their best daily. And they challenge each other and they bring out the best in each other. That’s why it’s such a joy to work with this team.”
(Is there a game, a play, a day, where this team, well your unit specifically, had some sort of accomplishment that probably could not have happened last year?) – “I don’t know if it’s one specific moment. It’s more situational things that occur. Like this last game, to be able to control the ball the third quarter, everything wasn’t perfect. You have the ebb and flow of the drive. You have guys working together, execution. You have one play that’s good, another play that’s not, and you work through it together, because it’s a time where you want to control the clock and establish the line of scrimmage and really for us, set the tone for the rest of half. That’s really cool for us. At times we could do it last year, but then you can see now there’s moments where a lot of the games this season, we’ve had a lead that was a score or two. But that one, you have a lead or two, but we still felt like, ‘Hey, we have to put this away.’ And that was where you could just see the will of the guys working together, the resolve to what they wanted to do. For me being upstairs, not really seeing it, but from afar, you could feel their intensity to the moment was really heightened. I think that’s just been everything this season. L.A., it’s going back and forth and everyone stays on it and then right at the end we score when we need to and the defense gets a stop when we need to. You learn from Buffalo in the loss. You learn from Philly in the loss. You learn from Germany in the loss as much as those moments that you remember are the driving forces, along with the success. So I think just so much of these years are situational things, not maybe one play. But that’s the great thing about this football. I’m excited to go to practice today just because you know the level of intensity and commitment they’re going to bring to each play that they’re trying to execute.”
(We know rumors are always out there. Your name has come up in association with the Carolina Panthers. Are you aware of that? Or do you consider that flattering?) – “It’s not flattering. It’s more humbling. I remember why I got into coaching. So when all this stuff comes up, it’s pretty cool. But the minute you worry about your goals and where you want to go, you forget, like for me, how lucky I am to be here today. So all that stuff’s cool, but I truly enjoy every day here and that’s the cool part. And it’s one of those where I’m a walk-on from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Every day of my life, I remember it. So those things pretty cool, but it’s not going to affect today.”
Thursday, November 30, 2023
Special Teams Coordinator Danny Crossman
(Who do you think has been your most consistent person in coverage, punt and kickoff coverage?) – “Probably (Justin) Bethel and Duke Riley. Those two guys have been consistent. We have the other guys that have been in spots and had good games here or there. Cam Goode is really coming on. Whenever we’ve had (Andrew) Van Ginkel, he’s done a nice job. But he’s not had that much play time. The young players are growing and the veterans are playing like veterans.”
(I wanted to ask you about the growth that you’ve seen from LB Cam Goode. I know he started really well then hit a little bit of a lull, then played a little bit better. How would evaluate where he is now that this is really his primary job?) – “Very happy with where he is and how he’s growing. From a year ago, to this year. From training camp, through preseason, through the regular season. Now we’re into December. Really happy with where he is and think he’s got a lot more upside to grow.”
(I just saw that the Commanders haven’t had a kick return allowed this year. It’s either been touchbacks or kicks out of bounds. Why do you think that is?) – “I think a couple of them are by choice. The opposition, a couple of them are a yard or two deep in the end zone and the team that they’re playing has chosen not to bring it out. The fair catch rule. There’s been a couple mishits that haven’t been fielded. When you look at those numbers, everybody’s got a different philosophy and a different plan. I think you’ve seen certain teams really heavily using the fair catch rule where they’re more than willing just to take the ball on the 25. You’ve seen other teams being aggressive and bringing it out four or five yards deep. It’s just something we’ll keep looking at. We’ll worry about who we play that week. They are trying to pound the football and hit touchbacks. I think there’s maybe some opportunities there that maybe some people haven’t taken, and we’ll see what we get on Sunday.”
(There was a point in the game on Friday when they said there was going to be multiple personal fouls. It would have put your kickoff at the plus-35, I believe, but it didn’t wind up working out that way. I don’t want to ask for your strategy there, but I’m curious, have you ever had a kickoff that far into opposing territory before and what would you want to do in that situation?) – “You don’t want to ask me, but you’re asking me. (laughter) Yes, I’ve had it once with us being the kick team and once with us being the return team. You have lots of options there.”
(What are these options? Because I’m curious, would you squib it from the 35?) – “As they say, it’s our ball in that case and we can do whatever we choose. Just like if they’re kicking, they can do whatever they choose.”
(You might as well onside if you’re on their 35, right?) – “That could be an option. There’s a lot of options.”
(What is the process for the active gameday roster when you could have a glut like at running back, where guys play special teams and they’re needed from scrimmage. Do you get the final word? Does Head Coach Mike McDaniel get the final word? Do you make your case for certain guys? How does that work?) – “We have constant communication with the coaching staff, with Mike and Chris (Grier), so it’s an ongoing process week to week. There’s a lot of things that go involved in those discussions in play time and injuries and making sure you’re insured with certain spots. Other spots you can’t be insured. There’s a lot of things that go into it. But really good communication throughout the week, every week.”
(So there could be situational spots from scrimmage then?) – “Correct. And every team you’re playing is different. Some guys are going to have heavy workloads some weeks and not heavy workloads on offensive and defense, kicking game. There are a lot of those discussions every week and fortunately, a good group of good communicators get to work through that stuff on a weekly basis.”
(Is there a time that you and General Manager Chris Grier and Head Coach Mike McDaniel carve out every Friday for that discussion or it just happens naturally?) – “There are certain times, but it really happens naturally throughout the week when certain things come up. There are some designated times but usually by the time those times come, a lot of those decisions have already been made.”
(With RB Chris Brooks, obviously he had a heavy role on special teams. I know he’s still in that window where he’s just coming back, but how helpful can he be, especially with the loss of RB Salvon Ahmed?) – “Yeah, I think he can be very helpful. We were really, a little bit like we talked about with Cam Goode, I’d put Brooks in that same boat. He was really growing on a week-to-week basis and really doing good things. So whenever his opportunity comes, I’m sure he’ll be ready and we’ll use him when that opportunity comes.”
(And with WR Chase Claypool, I know he was another guy that was getting involved early in the process. Now that he’s back from that knee injury, do you see that he could help you on that unit from a coverage standpoint?) – “Absolutely. He’s another guy that when he’s deemed fit and he’s able to go and he’s activated, he’s a guy that we’ll find a role for, because he’s a good player.”
Thursday, November 30, 2023
Defensive Coordinator Vic Fangio
(As much as your willing to share on replacing LB Jaelan Phillips, is it thinking mostly LB Andrew Van Ginkel, some DE Emmanuel Ogbah? Perhaps a mix of both of those players?) – “Yeah, Jaelan missed really four games in the first part of the season, so it’ll look pretty similar to that. Van Ginkel, Ogbah and we’ll see if JPP (Jason Pierre-Paul) can get up to snuff.”
(With LB Andrew Van Ginkel, now that he’s probably going to be playing mostly edge, how does that impact inside linebacker and LB David Long Jr.?) – “Yeah, we can stay play Gink inside some and put Ogbah outside some and even Cam Goode or JPP (Jason Pierre-Paul) if he comes along. But yeah, he’ll be in there less.”
(What have you seen from LB Cam Goode’s development as a pass rusher? I know he’s a prominent special teams guy. How much do you feel he can help you as an edge player?) – “Well, he’s going to have to if he’s called upon. I haven’t seen him play defense in a while. So I don’t have a great answer for you.”
(I think you guys are number six against the run. What was Jaelan Phillips role in that as far as setting the edge and things along those lines?) – “Jaelan is a great player, make no mistake about it. When he missed those games early in the year, it took him a game or two to get back rolling to be his normal self. But this last month or so, he’s been playing great for us. We’re going to miss him. And yeah, he’s a part of us playing the run and obviously playing the pass with him rushing the passer. We’re going to miss him tremendously and yeah, he was a big part of that.”
(The signing of LB Jason Pierre-Paul, obviously you wanted another pass rusher with Phillips gone. Is it just to see what you have? What he has? What he can do at this point?) – “All of the above.”
(Does LB Duke Riley get inside more with Van Ginkel on the outside?) – “Yeah, possibly. Yes, for sure.”
(Is it true or false that on Hail Mary’s, you tell your guys knock it down?) – “If you’re in a crowd. If you’re in a crowd where you have three or four guys jumping up at the same time in the end zone, yes. The play the other day, there was nobody around Jevon. Definitely catch it.”
(So that play was acceptable in your eyes?) – “Oh, yeah. Very acceptable.” (laughter)
(I wanted to ask you about this defense and the steady improvement. Based on the last month, I don’t want to tie it to CB Jalen Ramsey’s return, because you guys were trending up. You’re now number seven in the NFL. Is that kind of a sigh of relief? Like, ‘Hey, see, my stuff works.”) – “No. Not at all. I’ve been around too long for those worries. It’s just guys getting rewarded for working hard and both understanding what we’re doing and practicing hard and being ready physically. Now the challenge is can we keep that up without (Jaelan) Phillips.”
(How is LB Andrew Van Ginkel’s skillset a little bit different than for example, LB Jaelan Phillips and LB Bradley Chubb?) – “They’re bigger, those other two guys. Gink’s a little slipperier and plays with that. But he can be stout when needed to be. They are different styles for sure.”
(This seems to be a fun team, a fun locker room, a fun group of guys. I know winning helps that. But is this a more fun team than you’ve experienced in the past and does it start with Head Coach Mike McDaniel?) – “Yeah, I think it starts with Mike. That’s his approach. He wants that, instigates it and the players follow that lead. You don’t have to give players lead to have fun. Obviously as you said, winning helps. Winning has cured more ails than penicillin. (laughter) But yes, it is. These guys have fun, but they’re working hard at it.”
(Is this more a fun team than say any other team? Philly or San Fransico? Can you say that?) – “No. I mean, it’s just a different type of fun.”
(What’s it been like working with a guy who’s considered quirky, funny, unusual head coach in terms of personality? What’s that experience been like for you?) – “It’s been good. He is that, but he’s a ball coach deep down. That’s just his style.”
(I wanted to go back to LB Jason Pierre-Paul for a second. That position group you have so many larger bodies with LB Jaelan Phillips going down, LB Bradley Chubb’s a bigger guy, DE Emmanuel Ogbah’s a big guy. JPP is about 270 pounds. Gink’s the one who’s a little bit lighter, like you mentioned. How important is that size in that position in your defense?) – “You do want size on the edge for sure. You want to play big on the edge. Some guys are only in the mid 240’s, low 250’s that play big on the edge. So obviously if you’re bigger, that helps. But there are some guys in the mid 240’s and low 250’s who do play big and strong. But it’s very important.”
(I know you like to make your own conclusions in person, but I’m curious, did you look at LB Jason Pierre-Paul’s 17 defensive snaps from last Sunday?) – “I didn’t. Our scouts did. (General Manager) Chris (Grier) did. (Outside Linebackers Coach) Ryan (Slowik) did after we signed him.”
(With his skillset, 14 years of experience, experience in different 3-4’s, how difficult or how long do you think it will take LB Jason Pierre-Paul to kind of fit in or feel comfortable in your scheme?) – “At this point in the season, we’re going to try and focus him on the nickel stuff and not much on the base stuff to take that off his plate. I think he can get there fairly quickly with just the nickel stuff.”
(What do you think has been the biggest reason for DT Christian Wilkins’ success in pass rushing this season?) – “First off, Christian’s a good player. He’s quick. He’s athletic. He’s sudden. Yet, he can be strong when he needs to be. I don’t know the answer to that because I wasn’t here previously, but I think he’s a guy that should be an eight or nine sack guy a year.”
(I was curious, you said LB Jason Pierre-Paul was going to focus more on the nickel package. What schematically is different from what he’d be asked to do in the nickel package as opposed to the base package?) – “Well in base, they’ll drop some. In nickel, they hardly ever drop.”
(Has anything surprised you about Commanders QB Sam Howell that you’ve seen on tape?) – “Yeah, he’s been impressive on tape. Good passe. Can make all the throws. His scrambling and running ability is really worrisome for us. He’s a good runner when he’s scrambling. He’s hurt people that way, and we have to be mindful of that playing against him. I think he’s done a really nice job.”
(A lot of great defensive players will say they can make plays outside of the structure of the scheme. They kind of cheat the system when they know they can do it. Have you seen that with CB Jalen Ramsey in terms of how he can fulfill is job but also cheat the scheme a little bit?) – “Yeah, a little bit. I don’t like the words, ‘cheat the scheme’, but yeah.”
(What’s interesting is when we began training camp, everyone said you are loose and lets us do what they want to do. Then when the season got here, it was ‘oh the scheme is complex and we have to figure out how we fit in.’ So which is it? Can they do what they want to do or is a really cookie-cutter catered scheme?) – “No. I always say you don’t want players that do nothing but what you tell them to do. And you don’t want players that only do what you tell them to do. So there’s a time and a place for instincts and play recognition and using tools out there to help your play.”
Wednesday, November 29, 2023
LB Jason Pierre-Paul
(Can you tell us just how the first couple of days have been?) – “Very good. I can’t complain. Everything has been going good.”
(What does it mean for you to be a Miami Dolphin?) – “I’m back home, man. I’m born and raised here, not in Miami but Broward County. It was basically home for me. I was in Tampa, but this is basically home for me. So big things coming.”
(How many friends and family do you still have in the Deerfield Beach area?) – “A lot. A lot. As soon as they heard the news, it was all congratulations everywhere. I can’t get back to all of them, but they know I love them.”
(Does being back here get you a little bit reflective?) – “Oh, for sure. Just being back here, hometown, Miami. I got my number 90 back. I’ll give it all I got. I’m ready to go.”
(I have a question about why joining an NFL team so late. Why did you sign?) – “I guess people want to see if we’ll still do it or not. There’s only way to find out. So I joined late with the Saints practice squad. I appreciate them for giving me a tryout and workout. I played the first game, and I think I did pretty well with the snaps that I got. Then Miami signed me the next day.”
(How has this year been for you between New Orleans and here?) – “It’s a transition, because I went back to a 4-3 and now I’m back to a 3-4. But when it’s all said and done, it’s all the same thing. It’s all football. I know how to play football. When it’s all said and done, just be physical. But the defensive terminology, it’s all the same thing. You just got a pattern them and put them in certain spaces that you can remember it. I’m doing a great job right now. My coach is giving me the calls and he’s filling me in. The players in my room are filling me in too, so shoutout to those guys.”
(How do you feel about where your speed and power are at this point?) – “I feel good. Obviously, I’m coming back from home really. I did one week with the Saints. It still feels like training camp to me right now, but once I get past that, it takes a week or two, then I’m back rolling.”
(Did you have a favorite Dolphins player when you were young?) – “I watched a couple guys, but I didn’t have a favorite Dolphins player.”
(What are your impressions of this unit with just how deep it us, all the playmakers?) – “I like it. To me, I like the team already. I like the players. Everybody made me feel comfortable when I got here. I feel like family already. They accept me, so I’m OK. I feel like I’m home already.”
(Have you hung out with anybody outside of the building yet?) – “No, not really.”
(Do you plan to?) – “Maybe, maybe not. It depends. We do enough hanging around in the building, too. Maybe I’ll invite somebody over to the house, throw them a cookout or something.”
(This team has Super Bowl aspirations. What does it take to win big in this league?) – “You’ve got to be in sync. I’ve been on two good Super Bowl teams, and when I remember the things we all had in common, everybody was in-sync when it really mattered. We locked in, we did our jobs, and we trusted each other, trusted the coaches do their job, trusted the players do their job, and we just played physical. Everybody has got to be synced and ready to go, no matter what the situation is. You just got to believe in yourself and have faith that you’re going to get the job done.”
(Do you think you can learn quickly enough to participate on Sunday in Washington?) – “We’ll see. That’s a good question. We’ll see. I’m a quick learner. Whatever coach and they want me to do, I’m going to do. I’ll fill in where I’m needed.”
(For you, what’s the biggest perk of being home? Is there a restaurant?) – “The biggest perk for being home is I can see my family. Family is a big part. So I can see my kids. That’s basically it, and my whole family. They’re cheering for me. Let’s get it done.”
(You talked in your social media post about having a tough decision. Did the Saints talk to you late in the process about going to their 53?) – “For sure. It was a tough decision. Obviously, I never want to leave a team in the middle of a war, you know what I’m saying? It’s like you’re going to war. But this was a tough decision, and when I thought about it, my daughter, she was like, ‘Daddy, when are you coming to pick me up?’ Like, ‘I can’t come pick you up.’ (laughter) ‘You’ve got to fly.’ So it basically led down to here, and now I’m with my family and they’re excited for me to be here. It’s going to keep me even more going.”
(And you’re in the room with LB Bradley Chubb and LB Andrew Van Ginkel and Outside Linebackers Coach Ryan Slowik?) – “For sure, yeah … They’re getting me right on point. I’m talking to those guys all out there calling the plays, and if I’m making a mistake, they’re going to tell me, ‘Hey, that ain’t right.’ But so far, so good. I’m a quick learner, like I said, and I’m trying to learn the plays as quick as possible, because the quicker I can learn the plays, the faster I can play and you can see the real me.”
(How do you feel about the standing up stuff?) – “I did it already, man. I won a Super Bowl in it with the Bucs. So standing up, hands down, it’s really nothing to me. When it’s all said and done, it’s just physical football. I like being physical.”
(You mentioned the importance of cohesion for a Super Bowl champion team. How do you approach trying to assimilate to a new locker room this late in the season?) – “It’s different. Like I said, I feel like the guys accepted me. Every guy was saying what’s up to me, and they know who I am. For me, I just have to open up and be myself, and I feel like I’m being myself. Anywhere I go, I’ll be myself. I’m adapting to them, to be honest, and I’m syncing with them. I think they already got it here. I can see the guys out there running around, having fun. That’s the most important thing, too, having fun and being synced with each other. As I’m looking and learning the plays and watching everybody, I see that. They’ve got a good team here.”
(What’s your first impression of Head Coach Mike McDaniel?) – “(laughter) He’s a cool dude, man. He’s himself. I like that. Guys are telling me that’s him. You can’t expect nothing of him, but he’s himself every day. I think that’s important for a head coach to be himself, and I think that’s what he’s doing. He came in the meeting room early, and I didn’t know who was talking until I looked down. He was right there, because I’m sitting in the front row. Obviously, I talked to him. He knows my history. We’re going to get it cracking. I told him I’m happy to be here and they gave me a good opportunity to come home and try to win a Super Bowl, which I know these guys can. We’re just going to get it cracking and put all the pieces together.”
QB Tua Tagovailoa
(A few minutes ago, Head Coach Mike McDaniel said that you are the angriest man on the planet when you throw an interception. Can you describe your emotions at that point and how you reel yourself in to get ready for the next series?) – “I would say any quarterback in the league would probably get down on themselves the way I get down on myself when it comes to turnovers. Especially when your defense is playing well and you turn the ball over, none of us try to do that. We don’t ever want that to happen but we do know it is a part of the game that we play. Games are never won in the first, second or third quarter. I understand that. As we went into halftime, I knew that I just had to come out and just continue to play the football that I should be playing, to the standard that I expect for myself and that my teammates expect from me. We had to play those two quarters clean and there was still one mishap that we have to continue to clean up. But outside of that, you just have to continue to play. Games aren’t won after you throw an interception in the first or second quarter.”
(You’ve had a lot of success throwing to spots. You know where your receivers are going to be. Does that sometimes lead to those interceptions?) – “Not really. It’s really just being on the same page with some of the guys. And then the one to Tyreek (Hill), that was just behind him. That was just not a good throw. That was a bad throw.”
(Hard Knocks captured the moment where you came over to Head Coach Mike McDaniel after the interception and you were apologizing about the pick and he was like, ‘You’re good dude.’ What does it mean to you in the moment when he’s that supportive and has that kind of positive reinforcement after a turnover?) – “It means a lot. But that’s just the nature of how I play the position. I take it upon myself every time. Regardless of whether Mike says it was his play-calling, he entrusts me to go out there with whatever play that we have, and if it’s not the right coverage that we want that play in, to get us out of it and throw the ball away or do something. But not throw a pick-six in that situation. I appreciate the trust that he continues to have in me but that’s something that I can’t do.”
(It was a big game for WR Jaylen Waddle on Friday. We haven’t seen as many of the big games as we’ve seen from him in the past, this season. What have you seen from him behind the scenes as the season churns along?) – “I think he’s done a really good job of sort of mitigating the outside noise. I do understand as a competitor, he wants to be in the mix with ‘Reek’ (Tyreek Hill) of continuing to make plays for the team, and sometimes he does have big games but it is sort of minimized because of the production that Tyreek gives our offense. But I think highly of Jaylen and he’s going to continue to do things that we need for him to do to help us win games down the stretch. This past game, we saw that.”
(Beyond the stats and beyond the numbers that people looking at the box score see, what does WR Jaylen Waddle do that doesn’t show up on that sheet, that helps you guys win week in and week out?) – “Go watch what kind of player he is in the blocking game. Go watch what kind of player he is. Very physical. He’s really – and I really say this as a testament to him obviously being the competitor that he is – he doesn’t really come up to me and tells me like, ‘Dude, throw me the ball.’ He just understands when my opportunity is here, I’m going to make sure I make use of all of that. It’s not something where we’re trying to put Jaylen to the side. Jaylen is in the mix. It’s just as we run plays for him, the coverages just don’t allow us to throw for the right look for Jaylen. But he’s continuing to stick it in there and I think he’s done a great job.”
(RB Raheem Mostert is second in the league in rushing and I believe you guys are 12th in rushing attempts after being 31st last season. How apparent or obvious is that to you as a quarterback?) – “Well, it’s apparent. We’re getting a lot of points down this stretch off of our runs, which definitely helps in trying to control the game where you can run on first down, second down, you can get third-and-manageable, and you can go from there. Then for us, to be able to sustain drives while running the ball and not always passing, it allows us to go off our (play) action game and things like that. But he’s done a great job. It’s also a testament to (Offensive Line Coach) Butch (Barry) and what he’s done with our o-line in the run game and also in the pass game.”
(Last year, this team was 8-3. Now you’re 8-3. How much better is this team compared to last year? What gives you confidence that the ending to this season is going to be so much better?) – “Well, I don’t think I can give you a spiel of what the future is going to look like for our team. Regardless of how we feel as players – we can feel good about our record, 8-3, going into this week and the home stretch. But none of what we feel is going to matter. We’re going to have to prepare the same exact way we’ve prepared every other week as we go out there and play the Commanders. That’s just the task at hand right now. We’re going to have to beat those guys.”
(Your reaction to the end of that Alabama/Auburn game?) – “That was crazy. Roll Tide.”
(Any thoughts on this weekend?) – “Roll Tide.” (laughter)
(Do you have any bets lined up with any Georgia people?) – “If Georgia wins, I’ve got to wear Georgia things. And if Alabama wins, those guys have to wear Alabama things. That’s it.” (laughter)
(How is the arm holding up?) – “It’s good. I was told be my wife – she didn’t see it but then she got text messages from people about what it looked like and they said it was disgusting while they were eating their leftover meals. (laughter) Sorry, I couldn’t help you there. I didn’t know it happened until I came to the sideline and then Mike White sort of pointed it out. I guess it was just from the adrenaline. It was a nice chunk that came off. If someone can find that piece, that’s yours. (laughter)”
(Did you need any stitches?) – “Yeah, I got stitches. The way it looked as they were stitching it, it looked very complex for them to like put it back together. But it looks really good.”
(Do you know how many stitches?) – “It was a long time I was like lying down. So I don’t know.”
(Do you know if you’re going to get that retouched, the scheme of your tattoo?) – “I think it’ll be a great story for Ace when he grows up. I saved three people in the ocean and I got bit by a shark… (laughter) 500-pound shark, I killed it.”
(What is your approach to kind of knowing when in the game to take a risk while also remembering obviously it’s important to protect the ball?) – “That’s a great question. I think a lot of it has to do with situational ball, understanding what we’re trying to get done, what we’re trying to accomplish. But then it also stresses the importance of the ball itself. Regardless of what we’re trying to do – if we’re trying to push the ball down the field, if it’s not the exact look, live to see another down. Throwing the ball away, checking it down, whatever it may be. As long as we’re ending the drive with a kick, that’s what we’d like to do and not turn the ball over. We should be better at that this upcoming week.”
(What do you see on tape from your former Bama teammates in DL Daron Payne and DL Jonathan Allen?) – “Yeah, those guys make it tough up front with the things they do. They run their games but also what they do playing either the 2i or 3-technique. What they do, they jet up the field. How we block that, it’ll come down to I think different technique that we’d have to use, especially the way that they rush. It’s almost very similar to the Jets sort of front with their jet front, but outside of that, we’ll see. They’re really good.”
(Where is your comfort level with this offensive line now? I know T Terron Armstead and T Kendall Lamm did not practice today. That would mean a new guy out at left tackle. Obviously guys have stepped up all season, but what does that look like for you as a quarterback?) – “I’m very comfortable. I understand within the protections where the meat of the protection is. I understand if someone early in the game is getting beat, okay, I’m going to trust that he’s not going to do that the next time. So I’m going to trust that he’s going to block it the way he should and if he doesn’t, I have a clock in my head and I know where my checkdowns are going to be in case that does happen. But outside of that, I’m just playing within the structure of the offense, how we talk about what we want to do as far as our reads in the progression and then if someone does lose, what’s our checkdown off of the first read. So things like that.”
(The next time you guys take the field it’ll be December football. What does that mean to you? What did you learn last year and what you learned in your career about December football?) – “December football? I learned how to fall. (laughter) This is where you make your money here. Games just like these games this past Sunday, that’s what games are going to start to look like as we sort of travel deeper into December and then early into January. It’s going to be closer games, going to be one-score games. It’s going to come down to whoever gets the ball last and you’ve got to go win the ball game from there.”
(Are you going to get a chance to meet up with your brother when you go up to the DMV?) – “Yeah, I’ll get a chance to meet up with him.”
(You kind of got the old fade your brother has.) – “My brother’s hair is real long. Mine is not even close to his, but his is real long.”
(What’s the game plan there?) – “With my hair? I think I’m going to braid it up again. I’m just letting in grow out. I just love scratching my scalp. It feels good to scratch it. I’m telling you, if you’ve never had braids. (laughter)”
(If it’s getting a little colder, are we going to see that Black Friday jacket again?) – “That was cool, huh? I had to cut that jacket, the Black Friday jacket, just because we didn’t want it to touch – as I was taking it off – we didn’t want it to touch my wound. But yeah, we’ll definitely be seeing that again. Oh, I’m sorry I’m not talking about my jacket. I’m talking about my jersey. I thought that’s what you were talking about. So the jacket, I didn’t buy the jacket. The jacket was given to me as a gift on my birthday earlier this year. Shoutout to Rick Ross. That was his birthday present to me, so I appreciate it.”
LB Bradley Chubb
(LB Jaelan Phillips went down. How much have you been able to talk to him and take him through this?) – “Ever since it happened, it’s kind of been on the back of my mind. It’s one of those things where I try to uplift him every chance I get. We talk all the time. That’s my boy anyway. It’s more of a conversational thing more than a somber thing. Not when it first happened, but a couple days later, he was like, ‘Man, I’m going to be good. I just need y’all to be there for me.’ So it’s not more of a ‘Hey man, you’re going to be ok.’ It’s more of a regular conversation and try to make him feel as regular as possible because at the end of the day, that rehab process is a tough one to go through. And if things feel out of whack, you can kind of get down on yourself and stuff like that. So that’s my job and all of our jobs is to keep him uplifted.”
(Was it weird not having him out there by your side today? We usually see you guys dancing or doing something.) – “Yeah, it was for sure weird. But it’s the new norm now. We’ve got to just continue to move forward because that’s what he would want us to do. Go out there and ball and do everything we talked about in the offseason. I’m going to go out there and continue to do what’s best for this team each and every day, and I know he’s going to everything to get back.”
(On the other side of that, everyone talks about it being a next-man-up league and mentality. You have LB Andrew Van Ginkel and DE Emmanuel Ogbah, guys who can step in. How comforting is it knowing you have experience behind Jaelan?) – “It’s real comforting for sure. Both of those guys, whenever their name was called, they stepped up and did what they had to do each and every play. They’re playing with the same intensity, the same effort and all that, which is what this team needs. There’s no doubt in my mind those guys are going to do exactly what we need them to do. We just have to do it together at this point.”
(You have six games left, two on the road, four at home. Is there a feeling you guys control this right now?) – “Yeah, I mean that’s the feeling you want to have. It doesn’t happen by accident. It happens with the work we put in each and every week. We just have to continue to be diligent on that aspect of it and I feel like the cards will fall where they fall. You can’t worry about, ‘Oh, we got this game and this game and this game.’ It’s just week by week, day by day. Like I said, it’s going to happen for us how we need it can happen.”
(I know it’s a one-game mentality, but having four at home of the six, does that help?) – “Yeah, for sure. Any time you get the chance to play at home in front of your home crowd in this heat, in this sun, it’s an advantage for us. I’m excited about that opportunity and like I said, we just have to go out and prove it.”
Head Coach Mike McDaniel
(Will anyone not practice at all today because of non-rest reasons? So someone who’s injured who just won’t practice today. And then what particular skills of LB Jason Pierre-Paul, at this stage of his career, appeal to you and General Manager Chris Grier and Defensive Coordinator Vic Fangio?) – “There’s several people that won’t be practicing. We have good depth on the team. We have some bumps and bruises for sure, but we’re approaching December, which is the 12th month of the year. We started in the seventh and it accumulates. We’re fast on our feet and we’re adjusting on the fly, but there will be plenty of guys getting reps that if guys can’t get themselves to the place they need to be to perform at the level they need to perform at, they’ll be able to step in. It’s one of the cool things about this team is with all the confidence that the locker room has within each other, they don’t really blink. We’ll be seizing the day regardless.”
(LB Jason Pierre-Paul, with his signing, what did you guys see at this stage of his career that made you think he could offer you some depth with LB Jaelan Phillips going out?) – “Just seeing tape on him the last couple years. He’s someone I’m very familiar with. He got his start in the division that I was in when I was with Washington and he was with the New York Giants. I actually reminisced on one of the most catastrophic run plays that I’ve ever experienced that he was at the point of attack on. I’m pumped for the team to add a player of his experience, of his esteem. He’s a force on the edge and I’m just pumped for him to get in the mix with the entire team. This is a team that’s been working diligently together for a long time. So he’ll be getting up to speed, studying really all day and trying to get comfortable in what we’re asking him to do. It’ll be exciting. I’m just pumped to have the depth that we have really on this team. Adding a player like him is just more of that.”
(I know you hate timelines. But I saw LB Jaelan Phillips posted he had surgery. Realistically, do you think – I know it’s way down the road – but is training camp the target for him?) – “You sound pretty optimistic that you’re going to get a hardline answer. (laughter) It’s not that I hate them, I just don’t really pay any mind to something that – the first checkbox is, does the surgery go well? I know internally, a classic example is Jalen Ramsey, who just came back from an injury. One of the things that we focused on that our training staff firmly believes is you just take the one step at a time, because if you start thinking about something that’s – honestly everybody’s body is different. Every injury is slightly different and for you to forecast something as a grade, the grade is not that. I just want him to be fully healed and recovered. I literally do not think about his timeline because it’s like, just whatever it takes to do it the right way so that no one’s doing anything for the wrong reasons or pressing when you should pull off or all that stuff. But you guys have seen him in action. This dude is as hard of a worker as they come. He’s passionate. He got a taste of what he knows is his ability to play in this league, to make plays in this league and to perform for his team. That juice will push him through. It’s not always easy but nothing worth it really ever is, is it? No timeline. Sorry.”
(Did LB Jaelan Phillips undergo what could be termed I guess as conventional Achilles surgery or more the nature of what Jets QB Aaron Rodgers went for?) – “Theoretically, the way medicine is progressing, what is conventional? What is unconventional? I don’t think it was along the lines that you’re insinuating. I guess it would be more traditional. It’s an Achilles procedure that honestly – I know where the Achilles is. I’m not sure I know much beyond that. There’s experts for that, including our training staff. All I know is that it went well, that we’re very happy. It’s not about how quick a recovery can be for him. It’s more about, with the position he plays, his explosiveness. It’s about getting him back, which I’m very confident that can happen. He’s just got to take it one day at a time. But there wasn’t anything crazy as far as his procedure.”
(In regards to Washington, you’ve talked a lot about your formative years while you were there, and specifically, how you guys developed that offense for Robert Griffin III, where none of you have any experience with that type of offense. What did that do for you when you came to Miami and took over coaching a new quarterback?) – “Well, it’s funny how life works out. I was so fortunate to have the opportunity to be in that competitive atmosphere of coaches that were trying to all make a name for themselves in one way, shape or form. Then to have a situation where you get a supremely talented player that’s faster than people at that position generally and had played in a spread, no-huddle type offense. To be in a situation from the top down, Mike Shannahan didn’t mandate that we go on a clinic circuit. Kyle (Shanahan)’s acumen and the entire staff problem solving, quite literally thinking outside the box at that point in time, there was like 29 – I don’t remember the exact number but there was like this fixed number because Mike Shanahan made us watch 900 times but it was like 29 zone reads by Tim Tebow in the NFL. Then we had some college tape. We had never done anything out of the pistol ever, so all of those things kind of set a foundation of opening your mind, having assets as you will, and finding a way to not fit people into something, but fit the play, the scheme, what you’re trying to do around the talent that you have. To have that happen to me at that age, I just don’t know any other way. I was so fortunate to have that foundation because moving forward – and the blessing at the time, it definitely didn’t seem like a blessing at the time getting fired by different teams and jumping around, being in seven different organizations – because you learn how to adapt. And to me, I hold a strong principled connection to the role of coaching. I feel like that experience enabled me to do my best that I can do towards what I feel like is owed to the players, organizations, football teams, all that. It was rocky. The second I got there, we got hit with a monumental fine by the league and we lost out on free agency. But then we had some really good players that were very committed. It was the first time I had ever been to the playoffs, Robert (Griffin III)’s rookie year and Alfred (Morris) and all those guys. Doing all that stuff was pretty cool and it kind of set a foundation for how I look at the game all the time.”
(In the first episode of Hard Knocks when you were watching Maxx Crosby film, you complimented LB Andrew Van Ginkel. You said, ‘That’s when he goes all Van Ginkel on you.’ What does ‘going all Van Ginkel on you’ mean?) – “So you’ll notice a lot of the production Van Ginkel has particularly on the edge at the point of attack in the run or pass, he’ll have an innate ability to kind of limber his upper body so he can bend and get low under pad level and take away his chest or front blocking surface, and run around the corner. You’ve seen guys in defensive line drills have a giant hula hoop that they run around. That is something that he’s been very adept at in minute times. You have an offensive lineman that’s hesitating for a second and you can all of a sudden go step-right-left and bend around the corner and make a play. That limber nature from that position, which has to be stout as well and firm, it’s a unique trait. There are sacks and forced fumbles and things from this year. In that way, he makes plays in a similar fashion that Maxx does. I was also learning. You know people’s names you see in the draft process, but until you study a guy, until you study a team and individual players that you’re preparing for, you don’t really know the ins and outs. So it was the first time I had done with him, and I came away supremely impressed. I could see where the hype came from because he’s a very, very good player.”
(When you guys traded for WR Chase Claypool, I’m sure you had a role you envisioned for him. Has that changed? Do you still see a way that he can be productive in this offense?) – “Oh, I’m so pumped to have Chase. I’m very hesitant to over the top be like, ‘ok this is going to happen.’ There’s been certain games where he’s been more involved than others. But realistically, I wanted the football player. From all the people I know and have connections with, I thought he’d be a valuable person as an asset as well to this football team. He’s proven himself. I’m very happy to have him. Nothing’s changed with that. It is no small task to come into a team in the middle of the season. Mind you, it’s even more rare to jump into a season or onto a team that is specifically, in his unit, is not struggling. We operate at a high level, and he’s really gone above and beyond to assimilate and get up to speed, and his teammates can feel that. So there will be roles for him throughout the season. It wasn’t really like, ‘hey this guy is going to come here and do X, Y, and Z.’ You’re just trying to make your team better and give yourself some more bullets to be able to match up with whatever team or situation or thing that the defense can present. He’s very much done that. I can tell you without a shadow of a doubt, he’s like one within the locker room, and that speaks to him, our locker room, and what our team is about.”
(You addressed the fourth-and-shorts and third-and-shorts. I looked it up, you’re 4-of-12 passing on third-and-2 or less. And you’re 3-of-7 on third-and-2 or less running the ball. What is your thought process when you’re in that situation?) – “We’re trying to do stuff that works. You hope it’s not as much of an eyesore as where that ranks in the rest of the league, and it’s not good enough. But there’s always stuff that you’re working on in your game. I think one of the things that gives us a chance to play good football every week, to get better at that, those are the facts as life stands right now. You have to work at stuff. And for me, I’m not going to pretend that every decision I make is good. I’m trying to make the best decision. Football is a humbling game. For instance, every single one of those plays that didn’t work, in my mind, I was definitely hoping they’d work. And they didn’t. So you try to learn from it. Case in point, we couldn’t run the ball before. Now we can. You have to work on stuff. It starts with me. Ultimately, I make the decisions and I’m held accountable for the ultimate result, as it should be. What I do know is we have a collection of individuals that we’re all fighting for whose fault it really is. I have the loudest voice, so I get to say it’s mine. And that’s a healthy process through an NFL season. I need to give guys opportunities on the ground more to make plays. But at the same time, you make each and every one of those decisions, for me at least, I don’t pretend that any play I ever call is the reason that something successful happens. I know it’s a part of it. With that mindset, you just have to continue to try to do your best. For me, if I feel like my decisions were sound, that I invested the amount on the front end, and that I was trying to do the best, you live with the results. I’m fully aware that this narrative isn’t new and we haven’t done anything to change it. But it’s not like I don’t know before a fourth down call that if it doesn’t work, people aren’t going to be fired up about it. I’m definitely not fired up. I’m confident in the people that we have in the building. I’m confident in myself that if you work on stuff, you get better from it. I don’t expect to be the last-ranking official at the short-yardage conference for the rest of my career. But we’ve got to work through that and we do that diligently and to the best of our ability for sure.”
(When you look at QB Tua Tagovailoa’s interceptions this year, is there a common thread that you see in the thought process and execution?) – “It is much easier to try to find a commonality – and we definitely do, we scour these situations. But I think you also have to take each individual situation for what it is and be able to categorize what’s going on when things are not going the way we want them to go. My personal opinion is that there’s an art to playing the game of quarterback. When you’re able to execute at a high level, you forget that it’s a progression and as a player that is highly motivated and highly committed, there’s sometimes that the play to make is not throwing it to the other team. That’s the play. I try to do my best to minimize those situations where that’s the best alternative. But there’s sometimes when you’re playing the position, that’s a learning process. What I don’t do is just scream ‘Don’t throw picks,’ because that’s like the coaching point ‘Catch the ball’ for me. I’m pretty sure everyone is trying. That’s why it is so important to be so deliberate every day and so intentional because you can re-create those moments of competitiveness. You can re-create game moments and you have the game moments, and you learn from them. To me, it’s not about being infallible. It’s about winning at the game of improvement, that I think is a direct correlation to every day life for everyone, because sometimes you have to have the humility to be like, ‘Yeah, I’m going to always have to improve on something.’ For him, he can protect the ball better. He knows that. There’s literally no one on the planet that is more angry every time there is a turnover. I’m just telling you. And with that, he has to use it constructively and it can’t be absolutely. It can’t just be like, ‘I can’t throw picks.’ What does that mean? They’re going to happen. Well, in certain scenarios, do you need to take a risk? Does it need to be a completion? All of those things. That’s part of the growth process of every player and I think we’re very fortunate, and I feel very fortunate, to have one of the best learners that I’ve ever been around and coached, at the quarterback position. He’s expecting to be better just like I’m expecting to be better, like we all should be.”
