Read the full transcript from Head Coach Mike McDaniel's press conference on September 6, 2024.
Q: Will CB Jalen Ramsey practice today and will he play on Sunday?
"He had a good walkthrough today. I think we're going to be smart, but we are eager to get him out there. So I anticipate him to, in some way, shape or form, practice. I don't know the level yet – that's how these things work, you just kind of go with the process. That and whether or not he can play in the game, it does matter to everyone, both teams and whatever. I do understand that and regard it. Quite honestly, I don't know. But if I did know, I wouldn't tell you, but I really don't know."
Q: You guys had a hamstring situation with Rob Hunt last year. What did you learn that you guys can apply here?
"You get in these situations where you have to treat each player individually and who they are, and so you can't just rush to judgement about, 'OK, this happened to this person, so this is going to happen.' However, you can educate and have the only person who truly knows, who is the player, be able to give us feedback beyond what we can scan or assess from science. So those things aren't lost, that's a great example of someone that had every positive intention and just to understand the residuals, the ramifications of decisions and how you can't be short sided. These are the nauseum conversation to make sure guys understand the consequences of their actions, and then we communicate with the same intentionality as everything else. When you have people working together, hopefully you get to learn from situations – understand that each situation is independent."
Q: Despite how long CB Jalen Ramsey has been here, and obviously he's a great player nobody's disputing that, what is the value in giving him this contract or signing this extension with him now? Compared to, I guess, letting the rest of it play out.
"Has it been confirmed? It has because I'm confirming it. (laughter) I think it's awesome for me to have fundamental beliefs and foundational beliefs on what we're here to do as an organization. As coaches, the players that we get, we're supposed to maximize them in hopes of when players are maximized, they can be compensated appropriately in however fashion that is. As a coach, you're supposed to add value to a player. So in that process when people lean in, whoever it is, every single contract is important to me because that's a part of our jobs to do and that's why I stay out of the books and let people handle that stuff. In an organization you can do that when the owner, (General Manager) Chris Grier, (Senior Vice President, Football & Business Administration) Brandon Shore, all understand how to prioritize what our roles are here and positively reinforcing the stuff that we want. I think he fits into – there's been a ton since I got hired here when you look at it, and all those things are part of the business, but for us and really the team, I think they are happy that their guys are in good positions to play football and do it knowing that it's the best place for them in all way, shapes or forms. So I'm happy organizationally for everything we've done this offseason because I think it fits what we're about."
Q: What has, in the 17-18 months since he's been here, what has CB Jalen Ramsey brought to this organization?
"Everybody knows – when everyone knows the name of someone that's joining the team and that name is based upon a reputation of talent and skill, everyone is excited. You don't know what you're totally – you think you know, but you're always excited to see how that person is going to fit in within the overall complexion of things. Since he's been here, it's almost felt mutually purposeful in that Jalen (Ramsey) saw a different level of player and leader this team could benefit from, and so he seized that. I think the team has definitely benefited from it – to the point that much was made about the team's speech that he gave on a sweaty July day, maybe early August. And then unfortunately for him and the team, he got hurt. But the real leaders, the real influencers on a football team don't have to play to positively affect their teammates. And when I tell you adversity is an opportunity and the opportunity for our defense was to facilitate the vision that Jalen had for the way we play and actually bring it to life against two different joint practices and against ourselves as we've prepared for the season. I think that's a little caveat to what's been unique about elite players. There's several of them in the league that have that captain mentality, and when you have that captain mentality and are a competitor that wants to dictate the terms, you have a rise in everyone's competitiveness and that's an overall win for the Miami Dolphins."
Q: Has anybody talked to S Jevón Holland at this point? Because he's probably wondering, "When is my turn going to come?"
"I talked to him today. I talked to him yesterday and the day before that. I talk to him every day and we talk about football. And again, all the stuff that's not fun about the business, that's the great thing about (General Manager) Chris Grier, I leave him to do his job and we talk football, that's what he wants. He doesn't want us to be master of all thing's life skills coach. He wants football and stuff that – I think players appreciate the fact that it's not on my mind because I think it's a disservice to what I should be doing that day for that player and all the players. So we have great conversations; dapped him up this morning. He was really fired up about the team meeting. I think he laughed at a couple of my jokes."
Q: OL Aaron Brewer told us yesterday he's good to go for Sunday with the hand. Will OL Liam Eichenberg be your right guard on Sunday?
"I usually don't answer these questions, but man, you're just smiling at me today and I think you're going to see Liam (Eichenberg) at the right guard on Sunday. The opponent thanks you as well."
Q: Last night, there were an awful lot of illegal formation penalties; I'm not sure if you were watching but there were a ton against the Ravens. How much did that catch your attention? Have you and Offensive Line Coach Butch Barry perhaps had a discussion about avoiding that on Sunday since the refs seem to be looking out for it?
"So what we do from, literally every Friday you guys talk to me, is we have a team meeting and a portion of the team meeting, the segment is 'around the league' and so you try to reemphasize things that are happening to other teams so it doesn't fall deaf on – I don't know what everybody's doing. I'm certainly not watching the game live; I'm preparing for the Jacksonville Jaguars, and who knows what a lot of people on the team at that exact time if they're all watching or not. So we take the unknown out of it and make sure from each and every week, things that are being emphasized or things that other teams are falling victim of, that we learn from it as opposed to learning from it the hard way like they had to. So we try to do that every single time. It's, I think, an absolute that the foundational principle of offense for us is legal offense. So illegal formations and those presnap penalties are something that was – I think the first question that I had a year ago after the 2022 season when we were doing it a lot, didn't matter what you do after the snap if the formation is illegal so cool play, effort, strain, all that. And you try to make that point very clear so that guys are trying to, if they want anything to happen after the snap that matters, you should have the appropriate amount of people on the line of scrimmage."
Q: I don't want to make Sunday too much about QB Trevor Lawerence vs. QB Tua Tagovailoa, but it's difficult not to think about the 2019 college football championship game. Do you think he has any extra motivation to beat the Jags?
"I think what's an important feat of our team that it's hard to have a team lean into anything if the leaders, the captains, the starting quarterback isn't setting – Those things are real, those narratives are real. It's what pushes conversation of our great game that we all benefit from. However, there is an art in the National Football League to properly prioritizing your motivations. You can have the extra ones that whatever, but if you want your team to be good, you better be focused on doing things for your teammates and welcoming achievement from team operation. All of those things of how we do our jobs together and the way that we play football is fortunately enough for us because of guys like Tua and countless number of other guys. That's where we're worried about because the leaders on the team have demonstrated how to appropriately focus on what actually matters. Because if you get caught up and literally you do not play one snap against Trevor Lawerence, Tua. I know for a fact that his motivations are far superior and they're all motivated from within the organization, his family and his teammates."
Q: You guys play two games in five days. You've talked about that a couple of times. In the NBA they have load management. I haven't seen a ton of that in football. Is that something you guys start to think about?
"Man, you're looking at mister load management. (laughter) If you ask the players and you're listening to how they are describing their day-to-day activities, veterans that have had a lot of success and been on really good teams around the league, new guys on the team, guys that have been here, they all talk about this is the hardest we've ever practiced. One of the main reasons guys are able to go above and beyond is because it's very important to me to earn their trust and understand that we'll push them while also managing some loads along the way in the course of the week. We do that strategically based upon when we have pads on, what we're doing where the area of fields are and today is always a focus on timing of pass game and pass defense in the red zone, and then we take the load down; we change our speeds which is another skill for a team that you need to be able to do is how you are able to have intensity of a full-speed competitive practice when you're trying to manage your bodies. All those things, vet management is an extension of what we do across the board for the team, because you have the science and data. You're trying to prepare guys for game situations, you're trying to push their bodies for the natural callus that you need for the National Football League for week-in, week-out football while having them be fast, physical, with elite technique. So to do that, you have to have a common ground. We do that week-in, week-out. Thursday night games are an extension of what a Friday is on a normal week. That's very different, we're practicing very different than we usually do because of the load."
Q: There is an NFL game happening tonight in Brazil. What's your take on the NFL trying to become a global brand and would you like to see the Dolphins play a game in Latin America someday?
"Yeah, I think that sometimes we can't get out of our own way when we look at our individual jobs and lives and what things require. I'm sure you guys – it's cool to go to another country but it's an upheaval in your lives. It can be the same for teams if you let it, and my thing is the growth of the game is paramount to everything that we want and everything that keeps our great game going. All of that, I think it's an honor to get the opportunity to play a sport that is our country's rock bed really at this point from a viewership standpoint and then be able to take that to other countries, around the world in particular. It will be very special to us. Hopefully, we'll get the opportunity some time to play in Latin America based upon being in Miami. I think that is awesome. I lost a lot of sleep and it was uncomfortable in the moment when we went to Germany, but I was also really fired up and privileged, because I know the overall growth of the game is depending on us playing in those atmospheres. I think it's really cool, and we will jump at the opportunity when given."
