Read the full transcript from Mike McDaniel's press conference on October 3, 2025.
Q: So some of the glory years of the Dolphins defensive line this decade featured DT Zach Sieler playing alongside Christian Wilkins. Have you or General Manager Chris Grier or anyone from the team reached out to Christian or his agent to see if he's healthy, see if there could be a possible fit, bring him in?
"Doors are always open. Very happy with the progression of what we need from our young guys and focused on the Panthers and our own guys specifically, but Chris (Grier) is always at work and there's never anything that's closed. But for me, I'm better suited for the Panthers and our own player topics."
Q: And on the defensive line, obviously you're trying to develop young players on the line and win at the same time. There are going to be growing pains naturally for rookie defensive linemen, but obviously it hasn't been good enough yet. Are you and General Manager Chris Grier even close to the point of seeking outside help to augment your defensive line?
"I think that you're probably driven by the nature of some results and I think within the game, my motivation, my confidence in growth is simply by the fact that there was exact growth – namely, there was 75 yards of rushing on the first drive, then outside the scramble by Justin Fields, there was 75 yards given up rushing the rest of the game. So within the game, you see guys progressing and realistically it's like you bring new players in that aren't familiar with what you're asking them to do, it's like learning how to tie your shoes. Young players, there's a point where they know exactly what to do like when you first learn how to tie your shoes and you have the little bunny ears saying in your head, and then there's some point where the reps occur where it just clicks where you're not saying the saying anymore. That's what a player needs to do when you're playing one of 11 in convicted technique and fundamentals. The expectation is that it's not avoiding that; it's making sure that there's consistent growth from those players and that they're getting better, whether that be within a game or from week to week. The biggest thing that I talk to the players about is the month of October and how you're set up to be distracted. So what happens is each and every year, September comes with a flurry of we haven't had football and wow, this is what things – there's overreaction Week 1 and Week 2, all those things. And then, you get into the first quarter of the season. The first quarter of the season is done. October hits, and teams either get better or they get worse, no in between, and what happens is there are absolutes that people – there are so many distractions whether it's like, 'I had expectation to have this many numbers going into this,' or 'I thought it was going to be this, that or the other,' when in reality it's about what we learned from last game that we can apply for this game. It's one-week seasons where you're trying to go 1-0 and anything that deviates from that focus like absolute certainties of, 'well, we played well' – all players are up each and every week with the opportunity to showcase their skills and why they're here. If you get caught up in the first drive of last game, which is easy to do, you can drive yourself crazy with different realities. There's also within that what I see is growth and we have to have an October that has better football in three phases than in September if we stand a chance to do what we want to do. That is the case for this team, but that's the case for every team each year. The month of October needs to stand on its own and it needs to be above September or you're not going to like the ultimate result."
Q: One last thing on this topic. Is it fair to conclude based on your answer that you and General Manager Chris Grier feel like you need to give it longer with this group of DT Zach Sieler obviously is a great player, DT Benito Jones, DT Matthew Butler and your three rookies as far as your defensive line? Does this group need more time before thinking about seeking outside help?
"Yeah, I need to see the consistent development which is what, again, I saw in the game. If there weren't, I'm not sure if you extrapolated 75 yards on the first possession; but extrapolate it and that's what occurred. I react to what the players show me on the field and understanding that there's a concerted effort by them and the coaches to stay true to the mandate of the NFL for it to have any success, which is continued growth and improvement. I've seen the investment, the intent and I know what comes after that. Everybody always wants it sooner, but at the same time, there's a pattern to all this and it's pretty consistent with the development of young players."
Q: On that topic of growth and improvement, short yardage is something we've talked about a lot the last couple of years. What would you say with better results this year has contributed to the improvement in short yardage situations?
"I think first and foremost, it starts with the execution of things that are focused on throughout the offseason. Specifically, I think Ollie Gordon II and the work that (Associate Head Coach/Running Backs Coach) Eric Studesville has done to make sure he puts his best foot forward, I think that's helped. I think the work that (Offensive Coordinator) Frank Smith and (Offensive Line Coach) Butch Barry did in terms of trying to isolate the ways we wanted to try to earn yards in critical short yardage situations, I think that all those things and then just really a mindset of, 'Hey, whatever the past has been is reality. You know that and so is the present and what you do with that.' So I think it's so far the first quarter of the season, I thought that was one area where we knew that we had to improve and we have. The key is that you're going to get better from opponents that you need to beat, otherwise, they're going to get better and your success won't be as high. So we've got to keep stacking, but there's been a concerted effort by plenty and it's been very important for us staying on the field and turning drives into points."
Q: A Panther-related question. They're not expected to have their leading rusher Panthers RB Chuba Hubbard and they don't have another back on their roster with even 100 yards this season. How much do you think that will affect how they try to attack you?
"I think generally you don't know someone's name until you know it. Hopefully we're not overly familiar with anybody's name, because the NFL is full of very capable talent that a lot of times are just thirsting for the opportunity to showcase their skills. One thing I do know about the NFL is if you find success running the ball, you'll continue to run it just because of the cost benefit of trying to achieve yards, first downs and points. So every week regardless of who's active, they will try you and it will be up to you to be playing with 11 people, having connected technique and fundamentals so 11 people are playing as one, and within that, you get 1- to 2-yard carries, you can force the hand of the opponent and have them play on your terms. You can have more known passing situations which helps pass rush and all that, but you can't take it for granted because they will try each and every week because every week people are trying to protect their quarterbacks and part of quarterback protection is getting guys out of pass rush mode which means the threat of the run always serves the purpose of the overall collective which is why you always have to be on your p's and q's and continue to develop."
Q: I'm doing something on Offensive Line Coach Butch Barry. I know about being a vegan, doing Pilates, the wide brim hat, the passion. Tell me what I need to know about Butch if you can expound on that or tell me anything?
"Butch is a great example that he epitomizes what I look for in a coach. Specifically with him, it comes in his own flavor which I definitely appreciate. But what I mean by he epitomizes what a coach should be in the National Football League is it starts with the relationships. He earns their trust. You guys see him animated, and the reason why that animation continues to exist and players respond to it is because he earns it through relationships. There is no question in the players' minds in that room what motivates him, what his intent is. He is very connected to his players because they know with certainty how invested he is in them. From that, he is passionately trying to get guys to play to their best selves. So he is sweating a lot on the field, he is generally horse after practice, after a game it's good he doesn't have a postgame press conference, because he would have no words left. He is coaching, coaching, coaching, and I think that's one of the reasons it's becoming patterned behavior that guys are playing their best football under him. Can't say enough good things about him. I know I have to say good things about him because he is as humble as it comes, and I appreciate how he goes about his job each and every day he's in the football office."
Q: You mention the relationships, that's what a lot of players mentioned that we know Offensive Line Coach Butch Barry cares about us. How does a coach get that across? How do you build those relationships?
"That's why it's so cool, because it is a relentless day-in, day-out, no days off, you have to earn it. You have to do it through meeting prep, you have to do it from finding different ways to say the same thing. He's very quick to retool his verbiage if he thinks that that verbiage led to some sort of misinterpretation. That high accountability on himself and then just relentlessly day-in, day-out, every single day he's putting on himself to rally that group. You earn that with sweat equity, whether it's on the field or in the office. All of those things – him, 'Lem' (Assistant Offensive Line Coach Lemuel Jeanpierre) and 'Rome' (Offensive Assistant Roman Sapolu), all three of those guys really, really invest in the players so they get the investment into their coaching right back at them in the healthiest way possible."
Q: With TE Darren Waller, how did his body respond to his first game in more than a year? Is the plan as of now to still have him on a pitch count and does WR Tyreek Hill's absence affect that at all?
"I think no news is good news. It was a very clean game for him, and I think that speaks to all of the people involved. Our training staff giving me the right information, not necessarily the information I'd want to hear all the time, but doing right by him. I think we had a good approach where he was involved in the game but you're trying to make sure that process stays consistent. You're juggling the variables that the defense presents and how he best could be a part of the plan but try not to overuse him and utilize our good football players at various positions as well. I would say it's not going to go zero to 60, that would kind be contrary to the whole process in general. But I think he earned an opp or two more. Don't you guys think?"
Q: You've always been a creative play caller. Is there a need to be even more creative without WR Tyreek Hill in terms of going into your bag of tricks?
"No, I think we have a lot of capable football players I'm very confident in. I think when you lose players of that magnitude, it's never done with one human being; it's the execution of the overall group at all positions that make up the difference. I have a bunch of motivated football players. Tyreek (Hill) was in the building today. He came into the team meeting and made sure that the guys were continuing to stay motivated to have complementary football with 11 players playing as one in three phases over the course of the game. That's how you offset those things."
Q: Was there a need to have that type of conversation of concentrating on that collective effort and not just the one guy taking over?
"I would say no, seeing there are unintended consequences of things and where there's adversity, there's opportunity. I think that's kind of our speed that you find that cadence when you don't start the season the way you want it, so you end up – what do you focus on if you want your football to get better? Result aside, I think it is improving and needs to continue to improve, but when you do see that, that's a result of people focusing on their jobs and executing their jobs as they're connected with each other. For this team, I would say I didn't necessarily have to kick the door in and say that when the week started, because we've kind of come into a pattern of how we've gone about business and our standard and that's what normally occurs when seasons don't start out the way that you'd like."
Q: Where is CB Storm Duck in his recovery process, besides South Florida obviously?
"He's progressing. We won't see him obviously this week, but I'm happy that he's progressing. I would say it would be in a week-to-week timeline as it is moving forward."
Q: Is there anything else you can tell us about WR Tyreek Hill's visit? Did he actually address the whole team? What was the reaction to teammates, how happy were they to see him?
"It was awesome. It was a real moment where I knew the time that he'd probably be in the building and thankfully, I'm good on my toes, because it was right during the team meeting. So he made an entrance that I hadn't given the team a heads up to. I'm pretty sure the energy of the team meeting was pretty good, but it definitely gave it an uptick and he was eager to let his teammates know that he missed them. I was eager to tell his teammates that, 'See, Tyreek misses these team meetings. You guys are lucky.' It was a really good moment for guys that spend their waking lives together and something that was really cool to see for Tyreek and for the team."
