Read the full transcript from Head Coach Mike McDaniel's Postgame press conference on September 29, 2025.
Q: What do you know about WR Tyreek Hill's injury?
"I know he's at the hospital. I know he's staying overnight. I know it was a dislocation. He was probably in the best spirits of any player that I've ever – it's such a terrible experience when you go out and see guys when they have issues like that. But he immediately had wide eyes and was talking, 'I'm good, just make sure the guys get this win.' He was focused on the team, so that's how much – that's what I know about it. Outside of that, I'm sure I'll be given more information tomorrow."
Q: That kind of reaction, that kind of attitude from a guy who just suffered an injury like that, what kind of psychological impact do you think it will have on the rest of the guys, especially the way you guys responded?
" I think it's giant. A good portion of the team, we had the offense up at the time obviously so they're already close to the hash, and specifically I saw him make eye contact and rip a joke or two to (Jaylen) Waddle and De'Von (Achane). And you know, I think a lot of guys got back into the game provoked by what he said verbally. We talked a lot about all the stuff that Tyreek (Hill) has done this offseason, and a big portion is leading by example and connecting with his teammates. He kind of utilized that connectivity to make sure that his team was finishing on the right end. So he was inspiring in that situation, and I think his teammates benefitted from that."
Q: When you personally see that and everything goes through your mind, what's your process of locking back in?
"I can just open my eyes and see an entire team and stadium and organization that doesn't have time for my feelings. I've never hesitated to talk about how I invest in players and that's a gigantic piece, but as a leader, head coach, play caller, I have to be adept at rising to the occasion for the group. So communicating, and then I let myself be in the moment with him and share – like every player that goes down with something that necessitates a cart, I'm firmly there with them at that moment. But then when I walk out of there, I have to – there are a lot of people depending on me, and what choice do you have when the injured player tells you to move on and win this game. I'm not going to double down and not listen to him, so it's something that's not easy but very important to do in my position."
Q: What will it take for this offense to move forward without WR Tyreek Hill?
"I guess it'll take what the players were doing after he left. It's football. It's 100% injury rate. Man, he's great, valuable and a very important player to us, but every team has the same situation going on, different cadence. Everybody has injuries no one cares about. So it's the team playing football together, and I think it would be important for us to continue to be plus three (in turnovers) like we were in this game against the New York Jets and a litany of things. We just have to keep getting better. That's the exact thing that every team has to do regardless of what anyone says. In September, moving into October, you need to firmly develop your football and continue to get better regardless of results, and see where you lie in the later months."
Q: I know that you guys were waiting until TE Darren Waller was totally ready to go. Could you imagine that he would have a debut like this with two touchdowns?
"Yeah. You don't put in plays or have players play with the expectation of anything but their best. I knew he was fully capable. I just didn't want to overcook it. It inspires me and I think it inspires his teammates. A guy that has a love for the game of football and does the journey to get back. Everybody kind of I think empathized, but at the same time, it's tough when you get to a new team and then you're a partial participater, and it takes a while. All he's done is everything that he possibly can do and put his best foot forward, and he has been a phenomenal contributor to our team. I think the guys have felt it. He's been doing everything he can to participate, and they were very confident when he was ready to go that he would be what we know him to be. So I think he is a nice complement to what we previously thought were height restrictions for eligibles. (laughter) He's much taller than all the guys my size. But he'll continue to build, and I think he's excited just to play football and be involved. He did a great job and took a nice warmup to get his first catch. (laughter) It was nice. It was a little more acrobatic that I hoped his first catch would be. He did a good job and the line blocked phenomenally. (Assistant Head Coach/Tight Ends) Coach Embree and (Offensive Coordinator) Frank Smith made sure his first taste of football, I don't think he had one MA (missed assignment). He's been on it. So I'm happy and proud for him."
Q:*What did it mean for you to see the three forced turnovers, especially in light of Defensive Coordinator Anthony Weaver kind of calling for more violence from your defense?*
"Yeah, I'm going to call for Anthony Weaver to call for more violence more often. It was awesome. Particularly, I would say that the first takeaway epitomizes what I see our team to be, which I think was an 80-yard drive, that Jack Jones (forced a fumble on) and no one quit. There were a lot of plays that guys weren't fired up about on that drive. But we kept playing and kept fighting. We made them earn each yard. Down in the red zone, you get the takeaway, and then I think there was a 96-yard drive, 15 plays, and that complementary football I think was the biggest turning point in the game. So that and the resolve and just staying together. It was a rough start to the season, but having young players at a lot of positions and watching them understand their failures and not blink when a lot of people are telling them to blink, I'm very proud of that. And the takeaways, the first one in particular, were monumental. Being plus three was a nice place to be."
Q: Just going off that, when you are struggling to do something, whether it's you haven't got a win or a takeaway in a while, what is that value of simply doing it once?
"It's gigantic. It's not like those critical variables in football. Generally, it's not that they're under emphasized, but you want to make sure that people just don't hear it with a numb ear to like takeaways or whatever. You have to have people inspired ad people be very focused. You have to continue to – when you're not getting the results – it's interesting. The game of football is kind of like life. You get your best version of yourself if you aren't only responding to positive reinforcement. The stay-with-it-ness or whatever – after the game, some of my phrases aren't the best (laughter) – but that's kind of like the NFL journey. If you're going to be good at anything, you can't just ride the highs of when you are getting takeaways. It is when you go into a little lull or have a couple games where you don't have any and then guys find a way. It just takes one and all of a sudden guys are a little more convicted in their techniques and fundamentals to attack the ball and guys are straining to get around the ball, even if it looks to appear as though one or two of their teammates might get the tackle. It's as simple as that – effort, strain and focus to get the ball back. When you have that, sometimes they come in bunches and you can get right pretty quick."
Q: The last six quarters, does it feel like this is getting back to 'normal?'
"Yeah. I think we've gotten better, and we had to. You always have to. We've had several instances of winning football. Winning football to me is complementary three-phase football where sometimes the momentum starts with a punt. That's what our team has to understand. Sometimes the momentum starts and you have several explosives given up on the ground, but you stay with it, make them earn every yard, then you get a takeaway. We've had six quarters where complementary football has existed, and as a result, it's been a much tighter game against our opponents and we're finding ways to clean up our game while continuing to improve. That's just paramount. That's paramount in this league. As soon as you start to feel comfortable, you get humbled and the biggest thing is in moments where it's a one-game loss, two-game losing streak, a three-game losing streak, it can make or break you. The biggest thing is that you want guys to come together and really thrive when the odds are against you. Generally for a season, that's the formula. But the biggest thing for us is to file that away. They'll get tonight to appreciate the win, then we'll have one day off tomorrow for the guys, and then we'll back at it Wednesday. You have to go at it again with as much fervor as you had when you had zero wins if you want to have two wins. So I'm excited to do that. Getting in the win column took longer than we wanted, but it is satisfying, and I was happy for the team to get that feeling. And also, how to approach a work week after a win, which we'll get to tomorrow or the next day."
Q: This offense hasn't had to spend a lot time without WR Tyreek Hill in the regular season. But this offseason, OTAs, mini-camp, good chunk of training camp, what did those periods of time teach you about how this team can play without your star receiver?
" It's a great question because it gives credence to that phrase that you guys love: Adversity is an opportunity. I think that that time where we did have to really go at a lot of work without him on the field, I was optimistic about the energy and kind of like the leaders on the offense because they started to develop their own personality. Tyreek brings a lot of juice and energy and competitive spirit to an offense and to our team when he's on the field. I thought where in years past, when he would be out for a day or two or something would come up, we didn't have the same competitive spirit. I thought this offseason, we were able to develop that during joint practices and doing all that. That's productive. It should be helpful for the guys so they're not going into uncharted territory. And certainly your team has to continue to develop and get better at everything they do any time you lose a good player on your team. But regardless if you don't lose anyone, it's the same setup. You have to continue to get better at your football, because if you're not, the other half of the league is, and it's about stacking wins and trying to get in the win column as much as possible as your team does develop."
