WEBVTT - Coaches Talk Motor, Versatility, Edge Play, Improved Run Game, Tua Wins a Fun Award 0:00:00.240 --> 0:00:05.680 To us fires touch stop waddle stuck into the end 0:00:05.760 --> 0:00:09.880 zone of Miami type pro tide window. They had to 0:00:09.880 --> 0:00:14.560 get that touchdown on that play, they get it. What 0:00:14.880 --> 0:00:18.960 ends up? Dolphins And Welcome to the Drive Time Podcast, 0:00:19.239 --> 0:00:23.120 part of the Miami Dolphins podcast network, covering your team, 0:00:23.160 --> 0:00:27.320 your Miami Dolphins. How's it going everybody? I am your host, 0:00:27.440 --> 0:00:30.360 Travis Wingfield, and as always, I am here to bring 0:00:30.400 --> 0:00:34.080 you your daily dose of Miami Dolphins football. And on 0:00:34.120 --> 0:00:36.920 today's show, it's a deep dive Wednesday, as we'll hear 0:00:37.200 --> 0:00:41.360 from the Dolphins coordinators Josh Boyer, Eric Studisville, and Danny 0:00:41.440 --> 0:00:46.160 Croftsman on some of the biggest storylines, including Nick Needham's versatility, 0:00:46.479 --> 0:00:49.559 winning in the trenches, and flying to the football. Plus 0:00:49.720 --> 0:00:52.680 we'll talk about the offensive line, the players off the edge, 0:00:52.840 --> 0:00:55.720 and tell you what's going on around the web in 0:00:56.080 --> 0:00:59.440 Dolphins world. All of that and much more from somewhere 0:00:59.480 --> 0:01:07.720 in South Florida. This is the Drive Time Podcast. So 0:01:07.800 --> 0:01:10.720 I began my Tuesday morning, as I do each week, 0:01:10.760 --> 0:01:12.920 taking a look around the web trying to see what 0:01:13.040 --> 0:01:16.440 type of Dolphins related content is out there. And here's 0:01:16.440 --> 0:01:19.720 what I found today. Number One, I'm sure you guys 0:01:19.760 --> 0:01:24.319 are familiar with Good Morning Football, right and Angry Runs. 0:01:24.560 --> 0:01:26.960 And we saw our quarterback drop his shoulder and run 0:01:27.000 --> 0:01:29.440 through a defender in the game on Sunday, And so 0:01:29.560 --> 0:01:31.880 guess what he got. That's right, he got the scepter 0:01:32.280 --> 0:01:35.319 from Kyle Brandt on Good Morning Football the week fifteen 0:01:35.440 --> 0:01:39.000 Angry Runs winner goes to quarterback to a tongue vyloa, 0:01:39.480 --> 0:01:41.720 so he gets the scepter. I'm sure we'll talk to 0:01:41.760 --> 0:01:45.080 me about that later today in his media availability and 0:01:45.120 --> 0:01:47.319 find out where that thing is gonna be kept, where 0:01:47.319 --> 0:01:49.400 it's gonna be held for the rest of the season, 0:01:49.400 --> 0:01:51.440 for the rest of time. As he does get the 0:01:51.480 --> 0:01:54.640 scepter for the week fifteen Angry Run. Also on Good 0:01:54.640 --> 0:01:58.080 Morning Football on Tuesday morning, Christian Wilkins made an appearance 0:01:58.280 --> 0:02:00.720 talking to Kay Adams and the breakfast club there at 0:02:00.760 --> 0:02:02.800 the table. If you guys have not checked out Good 0:02:02.840 --> 0:02:05.920 Morning Football every single morning on NFL Network, one of 0:02:05.960 --> 0:02:08.520 the best shows out there for my money, obviously the 0:02:08.560 --> 0:02:11.080 best talk show because well it's about football and they 0:02:11.120 --> 0:02:13.799 have a great cast as well. But here's Christian Wilkins 0:02:14.000 --> 0:02:17.639 talking about the entirety of that play, that touchdown. The celebration. 0:02:17.680 --> 0:02:21.280 All of it here on NFL Network. Coach Flora's calls 0:02:21.360 --> 0:02:23.760 your number. I'm first in Gold from the one. What 0:02:23.800 --> 0:02:26.079 was the play call? It looked like you were ready 0:02:26.200 --> 0:02:30.680 to go. Yeah, I was ready. Um, you know, Coach 0:02:30.720 --> 0:02:32.680 Flora's kind of you know, we drew it up in 0:02:32.680 --> 0:02:35.920 the sand on the on the sideline. Um, you know, 0:02:35.960 --> 0:02:38.840 he just we just needed to spark. You know what 0:02:38.840 --> 0:02:41.079 I'm saying. He's needing the athlete out there on the field. 0:02:41.400 --> 0:02:43.360 He's a Christian. You're in, go take care of business, 0:02:43.440 --> 0:02:44.560 do what you do. And I was like, Coach, I 0:02:44.600 --> 0:02:46.200 got you. Don't worry about it. You know, I'm gonna 0:02:46.200 --> 0:02:49.399 take care of business. And you know, had a nice, 0:02:49.760 --> 0:02:52.720 nice simple route to the flat. I saw my defender. 0:02:52.800 --> 0:02:54.919 I get he had inside leverage on me. I jabbed 0:02:54.960 --> 0:02:56.799 him inside. You know what I'm saying. I went outside 0:02:56.840 --> 0:03:02.680 wild before a touchdown, crowd goes wild. Talk to me 0:03:02.720 --> 0:03:05.640 about this, what what was this something you planned before? 0:03:05.760 --> 0:03:10.440 Talk to me about the worm. Well, it was kind 0:03:10.480 --> 0:03:12.960 of just a spur of the moment um. You know, 0:03:13.040 --> 0:03:15.040 I just kind of, I don't know, I just got excited. 0:03:15.400 --> 0:03:17.480 I actually had a planned celebration. I was going to 0:03:17.560 --> 0:03:19.520 give a shout out to Jail waddle and do the 0:03:19.520 --> 0:03:22.720 waddle dance. Um, but you know, because he wasn't playing 0:03:22.720 --> 0:03:25.280 in the game Sunday, but I kind of went rogue. 0:03:25.360 --> 0:03:27.440 I kind of went rogue and forgot about him. Um, 0:03:27.480 --> 0:03:30.079 you know he's a rookie anyway, we don't care about him. No, 0:03:30.880 --> 0:03:33.799 So that I just went rogue, got excited, jumped in 0:03:33.880 --> 0:03:37.080 the crowd, came out, still still felt good, still wanted 0:03:37.120 --> 0:03:40.400 to celebrate. So then, uh, you know, just just did 0:03:40.400 --> 0:03:42.880 the worm, did the spinner rooney. You know, they did 0:03:42.920 --> 0:03:45.160 all that. So I had a good time doing that, 0:03:45.240 --> 0:03:49.360 a little throwback breakdance action, going rogue. What else is 0:03:49.400 --> 0:03:53.440 more Christian Wilkins than going rogue on your own touchdown celebration. 0:03:53.480 --> 0:03:54.800 You love to see it, You love to have this 0:03:54.880 --> 0:03:57.240 guy in your locker room, on your team, and all 0:03:57.280 --> 0:03:59.840 of the above. So that's why I found around the web. 0:03:59.880 --> 0:04:01.840 I want to get nowt to my top news story 0:04:01.920 --> 0:04:03.960 up on Miami Dolphins dot com and take a look 0:04:03.960 --> 0:04:06.400 at a few things that really piqued my interest. With 0:04:07.160 --> 0:04:10.000 finding out more about those things that piqued my interests 0:04:10.000 --> 0:04:13.360 through the Dolphins coordinators as we spoke to Josh Boyer, 0:04:13.480 --> 0:04:18.600 Danny Craftsman, and Eric Studisville on Tuesday for this Wednesday podcast, 0:04:18.640 --> 0:04:21.800 and just looking back over how the Dolphins got back 0:04:21.800 --> 0:04:23.880 to seven and seven, and we do want to turn 0:04:23.920 --> 0:04:26.240 the page here, but I think, you know, history can 0:04:26.279 --> 0:04:30.240 be instructive for future results. And I've talked about this 0:04:30.320 --> 0:04:33.799 so many times on this podcast, on my previous podcast 0:04:33.839 --> 0:04:36.239 that I used to host, or whether it's written word 0:04:36.320 --> 0:04:39.800 on on dot COM's or Twitter, that the best NFL 0:04:39.880 --> 0:04:44.360 teams find multiple ways to win games. Like we've had 0:04:44.400 --> 0:04:47.360 instances where even this week's opponent, for instance, the Saints 0:04:47.600 --> 0:04:49.800 with Drew Brees, a Hall of Fame top ten all 0:04:49.839 --> 0:04:53.440 time quarterback, had three consecutives seven and nine seasons because 0:04:53.480 --> 0:04:56.440 they did not have that changeup to Drew Brees and 0:04:56.480 --> 0:04:58.800 the passing game. They didn't have the running game to 0:04:58.800 --> 0:05:00.960 compliment the passing game, they didn't have the defense to 0:05:01.040 --> 0:05:03.200 help them close out games and have the special teams 0:05:03.200 --> 0:05:05.800 to get them to find margins to win games, and 0:05:05.839 --> 0:05:09.240 they relied on their Hall of Fame all time great quarterback, 0:05:09.279 --> 0:05:11.400 which is obviously a great way to win games, but 0:05:11.480 --> 0:05:14.839 it's not a great way to get deep into the season. 0:05:15.720 --> 0:05:18.040 And with the Saints said after that, after those three 0:05:18.080 --> 0:05:22.080 seven win seasons in a row, was they found Alvin Camaro, 0:05:22.200 --> 0:05:25.360 They found Ryan Ramcheck and built up the offensive line 0:05:25.400 --> 0:05:28.280 around a great draft class in a free agency period, 0:05:28.440 --> 0:05:30.120 and they went out and found a defense to get 0:05:30.120 --> 0:05:33.120 pressure on opposing quarterbacks and play lockdown coverage with Marcus 0:05:33.160 --> 0:05:36.640 Lattimore and eventually C. J. Johnson, Gardner Johnson and the 0:05:36.640 --> 0:05:38.359 back end there. And you know about the names and 0:05:38.400 --> 0:05:42.440 the way they piled up eleven and twelve and thirteen 0:05:42.440 --> 0:05:45.720 win seasons and division championships and deep postseason runs with 0:05:45.800 --> 0:05:49.200 Drew Brees because they had multiple ways to win games, 0:05:49.640 --> 0:05:52.600 and over Miami's winning streak, they've won in several different ways. 0:05:52.640 --> 0:05:55.240 They turned the Texans over four times. There was a 0:05:55.320 --> 0:05:57.880 quarterback switch in the Baltimore game. They threw the ball 0:05:57.920 --> 0:06:00.560 forty one times in the victory over the Giants, and 0:06:00.600 --> 0:06:03.000 then Sunday over the Jets. You come back with a 0:06:03.080 --> 0:06:07.240 dominant rushing performance, topping your previous season high by fifty 0:06:07.320 --> 0:06:10.400 yards by rushing for a buck eight three in that game, 0:06:10.600 --> 0:06:13.760 by getting your first individual up over a hundred yards, 0:06:13.920 --> 0:06:16.880 by having Miles Gaskon hit his longest run of the season, 0:06:17.160 --> 0:06:19.400 for thirty yards, and so I look, you know, to 0:06:19.480 --> 0:06:22.320 the rest of the schedule and think, obviously this week 0:06:22.360 --> 0:06:24.120 is the one you look at. But can Miami go 0:06:24.240 --> 0:06:26.839 to multiple ways to win games and just kind of 0:06:26.839 --> 0:06:29.279 go back to the running game here they had success 0:06:29.360 --> 0:06:32.200 really running to a variety of gaps, and again I 0:06:32.240 --> 0:06:36.960 think instructive the past can be instructive for future success. 0:06:37.000 --> 0:06:40.160 And this offensive line is building some momentum. We talked 0:06:40.200 --> 0:06:43.760 about Leam Eichenberg's run with one pressure allowed and three 0:06:43.760 --> 0:06:46.960 straight games. We've talked about Austin Jackson really throughout the 0:06:46.960 --> 0:06:50.640 course of the podcast this season about some of the 0:06:50.720 --> 0:06:52.920 grueling type of reps he has in the running game 0:06:52.960 --> 0:06:55.080 where he can get out in space and and square 0:06:55.080 --> 0:06:57.400 guys up and move guys off the football and create 0:06:57.440 --> 0:07:00.280 space that way. We talked about Robert Hunt all of time, 0:07:00.279 --> 0:07:03.440 about Michael Dieter stabilization upfront as well the tight ends, 0:07:03.480 --> 0:07:06.640 the receiver's contributing in the running game. It's been a 0:07:06.640 --> 0:07:08.640 full team effort. But just to look at some of 0:07:08.640 --> 0:07:10.760 the numbers here, and it was only two carries, but 0:07:10.800 --> 0:07:12.680 Miami did go for an average of fifteen and a 0:07:12.680 --> 0:07:15.160 half yards running behind Robert Hunt, that's a great pro 0:07:15.240 --> 0:07:18.000 football focused stat for you there. He's also on the 0:07:18.080 --> 0:07:22.560 top ten run block win rate numbers for ESPN this 0:07:22.600 --> 0:07:25.360 season among offensive guards, so obviously Rob having a good 0:07:25.400 --> 0:07:28.360 year there, but also looking at some of the numbers here. 0:07:28.560 --> 0:07:31.680 When the Dolphins went left, the results were consistently positive. 0:07:31.720 --> 0:07:35.080 Taking runs into the C gap, which is between your 0:07:35.080 --> 0:07:37.680 tight end and the left tackle, or just outside the 0:07:37.720 --> 0:07:40.000 left tackle when there is no tight end out there, 0:07:40.240 --> 0:07:42.480 the B gap between your tackle and your guard, your 0:07:42.520 --> 0:07:46.000 a gap between your guard and your center. Miami ran 0:07:46.320 --> 0:07:49.200 fourteen times on such runs for eighty three yards and 0:07:49.240 --> 0:07:51.960 an average of five point three nine yards per rush. 0:07:52.160 --> 0:07:54.720 And again some backside pulling guards Robert Hunt had a 0:07:54.720 --> 0:07:56.760 big block on this, Michael Dieter is there to anchor 0:07:56.800 --> 0:07:58.840 at all, and of course the tight ends and receivers 0:07:58.840 --> 0:08:01.720 on the outside. The Dolphins also picked up six first 0:08:01.760 --> 0:08:05.480 downs on such runs and four runs of ten plus yards. 0:08:05.800 --> 0:08:09.200 And again on that left side, his first round draft 0:08:09.200 --> 0:08:14.240 pick in Austin Jackson at left guard second rounder Liam Eichenberg, 0:08:14.680 --> 0:08:17.040 and that duo teamed up for a number of big 0:08:17.040 --> 0:08:19.920 blocks off that side, including some double team looks, some 0:08:20.080 --> 0:08:23.360 duo some single blocks as well. But those combination blocks 0:08:23.360 --> 0:08:26.160 where they chipped the first level climbed to the second level. 0:08:26.440 --> 0:08:28.640 That was a good job on the Dolphins offensive getting 0:08:28.680 --> 0:08:31.520 some space, creating some push there for the Dolphins running backs. 0:08:31.640 --> 0:08:35.040 But according to co offensive coordinator Eric Stuisville, it's really 0:08:35.080 --> 0:08:38.160 more of a team effort in that running game. I 0:08:38.200 --> 0:08:40.320 think you know, there's a lot of different runs in there, 0:08:40.320 --> 0:08:43.360 and they hit different places where, Um, it's not always 0:08:43.360 --> 0:08:48.120 depending on um, you know, a certain tandem. I mean, 0:08:48.160 --> 0:08:50.240 we need everybody, you know, everybody's got to do that. 0:08:50.320 --> 0:08:51.960 We had. There was a lot of line movement that 0:08:52.040 --> 0:08:54.560 happened um in the game against the Jets, and so 0:08:54.600 --> 0:08:56.840 we had to shut line movement off. We did. Obviously 0:08:56.840 --> 0:08:59.480 we did run good behind some double teams. We had 0:08:59.480 --> 0:09:01.360 a number of of double teams where we move people 0:09:01.360 --> 0:09:04.560 off the ball. But but those big runs and things 0:09:04.559 --> 0:09:06.760 that happened, those are involved in a lot of different things. 0:09:06.760 --> 0:09:09.600 It starts with the offensive line. Certainly, the back gets 0:09:09.600 --> 0:09:11.160 all the credit for the yards, but it starts with 0:09:11.200 --> 0:09:13.480 the offensive line and starts with the wide receivers coming 0:09:13.480 --> 0:09:16.200 in and blocking force and pushing people by to get 0:09:16.240 --> 0:09:20.240 extra yards downfield. Um, it's a it's a group effort 0:09:20.280 --> 0:09:23.760 with everybody involved in it. So, um, you know, there 0:09:23.840 --> 0:09:25.600 was some good double teams in there, but there's a 0:09:25.600 --> 0:09:27.680 lot of good things that happened in there too, with 0:09:27.679 --> 0:09:30.199 with everybody on the offense trying to contribute to a 0:09:30.679 --> 0:09:33.680 good run. So there you have coach Studentsville breaking down 0:09:33.679 --> 0:09:35.760 the running game. There. He's he's been doing this for 0:09:35.760 --> 0:09:38.839 a long time. Run game coordinator, offensive coordinator, play caller, 0:09:38.880 --> 0:09:42.160 all that fun stuff throughout the course of his pro career, 0:09:42.200 --> 0:09:44.760 in college career, and just coaching career in general. So 0:09:44.960 --> 0:09:47.160 good stuff there from coach. You can find the entirety 0:09:47.200 --> 0:09:49.960 of his media availability up on the YouTube channel. And 0:09:50.000 --> 0:09:51.640 we'll come back to some more stuff with coach here 0:09:51.679 --> 0:09:53.400 in just one second. But I want to pivot now 0:09:53.640 --> 0:09:55.920 to the defensive side of the football and the edge 0:09:55.920 --> 0:10:00.960 position because I continue to watch the work of Emmanuel Ogba, 0:10:01.320 --> 0:10:06.199 Jalen Phillips, and Andrew Van Ginkl and the surge they've 0:10:06.240 --> 0:10:08.720 shown in recent weeks and how to kind of extrapolate 0:10:08.800 --> 0:10:11.480 that into Sundy or Monday's game rather against the New 0:10:11.559 --> 0:10:13.320 Orleans Saints, when the Dolphins are gonna have to bring 0:10:13.360 --> 0:10:15.720 all kinds of bodies to the party to get Taysom 0:10:15.800 --> 0:10:18.160 Hill and Alan Kamara stopped up and and get some 0:10:18.200 --> 0:10:20.040 pass rush, and they do have to go through the air. 0:10:21.000 --> 0:10:24.320 But I find the construction of this room interesting and 0:10:24.320 --> 0:10:27.959 how it was put together because obviously pretty much every 0:10:28.000 --> 0:10:32.400 position group, actually all of them, really have been remade 0:10:32.920 --> 0:10:36.080 since Brian Flora's arrival back in nineteen with Chris Greer 0:10:36.360 --> 0:10:38.160 being at the head of the front office and his 0:10:38.200 --> 0:10:40.560 scouting staff he put together in the pro personnel and 0:10:40.880 --> 0:10:43.720 everything they've done to rebuild this entire roster. Since they've 0:10:43.800 --> 0:10:46.840 kind of become a tandem here in Flora's and Greer. 0:10:47.160 --> 0:10:50.000 I look at the edge position and think, man, they 0:10:50.040 --> 0:10:52.520 really knocked out of the park and so many different 0:10:52.559 --> 0:10:56.199 avenues to get this collection of players. I mean free 0:10:56.240 --> 0:10:59.559 agent and Emmanuel Ogba, one first round draft pick in 0:10:59.640 --> 0:11:02.040 Jalen Phillips, one of the first draft picks of the 0:11:02.040 --> 0:11:04.719 Flora as Greer pairing and Andrew Van Ginkle back in 0:11:04.760 --> 0:11:07.840 the fifth round in twenty nineteen. And you know, he 0:11:07.920 --> 0:11:10.559 plays with his hand in the dirt, standing up in 0:11:10.559 --> 0:11:13.160 a two point stance, he drops into coverage. He recognizes 0:11:13.240 --> 0:11:15.400 stick combos as well as anybody in the National Football 0:11:15.480 --> 0:11:17.680 League where you're on the stick route, the little hook route, 0:11:17.800 --> 0:11:19.960 and the flat route. I love watching him defend that 0:11:20.200 --> 0:11:22.679 as well as rush the passer as well as retrace 0:11:22.760 --> 0:11:26.280 the quarterback because he scrambles across the backfield. Jalen Phillips 0:11:26.320 --> 0:11:28.680 just a pure pass rusher off the edge, tough to 0:11:28.720 --> 0:11:31.280 deal with the amount of attention he commands and double 0:11:31.360 --> 0:11:35.880 teams and chips and help. And then Emmanuel Ogba and 0:11:36.000 --> 0:11:38.360 his ability to do a little bit of everything, to 0:11:38.480 --> 0:11:41.600 condense inside, to rush from that interior position, to set 0:11:41.640 --> 0:11:43.880 strong edges in the running game. And really this is 0:11:43.920 --> 0:11:46.559 true of all these guys and the multiple capacities they 0:11:46.600 --> 0:11:49.640 play and the past rush ability. And again, one thing 0:11:49.640 --> 0:11:51.760 I love seeing more than anything else we talked about 0:11:51.760 --> 0:11:54.360 in the podcast yesterday is just how they fly to 0:11:54.440 --> 0:11:56.920 the football. They're all over the place. You can see 0:11:56.920 --> 0:11:59.560 it on runs away from their particular gap. They chase 0:11:59.640 --> 0:12:02.120 that thing down from the backside and really show that 0:12:02.200 --> 0:12:05.360 effort in that motor and I think that that helps 0:12:05.440 --> 0:12:08.960 with obviously their skill set to this particular stat where 0:12:09.000 --> 0:12:11.679 they all rank inside the top thirty on Pro Football 0:12:11.679 --> 0:12:15.679 Focus in terms of edge players and quarterback pressures. Ogbas 0:12:15.760 --> 0:12:18.720 fifty seven now after one more day of games, is 0:12:18.760 --> 0:12:22.480 tenth among all edge defenders. Andre Vanne giggles forty quarterback 0:12:22.480 --> 0:12:25.760 pressures are tied for in the National Football League among 0:12:25.920 --> 0:12:28.800 edge defenders, and in that same grouping, Jalen Phillips has 0:12:28.800 --> 0:12:32.120 thirty seven that's tied forty in the NFL. So the 0:12:32.160 --> 0:12:35.520 sack production, swatting balls down at the line of scrimmage, 0:12:35.600 --> 0:12:38.520 setting up other guys for chances to make plays, it's 0:12:38.600 --> 0:12:41.240 all part of the job description for this group and 0:12:41.280 --> 0:12:45.200 for the entire defense. Well, I think, you know, any 0:12:45.240 --> 0:12:48.280 any time that you look at individuals stats, there's there's 0:12:48.320 --> 0:12:52.160 obviously a lot that goes into um, you know, all 0:12:52.240 --> 0:12:54.640 eleven guys being on the same page. But at the 0:12:54.679 --> 0:12:57.760 same time, you know, guys doing their jobs well uh 0:12:58.160 --> 0:13:03.000 sets you know, somebody up on defense for production and um, 0:13:03.040 --> 0:13:05.160 you know, and we've been you know, like like we've 0:13:05.160 --> 0:13:08.200 said all year, our guys they work extremely hard. Uh 0:13:08.240 --> 0:13:10.120 They've they've put a lot of work in and I 0:13:10.160 --> 0:13:14.000 believe we're still improving and we've still got room to improve. 0:13:14.520 --> 0:13:16.920 And uh, you know, it's really a credit to them 0:13:17.640 --> 0:13:23.960 for the execution, the communication, the understanding of what goes on. Uh, 0:13:24.000 --> 0:13:28.000 and in each given play and uh, you know, the 0:13:28.040 --> 0:13:31.640 ability to get some production and pressure. Uh you know, 0:13:31.760 --> 0:13:34.080 and a lot of times are our guys are very unselfish. 0:13:34.080 --> 0:13:37.880 You'll see you'll see other guys actually open up stuff 0:13:37.920 --> 0:13:42.560 for other players, and uh they're just as happy. Uh 0:13:42.600 --> 0:13:46.160 you know that that we're succeeding as a team. And 0:13:46.200 --> 0:13:48.400 again I mentioned it there as you heard Coach talk 0:13:48.440 --> 0:13:50.439 about some of the things we've covered the podcast about 0:13:50.440 --> 0:13:54.080 guys being unself or being selfless, I should say to 0:13:54.200 --> 0:13:56.320 set other guys up for chances to make plays and 0:13:56.320 --> 0:13:59.400 celebrate it all together. But as I talk about the 0:13:59.400 --> 0:14:03.400 way they down the backside on running plays or Christian 0:14:03.400 --> 0:14:05.719 Wilkins retracing a screen, whatever the case may be, the 0:14:05.800 --> 0:14:09.000 hustle effort we have seen from so many players. I 0:14:09.040 --> 0:14:11.600 think it's the most entertaining part of this defense. How 0:14:11.640 --> 0:14:14.480 they all play with their hair on fire that way, 0:14:14.480 --> 0:14:17.599 and the effort is always going to lead to takeaways. 0:14:17.600 --> 0:14:19.680 And you know, we've heard the term or the the 0:14:19.760 --> 0:14:23.040 idea before the takeaways you're not sustainable. I kind of 0:14:23.040 --> 0:14:25.600 call bs on that because the Dolphins are proving that. 0:14:25.800 --> 0:14:27.840 I mean, they've they're putting together another streak here of 0:14:27.880 --> 0:14:30.200 takeaways in terms of getting the football away from the 0:14:30.200 --> 0:14:33.280 opposing offense. After having that twentysomething game streak earlier in 0:14:33.280 --> 0:14:35.760 the season, snapped, picking it right back up and their 0:14:35.800 --> 0:14:38.520 top ten in the NFL and takeaways this season once again. 0:14:38.960 --> 0:14:40.840 And I think that's set up a lot of the 0:14:40.880 --> 0:14:43.920 time by just running to the football and playing aggressively. 0:14:44.200 --> 0:14:46.880 Here's coach Boyer on the coaching point or the mentality 0:14:46.960 --> 0:14:49.960 on that defense to fly to the football. Well, I 0:14:50.280 --> 0:14:53.560 think you know, ultimately, you know when you're when you're 0:14:53.560 --> 0:14:56.880 playing team defense, I mean, you definitely want to get 0:14:56.920 --> 0:15:01.240 everybody with a relentless pursuit to the football. Um. And 0:15:01.320 --> 0:15:03.520 I don't know who said it or what quote it was, 0:15:04.040 --> 0:15:06.880 but you know, a long time ago somebody said, you know, 0:15:07.200 --> 0:15:09.920 you can measure the love of your teammate by your 0:15:09.960 --> 0:15:13.160 distance to the ball. And you know, and I think 0:15:13.280 --> 0:15:16.480 you see our guys, you know, they play hard. Uh, 0:15:16.520 --> 0:15:19.560 they play for one another. Uh, there's a joy out there, 0:15:20.160 --> 0:15:22.920 and they know that people are counting on them, So 0:15:23.440 --> 0:15:27.440 you know, their effort to the ball is very important. 0:15:27.560 --> 0:15:30.080 And obviously we highlight that when it's when it's done 0:15:30.160 --> 0:15:32.720 well and when it's not to the standard. That we 0:15:32.760 --> 0:15:35.800 believe it should be. Then you know we get on 0:15:35.800 --> 0:15:38.920 that too. So but you know, we got a lot 0:15:38.920 --> 0:15:40.640 of guys that fly around to the football out there. 0:15:41.000 --> 0:15:43.040 And again, like I said, we're gonna need our best 0:15:43.040 --> 0:15:45.240 football this week. We got we got a great opponent 0:15:45.320 --> 0:15:49.520 coming up. Um, you know, coach Peyton, coach car Michael, 0:15:50.600 --> 0:15:55.400 phenomenal offensive coaches and make it really hard for you defensively. Uh, 0:15:55.440 --> 0:15:58.000 they got great Uh you know, they got a good 0:15:58.040 --> 0:16:01.800 offensive line, they got great skill players. Um, you know, 0:16:02.040 --> 0:16:04.880 they got really good running backs. Uh, they got a 0:16:04.960 --> 0:16:09.200 dynamic quarterback that can run, he could throw. Um, you know, 0:16:09.280 --> 0:16:10.760 this is gonna be a big challenge for us, and 0:16:10.760 --> 0:16:13.520 we're gonna need everybody, all eleven guys on defense to 0:16:13.560 --> 0:16:16.440 be on the same page, to communicate well, to play 0:16:16.480 --> 0:16:19.440 with good fundamentals and good techniques for sixty minutes, one 0:16:19.440 --> 0:16:21.560 play at a time. That's what we're gonna need this week. 0:16:21.640 --> 0:16:25.000 And you know, but we're excited about the challenge. Definitely 0:16:25.000 --> 0:16:27.360 a challenge coming up on Monday night in New Orleans. 0:16:27.360 --> 0:16:29.440 Just go ahead and finish that point. Their coach Flora's 0:16:29.520 --> 0:16:32.520 touched on the Saints as well, calling them a tough, 0:16:32.640 --> 0:16:36.040 physical team across the board offense, defense, and special teams. 0:16:36.240 --> 0:16:38.640 They've got a lot of great players. Obviously, they're well 0:16:38.680 --> 0:16:41.600 coached really across the board. He too mentioned Sean Payton 0:16:41.600 --> 0:16:43.960 and Pete Carmichael. Dennis Allen has been one of the 0:16:44.000 --> 0:16:47.240 top d season the game for a while now. Rizz Darren, Rizzy, 0:16:47.320 --> 0:16:49.840 we all know who he is. Special teams coach, he says, 0:16:49.880 --> 0:16:51.480 I think they do a great job. They've got a 0:16:51.520 --> 0:16:53.840 lot of really good players. They played well last night. 0:16:53.880 --> 0:16:56.360 That was on Monday. Talking about Sunday night, they've been 0:16:56.440 --> 0:16:58.960 playing really well. Like I said, we have our hands full. 0:16:59.000 --> 0:17:01.720 So there you go, two coaches there, Flora's and boy, 0:17:01.680 --> 0:17:04.920 you're talking about the job coming up on Monday night 0:17:04.920 --> 0:17:06.280 in New Orleans. But I want to go back to 0:17:06.359 --> 0:17:09.560 what coach talked about there about being selfless and celebrating 0:17:09.560 --> 0:17:12.400 place for one another, because I think few guys embody 0:17:12.520 --> 0:17:15.119 that the way that Nick Needham does and being a 0:17:15.119 --> 0:17:20.040 selfless teammate who since arriving in Miami as an undrafted 0:17:20.040 --> 0:17:23.840 free agent back in twenty nineteen, whatever is asked of him, 0:17:23.880 --> 0:17:27.720 he's done it at a high level. He was a 0:17:27.760 --> 0:17:31.840 lockdown corner at you Tep University, of Texas El Paso 0:17:32.359 --> 0:17:35.399 on the perimeter almost exclusively. He played five snaps in 0:17:35.440 --> 0:17:38.119 the slot and one at free safety, according to Pro 0:17:38.200 --> 0:17:41.040 Football Focus his final year there at UTEP, you go 0:17:41.080 --> 0:17:44.120 back to his freshman season, he did play a little 0:17:44.119 --> 0:17:46.679 bit more inside, but beyond that it was like a 0:17:46.720 --> 0:17:50.159 total of ten snaps between safety and inside cornerback. So 0:17:50.200 --> 0:17:54.040 he was basically a perimeter cornerback exclusively. And you know, 0:17:54.080 --> 0:17:57.080 like all dbs that come through Miami under Flores, m Boyer, 0:17:57.520 --> 0:17:59.960 Needham took some immediate cross training in that rookies he 0:18:00.000 --> 0:18:02.119 Eason played a hundred and fifty seven snaps on the 0:18:02.119 --> 0:18:05.720 inside compared to five thirty one on the perimeter. But 0:18:05.760 --> 0:18:08.720 then after landing one of the game's top cornerbacks, you know, 0:18:08.720 --> 0:18:12.040 a perimeter cornerback and Byron Jones last year, Needham had 0:18:12.080 --> 0:18:14.840 to find a new position to get that playing time again. 0:18:14.880 --> 0:18:18.240 Because we know they've you know, Charles Burke's, Josh Boyer, 0:18:18.320 --> 0:18:22.120 Joel Alexander, Brian Flores have all talked about this. It's 0:18:22.160 --> 0:18:24.680 hard to crack the lineup when Xavien Howard and Byron 0:18:24.760 --> 0:18:26.280 Jones are on the outside, and those are the two 0:18:26.320 --> 0:18:29.480 positions you get a chance at and those guys don't 0:18:29.480 --> 0:18:31.760 miss games. They haven't missed games over the last two years, 0:18:31.760 --> 0:18:33.800 and that's what they're gonna play. So Needham had to 0:18:33.840 --> 0:18:36.440 move inside to find some more work and he did that. 0:18:37.400 --> 0:18:41.000 And he's been targeted sixty times. Last year, I should 0:18:41.000 --> 0:18:44.080 say he was targeted sixty times by opposing quarterbacks of 0:18:44.119 --> 0:18:46.639 the pass writing of just nine point six on such throws. 0:18:46.640 --> 0:18:49.680 And this year and even an even larger role, his 0:18:49.800 --> 0:18:52.359 pass writing against us right at nine point eight below 0:18:52.440 --> 0:18:54.879 league average. So it's the type of career arc to 0:18:54.920 --> 0:18:57.480 me that exemplifies what it means to play for the 0:18:57.520 --> 0:19:00.639 Miami Dolphins. And again Tuesday, Josh all Your showed his 0:19:00.640 --> 0:19:04.000 appreciation for what Nick has been able to do in 0:19:04.000 --> 0:19:07.800 his three years, culminating on Sunday with forty five or 0:19:07.800 --> 0:19:11.040 forty four rather of his fifty seven defensive snaps coming 0:19:11.080 --> 0:19:13.919 in the high post, that free safety position where he 0:19:14.000 --> 0:19:16.320 was not targeted a single time in the passing game 0:19:16.600 --> 0:19:21.080 on thirty four coverage snaps. Well, Nick's a hard worker, 0:19:21.880 --> 0:19:25.240 he's very intelligent. Um, you know he's played inside and outside. 0:19:25.560 --> 0:19:30.320 Uh you know, uh from a corner position, which you 0:19:30.359 --> 0:19:32.720 know he's involved in a lot of communication, especially when 0:19:32.720 --> 0:19:36.400 he's on the inside. And um, you know, he's he's 0:19:36.440 --> 0:19:39.640 a strong communicator. He understands where guys fit and where 0:19:39.680 --> 0:19:42.560 they're supposed to be and um, you know, and obviously 0:19:42.600 --> 0:19:44.760 he has a skill set that allows him to do 0:19:44.960 --> 0:19:47.560 multiple things. And you know, he put a lot of 0:19:47.600 --> 0:19:49.840 a lot of time and effort in it into it, 0:19:50.000 --> 0:19:51.720 and you know it was credit to him to be 0:19:51.800 --> 0:19:55.960 able to kind of a smooth transition for him even 0:19:55.960 --> 0:19:58.919 though it was a foreign position. Um. But you know, 0:19:59.200 --> 0:20:04.719 he's just his ability to understand concepts and handle conceptual 0:20:04.840 --> 0:20:08.439 learning at a at a fast and high rate. And 0:20:08.480 --> 0:20:11.600 I would say this is something that he's improved, you know, 0:20:12.080 --> 0:20:14.080 each year that he's been here, and he works very 0:20:14.080 --> 0:20:16.720