Speaker 1: To on the move, Glan Deep Speed Wins Peas Dolls.
Speaker 2: From the Baptist Health Studios inside the Baptist Health Training Complex.
Speaker 3: This is Drivetime with Travis Wingfield.
Speaker 4: He's got my advands in the playoffs.
Speaker 2: What is up, Dolph fans and welcome to the Draft
Speaker 2: Time Podcast. I am your host, Travis Winfield. And on
Speaker 2: today's show, another edition of free agent Interviews. A pair
Speaker 2: of linebackers joined the show today, Anthony Walker Junior Jordan Brooks.
Speaker 2: They are both here, they are both glorious. They are
Speaker 2: both here to knock some heads on the football field.
Speaker 2: Talk to both of those guys. We're also going to
Speaker 2: talk to members of the beat that covered those guys,
Speaker 2: Nathan Zigera in Cleveland and Michael Sean Dugger and Seattle
Speaker 2: plus analysis on their games. A heavy, heavy episode here
Speaker 2: of the Draft Time Podcast from the Baptist Health Studio
Speaker 2: inside the Baptist Hill Trading Complex.
Speaker 5: This is.
Speaker 3: The Drive Time Podcast.
Speaker 2: New Dolphins linebacker kicking it off for us right here,
Speaker 2: Jordan Brooks joining us. Stay on in the podcast. New
Speaker 2: Dolphins linebacker Jordan Brooks. Jordan, welcome in man.
Speaker 6: How you doing I'm doing great, man, I'm excited to
Speaker 6: be here. I haven't been here that long, but you know,
Speaker 6: it's been a good time for as long as I
Speaker 6: being already.
Speaker 2: I heard you kill the Dolphins trivia and the previous
Speaker 2: content thing we do with you. Well, how do you
Speaker 2: know so much Dolphins trivia?
Speaker 7: I just know a lot about football, man.
Speaker 6: I grew up just like watching the NFL Network and
Speaker 6: they would play all the like the old Super Bowl games,
Speaker 6: all the old throwback games. So I kind of learned
Speaker 6: the history of there. And I'll go on YouTube's kids
Speaker 6: just looking up everything. So I think that's where it
Speaker 6: comes from.
Speaker 2: Maybe a fan of our other podcasts or the Fish Tank.
Speaker 2: They do stories from the old players from the old
Speaker 2: Dolphins teams. Sometimes I can up your alley. So you
Speaker 2: make the jump from Seattle to South Florida. You're from Texas,
Speaker 2: You're used to the heat, but I'm also from the
Speaker 2: Northwest and coming down here the climate difference, man, it
Speaker 2: really hit me in the face. But you're getting off
Speaker 2: the plane in March that it was pretty nice this
Speaker 2: time you're downe here, isn't it.
Speaker 7: Oh yeah, it's perfect.
Speaker 6: You know, Like you said, I from Houston, So I'm
Speaker 6: gonna use to this kind of you know, humidity in
Speaker 6: the heat, and so it's familiar to me, but it's
Speaker 6: a lot different than how I was at Seattle.
Speaker 8: Yeah.
Speaker 7: Absolutely.
Speaker 2: So you did something pretty remarkable last year coming off
Speaker 2: of a torn ACL in twenty twenty two and then
Speaker 2: played every game just nine months removed from that injury.
Speaker 2: I'm curious how did you do that and what did
Speaker 2: you learn from that process?
Speaker 7: A lot of people asked me that question. I can
Speaker 7: give you the same answer. It wasn't me, honestly.
Speaker 6: It was got to come back from that injury in
Speaker 6: less than seven months and play a full season with
Speaker 6: no problems at all.
Speaker 7: I have to give credit to God for that one.
Speaker 7: That's my answer to it.
Speaker 2: Honestly, it's really impressive because it used to that injury
Speaker 2: was a lot more significant than just as you said,
Speaker 2: seven months turnaround that it.
Speaker 3: Took you there seven months, that's pretty impressive.
Speaker 2: I remember last year we had alec Ingold here for
Speaker 2: his second year, his first year he was coming off
Speaker 2: in ACL and he had to go through the whole
Speaker 2: off season program, training camp in the Red Penny, and
Speaker 2: then last year chance to ditch the Red Penny of
Speaker 2: the medical Jersey and he was just so thrilled to
Speaker 2: be out there for a full camp.
Speaker 3: Is that kind of the same for.
Speaker 9: You this year?
Speaker 7: Yeah, because I didn't have a full camp.
Speaker 6: I came back like they ended training camp last year,
Speaker 6: and so to have a full camp, you know, getting
Speaker 6: ready for the season, it's definitely gonna be big for me.
Speaker 2: So I know you mentioned you're a big fan of
Speaker 2: football in the league in general. New running may at
Speaker 2: the linebacker position. David Long came in here last year,
Speaker 2: had a great year for us. What do you know
Speaker 2: about his game and how excited you to play with
Speaker 2: David Long.
Speaker 6: I've got a chance to see a couple of games
Speaker 6: and watch him play. I think he's a great linebacker.
Speaker 6: I actually used to think he was in West Virginia,
Speaker 6: so we came from the same conference in the Big Twelve.
Speaker 6: I would see some of his games he was there.
Speaker 6: I think he's always been a fantastic player. So I'm
Speaker 6: excited to get to play with at lead this team.
Speaker 2: Him and Anthony Walker from new linebackers here, We've got
Speaker 2: three new linebackers. The last two years, all you guys
Speaker 2: been playing under a new defensive coordent er coach Anthony Weaver.
Speaker 2: His first year is DC here. Have you had a
Speaker 2: chance to meet coach yet? First impressions? How do you
Speaker 2: think you'll mesh with Anthony Weaver?
Speaker 6: Yeah, I got a chance to talk to him on
Speaker 6: the phone. He surprised me because he had a Houston
Speaker 6: area code, so I was like, all right, I might
Speaker 6: like this, you know. And so you know, I know
Speaker 6: he comes from a great organization with the Ravens. They
Speaker 6: had a lot of success last year. So I'm excited
Speaker 6: to work with him and see what he brings scheme
Speaker 6: wise and coaching wise.
Speaker 2: So I read an article about how you kind of
Speaker 2: took we're taking under the wing of Bobby Wagner up
Speaker 2: in Seattle, the great linebacker there for a long time,
Speaker 2: and when he left to go to the Rams a
Speaker 2: couple of years ago, you took over the defensive signal
Speaker 2: calling right, yes, in Seattle. So I'm curious what you
Speaker 2: learned from that experience and how that kind of helps
Speaker 2: a linebacker when you see the see the field that
Speaker 2: way you call the defense, how that just helps you
Speaker 2: be even more instinctive and play faster.
Speaker 6: I think with the biggest area helped me surprisingly probably
Speaker 6: be endurance. I didn't realize how much in shape you
Speaker 6: had to be called a place and go out there
Speaker 6: and play full speed at the same time. It's a
Speaker 6: lot harder than it looks. But besides that, I think
Speaker 6: it helped the IQ of the game for me personally,
Speaker 6: just knowing what's going on. Because it's a mic linebacker,
Speaker 6: you got to know. You got to know everybody's job.
Speaker 6: You got to know what a piece is fit, if
Speaker 6: we need to make adjustments during the play, you got
Speaker 6: to know those things.
Speaker 7: And I think it forced me to grow as a
Speaker 7: player in my knowledge of the game.
Speaker 2: What does your preparation like to take on that, especially
Speaker 2: for like a new Dolphins defense here, If that's something
Speaker 2: you're asked to do in Miami, I'm curious, what's your
Speaker 2: approach to getting yourself in that position with the defense
Speaker 2: is second nature? Not just for your role, but all
Speaker 2: the guys like you mentioned in front of you and
Speaker 2: behind you, just.
Speaker 6: Really dialing, locking it in, paying attention to meetings, studying,
Speaker 6: creating a good routine of getting ready for that challenge.
Speaker 7: I think all that goes into it.
Speaker 2: So one thing that I've talked about on my podcast
Speaker 2: a lot this offseason is that all the teams that
Speaker 2: were in the conference championships this year seem to have
Speaker 2: those rangy linebackers that can drop into that hook though
Speaker 2: and take away those deep passing wines and play the
Speaker 2: run as well. I see that a lot in your game.
Speaker 2: I'm curious why you think it's so important to have
Speaker 2: so much range, like you have a linebacker position and
Speaker 2: a defense.
Speaker 6: I mean, it's just a league that we're in. Got
Speaker 6: to be able to descend the past, you know, safe
Speaker 6: for instance, we're in some type of company. We we
Speaker 6: got to take over routes and you know the special routes.
Speaker 6: You know, linebacker's got to be able to carry those
Speaker 6: guys come across the ash and then also the next
Speaker 6: play line up and play the run.
Speaker 7: And so I think you have to be versatile.
Speaker 6: And like you said, you know a lot of those
Speaker 6: linebackers that made it deep into the playoffs, that's what
Speaker 6: they were capable of doing it.
Speaker 7: So I think it's important.
Speaker 2: You're looking forward to when Tyreek motions into the three
Speaker 2: and runs that vertical seam on you and you get
Speaker 2: that matchup in training camp.
Speaker 7: Yeah, I'm looking forward looking now.
Speaker 6: Look, I would say this, he is fast without a doubt,
Speaker 6: but I don't think I think people are us made.
Speaker 6: How fast I am? I really really, I really think
Speaker 6: I might be one of the fast guys in the league.
Speaker 7: So hopefully I get to show you guys.
Speaker 2: That's why I asked you stands on tape. Man, it
Speaker 2: really jumps off with tape and you watched the Seahawks
Speaker 2: last couple of years.
Speaker 3: Absolutely kind of funny ending there.
Speaker 2: But let's go ahead and pivot now to our next
Speaker 2: guest on the show, New Dolphins linebacker Anthony Walker Junior
Speaker 2: joining us now. New Dolphins linebacker Anthony Walker Junior, Anthony,
Speaker 2: welcome in.
Speaker 3: How excited you to be here?
Speaker 5: I'm excited, man, I'm thankful for the opportunity, you know,
Speaker 5: happy to be here with you guys, Happy to be
Speaker 5: in Miami, back at home, great opportunity to play, you know,
Speaker 5: for a historic franchise, and you know, obviously in my
Speaker 5: backyard where I grew up.
Speaker 2: So yeah, you mentioned your backyard growing up here. I'm
Speaker 2: just curious that has to be I'm sure one of
Speaker 2: the main reasons you wanted to come play with Miami Dolphins,
Speaker 2: But is there anything else that was kind of behind
Speaker 2: that decision besides the homecoming.
Speaker 8: I think the weather.
Speaker 5: Yeah, since I was seventeen, I've been in the midwest
Speaker 5: Chicago for school and then Indianapolis and then Cleveland. So
Speaker 5: at the chance to get it playing some warm weather
Speaker 5: again and be a be close to home obviously, you know,
Speaker 5: family can't travel all the time, so to be able
Speaker 5: to be closer to them and they can come see
Speaker 5: me play as my career is you know, you know,
Speaker 5: at the end of the day, it's I'm getting up
Speaker 5: there in age and getting up there in years, and
Speaker 5: you know, obviously want to you know, have this opportunity
Speaker 5: with my family.
Speaker 3: Was a little bit of a culture shot going from
Speaker 3: South Florida to northwestern.
Speaker 5: Oh yeah, definitely, you know, definitely got out of my
Speaker 5: comfort zone really quickly. You know, I had some great
Speaker 5: teammates s though, some great friends that I met that
Speaker 5: that really helped that transition. You know, was not ready
Speaker 5: for the snow for the first time when I got there,
Speaker 5: but got used to it. But yeah, it was it
Speaker 5: was a great experience for me.
Speaker 3: That's how you brought Pops into the building. He's pretty
Speaker 3: fired up, imagine.
Speaker 5: Yeah, no doubt obviously, like I said, just being close
Speaker 5: to home, literally growing up five minutes down the road.
Speaker 8: My dad still lives there. He doesn't know, but I'm
Speaker 8: going to move back in with him.
Speaker 3: But laundry done, you got home cook, That's right.
Speaker 5: So but yeah, to have that opportunity, and obviously to
Speaker 5: have him share this moment with me, you know, the
Speaker 5: guy who really put the football in my hand when
Speaker 5: I was you know, two years old, and has been
Speaker 5: with me every stepping away, you know, on his on
Speaker 5: his journey playing football, you know, from every level, every
Speaker 5: you know, grade, everything, just you know, when you have
Speaker 5: that that that influence that your father can bring, you know,
Speaker 5: and I know how rare that is. So for me
Speaker 5: to you know, share this moment with him is really special.
Speaker 3: Very cool, Souff. I'm sure he's very very proud of you.
Speaker 2: Let's go ahead and put me down talk some football here,
Speaker 2: because watching your tape, you're a great run defender.
Speaker 3: You go downhill and smash them guys in the face.
Speaker 2: And I was I was curious because you know, this
Speaker 2: league has kind of gone a little bit more towards
Speaker 2: the passing game in the last you know, decade plus,
Speaker 2: but it seems like maybe transitioning back a little bit
Speaker 2: more the pendulum swings a little bit more towards some
Speaker 2: run game these days. I'm curious from your perspective of
Speaker 2: someone that does, you know, banging those big gaps. How
Speaker 2: important is to be able to stop the run for
Speaker 2: a defense.
Speaker 5: Yeah, when you make a team one dimensional, we always
Speaker 5: talk about that as a defense everywhere I've been. You
Speaker 5: make a team one dimensional and you get the pass
Speaker 5: rush going and you have dbs that can cover it
Speaker 5: makes it it makes it hard on an opposing team,
Speaker 5: you know. So that's always been something that I prided
Speaker 5: myself on, especially being a Mike linebacker. You have to
Speaker 5: be able to really control that and you know, really
Speaker 5: you set the tone for the defense of stopping to
Speaker 5: run and making the team one dimensional.
Speaker 8: So obviously that's what I look for. So, like you said,
Speaker 8: the game is transitioning all over.
Speaker 5: You know, before it was the spread and it was
Speaker 5: you know, option to read option to all the Turrek
Speaker 5: Hill motions, you know. So you know, it's it's great
Speaker 5: to see the game evolve, but as defense, you have
Speaker 5: to evolve with it, and you have to be able
Speaker 5: to be versatile. Like as a linebacker, you know, you
Speaker 5: gotta be able to stop the run. But you also
Speaker 5: got to be able to cover drop zones, cover man
Speaker 5: and man. You know, you got to put yourself in,
Speaker 5: you know, some really uncomfortable positions to be an elite
Speaker 5: linebacker in the NFL. And uh, you know that's a
Speaker 5: challenge that you know, a lot of guys are willing
Speaker 5: to take. That's why the linebacker position is so special.
Speaker 2: It's the only one that you have to go forward, background, sideway. Yeah,
Speaker 2: it's all over the field. I'm sure you'll hear this
Speaker 2: at some point from coach McDaniel. He talks frequently about
Speaker 2: his first year in Washington with RG three and they've
Speaker 2: built this run game around RG three, a zone read
Speaker 2: concept they had never really instituted before previously, and they
Speaker 2: learned that and so off of that, this Dolphins run
Speaker 2: game is so diverse and so complex. And I'm sure
Speaker 2: as a student of the game you've seen that from Afar.
Speaker 2: I'm curious what you think about Miami's run game and
Speaker 2: how that might kind of challenge you come training camp.
Speaker 8: Yeah, a lot of versatility.
Speaker 5: You know, you can line up in two one personnel,
Speaker 5: eleven personnel, ten personnel, but just change the picture for
Speaker 5: the defense.
Speaker 8: You know, they do that really really well. And it's
Speaker 8: not more so just how they run the.
Speaker 5: Ball, is the ways that they attack, the angles that
Speaker 5: they attack, the wy zone, the split zone, the tight zone,
Speaker 5: toss reverse. You know, we have playmakers like the Dolphins half,
Speaker 5: you know, and I'm happy to be on the team
Speaker 5: now because covering it.
Speaker 8: I know when we were preparing for them, it was
Speaker 8: really really tough for the guys.
Speaker 5: So you know, I think they do a good job
Speaker 5: marrying the run in the past, you know, making the
Speaker 5: same run action looks like you know, play action pass
Speaker 5: and then you hit you know, Tyreek Hill over the
Speaker 5: middle it's an adr touchdown. So just how you know,
Speaker 5: again the versatility of the of the offense, but also
Speaker 5: like how it just looks at all looks the same.
Speaker 2: Got to have your eyes right right where guys are going. Yeah,
Speaker 2: So my next question for you was about your linebackers coach.
Speaker 2: And I was going to say, have you met him yet?
Speaker 2: But I just saw you meet him if that was
Speaker 2: just what just happened. But what's your first impressions here
Speaker 2: of coach Parry?
Speaker 5: Just you know, you know, straight nose, you know, hard nose,
Speaker 5: you know, want to set the tempo for the team,
Speaker 5: and I think that's what all linebacker groups, you know,
Speaker 5: try to get accomplished.
Speaker 8: But you know, he could tell he's a tempo setter.
Speaker 5: You know, he's going to give it to you, you know,
Speaker 5: the right way and tell you how to, you know,
Speaker 5: help you become a better player. And that's the first
Speaker 5: impression that I have meet him in person for the
Speaker 5: first time obviously, but you know, he has a really
Speaker 5: nice handshake.
Speaker 3: It's important.
Speaker 2: Uh So, speaking of coaches, back to McDaniel a getting
Speaker 2: here real quick. So he's been very adamant in his
Speaker 2: time here about building the right type of locker room,
Speaker 2: getting the right type of players. I'm curious, from a
Speaker 2: two time captain yourself, why is it so important to
Speaker 2: have a great locker room.
Speaker 5: Yeah, you know, that's the extension on the off the field,
Speaker 5: on the field, that's the extension of the football field
Speaker 5: the locker room. You know, how guys interact with one another,
Speaker 5: the little details of you know, sometimes it's going to dinner,
Speaker 5: you know, just the camaraderie, all that, all that plays
Speaker 5: a huge factor. And these are brothers. You go to
Speaker 5: war with these guys every day training camp, during the season.
Speaker 5: It's a long season. You know, you spend more time
Speaker 5: with those guys you do your own family, so this
Speaker 5: becomes your family, and the closer those relationships are, the
Speaker 5: better it is.
Speaker 8: On the field.
Speaker 5: You know, you have you feel that you know that
Speaker 5: brotherhood that you know, I got my brother's back. And also,
Speaker 5: you know, we you start to you know, I know
Speaker 5: what he's going to do. You know I can cover
Speaker 5: up for him or whatever it is. You know, you
Speaker 5: build that in the locker room.
Speaker 2: Yea, it proves that communication on the field, right, And
Speaker 2: that's kind of a big part of what you've been
Speaker 2: in the past with Cleveland and Indianapolis as a signal caller.
Speaker 2: And Jordan Brooks we hadn't here earlier this week, did
Speaker 2: the same thing in Seattle, and I asked him this
Speaker 2: question and he talked about how that helped him understand
Speaker 2: concepts and defense more. I'm curious same question to you.
Speaker 2: How did being a signal caller help you see the
Speaker 2: game better and play faster?
Speaker 5: Yeah, well, you got to know what everybody's doing if
Speaker 5: you're going a signal call, So I had to pride
Speaker 5: myself on that. Been doing that pretty much is high
Speaker 5: school for real. But obviously when you get to the NFL.
Speaker 5: You know, you're you're a leader of men, So learning
Speaker 5: different techniques, different you know, leadership tactics, you know, for
Speaker 5: different guys.
Speaker 8: You know.
Speaker 5: But like I said, you have to know your job
Speaker 5: inside and out, but you have to know everybody else
Speaker 5: job inside and out as a signal caller.
Speaker 8: And like you said, it helps concepts.
Speaker 5: It helps you know understanding how the office can attack you,
Speaker 5: what you should be on the look out for, communication,
Speaker 5: all that stuff, you know, second and long, their tendency
Speaker 5: to do this. You know, let's all be on the
Speaker 5: same page as be ready to play the same thing.
Speaker 5: And you know, get eleven guys flying to the ball.
Speaker 5: I mean, that's a special site to see.
Speaker 3: It sounds like you're gonna fit in pretty well here.
Speaker 3: These guys love ball, so it's like you love ball.
Speaker 2: One more here for you here. So you're a Pace grad.
Speaker 2: Did you know that there's one other Pace grad to
Speaker 2: play for Miami Dolphins.
Speaker 3: You just antribute to the room.
Speaker 2: I'm gonna do to you here. It's it's you probably
Speaker 2: don't know it. It's it's cave On Webster. He was
Speaker 2: here a couple of years ago. He went to Pace
Speaker 2: as well.
Speaker 8: So yeah, okay, well, okay, okay, the tough question. I
Speaker 8: didn't know you played with Dolphins.
Speaker 5: I know you had a couple of stints with the
Speaker 5: Rams and you know Denver for a while, So yeah,
Speaker 5: I didn't know the Dolphins.
Speaker 2: Yeah, good company. A lot of homecomings down here because
Speaker 2: so many, so much talent in South Florida. Anthony Walker,
Speaker 2: new Dolphins linebacker, appreciate your time today and thank you guys,
Speaker 2: Thank you so much anytime. Really really good stuff there
Speaker 2: from those two guys. Gosh, talk about smarts and intelligence
Speaker 2: and it shows up in the football and stinks as well. Right,
Speaker 2: let's go ahead and take our first break right there.
Speaker 2: Come back on the other side due to analysis and
Speaker 2: welcome in a couple of guests talk about these guys
Speaker 2: in their careers and covering them. That's all next to
Speaker 2: Draftime Podcast, your host Travis Wingfield, brought to you by AutoNation.
Speaker 3: We've done some deep dives on the.
Speaker 2: Tape here a little bit as these signings occurred earlier
Speaker 2: last week.
Speaker 3: The days have kind of run together, guys.
Speaker 2: We did for these interviews on Friday with the players,
Speaker 2: have four more today on Monday. When you heard this show,
Speaker 2: so plenty coming your way here with Dolphins free agent content,
Speaker 2: but I want to just go ahead, and after watching
Speaker 2: a little bit more tape on these guys and talking
Speaker 2: about their game, I'm excited, man. And I had a
Speaker 2: chance to meet coach Joe Berry for the first time
Speaker 2: as well, and the vision at the linebacker position seems
Speaker 2: to kind of jive along with what they did in
Speaker 2: Green Bay with those guys, and really I think that
Speaker 2: that Green Bay influence and understanding what the offense is
Speaker 2: the attack them in practice every day. Matt Lafleur off
Speaker 2: the Kyle Shanahan tree, which is part of what Mike
Speaker 2: McDaniel came from, is this ability to get depth in
Speaker 2: the passing game. And we know that David Long is
Speaker 2: kind of a little bit of everything, but his best
Speaker 2: trade probably his quicks in the running game and diagnosing
Speaker 2: pre snap what he sees and pulling that trigger and
Speaker 2: going and fit in the AB or C gap, making
Speaker 2: a play at or by behind the line of scrimmage.
Speaker 2: And he has those skills as a blitzer as well.
Speaker 2: And there's some coverage ability in that sense too. And
Speaker 2: now I think Miami has options on options when it
Speaker 2: comes to sub packages because Anthony Walker. You know, three
Speaker 2: linebacker packages, strap it up, play downhill, and go make
Speaker 2: some big hits B gap to B gap.
Speaker 3: He is a thumper. He is a Land and Roberts
Speaker 3: in that regard.
Speaker 2: There's also some pass rush in there, probably not as
Speaker 2: much playing backwards in coverage.
Speaker 3: That is part of what he talked about is his
Speaker 3: skill set.
Speaker 2: But I think that when you look at the makeup
Speaker 2: of this linebacker room, I imagine that the depth and
Speaker 2: the just range that Jordan Brooks have that he can
Speaker 2: really kind of expand that middle portion of the defense,
Speaker 2: expand those hook drops and give Long and Walker more
Speaker 2: curl flat responsibility playing kind of wide to the sidelines,
Speaker 2: and give you better tackling on the perimeter in that
Speaker 2: regard as well. So I think the way this all
Speaker 2: comes together, and man going back and watching Jordan Brooks's tape,
Speaker 2: like his ability to get that depth, his ability to
Speaker 2: really understand what he sees and coverage. There's a rap
Speaker 2: against the Cardinals last year where he runs that fifteen
Speaker 2: yard deep hook that we run to Tyreek at about
Speaker 2: eighteen yards because we can because he's the fastest player
Speaker 2: of the National Football League, and he just gets that
Speaker 2: landmark faster than other guys do. The Cardinals ran that
Speaker 2: at fifteen yards and the way that Jordan Brook's able
Speaker 2: to get vertical up the stem on that play and
Speaker 2: then recognize that when he basically is in that passing
Speaker 2: lane that they're trying to replace where he vacated with
Speaker 2: an underneath hook throw and they throw that short hook.
Speaker 2: His ability to recognize that, but also the physical skills
Speaker 2: to change direction and go back downhill and make a
Speaker 2: stop on a a ball carrier running back four or
Speaker 2: five yards down the field. Like that's taking away a
Speaker 2: lot from one player at one position in multiple areas
Speaker 2: of the field. And when you get that, what does
Speaker 2: that mean? What's the ripple effect? It just gives you
Speaker 2: more freedom for Alan Ramsey, for Kendall Fuller, for Javon
Speaker 2: holland all these ballhawks we have in the secondary. I
Speaker 2: think that their job gets so much easier because of
Speaker 2: what you have at linebacker. And then you look at
Speaker 2: the defensive line group, which has been kind of replaced
Speaker 2: in the aggregate, right, they're trying to make these guys
Speaker 2: up for Christian Wilkins's role, with your Jonathan Harris, with
Speaker 2: your Benito Jones, with your Neville Gallimore, and that's what
Speaker 2: they did in Baltimore.
Speaker 3: There was mid round draft picks, low like.
Speaker 2: Tier three four, free agent signings, guys that played above
Speaker 2: their weight because of the system, because of the continuity
Speaker 2: of all those guys together. I think you're seeing the
Speaker 2: way this defense comes together a lot like that Baltimore defense.
Speaker 2: And what is a big staple of that if not physical, bruising,
Speaker 2: tough linebackers that make you earn every single inch. And
Speaker 2: we have that here, plus the multiplicity and versatility to
Speaker 2: help in coverage, to help us blitzers. I'm a big,
Speaker 2: big fan of this remade linebacker room with a great
Speaker 2: linebacker coach and Joe Berry.
Speaker 3: Let's get going, baby.
Speaker 2: Let's go ahead now, and welcome to my next guest
Speaker 2: of the podcast here from the Athletic up in my
Speaker 2: old stomping grounds in the Pacific Northwest from Seattle. Michael
Speaker 2: Sean Dugger joining us here to talk about new Dolphins
Speaker 2: linebacker Jordan Brooks. Joining me today on the podcast from
Speaker 2: the Athletic Michael Sean Dugar. Mike, thank you so much
Speaker 2: for your time today, man, I really appreciate it.
Speaker 9: Thank you for having me.
Speaker 2: So we're here to talk about new Dolphins linebacker ex
Speaker 2: Seahawks linebacker Jordan Brooks. And you've written some great pieces
Speaker 2: and some blurbs on him, and I want to start
Speaker 2: here because I think this happens all the time in
Speaker 2: the National Football League, and the general fan doesn't get
Speaker 2: a chance to see it the way you and I do,
Speaker 2: but the way that guys evolve and as players and
Speaker 2: as people. And we're often watching these young men grow
Speaker 2: up before our own eyes. And one of the features
Speaker 2: you wrote that regard that included Jordan Brooks talked about
Speaker 2: him want to take on a bigger leadership role, being
Speaker 2: more animated on game day. I'm curious how you saw
Speaker 2: in your time in Seattle him evolve as a leader
Speaker 2: and communicator from year one year four.
Speaker 9: Yeah, that's a good question.
Speaker 4: Year one was a pretty difficult time for him. You know,
Speaker 4: it was the COVID years in that twenty twenty class,
Speaker 4: so everything's virtual. You don't really get a chance to
Speaker 4: truly bond with your teammates and your coaches, you know,
Speaker 4: six feet.
Speaker 9: All that stuff, masks and everything. So there was that
Speaker 9: part he was behind Bobby Wagner and kJ Wright. You know,
Speaker 9: these are guys who've been on the program for a decade,
Speaker 9: the Super Bowl, Champs, Pro Bowl, All probe.
Speaker 4: So there's that part he blows his knee, I think,
Speaker 4: you know, early in his rookie year. So rookie year
Speaker 4: was like, I don't know if he's ever said it,
Speaker 4: but I'm sure he was.
Speaker 7: Just a blurb.
Speaker 4: Probably he's trying to do so much it gets hurt.
Speaker 4: He's like in sub packages for a little bit, and
Speaker 4: he's kind of starting kind of.
Speaker 9: So they bench kJ right and moved kJ to to
Speaker 9: like a Sam backer role. It was a very weird year.
Speaker 4: And then twenty twenty one he looked far more settled in.
Speaker 4: You know, I think playing is playing next to Bob.
Speaker 4: It was just those two because they had kJ had
Speaker 4: got cut and he just looked real comfortable playing. Will
Speaker 4: got to use his speed. Seahawks had one of the
Speaker 4: best run defenses in the league. He got to show
Speaker 4: off some of the stuff that made him, you know,
Speaker 4: a first round pick. But he still didn't have to
Speaker 4: be like the guy, you know, because Bobby's there, Bobby's
Speaker 4: All Pro, and you know, Bobby's Bobby in Seattle. But
Speaker 4: then twenty twenty two came and it was like, hey, man,
Speaker 4: they got rid of kJ and Bobby, so that was
Speaker 4: your time. Like, now, now's your time to shine. They
Speaker 4: got a new defensive coordinator. You're playing Mike. Now, you're
Speaker 4: the green dot now.
Speaker 9: It was the first time he had done that in
Speaker 9: Seattle in twenty twenty two.
Speaker 4: The guy next to you, Cody Barton, he ain't really
Speaker 4: played before, you know, so you got to bring him
Speaker 4: along too. It was just so much newness that he
Speaker 4: was kind of in charge of commanding, and it struggled
Speaker 4: a little bit at first, but it really.
Speaker 9: Came around later in the year.
Speaker 4: I would say, probably right before they're buy their Germany game,
Speaker 4: and kind of after that you could see it kind
Speaker 4: of coming together for Jordan getting comfortable calling the plays,
Speaker 4: being to my being the leader, you know, knowing when
Speaker 4: to say, like, hey, just a little nugget or two,
Speaker 4: like in the in the huddle, you know, just time
Speaker 4: and space or a situation, all these little things that
Speaker 4: you just pick up on when you're in year three
Speaker 4: at that point. But then he blows his knee again
Speaker 4: and oh my goodness. But then last year you could tell.
Speaker 9: He was the most comfortable he had he had ever been.
Speaker 9: You know he settled in.
Speaker 4: Bobby was back, but Jordan wasn't you know, this young
Speaker 4: pup following Bobby, you know, and by then he's in
Speaker 4: year four and now he's just.
Speaker 9: Like, you know, I'm mean, you know, I'm that guy.
Speaker 4: I'm fast, I can hit, you know, I can I
Speaker 4: can make plays, and I'm right back at will, which
Speaker 4: I think weekside linebacker is a little bit more his speed,
Speaker 4: no put intended, I guess because he can use his speed.
Speaker 9: Uh there, and yeah, they're being animated part. I think
Speaker 9: that popped up.
Speaker 4: I think in week seven, I guess the Cardinals. I
Speaker 4: want to say it where you could just see he
Speaker 4: just wanted to almost just unleash himself that he can
Speaker 4: make plays.
Speaker 8: You know.
Speaker 9: But he's just a quiet guy.
Speaker 4: I think you guys have already talked to him virtually like, yeah,
Speaker 4: he's or maybe a person I don't know, but he's
Speaker 4: he's a really reserved guy, pretty quiet, but man on
Speaker 4: the field, he's a beast.
Speaker 9: Kind of seeing it. It took a little bit to
Speaker 9: kind of let that out, just ran down kind of
Speaker 9: how that went.
Speaker 4: But yeah, now I think he should be on like
Speaker 4: you're five or something, so he should be you know,
Speaker 4: all the way you know, demonstrative I would imagine in
Speaker 4: Miami once it clicks.
Speaker 3: Yeah, it's funny.
Speaker 5: Man.
Speaker 2: You mentioned that he actually was on the podcast right
Speaker 2: before your spot comes up here on the show, and
Speaker 2: once we got into like the nitty gritty football stuff,
Speaker 2: that was when he began to kind of light up
Speaker 2: and really, you know, give me some some very in depth,
Speaker 2: you know, football type of answers.
Speaker 3: So that's definitely the way to his to his heart.
Speaker 4: There.
Speaker 3: You covered that very thoroughly, Mike. So I have one
Speaker 3: last question for you here. You know, we saw him.
Speaker 2: You mentioned the ACL that he suffered just this, you know,
Speaker 2: two years ago and playing twenty twenty three, only seven
Speaker 2: or eight months off the ACL surgery he had. I'm
Speaker 2: curious about how coaches and teammates described the way he
Speaker 2: attacked that rehab process and what you learn about the
Speaker 2: person in those moments of diversity, right, Like, what did
Speaker 2: you learn about Jordan Brooks when he was coming back
Speaker 2: from all that stuff.
Speaker 9: He's a cyborg man, It's just it's unreal to come.
Speaker 4: So Jordan blew He blew his knee out on January
Speaker 4: New Year's Day, twenty twenty three.
Speaker 9: I want to see. Yeah, And they had another guy,
Speaker 9: Brian Monet, defensive tackle.
Speaker 4: He blew his knee out November or December fifteenth, twenty
Speaker 4: twenty two.
Speaker 9: Monet still hasn't played, and he blew his knee.
Speaker 4: Out like two weeks before Jordan, right, and still he
Speaker 4: had missed the whole year last year and State recently
Speaker 4: got cut. I don't know his status now, but kind
Speaker 4: of puts in perspective how fast Jordan came back. Like
Speaker 4: Jamal Adams blew his quadricep tendon on September like twelfth
Speaker 4: or something like that, twenty twenty two. Jamal missed that
Speaker 4: whole year. That was week one, and then he didn't
Speaker 4: come back till week four of this year. Jordan had
Speaker 4: already been back for a month by then. And you
Speaker 4: know it's not a race necessarily, but I'm putting those
Speaker 4: other timelines in perspective. Why I call him this guy
Speaker 4: cyborg because he blew his knee out. Washington blow his
Speaker 4: knee out, and he just grinded, just grinded, grind and grinded,
Speaker 4: and he spent a lot of time I believe, in
Speaker 4: the Dallas area rehabbing.
Speaker 9: Jamal Adams was with.
Speaker 4: Him for a good part of that because again, they
Speaker 4: both got hurt and were away from the team, and
Speaker 4: they're both Texas guys, so they were training together and
Speaker 4: just kind of hearing them talk about how they lifted
Speaker 4: each other up and how they were like, you know,
Speaker 4: when one of them was having a bad day, the
Speaker 4: other one would peep it and just do whatever it
Speaker 4: took to bring him back to center, and then vice versa.
Speaker 4: And the little competitions they had, you know, running the forties, cutting,
Speaker 4: you know, just trying to just get their knees.
Speaker 9: Back to where they needed to be.
Speaker 4: That was really cool because you know, I don't really
Speaker 4: know Jamal and Jordan both showed up in that COVID
Speaker 4: year twenty twenty, so I didn't really know how like
Speaker 4: tight or not tight they were, And it just sounds
Speaker 4: like they really got a lot more tight last offseason,
Speaker 4: threw a different maybe a different appreciation for each other.
Speaker 4: And then just the other guys who were healthy, you know,
Speaker 4: saw Jordan come back and they're like, Yo, this dude
Speaker 4: is different. Bobby would remind us pretty much unprompted all
Speaker 4: the time. All Right, let's pretty clear here what Jordan
Speaker 4: just did is not normal, he came back, blew his
Speaker 4: knee out, it came back and didn't miss any games
Speaker 4: pretty much. He missed one game, like literally the week
Speaker 4: after he blew his knee, and then didn't miss any
Speaker 4: games after that. You know, it was just pretty remarkable,
Speaker 4: pretty remarkable stuff. You know, even seeing him getting through
Speaker 4: ankle injury towards the end of last year was was
Speaker 4: pretty impressive until it had to pull the plug on it.
Speaker 4: But yeah, that's a tough dude. Teammates saw it.
Speaker 9: You know, we saw it. I've seen it for four years.
Speaker 9: That's a pretty tough cat. It'll probably be the same
Speaker 9: way in Miami.
Speaker 3: Really really good stuff. I appreciate that. That's Sean Michael
Speaker 3: sewn Dugger from the Athletic up in Seattle. Dolphins.
Speaker 2: Got a good one here, Mike, Thank you so much
Speaker 2: for your time today. Man, really appreciate that.
Speaker 9: Thanks for having me, and away he goes.
Speaker 3: Really good stuff there from Michael Sewan.
Speaker 2: Let's go ahead and take our last break right here,
Speaker 2: come back on the other side, and welcome in my
Speaker 2: guest today, my fourth guest, Nathan Zegura. He's the Browns
Speaker 2: color analyst for the radio and does Brown's daily radio
Speaker 2: coverage on Browns dot Com.
Speaker 3: Nathan's coming up next after this Draft Time podcast.
Speaker 2: Your host Travis Wingfield, brought to you by Auto Nation,
Speaker 2: joining me today is the color analyst for the Browns
Speaker 2: Radio and the co host of Brown's Daily Nathan Segura.
Speaker 3: Nathan, thank you for your time.
Speaker 8: Today, man oh Man, my pleasure to be with you.
Speaker 2: Very happy to talk about new Dolphins linebacker ex Brown,
Speaker 2: Anthony Walker, and Nathan. When you type in Anthony Walker
Speaker 2: Captain on Google, you find tons of articles about the
Speaker 2: importance of Walker to that Browns defense, which one of
Speaker 2: the top defense in the NFL last year. For his
Speaker 2: leadership has impact all those intangibles, right, So I'm going
Speaker 2: to ask you if you can to do the impossible
Speaker 2: here and describe an intangible for us, just how important
Speaker 2: was Walker's presence to that defense and to that locker room.
Speaker 1: Very I think in many ways he was kind of
Speaker 1: like the heart and soul and maybe even like the
Speaker 1: conscious of that defensive locker room. Because a Walk, you know,
Speaker 1: three years with the Browns and unfortunately twenty twenty two
Speaker 1: is off to an unbelievable start. Before he got hurt,
Speaker 1: suffered at devastating season ending injury against the Steelers. Was
Speaker 1: able to come back, believe it or not, against the
Speaker 1: Steelers the following year on Monday Night Football. But he
Speaker 1: was he was a glue guy. He was everybody loved
Speaker 1: Ay Walk. Consummate leader, consummate professional, worked hard, great guy.
Speaker 1: You know, it had a He's been a very productive
Speaker 1: player in the league from twenty eighteen to twenty twenty one,
Speaker 1: average over one hundred tackles the season. No injuries have
Speaker 1: been a little bit of a problem the last couple
Speaker 1: of years. But a Walk was the guy that you know,
Speaker 1: everybody kind of looked up to, and he was the
Speaker 1: guy that was really that calming force, that steadying influence.
Speaker 1: You know, thinking about him being next to a guy
Speaker 1: like Jeremiah usu Quorramoa. You know, a Walk along with
Speaker 1: linebacker coach Jason Tarbor, were instrumental in the development of
Speaker 1: j Oka became a pro bowler this past season and
Speaker 1: really one of the best off ball linebackers in the league.
Speaker 1: So great leader. I know when he left Indianapolis, Darius Leonard,
Speaker 1: it couldn't say enough good things about him at that time.
Speaker 1: He went by Darius Leonard, but yeah, just tremendous human.
Speaker 1: He'll throw my guy around. Good to see my guy
Speaker 1: just always island infectious personality. One of honestly my favorite guys.
Speaker 1: Whenever I need to do an interview with him, it
Speaker 1: was always a joy. Yeah, I love ay. You guys
Speaker 1: got a very very good one there.
Speaker 3: We love to hear it.
Speaker 2: You mentioned the impact he had on j Ok Jeremiah
Speaker 2: Husa Korromoa, and that was common. Next question for you
Speaker 2: is about the impact on younger guys, because those veterans
Speaker 2: that have that stabling, you know, persona can really the
Speaker 2: stabilizing persona can be so impactful for a young team
Speaker 2: especially and the Dolphins, you know, they're not necessarily a
Speaker 2: young team, but there are young players on this team.
Speaker 2: Just curious about his impact on younger players. We can
Speaker 2: go a little bit further into that.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I just think that he is one of those
Speaker 1: guys that leads by example. I mean, obviously he's not
Speaker 1: afraid to be a vocal leader either, but he just
Speaker 1: shows them how to be a consummate professional and what
Speaker 1: is important, how to maintain your body, how to approach meetings,
Speaker 1: the right questions to ask, getting everybody lined up on
Speaker 1: the field as the mic linebacker. He did that so
Speaker 1: effectively for the Cleveland Browns. So he is he's a
Speaker 1: guy that you know, they can come to and he
Speaker 1: will give them counsel, the guy that they can socialize with,
Speaker 1: and he will kind of just help them navigate what
Speaker 1: it's like all of a sudden, you know, being in
Speaker 1: the league, being a millionaire in your young twenties. And
Speaker 1: then also just the way that he approaches his body,
Speaker 1: his preparation, his work ethic, all of that is. You know,
Speaker 1: those are the things that when you see it and
Speaker 1: you say, Okay, a Walk's doing this, He's had this success.
Speaker 8: That's how I want to be.
Speaker 2: I'm not usually going to ask questions in these little
Speaker 2: additional interviews I do on the podcast six we have
Speaker 2: the guy on an analysis portion, but since I have
Speaker 2: a radio color analyst, I just want to ask you
Speaker 2: about the football. The All twenty two version of Anthony
Speaker 2: Walker when he straps it on, what do you get
Speaker 2: in the middle linebacker position.
Speaker 1: Yeah, he's got he certainly as I said, you know,
Speaker 1: he had three one hundred tackle seasons, so he's a
Speaker 1: good tackler, very good against the run. In our time
Speaker 1: with the Browns certainly improved in his coverage drops. He
Speaker 1: can blitz very effectively if you need him in that,
Speaker 1: he can make a lot of plays behind the line
Speaker 1: of scrimmage. He's very good with his run fits. And again,
Speaker 1: you know last year, coming off that injury, I think
Speaker 1: it took him a little while to maybe get back
Speaker 1: the full speed. Now well over you're removed from that,
Speaker 1: I think that you're going to get the better two
Speaker 1: years almost you'll get the best version of Anthony Walker
Speaker 1: because he is a guy great body, can run sideline
Speaker 1: the sideline. But yeah, he is that consummate Mike linebacker.
Speaker 1: Not necessarily a thumper because he's not a huge guy,
Speaker 1: but he is very good at a sure tackler. And
Speaker 1: like I said, it very much improved in Calverton. If
Speaker 1: they want to dial up blitzz with of Anthony Weaver,
Speaker 1: does another former brown coach if he wants to dial
Speaker 1: up some blitzes with a maywalk and do that as well.
Speaker 2: Certainly part of the DNA of that former Ravens defense.
Speaker 2: He was a part of their under Anthony Weaver. And
Speaker 2: of course, like you mentioned there with Anthony Walker, one
Speaker 2: more question for you here because this is kind of
Speaker 2: a theme I've noticed with Dolphins acquisitions. We have the
Speaker 2: media Good Guy Award that we hand out every single year,
Speaker 2: and I recently spoke to a Falcons reporter about John
Speaker 2: ou Smith and he said that John, who was right
Speaker 2: in the running for Man of the Year this year,
Speaker 2: the good Guy of the Year this year, and we
Speaker 2: had the most players get votes for that award this
Speaker 2: year than any other year in the history of that award.
Speaker 2: I'm curious about Anthony Walker's dealing with the media, his
Speaker 2: good guy persona, if you will, if you could touch
Speaker 2: on that for us.
Speaker 1: Yeah, no doubt. He is tremendous with the media. Like
Speaker 1: I said, every time you interview him, it will be
Speaker 1: an absolute pleasure. You know, He's one of the guys
Speaker 1: that is Walter Payton Man of the Year type of
Speaker 1: a guy, you know. So yeah, great guy certainly was
Speaker 1: as I said, and we would go to him a
Speaker 1: lot because he was always willing to talk and always
Speaker 1: gave good insights and it was a great interview. So yeah,
Speaker 1: he will be a joy for you guys. You guys
Speaker 1: got like I said, you got a great one. One
Speaker 1: of my absolute favorite guys that we've had with the
Speaker 1: Cleveland Browns. So he uh, and he knows that that locker,
Speaker 1: that linebacker room with with he and Sioni Taki. Taki
Speaker 1: is now in New England. You know we had a
Speaker 1: j Okay, we had a lot of special guys in
Speaker 1: that room, and a Walk is you know, certainly right
Speaker 1: at the top of the list.
Speaker 2: When I reached out to your producer Jason Gibbs, I
Speaker 2: could I could feel him lighting up for an email
Speaker 2: about talking about Anthony Walker.
Speaker 7: Yeah, yeah, that was he.
Speaker 1: That's why it's like for a walk Yeah, that's easy. Yeah,
Speaker 1: one where you have to even try to pretend anything.
Speaker 5: He is.
Speaker 1: He's the real deal, great player, great guy, and uh,
Speaker 1: definitely he'll be an asset to your organization. And Mike
Speaker 1: McDaniel and Anthony Weaver, they are smart men in their
Speaker 1: own right.
Speaker 2: They know that we got the exact same vibe from
Speaker 2: him in the studio when you heard the podcasting interview
Speaker 2: about ten minutes ago earlier on this show, Brown's Color
Speaker 2: Analyst on the Radio, also Brown's Daily nathan' zegera, Nathan,
Speaker 2: thank you so much for your time today and enjoy
Speaker 2: the rest of your freegency frenzy.
Speaker 3: It's it's getting crazy and crazy over here.
Speaker 8: My man, No doubt you too. Man, Thanks for having
Speaker 8: me on Appreach.
Speaker 3: It and away he goes.
Speaker 2: Really good stuff on this podcast. Got to know these
Speaker 2: two linebackers really well. I think the Dolphins fans are
Speaker 2: going to be excited about what these two guys can do,
Speaker 2: both from a presence standpoint in the locker room and
Speaker 2: how they just make things around them better, but also
Speaker 2: their production on the defensive side of the football. Been
Speaker 2: a pretty fun free agency class so far, right, remember
Speaker 2: the rule, don't freak out After the first couple of days,
Speaker 2: the Dolphins got busy late into the I guess the
Speaker 2: legal tampering period with the new league year was when
Speaker 2: things really kicked off for the mimy Dolphins. So just
Speaker 2: some patience, that's all we ask around here. All right,
Speaker 2: good stuff there. We're going to keep doing these podcasts
Speaker 2: the next couple of weeks here, I believe Wednesday, the
Speaker 2: plans for the two Buffalo Bills X Buffalo Bills I
Speaker 2: should say, Saran Neil and Jordan Poyer with Sal Capaccio
Speaker 2: playing sidelin reporter for us on that one. You don't
Speaker 2: want to miss that podcast. I've had fun chats with
Speaker 2: all these guys. Man, you guys are gonna You're in
Speaker 2: for a treat here. These guys are the same theme continues,
Speaker 2: really good people, really good football players. Makes for fun podcast.
Speaker 2: In the meantime, you all please be sure to subscribe, rate,
Speaker 2: review the show, all that fun stuff. Go ahead and
Speaker 2: follow me on social at Wingfield NFL and the team
Speaker 2: at Mimmy Dolphins.
Speaker 3: Check out the fish Tank podcast with Seth and Jews.
Speaker 2: Check out the team YouTube channel for the video version
Speaker 2: of these chats with these players. The podcast, of course
Speaker 2: extended versions of those interviews and more analysis and hearing
Speaker 2: from the opposing beat writers that covered these guys. But
Speaker 2: on YouTube you can check out my chat they're in full.
Speaker 2: In addition to the media availabilities, Dolphins a Day and
Speaker 2: so much more and last button, not least Miami Dolphins
Speaker 2: dot com. Until next time, fins Up Caroline Cameron Daddy
Speaker 2: going on