Speaker 1: Practice, Patrick throwing Parker touchdowner. What a win for this
Speaker 1: Miami Dolphin team. Wow ah right, Miami Indeed, and free
Speaker 1: agency is off to a rocking start as your Miami
Speaker 1: Dolphins have been busy bolstering the roster with quality signings,
Speaker 1: freak athletes, intelligent, instinctive scheme fits, and we've been doing
Speaker 1: it with clever cat management that keeps this roster in
Speaker 1: terrific financial shape going forward. What's up, Dolphins, Travis wingfold
Speaker 1: with you here for a special series of the Drive
Speaker 1: Time Podcast, part of the official podcast network of your
Speaker 1: Miami Dolphins. We aren't making these shows with specific dates,
Speaker 1: but we are rolling out a new episode per player signing,
Speaker 1: and we'll start with the details of the player's career,
Speaker 1: taking a look at their counting stats, advanced metrics, film study,
Speaker 1: character testimonies, and a whole lot more. All of that
Speaker 1: before we hear from the newest Miami Dolphins and exclusive
Speaker 1: interviews with the Drivetime Podcast. So without any further ado,
Speaker 1: let's get in to the free agency series here on
Speaker 1: the Drivetime Podcastphins and on a future edition of the
Speaker 1: Drivetime Podcast. We're gonna get into the cumulative approach of
Speaker 1: the Dolphins this offseason, this free agency period, the impact
Speaker 1: these signings have had on the draft, their capt position,
Speaker 1: and financial commitments. All of that on a future episode
Speaker 1: sometime probably next week, but for now, we're talking about
Speaker 1: the individual parts, the major additions the Dolphins made to
Speaker 1: the roster over the last course of a couple of days.
Speaker 1: And Jordan Howard is up today. He agreed to a
Speaker 1: two year contract with the Miami Dolphins after making stops
Speaker 1: in Chicago and Philadelphia in his career, and he comes
Speaker 1: into the league as a fifth round pick back in
Speaker 1: and he exploded onto the scene with a one thousand,
Speaker 1: three d thirteen yards season en route to a probe
Speaker 1: selection and the rookie year. Following up his dominant rookie season,
Speaker 1: he posted his second consecutive thousand yards season with even
Speaker 1: undred and twenty two rushing yards that year. Howard combined
Speaker 1: for fifteen rushing touchdowns between the two seasons, and since
Speaker 1: two thousand six team when he came into the league,
Speaker 1: Howard has the third most rushing yards and seventh most
Speaker 1: touchdowns on the ground. That stat provided by ESPN S
Speaker 1: Cameron Wolf, and Howard's consistent touchdown production makes him one
Speaker 1: of just five players to rush for at least six
Speaker 1: scores in each of the past four seasons. His climb
Speaker 1: from humble football beginnings makes his career production even more impressive. Originally,
Speaker 1: he was at U A B the University of Alabama Birmingham,
Speaker 1: but they shut their program down after season, so Howard
Speaker 1: transferred to Indiana, and scouts were quite fond of Howard's
Speaker 1: game coming out of college, both at Indiana and at
Speaker 1: U A B. This from NFL dot COM's Lance zerline
Speaker 1: quote showed the ability to step his game up against
Speaker 1: top competition at both U A B and Indiana rush
Speaker 1: for at least one hundred and forty five yards and
Speaker 1: every full game that he played. Natural runner who combines
Speaker 1: tempo with a special feel for spatial relationships. Pro ready
Speaker 1: vision gives him outstanding field for run lane developments at
Speaker 1: the line of scrimmage and onto the second level. Consistently
Speaker 1: chooses best angles, increases for optimal yardage for a big back.
Speaker 1: Can make himself skinny through tight quarters, decisive and punishing
Speaker 1: drops pads, and accelerates into contact of better would be
Speaker 1: tacklers on the second and third levels. Drives legs through
Speaker 1: arm tackles, and goes about his work hard, charging when
Speaker 1: it's third or fourth and short, showed potential in the
Speaker 1: screen game as a receiver, and even better praise came
Speaker 1: from an anonymous a f C running backs coach at
Speaker 1: the time in the same report, quote, He's the best
Speaker 1: pier running back in the draft. I've coached some good ones,
Speaker 1: and he's what you look for. End quote. And Howard
Speaker 1: goes and even six ft tall, two hundred and thirty pounds.
Speaker 1: He posted thirty four inches on his vertical jump and
Speaker 1: one two inches on the broad jump back at the
Speaker 1: scouting combine, and indeed, his best forty time was at
Speaker 1: his pro day at Indiana, he ran a four point
Speaker 1: five nine forty yard dash. And his targets in the
Speaker 1: passing game have decreased every year since his rookie season.
Speaker 1: In the last three years, however, he's caught a total
Speaker 1: of seventy three point six percent of his targets for
Speaker 1: an average of seven point eight eight yards per catch,
Speaker 1: and moving the change has been his calling card since
Speaker 1: he got to the league. In addition to thirty rushing touchdowns,
Speaker 1: he's rushed for two hundred and twenty one career first
Speaker 1: downs between twenty eighteen, Howard ranked third, third, and ninth
Speaker 1: in the NFL in rushing first downs. He moves the
Speaker 1: chains and a step further, one of the more critical
Speaker 1: elements of playing running back. Howard's short yardage conversion rate
Speaker 1: is absolutely superb. On fifty career carries on third or
Speaker 1: fourth and short three yards or less, Howard has converted
Speaker 1: thirty seven of those fifty carries into first downs. That's
Speaker 1: a seventy four percent conversion rate. Howard has two thousand,
Speaker 1: one hundred and fifty six snapps on his NFL resume.
Speaker 1: That's an average of five thirty nine per year. His
Speaker 1: pass blocking grades, courtesy of Pro Football Focus, have consistently
Speaker 1: measured near the top of his position. His lowest grade
Speaker 1: as a pass blocker is a tie between the twenty
Speaker 1: nineteen and twenty seventeen seasons, and that was seventy five
Speaker 1: point six, and that grade is in the green category,
Speaker 1: which is above average. On P five, his eighty six
Speaker 1: point three pass blocking grade on ninety two reps in
Speaker 1: eighteen was the best in the NFL among all backs
Speaker 1: that had thirty two pass blocking reps or two reps
Speaker 1: per game. On two hundred and fifty five career pass
Speaker 1: blocking reps, Howard has allowed nine quarterback pressures and seven
Speaker 1: of those were hurries, so only two times the quarterback
Speaker 1: got hit by Jordan Howard's man On two hundred and
Speaker 1: fifty five pass blocking reps. Howard has made a habit
Speaker 1: out of creating yardage after initial contact. His career marks hours,
Speaker 1: follows and yards after contact on average last year two
Speaker 1: point nine three after initial contact two point seven four
Speaker 1: to five two and twenty seventeen, and his rookie year
Speaker 1: the career high at two point nine eight. And despite
Speaker 1: earning a Pro Bowl nod his rookie season, Howard hasn't
Speaker 1: even more impressive accolade attached to his name. For that
Speaker 1: Steen season, Howard was named the Bears Brian Piccolo Award
Speaker 1: winner along with teammate Josh Bellamy. The Piccolo Awards are
Speaker 1: voted on annually by Bears players and given to the
Speaker 1: teammates who show great dedication, loyalty, teamwork, and a commitment
Speaker 1: to excellence and a sense of humor. Howard's former offensive
Speaker 1: coordinator and former Dolphins offensive coordinator Dal Loggins raved about
Speaker 1: Jordan Howard's character quote he displays what humility looks like
Speaker 1: he had a great year and went to the Pro Bowl,
Speaker 1: but he's the same kid every day. The success to
Speaker 1: this point has not changed him. We expect that to
Speaker 1: be the same way this year. End quote. Let's go
Speaker 1: ahead now and get to our interview with new Dolphins
Speaker 1: running back Jordan Howard. And joining me now on this
Speaker 1: edition of the Drive Time podcast, part of the official
Speaker 1: Miami Dolphins podcast network, is new running back Jordan Howard. Jordan,
Speaker 1: thanks for doing this, man, thank you for having Yeah,
Speaker 1: it's no problem. And now you've got a new deal,
Speaker 1: a new team. How are you feeling about everything heading
Speaker 1: into your your new contract here with the Dolphins. I'm
Speaker 1: pretty great, excited they took a chance on me. Just
Speaker 1: glad on part of the team. Absolutely. And I gotta
Speaker 1: ask you, Jordan, You've got some free agent suitors out there.
Speaker 1: I think you were the first back to come off
Speaker 1: the board, so to speak. Why would you choose Miami? Um,
Speaker 1: it just feel like the best fair for me, the
Speaker 1: best self for the next the best place for the
Speaker 1: next step of my career. I want to get back
Speaker 1: on track, and it's a place, Uh there's another time
Speaker 1: of team. I want to help be a part of that.
Speaker 1: And obviously you haven't had a chance to come to
Speaker 1: Miami yet because of the you know, travel bands and
Speaker 1: all the restrictions currently going on in our world. But
Speaker 1: I was curious to get your sense, at least in
Speaker 1: phone conversations and otherwise, what's your sense of the culture
Speaker 1: the Dolphins have built here and what you're stepping into
Speaker 1: with the Dolphins. Um. Just for some of the people
Speaker 1: I talked today say he's great, They love it, in
Speaker 1: love with h the program that coach Florida is building
Speaker 1: and stuff like that. So they said it's gonna be
Speaker 1: a great it's gonna be a great time with enjoy it.
Speaker 1: But I feel like it's just an uppaving team or
Speaker 1: work hard, but we're gonna have to fund at same time.
Speaker 1: And one of the most respected coaches on the Dolphin
Speaker 1: staff is your running backs coach Eric Studsville, And I'm
Speaker 1: curious to get your take if you've if you've had
Speaker 1: a conversation with him, and what your initial impressions is
Speaker 1: of Coach Studsville. No, I haven't had uh a chance
Speaker 1: to talk to him. Yeah, but other people have told
Speaker 1: me great things about him. Um, So they said, I'm
Speaker 1: gonna get a lot with him. Great, he's gonna he's
Speaker 1: gonna plash me, but that's gonna have fun. He's just
Speaker 1: a great coach all around. And one of the things
Speaker 1: that makes him a great coach is his ability to
Speaker 1: adapt to his players and also to get the most
Speaker 1: out of versatile players. And I think that's one of
Speaker 1: the things that you bring to Miami more than anything
Speaker 1: Jordan's is that versatility. Can you talk about your ability
Speaker 1: whether it's zone scheme or man scheme and just how
Speaker 1: you're able to adapt to the different schemes throwing about
Speaker 1: you throughout your career. Hum. Yeah, coming to the NFL,
Speaker 1: I was mostly like out sides one when I first
Speaker 1: got into the league and stuff like that, but then
Speaker 1: third year changed up a little bit more inside zone.
Speaker 1: But I just feel like, you gotta be versatile. You
Speaker 1: gotta be uh right, whatever the coaches want to roll
Speaker 1: wherever since they bring in you gotta baby to make
Speaker 1: yourself fit into it. Jordan, You've been one of the
Speaker 1: most productive backs since you came into the league back
Speaker 1: in sixteen, and it seems to me like the vision
Speaker 1: in your game is the best aspect of your game.
Speaker 1: And for those that have never played football, or tailback especially,
Speaker 1: how are you able to kind of slow things down
Speaker 1: and process the game that quickly to make those big runs. Um,
Speaker 1: it's definitely something you gotta you gotta work on and
Speaker 1: stuff like that. Even when I got to feel the
Speaker 1: deaf you, um running back coach, he has just slowed
Speaker 1: me down like some of the rogers who said, I
Speaker 1: need to be more patient because if I was going
Speaker 1: to fans, I was gonna miss up to I don't
Speaker 1: ba to see it. So m he worked on when
Speaker 1: we just slowing down to be more patient. But patients
Speaker 1: definitely a part of it, because if you go to fans,
Speaker 1: you want to be to make a coop or your MYSTICU.
Speaker 1: You wanta be to see it because you gotta let
Speaker 1: things develop. Sometimes want to stay in that lane regarding
Speaker 1: your production and go towards your past protection production. According
Speaker 1: to Pro Football Focus, you have two hundred and fifty
Speaker 1: five career pass blocking reps and just nine of those
Speaker 1: times your man got pressure on the quarterback and seven
Speaker 1: of those nine those nine pressures were hurries. So your
Speaker 1: quarterback only ever got hit twice and you hit the
Speaker 1: ground running and pass pro as a rookie, what is
Speaker 1: it about your game or maybe it's more about your
Speaker 1: will that allows you to excel in this very critical
Speaker 1: area of playing running back. Um, coming to the NFL,
Speaker 1: I feel like there's one of the toughest things for
Speaker 1: running back to learn. Just pass focus. They thought so
Speaker 1: much thinking you have so much responsibility and if you
Speaker 1: want to get on the field, you got to take
Speaker 1: the quarterback. So I might definitely take pride in that.
Speaker 1: And also just like enjoying, Like when somebody tries to
Speaker 1: come through and hit the quarterback, I love like just
Speaker 1: stopping him in their place and just keep him up
Speaker 1: the quarterback. And on that same train of thought, when
Speaker 1: you get into the second and third level, man, it's
Speaker 1: it's fun to watch. There's some semblance of the water
Speaker 1: Boy and those rounds because you're out there punishing dudes.
Speaker 1: Is that just a running backs dream, running free beyond
Speaker 1: the first level? Oh yeah, definitely. Uh. Once you get there,
Speaker 1: you gotta be you got a quick thing because it's
Speaker 1: gonna come at your fast, so you gotta be ready
Speaker 1: and stuff like that. So um, but it's definitely a dream.
Speaker 1: Once you get onto get pass out of big guys
Speaker 1: and stuff. You get to the smaller guys, you know
Speaker 1: you have a better chance of running through them or
Speaker 1: maybe running away from them or whatever your whatever the
Speaker 1: game is, Jordan, I want to go back to your
Speaker 1: college days, back both at Indiana and you A B.
Speaker 1: I'm curious to get your feelings about what it was
Speaker 1: like to find out that the U a B program
Speaker 1: shut down, because that, to me, has got to be
Speaker 1: the hardest thing for an athlete. And how do your
Speaker 1: kind of search went into finding your next stop there
Speaker 1: in college. I was definitely tough. Uh. We definitely not
Speaker 1: expecting that when I told you go to the school there,
Speaker 1: but it was just another bubble of my path that
Speaker 1: they had to deal with. It was definitely heartbreaking the time,
Speaker 1: but used as a blessing disguise. Got to go to
Speaker 1: a bigger program. We got to play on the biggest
Speaker 1: stage and um, so that I could play on a
Speaker 1: bigger level song Um, I feel like it worked out
Speaker 1: for the best. Every single game you played, you finished
Speaker 1: with that you played the entire game, you finished with
Speaker 1: more than a hundred and forty five yards. So production
Speaker 1: has been kind of your the name of your game
Speaker 1: throughout the course of your career. And I want to
Speaker 1: talk about your short yardage production, because I had a
Speaker 1: chance to go back and look at some of your splits.
Speaker 1: Fifty carries in your NFL career on third and fourth
Speaker 1: and short, and you converted thirty seven of those into
Speaker 1: first down, so a percentage of seventy four conversion on
Speaker 1: short yardage. What's the mindset of a running back, of
Speaker 1: a good short yarde running back, I should say on
Speaker 1: the mas Uh, they know you're gonna run the ball,
Speaker 1: they know you're getting the ball. They just gotta stop you.
Speaker 1: But you can't let them stop. You gotta keep your
Speaker 1: legs moving. And um, you gotta know how far you
Speaker 1: gotta go, so you gotta keep getting man. But really
Speaker 1: just start a fight and just keep your legs moving.
Speaker 1: Don't stop into you get it and stay low. And Jordan,
Speaker 1: last year with the Philadelphia Eagles and you played the
Speaker 1: game in Miami, what were some of the challenges you
Speaker 1: had and preparing for the Dolphins defense upfront? Um, I
Speaker 1: was actually heard in the game, so I didn't get
Speaker 1: that play for practice of week. Okay, my apologies for that. Well,
Speaker 1: on the other side of the ball, you'll be sharing
Speaker 1: the backfield now with Ryan Fitzpatrick. The Dolphins quarterback. What
Speaker 1: is the Jordan Howard scouting report on fits magic? Um,
Speaker 1: he just makes stuff happens. That's that's what I see.
Speaker 1: He makes things happen like every time he's counting out
Speaker 1: every year. Um, his team might be carting alas, makes
Speaker 1: the plays the division a lot of times more times
Speaker 1: than not, and fits through a couple of kind of
Speaker 1: coming onto the scene receivers last year in Devonte Parker
Speaker 1: and Preston Williams and then Mike A Sicki at tight end.
Speaker 1: And those guys have a really extensive basketball background, and
Speaker 1: that's become kind of the theme here on the Drivetime
Speaker 1: podcast talking to the the new Dolphins free agents. Here
Speaker 1: is your basketball background? Are you a hooper? And can
Speaker 1: you throw down pretty impressively? Um? No, I'm not a
Speaker 1: hooper that cannot throw it impressively. What's what's the what's
Speaker 1: the other sport you might play if it wasn't for football? Um?
Speaker 1: Football of you on the sport got you? That's that's
Speaker 1: a fair answer. I guess you found your right career path.
Speaker 1: And just to kind of sum this thing up here
Speaker 1: for your Jourdan'll let you go here. What are the
Speaker 1: Dolphins ultimately getting the full package here with Jordan Howard.
Speaker 1: I was gonna get a guy who come to work
Speaker 1: every day. Uh, I'm gonna do it, do its best
Speaker 1: to have the team and where he came with whatever
Speaker 1: type of role. Just a hard guy. Still, I feel
Speaker 1: like I still have not to prove. Still, I think
Speaker 1: with the tip of my shoulder every single game, this
Speaker 1: is what I'm kind of working. Just gonna be a
Speaker 1: great guy in the in the locker room and and
Speaker 1: outside in the community. And as far as going outside
Speaker 1: the community and kind of some of your leisure time.
Speaker 1: What are you looking forward to most about being a
Speaker 1: South Florida resident. Um? Good good weather year round. That's
Speaker 1: definitely something I'm looking forward to. Good weather year around. Um,
Speaker 1: but just the good vibes. I'm definitely how to get
Speaker 1: used to the heat, but I feel like they were
Speaker 1: to be a problem, be advanta when playing her teams.
Speaker 1: Using that heat to your advantage, especially in the power
Speaker 1: running game. Yes, definitely fast. Absolutely, guys can wear it
Speaker 1: down pretty quickly that second half of games when he
Speaker 1: got someone like Jordan Howard coming out them. Jordan's congratulations
Speaker 1: on the new contract, Best of luck this year, Stay healthy,
Speaker 1: and welcome to Miami. And there he goes, the newest
Speaker 1: running back added to this Miami backfield to give a
Speaker 1: boost to the running game, and really one of the
Speaker 1: more fun backs to watch on tape when you watch
Speaker 1: the way he sets up his blocks and gets skinny
Speaker 1: through those creases and then explodes into the second and
Speaker 1: third level. You heard him talk about how much he
Speaker 1: enjoys really dishing out punishment on those defensive backs once
Speaker 1: he does get into that level. And this is a
Speaker 1: guy that hits big runs pretty routinely. Ten plus yard
Speaker 1: runs are a regular thing just about every single game,
Speaker 1: whether it was with the Eagles or the Bears previously
Speaker 1: in his career, and that's always who he was back
Speaker 1: in college as well, both at U A B and Indiana.
Speaker 1: You heard our scouting report on Jordan Howard from Lanzer
Speaker 1: Line and scouts anonymously or coaches the coach run the
Speaker 1: league said that Jordan Howard might have been the best
Speaker 1: pure running back in that entire class. And again, that
Speaker 1: was the year that Zeke Elliott went number four overall,
Speaker 1: So Jordan Howard comes in with high praise on top
Speaker 1: of guys they got drafted in the top five of
Speaker 1: that draft. So he comes to Miami with plenty of production,
Speaker 1: which really in my mind validates that scouting report that
Speaker 1: he might have been the best pure runner in that
Speaker 1: draft class. So he brings great production. You heard him
Speaker 1: talk about the culture that he wants to fit into
Speaker 1: in Miami and improve the locker room and prove the
Speaker 1: work in the community. Just a good guy all around,
Speaker 1: and he's gonna be a good addition for your Miami Dolphins.
Speaker 1: All right, that's gonna close it up for this podcast.
Speaker 1: We'll have more of a cumulative approach on a podcast
Speaker 1: sometime next week, but we're gonna talk to all the
Speaker 1: Dolphins free agent signings that occurred over the last couple
Speaker 1: of days here on the Drivetime Podcast. But as for today,
Speaker 1: that's gonna be my time to make sure you don't
Speaker 1: miss any of these new podcast dropping pretty much multiple
Speaker 1: podcast a day or every single day, and we're gonna
Speaker 1: do it through the weekend too, So keep your eye
Speaker 1: out for new additions of the Drivetime Podcast to ensure
Speaker 1: you don't us them. Go ahead and hit subscribe on Apple,
Speaker 1: Google Play, Spotify, wherever you get your podcast from. Leave
Speaker 1: us a rating, leave us a review, Give me a
Speaker 1: follow on Twitter. It's at Wingfield, NFL. Check out the
Speaker 1: Dolphins timeline at Miami Dolphins and of course the Fish
Speaker 1: Tank and audible podcasts and Miami Dolphins dot com for
Speaker 1: all your Miami Dolphins content. Until next time, fins up
Speaker 1: ends up