Coach Mike McDaniel meets with the media | Miami Dolphins

Coach Mike McDaniel meets with the media | Miami Dolphins

I mean, I think uh all all questions are fun. So, um absolutely. There’s a uh I graduated high school in 2001. I was a sophomore in high school when um his first album came out and uh yeah, the who doesn’t know the eight mile anthem, you know? Um so, uh I actually reference um I call it an eight mile is when you uh you know do this battle rap thing where you just say all the things that people know to be true and then what? So yeah, it’s a I I really wish you’d bring them to practice. It would be cool. So um as their dayto day um you know uh you’ll see Wadd for sure. you’re going to see Tyreek out there. We’re just um very much monitor monitoring him so that uh we can protect him against himself uh joint practice stuff based upon um you know pass. So um you’ll see both of them out there today. Um and we’re uh monitoring how much reps uh Reek gets if if at all. We’ll see with the medical team. Um, he won’t be dressed today. So, well, he he’s a great player. Um, and, you know, I think the biggest thing that I’m trying to impress on um, you know, our team and and uh, Patrick’s a great example, but um, the offensive line in general is that I’m much concerned about ourselves um and how we play our game and then apply it to you know whatever player is across from us. I prefer um in practice to have the cream of the crop to go against um to sharpen our sword for the regular season. You know, I think we get that today um with Hutch. So, uh that’s that’s exciting. good football um practice where where guys are focused on getting better um while challenging each other to uh improve themselves and their team. Um yeah, I I absolutely love um what Detroit has uh has done the last couple years, you know. Um, I know they’re keeping the same system. Um, the the stuff that uh uh Ben Johnson put in, I think they’re um they’re uh really well equip equipped to take a step even forward um just based upon the players they have, the system, the coaches that I know they have um that are improving upon what has already been really really good. So, I think it’s a tremendous challenge. They um they they give you both sound Um, you know, they give you some, uh, offsets and then they, uh, you know, Jared Goff just does such a great job of, uh, operating the offense while, um, being, uh, such a threat as as a distributor, decision maker, and he’s very smart, too. So, he’s he’s uh, dissecting defenses and changing what plays there are. Um, all sorts of So, uh, led by, um, you know, a franchise quarterback, uh, an offense that knows what they’re doing, that’s trying to find ways to improve. I think that’s an exciting thing for, you know, if I was a Lions fan, I’d be excited about that. I’m excited today for the challenge for our defense, for sure. I’m very much focused and I talked to the team a bunch about this. I’m very much focused on using practice to get better to be best served in games. And I don’t like I I like to use practice. I don’t want practice to use you. Um and I I get very impatient when things keep from us or keep everybody from um the next rep or an opportunity for, you know, a guy going against an opponent in a joint practice. Um you know, is huge both for uh our team and you know getting to go against and another franchise getting to go against them. Bottom line is there’s work to be done and stuff that’s illegal in games I have very little patience for um in practice. So I try to move on to the next because the focus needs to be on our game and anything else I don’t have time for. No, I don’t I mean I literally does not affect me uh whatsoever that I hope um we get the absolute best practice from Grant and everybody else between the whistles like that and that makes us better. So, um, you know, I I think there’s uh a lot of a lot of noise and I’d file that into the noise category. AB uh I think uh it was very intentional um to uh bring our organization um to Detroit and practice against this team based on the football um that they they like to play. I think uh they don’t take practice for granted. It appears they they um I love the you know I love Dan Campbell and his and his approach. It’s very authentic. So uh yeah, I’m expecting um uh people that have intensity to come to practice and challenge um other the opposing team who will have intensity. So, I think it’s a good um good day’s work that I’m very very uh focused on the football and um how we how we grow in that area, how we handle adversity in a joint. These are all fun things, but it’s about the football, nothing else. Um I would like to see um I would like to see growth in our team. based on having one joint and one game um on how we uh improve our football within a practice. there can be a lot of uh uh a lot of focus on you know going against another team and there can be a lot of focus on whatever’s hap I want our focus to be game ready game reps um and where you’re you’re doing a play regardless of it success or uh failure you have another play how are you going to use that play previous to do better on the next I want to see um growth within practice in all three phases uh particularly after a play that um uh we don’t win. I mean the message to the team is that we have an opportunity to to um go compete against another opponent. Um, and it was about the Dolphins and I don’t really care about all the other that I know that their um, uh, their players like football and their head coach does and I want to practice against that, but beyond that, I think it’s uh, uh, a mistake to overfocus on anybody but the Miami Dolphins. So that’s that’s what I’m focused on. So there were yeah the the obvious was the the thing that’s the most obvious is when you throw the ball to another team that and that’s not I don’t I want to see us improve on um not having turnovers in joint for sure. Um that being said to his practice there was um very productive reps within it. Um he did find um command and and got had some success after the interceptions um you know the the with the exception to the last one because it was the last play. Uh and and those are the things that you know it’s not avoiding um failure that that is a game that no one’s won. Um, it is it is being able to take that as a competitor and instead of living in the disappointment, transferring the the thought energy to how we’re going to um, you know, how we’re going to do better, not that we’re going to do better. You know, a lot of a lot of the focus for a lot of people are results um in joint practices. I I think um that that I could care less about. I don’t even know what score a joint practice is. I’m focused on our game and how we do it because this is all in preparation for a regular season week one. there has to, you know, I think um, you know, based on his his, uh, off season where he was there every day and he he probably was, I think, uh, he was at our facility in our fiveweek time off, probably the most out of any player. And when you spend time with people, you have a relationship. Um, and I’m counting on the relationship of medical staff and him. because uh you know uh Kyle knows as a head trainer that I’m depending on him to ask the right questions and um listen and be able to um get in front of something uh if someone’s going to put himself in harm’s way. Uh the good news is is you know you instead of just wishing for that relationship to exist um you know Reek’s put a lot of uh time and effort into uh all, you know, a lot of relationships with that one’s uh included and because of that, you know, I trust that we’ll do what is appropriate but not irresponsible, you know, for him today. Yeah. Well, my uh I guess a thought would be that um much of the players that you you’ve just that you just named um you know were on my radar in the draft process in the last couple years and you know I had a high opinion of a lot of them. So I I know that much to expect. I don’t know where their game is at in 2025 and so I’m excited to see that um competing against our guys. You know that you know it’s another reason you you want these opportunities is because um that’s a that’s a great test. Guys get used to going against each other in spec specific techniques and that’s not reasonably uh consistent with the NFL regular season. You have to every week there’s new obstacles. So, this is um a great rep at that as well as playing um a very uh very good football team, a great organization and um that that we know wants to compete and uh we’re I’m excited to see how guys respond. What is my thoughts on Well, I think um you know, both things can be true. I think I can hold uh an appreciation um you know, almost every week, every opponent, there’s some history, um with the organization somewhere within the team and I appreciate that. Um and generally, um I I talk to the individual player, um every time we’re in those situations. However, I also think that um you know, a lot of a lot of you can create you can get confused in your process of preparing to play football and create something a reality that doesn’t exist. This is a it is a former team but he’s a Dolphin and he’s playing football and to make more of that kind of shortsights or is shortsighted for what we’re trying to do which is train ourselves um for the regular season not train ourselves for for the Detroit Lions. So, um I think that’s a important thing to keep in mind and both things can be true. Um it can be cool but at the same time uh where I think it’s important to have your focus um on what you’re working on otherwise what you’re working on will suck. No, I think uh I saw some of his teammates um really respond uh to both uh both his practice in the joint setting um and really the game. I thought it was kind of uh you know his introduction to the team so to speak um and they were juiced and so what does that mean? He’s capable of making plays. now uh that gets your foot into the door into the process. Now Taj is very focused on um being reliable playmaker that is fully toolled in all phases and uh isn’t you know as good with or without the ball. So it was exciting. You know, there’s nothing better than to me um being on the field with a guy that makes a play um on the heels of an extended rehab because those all those days, you know, everybody sees the result, they see the catch, but they don’t see um the hours upon hours of uh work that goes into um getting back on the field. So, it’s an important moment to have. I was pumped for him. Um, but you know, like Taj, I’m I’m ready uh for the next step, you know, which starts today and you know, every practice after here uh to to see if he can be a consistent playmaker um like he wants to be. No, I think um what a what a cool part or What a what a cool part in his career, Bonito, to you know, kind of in the, you know, in the in the vein of um other guys like Zack Cer, uh that, you know, you you move uh around to a couple teams in a couple years, but the entire process, you’re focused on your game and you’re you open your eyes and you’re a better player than when you left. So, I think his um you know, he’s a he’s a guy that is very galvanizing in the locker room. Um is known to be dependable uh to be about the right stuff. Can uh he uh drives um uh big trucks and wears overalls and is a a person unique to himself and uh and I think he’s um doing a great job being himself and flourishing at that.

Coach Mike McDaniel meets with the media before joint practice with the Detroit Lions on Wednesday, August 13, 2025.

Presented by Baptist Health.

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