2021 Schedule Release | The Audible Episode 155

you catch your your podcast. But John, it's gonning to be the good time of the year now the draft draft is over. We kind of restocked a little bit, going through some free agency, gone through some some unrestricted free agents on college free agents coming in and now you've got guys on the field and John, it's uh, it's really a good time of year. Now. It seems like it's always a good time of year for the

NFL football. But now now are you getting closer and closer to the real thing and guys on the field. And it's nice to see the Dolphins back in practice, uh at their for Sylvian Davy it is it's it's good to hear and see video of Miami Dolphins out on the practice field. Coach client Brian Flores in his coaching sound being able to get their arms around the guys and be able to go out and actually implement an offense and a defense and and special teams because

it gets back closer to real football. You know, we had all the excitement of the NFL Draft, and we had you know, we had our first round was was was unbelievable at hard Rock Stadium for our draft party.

And now we get to see the guys in a jersey and identify them with the number, you know, Jalen Waddle was seventeen, and Jalen Phillips wearing fifteen, and and Hollands in the secondary and and all those guys being out on the field integrated with the veterans on this team, with the guys that have been there and done that, with Avante Parker and William Fooler coming over and Xavian

Howard and Byron Jones. So it's it's a lot of exciting times in Davey right now because I don't know if the guys are going at it, you know, on the field, because they it's more of walkthroughs and more of your installing offense and defense and special teams. But it's guys being around of guys and trying to get this team to become one. So you're in a better position when training camp hits, when the preseason hits, and

ultimately when September twelve hits. You know. The the other thing, John, I think when you look at this situation where they're at now and you continue to see other steps in the growth process of Brian Flores as a head coach, Chris Greer as a general manager, working together in unison with those guys, and really for Brian Flores to kind of talk to his guys and say, hey, look, you know we'd like to it's it's a voluntary camps out here other than these rookie minicamps in the in the

main mini caamp, we like to have as many people as you can if we back off on the work a little bit, you know. They and so they kind of came to some kind of agreement. It seems like John, for everything that I've been able to gather that uh, they've kind of they've bought into seventy people out of

on the on the voluntary workouts. When when it started in the beginning of the week and uh and and I there's harmony there, and these guys love being out in the field with Brian and and and with the with Flow and so I think you're starting to see more of that thumb print that those two guys have put on this football team. I think negotiating a deal with your players to be there, I think to me, it was a brilliant move by this foot, by this

football team. And I know, I know other teams have people there at varying degrees, but I don't really don't care about them right now. I just care about this with fall team. That's right a bow. I think we need coach Flowdan negotiate our new contracts when they come. Get us a couple more dollars. Huh. He seemed like he did a pretty good job of getting the guys into the building and getting guys to buy in, isn't it.

You know that that's what it's all about. It's about doing it as a team, about doing it and getting on that same page. You know we've heard about the changing philosophies and changing mindset. Well, there's gotta be one voice ultimately that's that's doing that, and it's got to get you have to have buy in from the best player, and you have to have buy in from the bottom of the roster. You have to buy it from everybody. And I think he's been able to achieve that, and

his assistant coaches have been able to achieve that. This is a really important offseason for the Miami Dolphins. The growth of this team and the success of this team is going to be, you know, everybody being on the same page. But you have to have to a tong of Ioloa getting to know this offense like it's the back of his hand, like he's been in this system

for ten years. And it only happens with guys being around and being out on the field and going to walk throughs and being able to communicate and being able to be in those meeting rooms and say, no, this is how we want it done, and this is how I'd like it done, or maybe we change something here because I don't like that as a quarterback as to us.

So you only get that by being in the room and being able to go out on the field, watch it on tape, and then come back and say I liked it, I didn't like it, Let's try it again. And the same thing with defense, you know, you have guys that can play multiple positions, but maybe Andrew and Giagle says, you know, I really like me being out on on the perimeter and a few points stands in that blitz, or you know, I like being down low

and Christian Wilkins, you know, moving around the center. You only get that by being out on the field and getting that instant feedback. So I think this is a really crucial time for the Dolphins, a young roster. Again, it gets to know what they what they like, what they don't like. So they're in a better position come late July and early August. They're already ahead of the game in terms of we've we've already gotten rid of the stuff we don't like, where let's concentrate on what

we do like and build from there. Yeah, you know the other thing to it, it gives you know, this is the this is the first offensive coordinators stoods villain Godzi and and it gives it's gonna give them a chance to work with those guys and and go through that motion solute of being a two headed offensive coordinator. Because it's just's you know, it's it's it's not very often you see it in this league. So it's it's in.

It's a new situation for these guys, so it's important for them to go through this, these motions with these players there, uh to to to get to where they want to be when the season rolls around. And then the other thing John too is you know, it's it's easy to get the rookies in. It's easy to get the rookies to buy in, to come in because because

they're chopping at the bit to be here anyway. But but yeah, but to be able to get some of the veterans to to to buy in and say, Okay, if you're gonna back off a little bit, yeah, we'll come in and do it. And And because I I think in the back of their minds, if if if they let their agents get out of their head, they don't they all want to be out on the field, practice and play because that's what you do and that's

what you look forward to. So I think it's I just think I just said what they've been able to do, communicating wise with their team and getting them to a position where everybody is comfortable with having that many people these types of practices, Uh, it's just gonna be it's gonna be good for everybody. Well, it's just sharpening your skill set. I mean, you've got multiple people on that

offensive line. I'm looking at names. Austin Jackson might be the only guy that's gonna play you know, his position. You know, you don't know where see Davis or d J. Fluker might end up Robert Hunt and solemnly killing. They may be on opposite sides of the line of scrimmage from from Matt Scurrow on the right side of the left side. No one really knows. So you get a young guy like Eckenberg who might be able to play

both tackles. Well, let's see, let's see his footwork. Let's let's put it on tape and be able to be that far ahead of the game. When July comes around and and the coaches, the coaching staff has a better understanding of what they do better, how that unit works better together, and how the pieces kind of fit moving forward, and and all of a sudden bow, they probably go through what happens if X y Z goes down. Let's put Jesse Inside back at guard. Let's put Robert Hunt

back at tackle. Let's put Fluker at guard. You know, let's let's mix and match and see what our best combination is if we do have some injuries along along the line and get them reps. Even though it's on air, even though they're in T shirts, it doesn't matter. It's the foot or it can stay hand placement. It's the play calling. It's the new terminology for the whiteouts, the running backs and the quarterbacks to kind of go through those hand signals and those motions that you can you

can dress, rehearse for when it really matters in the fall. Yeah, and it's you know, and to me, it's all it's also you don't you don't need to hit anybody out there, but it's but but it's it's it's much better received when you're on the field that than over a zoom call, even if you're even if you're just walking through. It's

just it's it's it's leaps and bounds hit. So so kudos to kudos to the staff were getting that done and getting those right down and getting credit these guys for coming out and saying, yeah, yeah, we're we know how important this year is for this football team and and uh and so let's go out and get this

going again. You know, you keep looking at at this football team and the improvements they made, and like you talked about offense defense, whether it's Jalen Phillips, whether it's that NERK McKinney, who whoever it is, you talked about the offensive linement. You know, they want it seems like they want everybody on this football team to be able to play at least two positions or multiple. They won't, you know, and I think that was part of their draft process. I mean, look at you, look at uh,

look at Jalen Phillips. You know, here's a guy that can he can stand up as an outside linebacker. He can blitz, he can put his hand in the dirt, he can be a three technique guy. He can you

can be an edge rusher were with his hand. You can do a lot of different things, and they're gonna use them different ways as well as just about everybody in this roster, especially that whole that glut of defensive backs they got at their safeties and corners where you know those guys are gonna be I think every one of those guys is gonna have to play probably three positions across that board. Um as they get out and then the season begins. I agree with that, Bob. I

was just looking at Jason mccordie's name. You know, you almost he's on he's a member of the Miami Dolphins, that he might play safety. You know he could play outside. You know you have Eric row, you have Brandon Jones had a hell of a first year as a rookie, and opinion, you have Nick need him back there, You've

got I Donogny. I mean there's a there's a array of different skill sets that these this coaching staff and Josh Lawyer as the defensive coordinator coming into his second year, he wants to plug and play with some of these guys. You know, you need to know where he can put the best eleven And like I said, but the offensive line, if Eric Rohwe goes down, do you kick Brandon Jones in that spot? Do you Accordy there? Do you keep

keep needing at the nickel? Is Igbanomony have enough of a skill set to be able to play inside or outside. So these are the things that you go through knowing you have Howard and Jones as your premier corners on the outside, so give you that flexibility to be able to go into a season knowing that, you know, I've got multiple talents that that can play different positions and different roles on this team, and you just gotta see what fits best for the Miami Dolphins. The two thousand

twenty one version of the Miami Dolphins. Yeah, no doubt. It's uh, it's uh. I like, what's shapen up, like the like like the cast of characters they got out there. Now we just gotta see him, see him kick the ball off and talk about that. John, we come back. Schedules out. You know where they're playing, you know when they're playing, you know where they're going. I have to.

I happen to be in Las Vegas for the last few days, and everywhere I go, everybody I see this, they say they're they're fans of the Buffalo Bills or their fans of whoever's coming to Las Vegas. They're coming to watch their team. So Vega is gonna be pretty hot spot I think for NFL football. Satndays out here, Hey John talking about the guys in camp and what they're doing. But uh, you know, the season's not too far off here, and schedule comes out, so you know

you know who you're playing. But it's always exciting to see the scheduling and where you're going. And I don't know, you know, I don't know about you, but for for me, my first thing when I my perusal is schedule usually deals with the road games and where we're gonna eat dinner when we get there. That's kind of my field. You gotta have priorities, right, I mean, you gotta know it. Sushi, you know, the barbecue. Where where are we going? You

gotta know you gotta plan those out. You know, it's any and any good freeloader on on a football team, you know, and those nose that's the that's the real deal. You gotta you gotta figure out all those things. So you have to have the right crowd because you don't have to go in your pocket too many times. No no, no, no, no no no no. You get you get on that plane, in your pockets seal up. They don't they don't open

up again until you get round back in for a lot. Hey. Yeah, So so let's take a look at the schedule, John, You know the I was expecting a little more from the schedule in in this way because you know, to me, um, you can look at your schedule and tell what the league thinks about you and your football team. Right, And you look at the Dolphins, and they've got they get one Monday night football game December twenty seven in New Orleans.

They got a Thursday night game at home against Baltimore November eleven, they got the London game, and and they've got to four o'clock games. Now, one of the four o'clock games is because it's out in Las Vegas in that time zone. And but to me, John, sorry, I look at I look at prime time games, but but I look at four o'clock games for East coast team, for an Eastern team, because to me, a four o'clock game is is it's a national game because it's gonna

be seen on the East and West coast. And so to me, those are those to me are as much of an indication of what the schedule makers think about your football team. And a little surprised that they only have the the two prime time UH prime time games and the two um four o'clock games, again one being a Las Vegas game, which probably which is the equivalent of a one o'clock game. But a little bit surprised that they didn't have a little more four o'clock games

in the schedule. You know, the one that surprises me, I understand. The opening weekend Yere at New England. I mean, that's gonna be an unbelievable setting because I think the Dolphins had one win in the last decade there, um, and you don't know who's gonna be playing quarterback there for New England, Mac Jones or Cam Newton. But the second week, you know, week to September nineteen, Buffalo at one o'clock. I'm almost glad it's at one o'clock game,

you know, because you get him in the heat. But that would have been my my thought. I thought that was gonna be. Look, look, don't get me wrong. I you know, I take those early one o'clock games in September all year, every every year. But as the season goes on, uh, you know, it's it's it's that I

don't know. To me, it's just that it's you know, I remember I remember looking at our schedule when we were playing, and you're looking, you have three Monday and I put our two or three Monday night football games, maybe a Thursday game, and and four four o'clock games. And you knew you were, and you you were in the hut every year when when you saw the schedule, you know, and I expect you'd be a little closer to that with this schedule than these guys. But that's

that's just my that's just my bone to pick. Well, you hope some of you know the tvds down the stretch when they have the flex games, that the Dolphins are in a position that they are being flexed and they are at you know, eight or nine wins as they're deep into December, you know, trying to get to ten, eleven and twelve. That that's the scenario that you hope the Dolphins are in. But you know, for me, looking at the schedule and Shlibo, I think it's it's a

tough start. Yeah, well look at the over those first five games in New England on the road, which is I don't care what you said, I don't care what's Cam Newton, I don't care who's throwing football. They're they're gonna be a tough They're gonna be a tough gift there because that team wants to bounce back. Buffalo at home. Good thing you got him at home. Then you gotta come to Vegas and away a week later. And and you know, I, this is a team, this Vegas team,

I I can't kind of get. I don't have an I don't have feel one way other on how good this team is gonna be. Then you got Indie at home. INDI's gonna be a very good football team. And uh, and then you got Tampa Bay away. Five games the first five games you really could define what your season is gonna look like beyond those five games the next next twelve weeks. And that was my thought coming out

of the gate. Boy, the Miami Dolphins better play good football and they better be at their best early because you don't want to fall behind early and then have to catch up, you know, as you go to London against Jacksonville, or you get at Lanta at home and weeks seven, because then you're back on the road at Buffalo, which is always a tough environment, whether it's the last game of the year or in the middle of the season. And and the way I look at this Bowl, you know,

it kind of softens up as it goes. But the bye week is until week fourth. Now this is going to be a marathon for this football team. You add in the three preseason games and you don't know how coach Flores is going to play as starters, you know, because usually the third game is an indicator that there are only three games, so you know at Atlanta and when when Atlantic comes to hard Rock Stadium, do the

starters get an extended play there? Because you have a prime time you know game against Cincinnati as your last preseason game and you're trying to figure out who's gonna be on the roster. That that's a tough call because if you add those those weeks in, you're going sixteen football games before you have arrest and health becomes a major issue to get through early have success and be a healthy enough football team to win the games you're supposed to. And as this as the schedule turns and

gets a little softer. Yeah, that that first, those first five games, and you kind of Jacksonville and you know, you expect Jacksonville, you know, you know they you know they you know what they've got talent talent wise, but I don't think that football team is gonna be at their peak for another year or so. If they get there. Uh, Atlanta is a good football you know, Houston's another team that's there's probably gonna be one of the seller dwellers

in there. So you've got a couple of soft games maybe between Jacksonville and Houston, but really they're they're not a whole lot of breathing room in this in this schedule top to bottom. The other thing is, you know, for the last number of years the Dolphins have played a lot of an f C East games in the

final months. You know they've been scheduled that way. But now you've got you know, with their with their late by you know, you've got you've won, You've got two a f C easton off all, you've got New York and New England and the season both of those of the good things about both of them are at home for the Dolphins. But you know, you've got New Orleans and Tennessee in between those two and and and you

know what's New Orleans gonna be. You know, Tennessee is gonna be a tough out right and when they come in that that being said, John, you know the one thing that I don't thing about the schedule, and always, you know, it's always that, oh do you get the schedule?

Do you put ws and l's along the board? You know, and I know a lot of people do that, but you know, I've always thought and evenly like, even looking at this schedule where you've got a tough start, well, what happens if you open up the season and Josh Allen's hurt for Buffalo not playing? That makes that whole game completely different? Yes, rightly agree, Yeah, I mean it's because to me, I've always said, looked at the the schedule is as flexible as the health of the players

on the teams you're gonna face. And so to sit here now and try to say, jeez, you got in New Orleans, you know, December, that's gonna be a tough one in in the in the Superdome, that's gonna be tough. But what happens to half their teams out? You know what I mean? So you don't And that was my point.

Both the same works for the Dolphins. You have you know, you have sixteen games before you have a boy, how healthy are the Miami Dolphins gonna be when you're you know, you're playing Atlanta at home and you feel like you should be a favorite. How holth are they gonna be after six football games? Right? You know? How on the short week in Baltimore, which I hate because it's always Baltimore.

It always seems like a massacre, right, But I'm hoping that the tide turns because we're played at home, uh instead of being up in Baltimore. But you just don't know, And and that's the greatest thing about athletics, about sports, You just don't know until you line up that day. You know, how is to as help? You know, how do you how you doing to tackle? How how is the corners feeling? You know, the the defense has been

porched for two weeks? Are they gonna bounce back? So there's so much uncertainty, and that's what makes sports sports, and it's fun to talk in banter about it. But you don't know until you line up and you see who's there and you play the game. Right, Well, all I know. All I know is since they've moved to Baltimore, that Raven football team has been a pain in the ass um and and maybe the maybe the most difficult matchup that the Dolphins have had since they've moved to Baltimore.

That team, I don't know what it is. It doesn't matter who's on their team. They always seem to be a horrible matchup for the Dolphins. And it doesn't matter when the game's playing. It does not matter where bo. When I was doing my exercise going ws and els, I'm not gonna tell you what I put in Baltimore, but it wasn't a pretty game in my hand. Uh Well, you look at past history and and and you just go by that. So hopefully I'm wrong. Yeah, but anyways,

you know what, it's it's it. I'm excited for the schedule. I'm excited for the season. I you know, I you know, I'm not playing anymore. So I like the seven team game schedule. I know the players aren't really really happy with it. I tend to like it. Uh And hopefully, and I'm not sure what the situation is, hopefully they get a maybe one of these uh joy practices prior to one of their preseason games. I don't know what what the scheduling of that is is like now, but

we'll have to wait and see about that. But uh, I think there's gonna be a fun football. It's I think it's gonna be a really good football see and for the Dolphins, and and the schedule certainly is gonna give them every opportunity to see a lot of good players across the board. Well, it's exciting. It's exciting when it comes out because you finally know what time, who's

playing where you're at. And it'll be exciting for the Dolphins too, you know, going into a new practice facility down at hard Rock Stadium to be able to be down there and and you hope Atlanta has that opportunity to come down a couple of days early in practice here and be able to you know, go at it and have a different colored jersey going up against uh, somebody that you're gonna play in weeks. So so maybe you know, because of that, maybe they don't do that.

Maybe it's you know, just three three preseason games. You don't have a practice and a scrimmage in a game, uh in the preseason. But it is exciting to finally, you know, kind of take a look at it and map out the fall and and kind of hope that the Miami Dolphins can can start fast, continue it, stay healthy and be a factor, you know for the month of December and early January. Looking forward to coming down

the hard Rock Stadium. Maybe I can take it's a lap around that have one track a couple of times before the before the parking lots get full up, before the games. Yeah, you might have su being to take that sull be on a spin around that around the chicage or something, you know, exactly unbelievable. Hie, Johnny, that's gonna do it. We're gonna wrap it up for this week. We'll catch you again next time we come on. And remember the Automo is presented by Auto Nation, America's most

trusted Automo Dealers, automobile dealership. Got automation dot com or stop by and check out a new sled for yourself. Whenever you get in the neighbor Johnson, be pleasure being with you. Come around same here about talk to you in a couple of weeks, Johnny. What's we'll have. We'll talk back to you guys a couple of weeks when we get schedules. Kind of check sketch you right now.

So just kind of stick around and catch us where you catch us, whatever platform you listen to your your podcast at or on Mini Golfers dot com, and we'll keep you updated and everything we can until until the next time. Stay safe and we'll see them f