The Audible Ep. 86 | Mark Walton

Sam Donald uh. And and they're a team that you know, not so many weeks ago they beat the Dallas Cowboys, and I remember reading the New York Post and boy then it was okay, here come the Jets. You know, still got a chance to make the playoffs. This and that and this and that, and boy, what a what a difference a few weeks. Maybe Sam Donald has just

been harassed, blitzed, sacked, interceptions galore, and uh. And next thing, you know, I'm sure that that the Adam gaze, the former Dolphin coaches, boy just pulling out his hair up there with what the is going on. And a good opportunity for the Dolphins with the team coming in here, really in disarrayed. John, Yeah, one in six football team that you would have thought in the preseason that this is one of the teams that are gonna show the

most improvement. You had a new head coach that's offensive minded, that can bring along a second year quarterback in Sam Donald. It seems like ever since you know, Sam was sidelined with the mono sickness and and came back. He played really well against the Dallas Cowboys. You saw him get the football to parts of the field that the Jets

haven't been able to exploit against opposing defenses. And then all of a sudden, for back to back weeks, it's just been a case of the turnovers, sacks, pressures that they look like they don't know. Uh, they aren't a semblance of what the team played against the Dallas Cowboys. And it's just not close. And it feels like the Dolphins, as they have over the last three weeks, haven't been improving.

It's been an approving football team. You could see where the separation is getting closer, and and the Dolphins had chance in each of those three games to win. So it's a tale of two teams for sure. Yeah, Well, we'll talk about talking about the last game against Pittsburgh here quickly, but you look at Sam Donald fifteen sacks, uh, eight interceptions, five touchdowns and fifteen sacks. He missed what

three games? Three games, So that's uh, that's all and and and for the Dolphins, that's been kind of one of their one of their issues on games getting to the quarterback. And I think we saw it last week in the Pittsburgh game where early on they were able to do some things up front and get and and pressure, pressure him, make him put the ball up for grabs.

And there were john there, there were you know, talking talking to some people that I think they counted six balls that could have been uh they were, yeah, exactly where we're really would have made a difference. And it's certainly the big one, uh, you know, coming off of Oleary, bounce off O'Leary turns out it turns into interception and that that turns into touchdown, field goal, whatever it was. But points off stalls your drive, points on the board

for them, and everything turned around kind of at that point. Well, you know, this was a Pittsburgh Steeler team that the fans were actually booming. You know, in the second quarter, they were booing, and they had every right to. They didn't look like a team that was gonna win. And that interception turned into points right before halftime, and you could just feel the oxygen getting into the lungs of the Steeler fans and more importantly, the the football team

because it ignited the defense. Uh, it was a different defense that came out in the second half. Quite frankly, it was a different offense that came out in the second half and kind of slowly took over the football game, and you could feel it sliding away from the Miami Dolphins. But up until that point, you know, it's fourteen nothing and the Dolphins were rolling. You know, the Steelers get a field goal, but you didn't feel like they were

gonna score before halftime. A matter of factly, you felt like the Dolphins might take it down and get the seventeen and possibly twenty one. So, um, it was a huge play in the football game in terms of being able to capitalize on instant field position. But I still, in my mind, I thought it was a backbreaking play. You know, when you send eight and you're in you've got zero coverage, you're in man to man coverage and you've got the front that really didn't match the type

of coverage that was played on the play. You get a one yard slant, you get miscommunication, you get a guy with nothing but green grass, and it turns into a forty five yard touchdown. And in my opinion, that was the ultimate game changer for the Miami Dolins. And I think John, that comes from from what we just talked about with facing the Jets. Even though they've given a fifteen sacks, you know, the Dolphins don't. I don't, I would, I would guess pretty closely, John, the Dolphins.

Dolphins have maybe had one or two sacks coming from just a traditional four man rush. Everything else comes off of you know that they've kind of been forcing that

situation where we gotta show a different look. We gotta get that little where the guys are wandering around, they look confusion thing then have guys come, guys coming off the corner, and and you know, I understand that playing in third and twenty, I believe it was and you and you and you get beat on that, And I know there's been a lot of conversation, well, how how can you go how can you rush eight and go through where they're running there are three three a man

and man and three receivers. One guy breaks free. But that's the only way the Dolphins have gotten pressure. So it's tough to fault to me to fault Patrick Graham, defensive coordinator, for that under those circumstances, because that's the only way you've been able to get pressure on a quarterback.

You're almost hamstrung with you know, if you if you don't, then that quarterback sits back there and and looks and looks and gets to the first second, third choice, throws a ball down the field or you you put it in his face and and see if we can get to him in time. Well, we've seen plenty of opposing offenses when the Dolphins play a traditional defense on third and twelve, third and sixteen get thirteen or seventeen. So

I don't disagree about going after him. I just don't think that the pressure matched the coverage from the back end. If you're gonna send eight, well you better be in that catch position. It maybe five yards off the ball instead of twelve or fourteen, where you've you've given so much room to special athletes. You know, Johnson, even though he's a rookie he didn't play like a rookie, and you got Juju on the other side, could have easily

been him in that situation. So I don't agree with the scheme of being aggressive, and I know head coach Brian Flores talked about, Hey, I'm going to be aggressive, that's my mentality. Don't disagree with that one on board. What I do have question with is the front didn't

match the coverage. If you're gonna go after somebody like that, it's very difficult to cover a one yard slant from four twelve yards off the ball or four teens yards off the ball when you have so much room in between where the catch is made and where you're trying to make the tackle. The hole in the middle of the field, it was enormous. It was, I mean, you're

really off that. Say you'd take one step and and and then run a slant, you had no chance against that, and and and then then the field was so there was such a void in the middle of the field that it was twenty yards before someone even got anywhere nearing and and really yeah, and that to me was the question mark that I had, or the issue I had with it. No doubt, Hey, it's a but the

start you'd like to start, you know. And it's funny since since Ryan Fitzpatricks, Fitzpatrick has come in to start, going going back to the fourth quarter of the Washington game last week in Buffalo, this game, he's shown the ability far far more effectively than than than Josh Rosen. Now, the one thing that Rosen was given you, he was giving you the long ball. He's giving you that that

big chunk play. Whereas the one of the one of the issues with this football team, and you see it, you know, the touchdown they had, they got four first downs and then they got their touchdown. You know, this is not a team that's getting big chunk plays. So they've got to take what we had the drive last week. Six team plays in that in that drive where you know you can't you can't do that on a consistent basis, especially a young football team like this that you know,

the the old theory. If you're a defensive you know there's certain defensive coordinators with here is ben don't break where Let's let the more snaps they have to take to get to the end zone, the better chance we have because they'll make a mistake. We'll be there to take advantage of it. And I think that's exactly what we see out of this football team, although sometimes it

doesn't take very long for that that mistake to happen. Yeah, I think that that explosive play where you saw Albert Wilson or Jachem Grant make last year on regularity, and it wasn't that the ball had to travel forty five yards down the field. These guys were catching screens and slamms a little little now passes, you know where he's uncovered, and they're making two guys miss, and all of a sudden, the team's getting blocks down the field and they're just

following those blocks, and they're great in space. When they have their hands on the football, they turn into really running backs and they're able to avoid and make people miss, and they turn into big, explosive touchdowns. And and that's really what the Dolphins are missing, and you're hoping that you get a little bit more of that. I think Albert Wilson's getting closer to a hund percent. He's been playing but hasn't really had that twitch that you've seen

last year. Joachim Grant has been in the same kind of position. For me, anyway, you don't you see him explode on a comeback route and you say, maybe he's there, you know, maybe he's that guy that is gonna, you know, round into form where he's making those types of plays on a consistent basis. Because it's not that Ryan Fitzpatrick

can't throw the football downfield. It's just that the time in the pocket and availability downfield have been more of back shoulder types of things to Kasicky in the seam, or or you you get a guy like Devonte going up and getting the football or Williams going up and getting the football, you don't have u those quick plays around the line of scrimmage. They are making people miss. And now you've got a twenty eight yard game that

hasn't been in the offense. It's it's been tough, and you know, you you you talk about Albert Wilson and Jachim Grant and I'm with you. You know, you watch them. They look good, but they that that that burst that we saw early last year on those little plays, it's just it's just not there, and they're they're getting caught by that that last guy or getting caught by someone where last year they're able to move and that's something I think they will continue. Is the more they play

in the in, the healthier they get. You'll see that, but but it makes it tough. The other thing Johnny is is a is the overwhelming disparity in giveaways to take aways for this football team. Four four giveaways this week, one one takeaway in the in the game and as I said earlier, probably should have had, clearly should have had three where the ball was another one that X could have got, probably two more than X could have got.

Mama has had one. There was one by the defensive front that Taco could have had that that that dropped down by him. So you know, if you're not gonna be the type of foot ball if you're gonna be the type of football team that the Dolphins are right now, boy, you can't afford to let those opportunities land on the ground. Yeah. I agree. Anytime you can get takeaways and more, and

it really bodes into what the offense is lacking. You need to get instant field position because you can't start on your own fifteen or eighteen yard line thinking you're gonna take a twelve plays and get points. It happens, but it doesn't happen with regularity, and it it doesn't happen a whole lot to you know, probably the NFL. You know, you're taking advantage of takeaways because it's giving you instant field position. It's it's it's really cutting the

field in half. And if you're giving it away at the same at the same rate, it's not gonna it's putting too much pressure on the defense. So I agree with fits on the one. The one was like a punt, Hey, I'm gonna give you. I'm gonna give you a shot. You came to go downfield, make a play. If we don't get it, it's okay, they're gonna get the ball inside the five yard line. That one I kind of washed away. But but it's the other it's the other takeaways.

It's the other sacks that put your punting team in a bad spot that gives the football to you know, the Steelers maybe at the opposing forty yard line that they're licking their chops, going, hey we go six yards. We can do this, and you know, you you wonder why things change. But you know, X doesn't play in the second half, he comes out, the new issue flares up. He doesn't play Ken Webster. It's funny because Ken Webster went down. That hurts. You know, two months ago we

know who Ken Webster was. You know, you know what I mean. It's but but here's how you're depending on you depending on him. He goes down with the ankle, and then all of a sudden that Ryan lewis playing positions he's not really accustomed to. You've got will it's playing positions. You know, you've got need Um playing out there. Those are your starters. Now, that's it, and it's probably

gonna be that way playing safety. You know, there's a lot of Uh, there's a lot of guys playing different positions that you didn't plan on going into the game. Now you have a plan for it, but you're not depending on it for half of the football game. Well, it's funny, John, because we've seen it now throughout the courses year earlier, early on, for the first really five weeks, was that offensive line. It was just you know, who's coming in there, who's playing here? Now who's playing And

they're starting to settle in. And they're starting to settle in because they're getting know, they're getting they're getting to work together with each other. Uh, and then last week up in Buffalo, Uh, you lose Wilkins and you and you went into the game with all the defensive tackle pre defensive tackles to begin with. So you gotta make changes on the fly there and then here we are. When you go in, you gotta x back. You know,

he's coming back from the injury. He picks up the first row, first throw that uh that they put up, he picks it off. Rudolph throws up and he picks it off, and you thinking, oh, we've got something going here, and then all of a sudden, he goes down, Webster goes down. And then those guys, those guys that are coming in, look, they're doing the best they can, but you know they're they're not your they're not your your

front line guys. And it's it's tough too. You know, as a coach, you're in there and and and coaching them too. Technique, you know, responsibilit no mellors this and that. But there, as you said, not playing the same position all the time, different guys, Your communication kind of goes by the wayside when you lose a Rashaw Jones and guys like that, and so it's it's it's it's gonna be it's it's gonna be difficult for those guys. Now

X has gone for the year. Webster not sure what he is the thing they made the move with with a key to lead. He'll never he'll never take the field. No, I don't think see that. Um So, so it's going to be like you said, that group of the group of guys in the secondary, they don't have to find some way to elevate their game, uh, if they want to compete and compete through it and find that win.

So somewhere throughout the course of the season, Well, they're playing the right team this week in terms of wins and losses and success. Because I don't know if anybody scares you other than Levan Bell in the backfield. In terms of wide receiver Robby Anderson, it seems like he's he's always been like yet he has and and that that might be the one guy you circle. But other than that, I mean, this is an offensive line that's

kind of like who's on it? You know? And maybe maybe this is the week that they can force and Williams he loves on and Quinn and Williams is playing well for him, But uh, you know, yeah, they and they you know they they have their own issues. They have their issues. This is this is there's gonna be a lot of issues on that football field come Sunday at hard Rock Stadium on both sides of a lot

of questions. But but this is a chance for the Dolphins to you know, to to to take advantage of a team that's that's in a like situation as as they're in. You know, a team that a team that's you know, got got personnel problems, whether it's injuries, whether it's guys that don't want to play. Moving on they move loft to the the guard that didn't want to play all year long, and and so they've got away defensive got the same type of issues that this football team has.

The good thing is you're playing at home. Well that's that's you're you're trying to get your first win. You'd love to have it come at hard Rock Stadium in front of your fans who have been you know, kind of pulling pulling their weight, you know, and wanting to see that win. And they've seen improvement, we've seen improvement over the last three weeks. They beat you know, you have a chance to win in the fourth quarter against

Washington at home, that doesn't get done. You go on the road against Buffalo, who has a really nice record, but I don't know if they're all that great. You know that there's only probably one or two teams in the a f C that you feel like those are really good football teams. Then there's a cluster of teams in the middle that they can be beat on any week. So I would think the Miami Dolphins have a chance this week at home against the Jets that are floundering

at this point, especially offensively. And you're look at with like you talking about Levan Bell and what he thinks. I would I would assume, although we don't coach Gay, he he wants to throw that ball up in the air. But but you would you would think that this would be the perfect time for them to say we're gonna ride you for We're gonna give you twenty five plus carries, throw it to and all that stuff for this. So this team to be ready for for that type of

game this week. I think, you know, we saw what Adam Gaze wanted to do against the Denver Broncos in terms of a head coach, you know, leaving an organization, maybe not on the best terms. I think that he's going to have this team ready to play and he'll definitely have every every gadget play, every everything in his at his disposal to try to win this game on the road, to try to stick it to the Dolphins.

I'm sure that, Hey, John, one of the things I want to touch on in fourth and two, fourth and one, the Ryan Fitzpatrick uh runs with the football get stopped. Looked like he had it. They marked the ball, they can't figure it out. Then they and they move the chains. Then then to move the chains back after looking at the inst replay, then they take the chaine out for the measurement. Talk that over ten minutes to me, John,

once you pick up those chains, it's over. You can't you can't replicate exact exactly the spot the football was in number one or nor can you put the chains back in the exact samee. Well, you might get the yard line, but it might be six inches. It was about a two inch difference between the first down when

they brought the chain out. My memory, serge and credit wasn't two to four inches about all it was that that gave him the There's no way and once they moved the chains, they should that there should be a rule in the National football you cannot go back and do that. There's it's been decided. I'm sorry. One way you could be on the right side of that or the wrong side of that. But it's so hard to now set the chains again, set the football in the

right spot, and then bring the chains out like that. John, I watched I sit there and watch these guys officials in the sideline. It's not easy to try to be somewhere with the ball in there. And and you watch the haphazard way that they make those marks. You know, they the places and the guy's way on the sideline, and there's a bunch of bodies fix his foot down somewhere, you know, and have a hot dog and one and

the chain on the chain gang it comes. And if you ever seen these guys he slippers in are the chains. There's somebody usually the guys are in the chain gangs. Someone in that organization owes him something. I got tickets coming, Yeah, you got. You got guys out there that can barely run up and down the field and they're taking pictures and doing Coming from the Witness Protection Program, ahold of change.

So you're gonna use that, You're gonna use that on an intu replay to try to re re replicate that way way too many variables. But that that being said, John, that's what you get when you're the Miami Dolf. That's what you get when you're a team that's struggling. That that's just a bad, horrible break on that. Yeah, because you know that that, you know you're struggling to fight back and get it back, get back into the game.

Fits makes a great play there. He's covered in and you know he wants to get it out in the flat it's covered. The choices a quarterback is to tuck it. You know you've got a short distance to go. You go ahead first, you don't slide because you want to have the market me as close to the line to gain as possible. And it looks clear like it's right there. I mean it's a decision, a bang bang play officials is first down, they moved the chains, everybody's okay, and

all of a sudden, fifteen minutes later it's Steelers. Well, I've seen things like that happen in college football. When you gotta when you got a crew from the other team that the other the other team you're playing, that let a little bit and and the referee servant time and then they get to the spot the football. Yeah you've seen that happen, no doubt. But in the NFL know that. But and that that you know, that was an opportunity to kind of recapture a little momentum and

move on. But uh, look, it's a it was a tough game up there, and it looks a tough place to play in. John, I I never thought, you know, I've been a Pittsburgh a handful of times, both playing and covering this football team, and I don't know that I ever ever saw that team that those fat fan base turn on. That team is vocally and as quickly as they did down fourteen nothing because they're struggling, they're doing nothing, They're not getting much on the ground. Mason

Rudolph is throwing the ball all over the place. You got no accuracy. That offense is three and out there. You know, they throw the interception, then they got a punt twice, you know, before they finally get the field goal. And but but up to that time, the chorus of it was cleaning down on heindfield was something I never thought i'd see. You could hear watch it on TV. I mean you're there and you can actually you know, you're going, wow, I bet this is we got a shot.

What I'm thinking, yeah, you know, if you one more turns, one more score stick, one more nail in the coffin, this thing is over. Yeah, And it's it's amazing how a couple of plays. That's why coaches always used to tell you know, it's it's it's you don't know which plays are going to be able to be game changers. And there's probably five, six seven plays you can go back. Sometimes it's only two or three. But that interception and then that conversion on third down completely, I'm sure you

felt it in the stadium. It was like no one ever bowed before in Pittsburgh. You know, they started cheering that that. You can see the players get excited about it. They're getting at the ball back in the third quarter. Well, because I'm thinking the same thing. You know, you kicked the field that you you hold a new field goes, you're in good ship. Well I'm not talking about the

first one, all right. And then I and I believe that interception I think the pick six or the the I'm sorry that yeah, the deflection, no, no, the past, the h the one to Johnson after after the interception before the half makes it a fourteen tenant half exactly you got about a but I think it's about a buck twenty. I think six maybe on the clock when they started, and I'm going, man, just hold on for hold on your life, and just if you can just keep them from a touchdown. You're going to half to

halftime with at worse fourteen six lead. You you're feeling pretty damn good about correct me if I'm wrong, But I think the wind was coming off the lake that way, so it was no guarantee anything over yards. It was gonna be a little dicey, right, no, no doubt about it. And then to see him running and you just just kind of thought, you know that that was I know it was before halftime, still had a lot of football to play, but well, you just felt like that was

a backbreaker. And it's sure, I'm sure you know, halftimes only ten or twelve minutes as it is, it felt probably felt like two minutes, and the Steelers had the ball back again starting in the third course. No doubt about it. But uh, you know, another tough one. And but but you know, you keep you know, I keep saying it. I keep trying to tell people, and they talk to me, and you know, you know, I talked

to all this guys. These I don't know, they don't even look like they don't even I am surprised how many people come to go. This team looks like they don't even want to play. I think, looking at what what team? You are even watching the games or you just you know that's here. That's the somebody told me, and then somebody told him and because and and look if if this team was a bunch of guys that weren't working hard, didn't care, um, you know it didn't

you didn't bother them if they lose. You know, I've seen guys like that, But this team is anything but that. And and just see him play that hard, work that hard um and and just have that slipped through their fingers in the first half, because you knew in the second half after that it was gonna be tough, especially

when you see all the injuries and all exactly. You know, so you're depleted, you have a depleted secondary, and that's really where the game changed because Smith, Smith, Schuster and Deante Johnson, you know, combined were close to two hundred yards in terms of receiving yards, two touchdowns and ten catches, and and you you, you you lacked any pressure in

the second half. That allowed Mason Rudolph to kind of stand back and you're back in the game and get back into the game in there, and and his focus became better and his accuracy became better because he wasn't being harassed, he wasn't having to move around the pocket to try to get the ball out of out of

the backfield. And on the flip side, the defense for the Steelers turned it on and they started getting you know, more action in the backfield, shutting down the running games the Dolphins had and really forcing their hand on fits. And it was tough when you have what coming from one side, Bud Dupree on the other side, you've got Bush in the middle, You've got a really good secondary

on the outside. And then make it comes away with two picks, you know what you know, then you kind of you kind of you kind of knew going in that you know, making keep trying to keep Maka out of this game, and he comes up with two picks. One was you know that, but one was a game change, no, no doubt about it. But just a tough, tough, tough, tough loss for this football team. But they've they've all

been tough. But like you said, now you start looking forward to the Jets and and what's happened with this guy? And you know, it was funny because I stand on the sideline and or before the game and I see some guy working out. I'm going, man, you know you know what I was. He was that guy, you know, And I look at guy's legs must be as big

as tree trunks. And then all of a sudden during the game, I see him rock BiDi was Arberton Dici goes in and gets a handful of snap and well, I'll tell you what, I don't think he's in I don't think he's in game condition yet. Um, but I tell he's a stout, big, thick lower body, prototypical defensive tackle guy that as you look forward to next year and look, he's had his issues. That's the reason he's

here with this football team right now. But boy, if you could get his head on straight with physical talent that he's got to to to to be part of that core that you move on with next year. Because to me, every every guy like that that that you've got that that turns out that hey, this guy could be a player that's one of less guy you've got a draft or or finding the free agent market to fill in there, because that's what this that's what this offseason gonna be about, is gonna be about the draft

and free agency and fill in the holes. And and as I sit down and talk to you know, talk to We're gonna talk to Mark Walton a little bit. Talk to Mark, we'll talk about his opportunity. But here again is another young guy that's got potential that that you can see being part of the future of this franchise moving forward. And so there there's you know, Taco Charlton, Taco. Yeah, those guys right, No, got nothing for that guy. You know, Shaq Calhoun. I don't know what Shack is gonna end

up be in. Here's another food undrafted free agent. There's a guy. So there's there, There's there are guys there that can can really be the core of this unit. Um. But you know, the real competition for this football team is going to start in April. Or in in in in March, when the when the NFL season opens, in free agency, and then the draft in April, and then that's that's you know, that's that's where this football team has.

They can't afford, they can't afford to have a ball bounce off their shoulder pads and going for a pick. They've got to make the right decisions and they've gotta they've got to be smart about what they do. Know if they've if they've got nine picks in the in the first, you know, three or four rounds, and they've got to hit on a better part of with no questions. Got to be starters on this. By the way, Mark Mark Walton got him coming in. So let's let's have

a talk with Mark here. With Mark Wallton, Mark, Uh, you're one of those rare guys. You're you're a Miami guy. You you went to Cork at Washington High School. Um, you go to the University of Miami, be a little stop in Cincinnati, then you come back to Miami, but be able to play you know, grow up as a as a kid youth football, high school of football, college football, and then come back and play in the NFL. It's it's it's a rare guy that gets the opportunity to

do that. Oh yeah, and this is something I look forward to doing. I've been doing. Um, I'm I'm growing up being a Hurricane fan of Miami Dolphin fan and an opportunity to presenters off this all season, I ran with it and I knew directly what I want to do, and I know I want to be a Dolphin. I know, um my energy was gonna bring to this organization and I'm glad it worked out for me and I'm glad

to coach. You see what I'm what I'm about. You know, South Florida and Dade Dade County certainly one of the hot bets for UH for high school football, quality of hype. I school football down here gets a lot of guys ready, uh to to move on to the second career and then onto the NFL. What was about Booker T. Washington that gave you the foundation to to be the type

of player that you've become. When I first walked in that building, Coach Ice Harris to Mice Harris joint, I mean senior and junior, both of them was my head coaches thought my time there. Uh, they basically told me just come in and work hall and you're gonna you're gonna get what you want deserve. And it since that day, I just wor work hall. And we still disciplining into the guys, you know, just working hall, just doing it,

doing the little thing is the right way. Uh, just carrying outself the right way to whatever we do, just do it on a ten percent uh it because I always save you're wrong if if if you're not sure what you're doing, just I'd rather be wrong you do it a hundred ten percent and doing it I'm not sure. I mean, I just want I just come out there and do what I could do best to have the team win. And and and that's playing football. En I've talked to a number of times, and it's tough. It's a

tough area around there growing up. And and I think they've done a good job. They're bringing in good athletes, but also making sure that they they're aware that they don't do the work in the school room. They don't work in the classroom, they don't know if they're not

gonna play football. And I think it's a lot, a lot a lot of guys to be eligible to go to college in different places, whether there's Division one, Division two, whatever, just places where they can continue their career and continue your education. Because he big on that UM about you know, getting good grades, getting the right right g p A to and play UM football to be eligible. But the end of the day, you know, and we when we was there, I don't know if they still do it

now because it's a tough schedule with you chet. Yeah, we used all have a study hall right at the school. We come in and do our work. He mandatory that UM make sure we do that before practicing at the practice. And if guy's not doing it, doing their own homework, doing class work, you know you're not practicing. You ain't playing coming on that field till you get your class work right. Parents are upset about it. You gotta go see the principal see whatever. You gotta have to school

or first before you being on football players. So because I see big on that and it got us ready for own college, you know it serves you well. Yeah, and so here you are with the Dolphins and then you're you're get an opportunity to start and get carries. I know you're happy with that opportunity. And I mean this league is all about opportunities and and once you get the opportunity, making the most of it? Are you? I I know, I don't never know one's every satisfied

with where they're at. But do you like the trajectory that you're taking with this football team and and the carries that you're getting right now? I mean, I'm in love with everything that's going to run this building, UM, coaches, players, I mean my role and then the day I just mean it was given I almost say if it was given to me was I mean I've worked at it, and I mean this opportunity and presented something, I just

gotta put my best foot forward. And how do things that I I I can handle in UM, and that's going in and playing football. And if I'm the lead back, I just gotta go out there and control control I can control and help this team, UH prosperting when winning games, and we just try to hold hold each other accountable. If you if you do a little self scouting, what do you think, UM, is your best asset is running back? What what makes you what you are? I think I

love to go out that compee. I'm I mean, I'm I'm a football player. I like the pass block. I can run. I like to run the ball, tough, physical, IM I could catch the ball to backfield. I mean, I mean, like I said, it all start with pass block, and first I like to protect the quarterback. Um, I mean I think that's what helped me get on this get this the stage right here where I'm at right now.

You're looking at the team, no doubt it's struggling right now, and then we're looking for that that first win, and I believe that win is gonna come. But but you look around in that locker room and and there's a lot of young, good talent on this football team, and maybe not enough to get to where you want to be. But do you like what you think the future holds for this team with with that that core of young players that you see in that locker room. I mean,

I think got feature bright. You know, we were a young team and then the day we we we we're still trying to learn to win. Um we've been we've been doing a good job. A week by week we've been improving. And UM, I think that win will come pretty soon. So once it, once it come, a thin get the rust off back and we get we get that that bit of taste out of our mouth and we will know that winn and fielding this belt. So we think once we get that first win at lead

a multiple win so the other team. But we talented. I mean, I love to win this fruture. Our fruture looks for us. I mean it's right now. We'll be struggling about that in the day next year. I think it's future bright, you know you. Brian Flores came in. He talked about discipline, He talked about doing the little things, doing your job, small details, and and early on it looked like that, you know that the message maybe wasn't getting through. But now you look at it. You know,

the pre snap penalties are down, mistakes are down. You know, guys are guys are doing the right things on the field. Uh, And it looks like his fingerprint is all over this team. Now do you like the message that he delivers to you, and the and the and the demands that he has for you, guys? I mean he, I mean, his his own philosophy is pretty simple. You know, you go out there and just follow his rules and men, it ain't

too hard. You know, he wants to be a disciminate team and that's something I think that's we were gaining, were gaining that his trust and that we we allowed him to control this team, and we followed his lead and be able to own control the penalties pre snap penalties and not get false stars, and we just we just learned how to build that winning culture. We're just trying to get over that little hump. So even though the small details about the penalties Preestnalis, I think that

went very much down. And it was the first few weeks you talked about, you know, going through these struggles and knowing that there's there's a wind come around the corner somewhere. Does that that weight in that expectation from outside sources? Does that does that we're on you a little bit, even family friends. Forget about newspapers and radio and all that type of thing, but just just from

the from from the people you're closely associated with. I mean, I try to not let that botherment nothing, because I know what's in this building. I mean, what we got in this building. And and and then then they whatever the outside they can say, whatever the family can say, whatever what we need to do to better, Uh, I mean I can know only control. We can control and that's what that's what we we got these fifty three man's in this room, man in that meeting room, and

and that in that locker room. I mean I trust them, guys in them, and I know they trust me. We trust each other, and sooner or later we're gonna put it off. I can't really about what the outside to think about this team. Typically on a on a home game, extra tickets coming your way on home games. Now I try to stay I sorry to keep it less out of it, less than five. You know, if if everybody can't everybody can't come to every game, you don't understand.

You know, if people don't understand the tickets aren't free, you gotta pay some tickets, and they think it's called people want tickets from and go. You know, I gotta get, I gotta, I gotta, I gotta have a game check left game check. I mean my family, I mean, they pretty understand about it. You know, they try to um come to the games when they get when they can come on their own town. But sometimes I'll try to

get I try to switch it around. Gets free tickets to certain people, then the next week, get a free tickets to the next group of guy. But man, my family're pretty pretty straightful. They they don't bother me too much about tickets. Yeah, since you've been if you had a chance to go see a football game, book or tea football game. I've been in through football games and

it's glad to see them guys on winning. But you know, we we started off very slow, but I think we didn't playoffs, so we're gonna we're gonna get it going well. Dad County, I mean that's a there's you look at Dade County and those teams that are down there, it's a it's a it's a dog fighting every week. Definitely. Pal keeps them going, keep keeps singing there in central Northwest City. Yeah, it's always been been like that all

the time since you were there. Oh yeah, it's been a brutal been in brutal city in interaction with each other, with them teams, but it's all it's all fun and love again, love of the game. But then I think we still running Day County book. Yeah, well, I'm sure there's I'm sure there'd be some arguments there, but you certainly have a pretty good argument for for what you've done over there for the years and what that program has been all about. Appreciate you spending some time with us.

Wish you the best, stay healthy and keep pounding the rock man, that's and know what you like to do. Appreciate you all, Thank you, appreciate it, Thank you all right, Mark Walton, And uh, well, I tell you, you know, I envy the handful of guys who had been able to do this John to play high school football, college football and play in the NFL in the town you grow up in. It's pretty cool and that that to

me is a really really cool experience. Yes, it feels so fortunate because, uh, you know, the rough path that Mark Walton has taken to be able to become the number one running back in the National Football League for for a team in two thousand nineteen, he probably didn't see himself, uh having that opportunity, and he's really taken advantage of it all. All I see him do is work extremely hard at his craft, take really good coaching, um,

and also be productive with that opportunity. You know, the guy looks fresh, and the guy makes yards when it doesn't seem like there's a whole lot of yards to be made, and he looks explosive once he gets to that second level. So I'm so happy that Mark Waldon is a part of this football team, and hopefully he's part of this team for uh, you know, the near future. The guys we talked about being core young core guys, and Mark Walton looks like he could be one of

those guys. And funny, I, you know, when I haven't told this story much, but I came when I when I came out in the draft, I I you know, I grew up in the Bay Area. You know, I was on the bottom of the Bay Area in San Jose and Oakland's on one side, in San Francisco's on the other side. And you know, you grew up in an area like that, you're the forty Niner fan, you're

a Raider fan, right one or the other. And uh, I was kind of more of a forty Niner fan, but always watched the Raiders because the Raiders were the Raiders at that time, you know, and and they were fun to watch. And so my my draft here, the Raiders didn't have a a first round pick, they had a second round pick, was their highest pick, and so I get drafted by the Dolphins. I was nineteenth player and nineteenth pick in the first round by the Dolphins.

And and and I'm just a thrilled about come in Miami because kids from northern California the places I didn't want to go, Buffalo, Green Bay, you know, Baltimore is a pretty good team at the time. And so uh so,

so I get drafted. Two days after the draft, I get a call from from my agent and he says, hey, says, uh, you know, All Davis called because he he had done a deal with the Raiders moving Ted Kaual like a tight end over from the forty niners to the Raiders in a trade, so he hadn't be built a relationship with that with Al Davis. So he calls me and he said, hey, I got some news raiser when he was Al Davis wants you to play for the Raiders, he I said, And I said, I said, man, that

that'd be pretty nice. I said, you know, so I could do the same thing, you know, high school college football, all in the same town. I said, yeah, that'd be great. I go, I go, yeah, I'm I'm for that. And he goes, he goes, Okay, here's what you gotta do. I go, what said? He goes, you gotta call coach Shula and tell him I don't want to play for you in the Miami Dolphins. And I said, what what he says, Yeah, just call him and say, hey, look,

I appreciate I appreciate you drafting me. I thought about it. I don't want to play for the Dolphins, you know, I I just don't want to play. And tell me when you hang up the phone, and I said, I said, I. I said, are you freaking crazy? You think I'm a coming to the league, into this league? And and you know at the time, I'm coming from San Jose State. I've been to cook two different colleges. I'm just happy to be Hey, I'm just happy to have an invitation.

I'm happy to have a plane ticket. That problem is, it was like thirty years behind. And I said, there is no way in hell I'm gonna be that guy coming out of college. No one knew me anyway. You know, it's not like you know Leroy seven was the first pick of not like Leroy Selmon saying I don't want to go to I'm gonna go somewhere else. But that's final le Roight, where do you want to go? Me?

Going out? No, I said no, no, no, no, that's what that That ended that conversation, and really quick he said you sure, I said, I'm it was a really good thought. I appreciate the thought, but thanks, but no thanks. Can you imagine that happens, right, and you you make the call to coach and then and then it doesn't happen, right, you gotta come back to Miami after making that. Well, first of all, you know, and I didn't know Coachula

at the time. The only time I've spoken to him as went on draft drafted and he say, you know, be here Thursday. We got the twelve minute run about the most he said to me. But having having played for for Coach Schuler for ten years afterwards, I couldn't imagine what what he would have said. And and I might have shipped my pants on the phone. You're right at that moment, if if actually actually you probably could

imagine what he would have said. I could imagine. I can imagine very well, because I heard he said some stuff to me with with with a lot of less things that could have been worse than that. And you were playing for him at a high level. Oh my god, I think I think about that sometimes and saying, man, what, oh, I couldn't imagine what that have been like. But it

was an opportunity and it was and Mark's fortunate. I mean, really, you look at guys like that that are uh, you know, so fortunate to be able to do that, and you think about same probably the same situation with Dan Reno growing up in in Oakland, p A. Playing high school at Central Catholic and then the Steelers and going to pit and then the Steelers had an opportunity, you know, to take him. You have thought that would have been perfect, you know, but glad it didn't work out. Didn't work out.

Glad it didn't work out for them, and it was good to have him. But but but you know, it's funny because Danny was up in in Pittsburgh. I know your daughter Cash was up for the game too, you're a pitt guy, and and uh so he's you know, I know Danny went up early, and you know, he's always

always fun for him to go back up there. I'm sure that he saw so many people and family and friends and and it's great, you know, it's it's such a it's such a cool town, especially when you get a day at like you know, Monday, and it wasn't real cold, it wasn't windy and nasty and raining. And then maybe on Saturday it was, but Monday was perfect. You know. It's funny, John, you spent a lot of time in Pittsburgh. Um, you know me, I didn't the first time I went to Pittsburgh's the first time when

I'm played. Um. But but you know, Pittsburgh one of those teams, you know, still Mills steel mill team. And that's whether steelers in in a in an industrial town when when industry hit took a big hit, uh, in the you know, in the in the sixties, seventies and eighties, you know, going out of business and then you look at you go to downtown Buffalo and you can see the remnants of what that city was. You know, Buffalo is.

It's still a great place and it's still there. They've they've survived and and you know, but but those those industrial cities that lost that that heart of what they were, the jobs and all that stuff. And then and then he just kind of crumbled. But you know, we we went to a restaurant on on Saturday night, was up up that up there Washington Mount Washington, and the first time I've been up there big and you look down over that city and it is it's an absolutely beautiful,

beautiful city. And what they've done and how they've been able to um reinvent themselves as a as a city, banks, all those types of things, a lot of business in there, and you know, I can see why people that come from Pittsburgh, that grew up in Pittsburgh, well just just their their roots run deep there and and no matter where they're at, they're still Pittsburgh people. Yeah, you see them, and all you have to do is listen for the

accent and a couple of words. It's funny that that you say that, but you know, it really reinvented itself in the health care industry too with u p MC and and you know, uh, it's just unbelievable the job opportunities with the university and and with business, and it seems like it's branched out. It's just not the city now. They have so many different you know, Ducaine's there, they got they've got a number of numbers, a number of colleges, versities.

Really really downtown, really impressed by, uh by Pittsburgh. And and all was about and then and then the game started well, then then the second quarter started and then

the kind of went downhill. It was, you know, it was encouraging to see the team go on the road Monday night, big stage, all the eyes are on you and and play a half that you felt like, wow, that was you know, just replicate that you're in for a four quarter games and John those those things too, even even that and then you know, talking to coach Floras after the game and uh, you know, and he talked about, you know, the stage wasn't too big for these guys, and they came out it was it was

a tough crowd to begin with. They shut the crowd down. Things didn't work out the way they wanted the second half, but you know, it wasn't too big for him. And that's all steps and in growth for a young football team to play in those you know, they fortunately think one prime time game Monday night, you know, you get a little a little taste of it. So the next time you get in it, uh, you know, you know

what it's all about. And and this football team, you know, down the road, they're gonna play in a lot of money night football games. If things work out the way the way it's expecting the way I think it's gonna work out for this team. They're gonna find themselves in all those prime time games, and a lot of these guys that are here right now, we're gonna play in

some of those games. So the more optics exposure, the more reps you get in those situations, Like anything else, no matter what you do have, the more reps you get, the better you get at it. And I think that's gonna gonna pay dividends for some of these young guys long the way. I sure hope. So you know, you we talked about a few of the names that were, you know, on this roster now that you hope that

are gonna stay on this roster. You know, a guy like Christian Wilkins that gets his first exposure, you know, at a Monday night football game, a number one draft choice to the Miami Dolphins, and you're hoping that he's he's playing on a defense that has Jerome Baker and Vince Beagle and and and ray Kwon McMillan and and guys like that that are in von Gottcha that that are gonna be around this this team, in this franchise for a long time, no doubt. All Right, that's gonna

do it. So it's uh, it's the Miami Dolphins and the New York Jets come to Town hard Rock Stadium on Sunday one o'clock, and uh, John's gonna be a really good opportunity for his football team. And it's gonna be Uh, it's gonna be a little surreal, it is, you know, with with with everything that's gone on in the last couple of years and what's going on now and and and seeing you know, coach Gaye coming back

on the staff line and the staff. Yeah, a bunch of that staff, Jefferson, a bunch of those guys were here, and uh, it'll be a little bit like old handshake, got a handshake, but uh but it's gonna be a good It's gonna be a good game. And uh, well I just I just you know, it's for some reason, I got a feeling this this may be this may be the Sunday that, uh, that these guys get to hoop it up a little hope. So they deserve it. They've been working hard and they're they're getting close. Hopefully

this is the one they kick in. And we'd like to thank Microsoft Surface for sponsoring the audible. Here with us and uh we'll catch you guys next week. Look us up. We'll be out on Thursday. Take easy, m