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This week, the NFL’s owners and head coaches are meeting in Florida at the annual NFL league meetings to discuss the upcoming 2022 season.
Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel is there for the first time in his football career. And it just so happened to come days after the team pulled off a blockbuster trade for Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Tyreek Hill.
Oh, and they also signed the top free agent on the market in left tackle Terron Armstead.
So, of course, there were tons of questions to be asked.
Here’s everything we learned from Mike McDaniel’s press conference.
Teddy Bridgewater is QB2
First, let me start by saying no one should think that Teddy Bridgewater is a better quarterback than Tua Tagovailoa because he’s not.
Teddy was always brought in to be the team’s backup and a clear upgrade over Jacoby Brissett. He is a veteran player that can help Tagovailoa take his game to the next level and, IF called upon, can spin the ball pretty well.
The confusing part of this came when Teddy Bridgewater spoke with the South Florida media. I was on the call, and my takeaway—whether I thought he stood a chance or not—was, wow, they’re going to make this a competition. But come to find out, Bridgewater was answering the question perfectly.
teddy on his role with the dolphins: "honestly, man that's a conversation i'd rather keep in house. it's a unique opportunity for me, for this organization. i'm happy to be a part of that this season. i'm going to be the best version of teddy i can be. "
— josh houtz (@houtz) March 21, 2022
twitter gonna explode
So, will there be a QB competition in Miami Gardens!?!
The answer is no.
This is not a quarterback competition, and that’s straight from the horse’s mouth.
Mike McDaniel says Teddy Bridgewater will support Tua as the backup quarterback. It’s been explicitly explained to the players, Mike says.
— Joe Schad (@schadjoe) March 28, 2022
Tyreek Hill is going to have his own unique role in Miami.
We heard Drew Rosenhaus and Tyreek Hill mention Deebo Samuel’s role in San Francisco as something that was enticing about the Dolphins—even if we do realize it was the $$$ that ultimately talked.
Nevertheless, Mike McDaniel says there will be overlap in how the Dolphins use Tyreek Hill, but we can all expect the cheetah to grow into his role with the team.
Mike McDaniel says Tyreek Hill and Deebo Hill are both exceptional with the ball in their hands. Some overlap in usage strategy but Deebo evolved into his role. Tyreek will grow into his Dolphins role.
— Joe Schad (@schadjoe) March 28, 2022
Coach says Tyreek Hill is excited about his opportunity to lead and help develop a young WR room
— Travis Wingfield (@WingfieldNFL) March 28, 2022
Coach says it takes a village to pull off a move like the Tyreek Hill trade. Gives credit to Chris Grier, Brandon Shore and the entire front office. Says there were some daps that went around after it was official.
— Travis Wingfield (@WingfieldNFL) March 28, 2022
Mike McDaniel says he got some daps and a few high fives and low fives too from NFL folks at the league meetings in reaction to the Dolphins’ moves
— Joe Schad (@schadjoe) March 28, 2022
Tyreek Hill + Jaylen Waddle is going to be an extremely deadly tandem. #InTuaWeTrust
Mike McDaniel reunites with Raheem Mostert
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McDaniel says the Mostert signing wasn't something he forecasted coming into the process, but once it came across their radar as a possibility they acted quickly.
— Travis Wingfield (@WingfieldNFL) March 28, 2022
My affinity for Raheem is real. We both have been counted out at some point and earned what we’ve gotten. - Mike McDaniel on Mostert.
— Joe Schad (@schadjoe) March 28, 2022
Raheem Mostert told fans a few days ago that they got a special player. McDaniel seems to think similarly—and if healthy—Mostert could be in for one of the best years of his career.
Here’s a look at every touchdown from Raheem Mostert’s NFL Career.
Terron Armstead will play left tackle, but there will be an open competition for the other four offensive line positions.
Coach says that Terron Armstead will for sure be your LT, but it wouldn't be fair to the players to try to outline exactly who's playing where right now. He mentions the strength of a lot of players in the group is their versatility.
— Travis Wingfield (@WingfieldNFL) March 28, 2022
This competition doesn’t really come as a surprise to me. After all, versatility is the word most thrown around when describing a majority of the young players on Miami’s offensive line. Here’s how the players are listed on Miami’s official website. (This tweet was before the Terron Armstead signing)
here’s the #dolphins current group of OL & how they’re defined on the official site.
— josh houtz (@houtz) March 18, 2022
rob jones G
kindley G
jesse davis G/T
robert hunt G/T
austin jackson G/T
michael deiter C/G
larnel coleman T
eichenberg T
greg little T
pankey T
kion smith T
connor williams OL
can’t find NETO
Miami needs to figure out who will play center and who will start at right tackle. I still think Robert Hunt would be more than good at RT, but I like what he’s done at guard and don’t think you should mess with that.
The team has also reportedly said they like the prospect of Austin Jackson at right tackle, and Liam Eichenberg would be a fit there as well. Greg Little is still on the roster and there are some other players looking to do battle.
As for center, I’m not totally against Michael Deiter being the team’s starting center, but I think they need to do whatever they can to upgrade that position. Yes, J.C Tretter would be nice and I know we all had our eyes set on one of the draft’s top centers, but as of now, we have to work with what we have.
LT LG C RG RT
Terron Armstead/Connor Williams/Michael Deiter/Robert Hunt/Liam Eichenberg
One thing is for certain; it’s going to be an all-out war in training camp!
Tom Brady will not be the Miami Dolphins starting quarterback in 2022
Some rumors circulated over the weekend that the Dolphins could be working on a trade to acquire their former arch-nemesis, Tom Brady. HC Mike McDaniel shut down those reports.
Mike McDaniel says reports connecting Tom Brady to Dolphins are fake news
— Joe Schad (@schadjoe) March 28, 2022
And this should surprise no one. After all, if TB12 were ever to be the QB of the Miami Dolphins. It would likely come in 2023 when Brady is set to be a free agent. Or maybe, he will become a Dolphins’ minority owner as so many have expected.
*eye emojis*
Here’s the full Mike McDaniel interview from the NFL’s annual meeting.
Special thanks to Travis Wingfield and Joe Schad for the assist!
What are your main takeaways from Mike McDaniel’s press conference? How do you feel about the Miami Dolphins heading into the 2022 NFL Season? Let us know in the comments section below!
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