Top Quotes – McDaniel, Tagovailoa Reflect on Historic Home Opener, Turn Focus to Buffalo

The Miami Dolphins are 3-0 for the second straight season under head Coach Mike McDaniel.

After two road wins and a record-setting 70-20 victory over Denver in the team’s home opener, the Dolphins know what they’re capable of.

They also know that a big test is looming, a road matchup against the Buffalo Bills.

Here’s what Head Coach Mike McDaniel, quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and several other players said throughout the week as the team recapped its Week 3 win and re-focused to a talented Week 4 opponent:

Reflecting on a Historic Home Opener

HC Mike McDaniel

(On looking for things to improve on when there are so many obvious positives in a game) – “I think it’s more of how, okay, how did you have that performance? One thing that is obvious to myself, to the coaching staff and to the players is that that was earned through deliberate practice, and that you’re not able to have success in the National Football League any other way. So there was plenty of things that we could detail from a technique standpoint. We had a lot of really good results, but that doesn’t mean that from a technique standpoint, you let off the gas. And if you want a feeling, not necessarily that exact feeling, because those are rare to have those opportunities, but if you want a feeling of success that you started to get used to, there’s no shortcuts.”

QB Tua Tagovailoa

(On the last time he had this much fun playing football) – “It was probably in college, probably in college. It’s hard in this league to do good things because guys on the other side are really good as well. They study and they’re really good. But it’s been a lot of fun, that’s for sure this year.”

OL Austin Jackson

(On a record-setting performance by RB De’Von Achane and RB Raheem Mostert) – “We take a lot of pride in that. It’s something I’m really thankful for. It’s encouraging and encourages us to get better because at the end of the day, it’s only Week 3. We have a long season left and to kind of understand what good we put on tape this last week, we can take that with us the rest of the season. That’s probably like the biggest part of it. In terms of for the backs, I’m happy as hell for those backs. That’s a great stat sheet for the game.”

WR Tyreek Hill

(On RB Devon Achane’s play against Denver) – “That’s crazy, for him to be able to come out first game of the year for him and to win (AFC Offensive Player) of the Week is crazy, so shoutout to him. I know he’s going to continue to improve and get better each and every week so the sky’s the limit for him.”

Always In Motion

QB Tua Tagovailoa

(On the intricacies of the offense and its pre-snap motions) – “Like I said, that’s something that we’ve been working on this entire offseason, starting in OTAs. We’ve had our goals of what we wanted to achieve this offseason as an offense and how we wanted to operate, and that was one of the biggest ones. So it’s no surprise to me. It’s no surprise to our guys on the offensive side of the ball. And we’re continuing to work. It’s not something that’s perfect. That’s why you have practice and you got to continue to rep it.”

WR Tyreek Hill

(On his constant movement within the offense) – “It’s just coaches giving me the freedom to just play with the offense a little bit and I’m just having fun with it. And each and every day at practice, I’m just enjoying it, finding small nuances where I can get better and I’m loving it each and every day.”

Another Opportunity on the Road

HC Mike McDaniel

(On the challenges Buffalo present) – “They are playing some high-level football themselves and that draws enough of your attention to the different teams from a season ago. I think they’re individually, from a player-to-player perspective, there’s probably some internal grudge matches that go on that are natural to football. But by and large, I have no doubt that our locker room is going to give them their due respect that they’re earning through their play. And you always know that to even be in the conversation of having a win in Orchard Park, you have to be hitting on all cylinders. So our guys will be focused on that because the challenge is awesome and most difficult, which is the way we’d want it, I think.”

OL Austin Jackson

(On the facing a talented Bills team) – “The challenge in front of us, obviously Buffalo is a great team, great defense. They’ve been ranking pretty high every year since I’ve been in the NFL. I think our biggest challenge is our preparation for the week and being consistent in our standard. We’re going to have different things to study about them that they do well. And in terms for us, we have things that we didn’t do so well at, that we need to get better at going into this week. So it’s a perfect balance to just continuing to put the work in that we have been doing on a consistent basis.”