Mike McDaniel addresses Dolphins LB’s ‘soft’ label on team after cold-weather struggles
Mike McDaniel believes Jordyn Brooks was expressing his frustration over the poor performance of their defense.
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Mike McDaniel and Jordyn Brooks (Image Credits: L-via IMAGO, R-via Open Source)
The Miami Dolphins are accustomed to playing in the warmth and comfort of Florida. It comes as no surprise that the team underperforms when required they face opponents in environments in cold temperatures. Tua Tagoaviloa is 0-8 when playing in sub-45-degree temperatures.
The team’s recent loss against the Green Bay Packers was disheartening and after the game, linebacker Jordyn Brooks came out and took a shot at his team. He was unhappy with the team’s performance in the 30-17 loss to the Packers.
Simple as that, I thought we were soft today. I don’t know if guys was too cold…I don’t know what it was. I feel like the elements played a part in how we played as a group, and that was the result that we got.
Jordyn Brooks said post-game
The linebacker acknowledged that the extreme weather conditions played a part in the loss but in addition to that, a lack of solid effort on their part played a part too.
Mike McDaniel believes Jordyn Brooks was referring to the team’s shortcomings in tackling
Head Coach Mike McDaniel did not see Brooks’ comments as being disrespectful towards his team. He responded to his statement in his press conference yesterday via Pro Football Talk.
The head coach believes the linebacker was talking about the bad performance of the defense and their failure to make solid tackles.
I think specifically what Jordyn was talking about, I think that has to do with the tackling or the lack thereof. So much of the production over 100-some odd yards for them offensively was as a result of tackling, and I think that was a collective issue. It’s two-fold really.
Mike McDaniel said
The Dolphins were quite literally cold when it came to making tackles on Thursday. As per Pro Football Focus, the team missed out on making 23 tackles.
That is a concerning number, one that cost them the game. The Dolphins had missed 23 tackles in the three weeks leading up to the Week 13 matchup. Mike McDaniel believes Jordyn Brooks took out his frustration on the team’s lack of effort in tackling.
The #Dolphins defense missed 23 tackles last night. They missed 23 the last 3 weeks combined prior to that #GoFins
— Ryan Smith (@PFF_RyanSmith) November 29, 2024
The head coach added his criticism and believed that their tackling needs to get better.
I saw a consistent failure of tacklers to bring their feet through the tackle, just picture diving and leaving your feet to try to wrap up, as opposed to bringing your feet through the tackle which is our No. 1 fundamental emphasis when we do that. Whether that was because of the cold or the short week, either way both things are consistent with the opponent; the opponent has a short week and the opponent is playing in that weather.
Mike McDaniel added
He believed the weather conditions added to their woes of having a short recovery time heading into Thursday’s game. However, the team’s compromise on fundamentals while tackling was unacceptable and is an aspect they will look to work on as they head into the final stretch of the season.
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Sumedh Joshi
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