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Kelly: Dolphins can point to several examples of a changed culture

datruth55

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I know it's Omar Kelly and normally I wouldn't post this here but this is actually a pretty good article. Try to look past who wrote it lol.

Members of the Miami Dolphins point to different moments when they realized the culture change within the team.

"The feeling started a long time ago," defensive end Cameron Wake said after Miami's 31-24 come-from-behind victory in San Diego on Nov. 13.

That win over the Chargers was the game that right tackle Ja'Wuan James realized his team had finally become a resilient one.

"It was the play when Jakeem [Grant] dropped the punt against San Diego, and the first thing [defensive tackle] Jordan Phillips said was, 'This is [a situation] the defense loves to be in. We get to stop them and look good,'" James recalls.

Most years, that blunder would be the "That's so Dolphins" moment, the one where the game slips through the team's hands.

But Tony Lippett intercepted a pass in the end zone, stopping San Diego's scoring threat. Then Byron Maxwell's interception ended another, and linebacker Kiko Alonso followed it up with a game-sealing pick-six.

"In the past something would happen like that and I'd think, 'Damn, game over!'" James said. "When I saw Kiko get that interception, I realized we really do have something special."

Quarterback Ryan Tannehill says the players now have a collective belief in one another, as opposed to different factions on the team, which has been a struggle for the Dolphins to establish over the past few years for various reasons.

"There has been a few games [this season] we've been down 10-plus points and on the sidelines you can't tell we're down. There is a sense of urgency, but no panic. No stress," Tannehill said. "This team finds a way to win, and that's what you want."

If you ask tailback Damien Williams, the Dolphins' 14-10 comeback win over the Los Angeles Rams provided all the evidence he needed to conclude that a culture change had finally occurred.

"We were down the whole game. Flags weren't going our way and everything was going downhill, but you could never tell," Williams said. "I loved the guys I was playing with my first and second year, but in those situations guys would quit.

"I'm usually the guy running up on people and cheering them on to lift their confidence. I'm always going to be that guy, but that game I didn't have to say nothing," Williams continued. "You could feel it. It felt like we weren't losing even though we were."

The Dolphins went on to score two touchdowns in the game's final five minutes to seal their come-from-behind win.

"Guys are buying in, making sure we trust in one another," said Wake, who since joining the Dolphins in 2009 has never been part of a winning season. "They keep fighting. No panic. They keep going after it, and guys kept playing for the full 60 minutes."

Offensive tackle Branden Albert, whose unit triggered Miami's resurgence when the Dolphins established a physical rushing attack, gives all the credit to first-year coach Adam Gase, because he "treats us like men."

"He listens to us," said Albert, a ninth-year veteran. "A lot of coaches think they're smarter than the players. But we're the ones that's out there."

Gase isn't letting the inmates run the asylum, however. He's a straight-shooter who has been firm, like when he left tailback Jay Ajayi home for the season opener for having a poor attitude after Ajayi didn't win the starting job.

When he released offensive linemen Billy Turner, Dallas Thomas and Jamil Douglas because of their struggles in losses to Cincinnati and Tennessee, it served as a warning to the entire team, reminding players that their jobs weren't guaranteed.

And if high-priced newcomers like Maxwell and Mario Williams could get benched, anyone could.

Gase has also let the players be themselves. He encourages them to show their personality, and that's most evident in how he treats Jarvis Landry, an emotional receiver who plays with an edge.

Gase calls Landry Miami's tone-setter because the entire team feeds off his relentless effort and fiery personality.

He personifies the fighting spirit the Dolphins have adopted.

"Gase came in, and he's trying to establish a culture here, a winning culture. When you go into games not hoping to win, but expecting to win, it breeds another type of confidence through the guys that take the field," Landry said. "We're definitely extremely confident and motivated right now."
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/miami-dolphins/fl-dolphins-kelly-column-1130-20161129-story.html
 
Thanks, I was about to post this too for the quote about Phillips, which was really cool to hear.... glad i saw your thread instead of double posting like a J/A.....

" Jordan Phillips said was, 'This is [a situation] the defense loves to be in. We get to stop them and look good,'" James recalls."


..and the Williams quote, which is easy to say in hindsight, but still telling

"I loved the guys I was playing with my first and second year, but in those situations guys would quit.

yikes...
 
Wow Great read, that Williams quote pretty much sums up the Philbin era.
 
No way they don't resign Jarvis Landry. It's foolish to think they won't.


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Offensive tackle Branden Albert, whose unit triggered Miami's resurgence when the Dolphins established a physical rushing attack, gives all the credit to first-year coach Adam Gase, because he "treats us like men."

"He listens to us," said Albert, a ninth-year veteran. "A lot of coaches think they're smarter than the players. But we're the ones that's out there."

Gase isn't letting the inmates run the asylum, however. He's a straight-shooter who has been firm, like when he left tailback Jay Ajayi home for the season opener for having a poor attitude after Ajayi didn't win the starting job.

Imagine that....players will respect a man who is firm, tells them what they need to improve on, is willing to bench them, but is also able to take their advice and willing to give them a second chance. It is almost the exact opposite of Philbin.
 
They won't let Jarvis walk. I can't even think about that right now I would cry
 
Thanks, I was about to post this too for the quote about Phillips, which was really cool to hear.... glad i saw your thread instead of double posting like a J/A.....




..and the Williams quote, which is easy to say in hindsight, but still telling



yikes...

I think this kinda proves the culture change here. In the trade cam thread, electrolyte or however he spells it, was saying culture stuff is BS. This proves its not!
 
Imagine that....players will respect a man who is firm, tells them what they need to improve on, is willing to bench them, but is also able to take their advice and willing to give them a second chance. It is almost the exact opposite of Philbin.

It is the exact opposite of Philbin.

You can kind of see how different coaches have influenced Gase but at the same time he seems very much his own man. Normally pass happy (something he learned from Martz no doubt) but realizing with a, not so great pass blocking O-line, he needs to run the ball and be physical. That's something Martz would never do...wasn't the QB in Detroit sacked 64 times or something like that in that 0-16 season...Martz was the HC then, right? He's hard like Saban but not cold and emotionally bankrupt like Saban. Saban is also conservative, run first and win with your defense mentality where Gase wants to win with the offense and be aggressive. Straight shooter and patient with his players like Fox. Gase also seems to be able to motivate the players in different ways.

His demeanor might be the most impressive quality so far.
 
No, Martz wasn't the coach in Detroit then. I'm blanking on his name- former Dline coach of Tampa Bay, I think he's Dallas's D coordinator now.
I don't think Saban is run first. He likes to run, but if you watch Alabama, they sure do throw it around when they got a guy to do it.
 
No, Martz wasn't the coach in Detroit then. I'm blanking on his name- former Dline coach of Tampa Bay, I think he's Dallas's D coordinator now.
I don't think Saban is run first. He likes to run, but if you watch Alabama, they sure do throw it around when they got a guy to do it.

Maranelli? (sp?)
 
Is it possible that the influence of Gase's culture change is so powerful that it could actually make Omar a real sports "journalist?" Maybe being repeatedly and directly exposed by Gase will embarrass him into actually reporting things instead of just editorializing based on his assaholic opinions.

I'm just theorizing as I would not know if there has been a change or not. This is the only work I've read of his in a long time.
 
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"We were down the whole game. Flags weren't going our way and everything was going downhill, but you could never tell," Williams said. "I loved the guys I was playing with my first and second year, but in those situations guys would quit."

I mean, you knew it happened, you could see it happening, but damn. Guys don't usually just come right out and say it like that.
 
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