Drive Time with Travis WingfieldDrive Time: The Kendall Fuller and Shaq Barrett Episode
To on the move, going Dude, Speedways, Peas do, Peas Do From the Baptist Health Studios inside the Baptist Health Training Complex.
This is Drivetime with Travis Wingfield.
He's good my ad hands in the playoffs?
What is up Dolphins? And welcome to the Drive Time Podcast. I am your host, Travis Wingfield. And on today's show, we continue rolling on with our free agent chats, getting to know these guys and breaking down their games. And this might be my favorite episode of all of them, because I think my favorite interview of all time exists on this one. Shack Barrett joins me today and Kendall Fuller and he was very good in his own right as well. We'll break down their games, talk to beat writers from their past team, and get to know the guys a little bit deeper, and of course break down their film from the Baptist Health Studios inside the Baptist Health Training Complex.
This is.
The Drive Time Podcast. Let's kick it off today with my interview with new Dolphins outside linebacker Shack Barrett. Welcoming in new Dolphins linebacker Shack Barrett to the podcast here, Shack, Welcome to South Florida.
Man who dang I'm tripping. Yeah, yeah, I'm excited. I'm excited. Thanks thanks for having me.
Of course I wrote my notes here. You made that. I put my notes here. A three hour trek across Alligator Alley from Tampa to Miami, and our comms guy right over there said, you can get there in three hours? How long does it take to get from here to Tampa?
Made when the hurricane came a little bit of a couple of my team used to the drive down.
Yes, it was way.
More than Yeah, it depends on traffic out there, but it's it can go pretty fast as well. But just I'm just curious. You're staying in the sun, in the sunshine stay. You must like it here a little bit.
Oh yeah, yeah, this is a great sect a home for us, home home. I always want to be Colorado, But I don't think you can compete with this as a second home.
Like, they don't get no better than us.
The weather always is the first thing guys talk about. How about the football though? What really attracted you to the Miami Dolphins in this freegency process?
They have a great team down here, and then, like I know in my position, is some guys coming off with injury and they some really good pass rush is really just good players in general. So for me to becoming as old a guy help them guys out a little bit and just to provide a little spark for when they need a break or just a spark for until they come back, I think I could help out with that. And I just I just like the potential of being a super Bowl champion. I think this team has that potential for show.
I get the cents. You're gonna fit right in with Jalen and Brodley because they kind of have a really close bond. Have you got a chance to meet those two guys here I talk to them at all?
Yeah, I talked to for a little bit that they I agreed to come down here. Mitchebb have a relationship from Denver. We was in Denver to gather a full year. But I haven't talked to Jalen at all yet, but I'm looking forward to it. I know they great guys on the field, and I know Chubb is a great guy the field, so him and Phillips having a great relationship, so he must be too, right.
We missed him sorely when they went down last year. What's it seems like recently, the NFL teams have gone more towards like three top line really good pass rushers. Why do you think it's so important to have not just two guys that can go out there on any given snap, but three four good pass.
Rushers because you can't play every player.
No matter what the type of shape you win, you're gonna get tied out there for sure.
And I have somebody that coming in.
Then the plays stayed pretty much the same as important to be able to get pressure on that quarterback. You don't want the quarterback being back there holding the ball for more than what three seconds?
Usually this two point five, two point.
Four, so they holding it for three of course, somebody gonna get open in that amount of time. Corners can't cover forever and no no matter how good they are. So if you could get pressure on the quarterback, you can almost guarantee that you have a.
Chance to win in that game.
Run game too, right, Both those guys play a lot of good rundown reps. I know that your tape has plenty of good run defense. I see you set these hard edges mount on tape all the time. What's the key to coming out there and playing really good hard edge on the defensive side of the ball.
I think of it as I supposed to do that.
I'm already I'm already outside of you about like a yard and a half two yards. So if I fire off the ball and just meet you at this point, I should be able to keep you like at bay and keep my outside on free and don't let nothing outside. So I think of it there. It's just like I'm already outside. I better not get beat outside. Like if I get beat outside, I know it happened once, sorry blue moon, Like I should never get beat outside at least like not maybe once every blue moone, but.
No more than that.
That's when you get caught out in the all twenty two. If you're the next day on tape right when you're giving out that outside, you shoulder and get bet on the outside. Ed, you can't have that.
Sometimes I take a chance and I might go inside to try to get back out. Now I might get beat that way, but like head up, straight up, you shouldn't. Like just basically like if you outside, don't lose the outside.
Right. So I've heard the phrase before, play the run on the way to the quarterback. Are you familiar with that? And what does that mean to you?
You'm familiar with that, and it's not too often that I was able to do that. It's some games when we're like, yeah, we know the team's playing, like, yeah, you you play the play to run on a wheel quarterback. So it means your first two steps you go in the pass rush and then if you see your god come for a run block, then you sit down and you keep the ads and do your responsibility after that.
But planning to run on the way to the past means.
Get after the court, right, like we like, we know they run a little bit, but we don't have to worry about that too much. And if we do got to worry about it, you could do a three steps up the field and still be able to get your job done. So I love planning to run on the way to the past because it's in my ears.
Back that's whatever it pass with your loves, right, I mean, it sounds like it's so reactive and so tough to do to be that quick thinking. And you're entering you're eleven. Now that must sound crazy to you, right, you're a number eleven. But is that something you kind of learned along the way The fast thinking of the position.
Yeah, it takes time just to get comfortable and gnawing the keys and reading and reacting to everything that you see and trusting what you see. That's a big thing to trusting because some guys see it, but they don't like trusting their instincts as much.
So just just.
Playing for a while, I got to see a lot of different sets. It's not too many different sets you could get, so it's now I could pretty much gauge what I'm gonna get off for like the first of second step, and then I can react off of that.
But it's been a blessing to be here going on to eleven years.
Yeah, but it's been fun talking football here. I want to keep going because I'm curious about your pass rush arsenal. You know, guys have different moves they add to their arsenal of the course of their career. How has your being in the league for ten years helped you stretch that arsenal and just have more answers when offensive tackles have different answers for you.
Yeah, it's been amazing to be with the certain guys that I've been with the learn from them guys because I came into the NFL with two pass rush moves, I can't with a double swipe and a bull rush. So I was definitely elaborated off of the moves a lot.
And now I have.
A wide of where your tools in my toolbox now because it's always good because you don't know what guys you're going to get to each week, and so you got to watch film on them and you got to see what beat them guys, and then you got to have your version of that move to be them, plus to get bred and butter moves as well. So I always try to like just study feeling like, see what guys did against the it I'm going against next, and try to see if I got.
That tool in my toolbox. If not, like put my version of that tool in there.
Do you feel like that experience and that skill set is something you can impart on the younger guys Like I know Jilen Phillips has a bunch of SAXS employees in his career, but he's still a young guy. Is that something you can think you can impart on a guy like JP?
Oh yeah, long, Like like every room I've been in, we always been open books, like no matter what it is, like, if you see something I like, ask men, I'll show you how to do it. I see something you like, you could show me how to do it.
Like.
I love being in rooms like that where we all trying to help each other to get better.
That's really cool. Something You're gonna fit in pretty good here because the locker room down here is pretty tight. Undrafted free agent didn't play a lot as a rookie, part time player with only a handful of starts until your six NFL season you got to Tampa Bay. Then you just go off. You just start second quarterbacks eighteen and a half times a year, crazy numbers. What did you learn from that journey from you know, climbing your way from that position all the way into this to you know, year eleven as a guy that you know commands a lot of attention in this league.
Yeah, so just on his journey, I just learned to be confident in my abilities and like trusting, like the saying earlier, instant you goat trust your instincts because it's plays out there where if I just do my job.
I might not meet the play.
Sometimes you might have to, like if the tag you gotta read your guy who's blocking you. Honestly, if the guys you jump outside of you like a jump set, you gotta take the inside if you want to win, because if I go outside, it's like just not running my head intil there was like nothing I could do to win on that play. So it's just like and then trusting it, Like you gotta be able to sit it in that quick set because you ain't got a lot of time before he realized that he overset you and like sit back down and try to get back to it.
So if you just like.
Look at your keys, trust, trust what you see and react quickly to it, Like helped me out a lot on my journey and just all that time in the league, just get more comfortable and confident and everything I've been doing and all my abilities just help take you to.
The next level.
Really enjoying talking to your current career current football if few really good stuff here, But I want to go all the way back to close this podcast out here, because you started your career at Nebraska Omaha a program that got disbanded and then you transfer to Colorado State after your freshman year. That had to been like an emotional roller coaster. Are you thinking when that program no longer exists. Now you don't have anywhere to play football.
Yeah, that's up.
My brother called me like that night because he was on the wrestling team. He told me that they was canceling a wrestling team to this band and the wrestling team right after they won a national championship.
I was like, hopefully it's just a wrestling its.
Football, it's too popular.
The next morning told me it was true and that it was disbanding football too, and like I did not want to be by myself yet, like that's the only reason why I went in the brest home because my brother was going there. Like I had a full ride scholarship to go to North Dakota, but I turned it down to because I just wasn't ready to be by myself.
But then I was like, man, it'sign for me to grow up. I gotta go somewhere.
I gotta be by myself because like that's only a so me being able to get out my comfort zone.
Help me out a lot.
And Colorado State they was welcoming, like help my wife get a job, just helped this out with the family expect as much as they could, you know, what the rules being what they were back then so just I just had to grow up and yes, I was not ready to do yet.
Yeah, that's good stuff. It's great to meet your Shack. New Dolphins linebacker Shack Bart appreciate your time today, man, thank you, thanks for having me on, and away, he goes. Let's go ahead and pivot now quickly into our next guest on the podcast. New Dolphins cornerback Kendall Fuller, joining us today on the podcast New Dolphins cornerback Kendall Fuller. Kendall, Welcome to South Florida.
Man, thank you. I appreciate that.
So born in Maryland, college in Virginia. Pro career starts in case. Then back to the DMV. How nice does it step off that plane into some really peaceful, nice march sunny weather.
Yeah, it's been fun. I'm enjoying it. I train out here quite a bit in the off season, so some way that I was actually familiar with. It was funny because when I signed Chris, he kind of just asked me when I can fill to Miami, and I said, I'm actually coming out there this week to start training. So it worked out perfectly. Now and just stay out here, just get to know the city a little bit more start getting a NOO teammates, So I'm excited.
Bad place to train about pas play golf either. I saw your first interaction with Jordan Poyer was when we could get of the course. There's some competition going on there.
Yeah, I mean, for sure, I love playing golf. I he's a good friend with one of my one of my teammates when I was back in Washington, so I've been able to get out get out there with him. So you know, a lot of a lot of golfers. Whenever you know somebody that's that's the first thing you go to. That's right, and it'll just be fun just to get get to know your teammates more and things like that.
If you ever come back here, it's going to most likely be golf talk in this room behind me right here. So yeah, tournaments on the TV's as well. Watched the players last week, so it's all golf all time. Let's talk about some football here though. Because you began your career playing mostly in the slot, you go to Washington play primarily on the outside. I'm curious how did your experience of playing the nickel inside help you see the field better from the boundary and from the field.
I mean, I think I just had a better understanding of the game. A lot of times that corner, especially when you're young, you just want to play man. You don't want to think about a lot, You don't want to have to see a lot. But being able to get there in the nickel and just understand really what every one is doing, and nickel you gotta work with the corner, work with the safety, work with the middle linebacker. You're blissing a lot more. So you got to work with defensive ends and things like that, so you kind of learn what every what everybody is doing. And I think that's something that helped me because I just was able to learn more football when I got in. So it's been helping me tremendously. Even playing on the outside.
Teach you every aspect of what goes into playing the whole defense.
Kind of.
My biggest thing is I like to know where my help is, you know, I like to know what everybody on the field is doing. So if I'm only knowing what my position is, that can kind of limit me as a player instead of working with the other guys and figuring out, Okay, my safety is going to play these routes. I can only really focus and worry about these two specific routes. So just little things, just little understandings that help you help you on the field.
So you're one of the few guys we have now that can do that. Javon Holla can play over the field, play the post, play the box, play some nickel as well. Jialen Ramsey put them on football field. He can play where pretty much. What is having so many guys that can do that, that can be so multiple? How can that help a defense?
I mean, you can just give an offense so many different looks. So many offense nowadays they try to dictate to the defense and anytime as a defense, you can dictate to the offense by moving guys around, even just in terms of disguises to where quarterbacks have to think twice. That can give an extra second for the rush to get there. So just having guy and it's more fun. You know, players love moving around doing different things and things like that, so it'll be fun to just get everybody out there on the field.
Speaking of fun, how much fun is going to be having Jillen Ramsey on other side of you. I mean, this is a guy that from the first game down here a big pick. You have forced fumble in the first game with the Miami Dolphins. What is playing alongside one of the top corners in the NFL?
Help?
How does that help your game?
Yeah, it's gonna be fun. I was actually I got his number shot him in text because we played in the Army All American Bowl together. So just you know, seeing what he's done over his career to be one of the best corners in the NFL for so many years, that's not easy thing to do. To be able to play nine years in the NFL at at that high of a level isn't easy. So I definitely have a lot of respect for him and been fun just to even we came out of Hogspital together top recruit seeing what he was able to do at Florida State. So it's been fun to watch him. It's gonna be fun to suit up with him.
It's cool. I know you guys go back that far. You also get to come to practice every day and see a couple of guys on the other side of the field. They're pretty good too. Your reaction, Why I tell you get to go up against Tyreek Hill and Jilen wabbam practice every day.
Is I'm glad I don't have to face them in games anymore. That's right, that's my first thought. But I played with Tyreek in Kansas City and just the competitor that he is, and just that competitive nature that you'll be at a gout down on the field a half, so that that would be fun, just competing in practice, just those battles, learning from each other and things like that. So when I think of him, my first word I think of it is just fun.
He doesn't have an aw switch.
Man.
We watched his first year in practice out here. He was running gasser like fly routes all practice, all camp.
Law.
I would tell people he would literally be in a lot room in Kansas City playing basketball. Two minutes left, go throw his cleats on, go out to practice, running around, come right back in pick up the basketball since pride is over. So he's a he's a big little kid. Yes, those the type of guys you'd like to be around.
He's got andrew like my four year old does. Man, that turns off. So you guys want a championships together in Kansas City. Obviously he had the big play that got you guys in scoring range for the game winning drive, but you had the game ceiling pick. I'm curious what that moment was like for you, because not many people in this world get to experience a championship seiling moment. What was that mo went like for you?
It was fun, man, just to just to be a part of a team organization to win a super Bowl. It was definitely fun. Something that you definitely don't take for granted. You know, a lot of guys play in this league and try to get to that get to that level and win that super Bowl, and it's not something that always comes around. So I was definitely appreciative. And once you win one, you definitely want to get back. So I'm excited, you know, for our opportunity here to get back.
Do you feel like there's a bit of an added incentive to this team trying to get over the hump two playoff trips last two years, having gotten over the hump of the playoff win. Is that kind of a challenge you take on personally in terms of getting this team over that hump?
I mean, yeah, that's always big, big picture, but at the end of the day, you take it one day at a time. Do the small things first and trust and know that that'll get you there. So I'm excited really just to come in and meet the guys. Stop putting in the work and things like that. But ultimately I know that's the end Goo, for sure, for sure.
Last question for you, what's the best club in your bag?
I know, honestly right now, I'm gonna go with my driver, that's a.
Good one, especially down here because you know all the water stay in there fairly be all right you Dolphins cornerback Kendall. Fully, I appreciate you man, Thank you, And there goes Kendall. Great, great chats with both those guys. Let's go ahead and take our first break right here on the podcast, come back on the other side and break down their tape. We'll also welcome in Scott Smith to talk about Shaq Barrett's time in Tampa Bay and Zach Selby from the Walk and Commanders to talk about Fuller's time up there in the DMV. All of that next Draft Time podcast, your host Travis Wingfield, brought to you by Auto Nation. This might be the easiest tape portion to communicate to you guys on the entire podcast, because when we came into Free agency, and we'll talk about the comprehensive Dolphins offseason so far on the Monday Podcast. But when you came into it, you knew there was a good likelihood that you're going to lose some pretty prominent talent, and you knew the I suppose upshot to that was the idea of potentially kind of, you know, massaging the compensatory pick formula makes some savvy under the radar moves, like a John new Smith, But I don't think many folks anticipated what the Dolphins did to get both Shaq Barrett and Kendall Fuller in. And the way I've heard it described is that these were both viewed as upgrades to previous options and retention of players in particular positions of these guys that were viewed as upgrades with less capital put in. Think about that for a second. You got better for cheaper. Doesn't that sound like the ultimate team win for your Miami Dolphins? And when you look at the tape, man like first of all, with Shaq bart it's obvious, right. I think Jalen Phillips has a great chance to make himself available for week number one. We'll see about Bradley Chubb. I know he'll work as hard as he possibly can to get himself back into that position. But who better like who possibly could have been better than Shaq Barrett for this role. Look, I think the world of Andrew Van Ginkel, his wife, his family, his football, everything about Andrew Van Ginkle, huge fan of this is an upgrade. Shaq Barrett has had a ton of production in this league. He's been a two down player, or I should say a three down player, two facet player in terms of running pass game for a long long time and gives you a more well rounded, more suited permanent starter in the instance that you don't have two or fifteen for x amount of games one or the other. Right, But then from there he also has, as you could tell, the humility and the understanding and the and just the acceptance of the role, the embracing of the role to slide into that third role and be a fifty percent snap taker who comes on the field and takes down quarterbacks for a living. And that's what his tape is. Now, maybe there's not as much juice as there once was in terms of that just overall, get off the overall speed to power component, the overall speed component in general, I should say, but man, the run game defense is legit. You hear him talk about it like there's no option. You have to win these particular plays, like you cannot give the outside shoulder. But he also can play inside that sea gap and make plays inside much like two and fifteen can. And then when it comes to pass rush if you don't like, we'll talk about this again on our future podcast. Like the Austin Jackson development route. Right, there's a great study. I think Chris Kaufman, Kyle Krabs, the two guys are reference the most on here, probably the two guys that I think do the best content outside of your boy. I mean, I like those guys, but you gotta believe in yourself, right. They discuss this very interesting dynamic about offensive linemen and how the true kind of breakout year for them or the developmental plan for those guys because of the way the college game has turned out, and this, you know, goes back to spread and spacing and no true passe sets and don't finish your block, get back to the line of scrimmage so you can make the next snap in five or ten seconds. It's diminished how impactful offensive linemen in their first couple of years can be and that's why you get these Austin Jackson timelines where your one's not good, your two is not good, your three injury, Oh no, we're in trouble here. Then year four, Oh yeah, he's pretty danmn good, isn't he. And that's why the idea of these valued contracts of a Jack Driscoll of you know, bringing back Isaiah Win makes sense because they're already at that developmental stage and they're the same cost as the younger players in terms of compensation of salary cap towards those players. And what I'm trying to get at with all of this is that Shaq Barrett, if you're gonna throw out a young offensive lineman against him, you're gonna get beat because this guy has seen every pass set, he's seen every trick to thwart, every pass rush move. And you hear him talk about it. He came into the league with two pass rush moves. Now he feels like he can operate with a dozen of them and find ways to beat those younger and experienced players and get pressure on quarterbacks. And if he can do that in that role as a seventy five percent snaptaker, early on, maybe you reduce him down the stretch to fifty percent and keep him fresh as you go along, as you phase back in a Bradley Chubb and or Jalen Phillips. It's like the ideal acquisition at that spot. And I would say you're probably not done there. I say you probably need one more guy at least, maybe it's the draft or otherwise. I mean, if Chop Robinson's on the board in the first round, no issues going in that direction. But man, you're in a good spot right now in terms of what you thought you might be going into this portion of the calendar. Because of Shaq Barrett's reliability, dependability, production, three downability, it just everything matches up. The tape, the fit, the character, the embracing of the role. Like it's all there with Shaq Barrett. And as we learned last year, as the Dolphins pass rush continued to play at a similar level that they did in twenty twenty two, then the better coverage in twenty three, simply because of better players in better depth and better health right allowed the pass rush to get home. And that's where Miami got even better because Kendall Fuller is now in tow and let me tell you about this guy. I've been watching him, you know, since his career began back with Kansas City, or rather with Washington all those years ago, playing primarily in that slot role, and he was like a peanut tillman in terms of how magnets in his hands for the football to punch those things out to make plays in the football and coverage like one of the best man cover corners in the league for a long long time. And those abilities are coinciding with his zone coverage skills because of the same category that I judge pretty much all cornerbacks on. Your ability to see what's going to happen, anticipate the concept, and jump the route before the receiver can break off the top stem of that route. It's why I thought cam Smith preseason was fantastic last year, I should say his training camp. Every day he was showing his plays in that And that's what Kendall Fuller's entire career has been, instinctual getting off of a spot before the receiver does, driving on the football. Knowing what quarterbacks tendencies are is what their tendencies are. A smart, heady player who has the quick twitch ability still at this age of his career, like he's not slowing down. And the best part about all of it, man like, gosh, he can play anywhere he talked about in the podcast here, the ability to blitz from the inside position, to see the field from both spots, to really give him that all encompassing, you know, bird's eye view of what the defense is supposed to do. And now you've got him and Jalen Ramsey out there who does that better than anybody else on the freaking planet. And you've got Javon Holland in that fold as well as a guy that does that stuff from the safety position. Good luck, man Like, I think this team is better than they were a year ago. You lost two key parts, you gained more than that. You gained better depth, you gain better quality across the board. You exchanged a few players for a lot more. And gosh, Kendall Fuller and the way this defense can operate around his flexibill around his inside outside ability with the guys I mentioned incumbent Lee that already do that stuff as well. These two signings right here, they make the defense on balance, I think better, provided you can recreate Christian Wilkins production in the aggregate with Neville Gallimore, with Jonathan Harris, with Benito Jones. You know, bringing these guys back that we you know, like all these collection of players. If they can give you at least a portion of what Christian Wilkins did, then I think this Dolphins defense is going to be better in twenty twenty three. I just really like the directions taken on and these two guys are my favorite parts of the entire thing. Let's go ahead and take our last break right there. Come back on the other side and welcome in Scott Smith as well as Zach Selby to get to know both Shaq Barrett and Kendall Fuller a little bit better. That's next Draft Time podcast. Your host, Travis Wingfield, brought to you by Auto Nation, joining me now is a senior writer for Commanders dot Com. Zach Selby, Zach, welcome into the Draft Time Podcast.
Man.
Yeah, thanks for having me. I think we're this is all a crazy busy time for both of us. You know, we're able to get some time out for the week. But yeah, it's been eventful, that's for sure.
I've been telling my coworker around the building thirteen free agents. You know how many interviews and stories and preparation, like that's a lot of people for Washington twenty one free agents so far, he's staying busy over there.
Man.
Yeah, so we signed I we ficially signed all our players, most of our players in two days. So a lot of it was immediately getting the press release on the site, then immediately spreading over to the press conference, immediately spreading back, and then trying to run all the other stories we've been like trying to cause you know, we need to get to know these guys a little bit more besides his the football stuff.
So it's been it's I've.
Lost sleep, for sure, but it's a good kind of losing sleep, if that makes any sense.
And what you just said about getting to know these guys is exactly why you're on the podcast for us here today. And I'm so fired up about Kendall Fuller in a Dolphin's uniform.
I want to.
Start with the importance of him in Washington because you know, really since his football career started, that's where it was, gets traded for a blockbuster Alex Smith deal, then comes back two years later with a little more jewelry, some more experience. I'm just curious how important Kendall was to the Commanders, not just these last handful of years, but really over his entire football career.
Yeah, honestly, he's been honestly like one of the big most important pieces for the defense, not just in this first the second stand, but the first sin as well.
He really saw him coming into his own.
In the first stin but really when he came back, he was kind of part of this new regime. When Ron Rivera was first hired, I think he was one of the first guys that he'd really signed, and he immediately stepped right back in and felt like he was right at home. He immediately set himself up as as the number one corner. He never really wavered from that as far as performance wise in the field for the most part. But really like he was such a big impact to the locker room. His teammates loved him, especially with like the young guys like he, you know, were always willing to teach, always willing to show exactly how he got to where he was at in his career. And you saw like a lot of the young quarnerbacks benefit from that. I mean, yeah, and not even just the quarterbacks, the defensive backs in general, because he plays a little bit of that sometime in his career as well. I mean camrac Crow, who is no longer with us, really really benefited a lot from him. And so the guys are still in the roster. Christian Homes, Derek Forrest been to the Saint Judes. All these guys were able to look up to him because he was such a leader to them and gave such mentorship. So it's gonna be it's gonna be interesting trying to replace him. But you know, as I say, everyone is replaceable. But I'm really happy for him. But he's gonna be able to thrive. I think in Miami.
I think he's gonna do a really good job there for him.
Yeah. I love that you mentioned like the mentorship stuff there, because you know, he comes in and we lost our longest tenured defender and Xavier and Howard this offseason, and he figures to kind of slide into a role that's somewhat adjacent to what x did for the Dolphins down here, at least in terms of playing time. And I'm curious because you know, he was a guy that early in his career was strictly in the in the slot, a nickel cornerback and then he goes to the outside and becomes an even better player on the perimeter, which is it's just rare that happens. Do you think that he was kind of like a coach on the field of sorts in terms of how he saw the field, because my watch him play, like you can tell us as a high football IQ guy.
Yeah, he definitely was.
And you could even tell that just you know, when we're in the locker room talking to him, like he's always one. He was one of the key guys that you always kind of gravitate around on Wednesdays and Thursdays, and you could just tell by the way he was answering the questions like how much he knew He was so intelligent, so just high level about the game, because you're right, he does. He does have to play a lot of different poces, Like you know, yeah, he started in the slot, but he also played a little bit of safety for us on a couple.
Of snaps as well.
That versatility, you know, in the NFL, like that's that's not an easy thing to do. You can find very few players in the NFL who can truly be versatile pieces both athletically and intelligently because learning allose positions is not easy. So very much he was a guy, and that kind of goes back to the mentorship, like he knows all those positions, so he's able to tell Derek Corse, hey, you need to be a couple speck steps back here for this. You need he be in to mis Saint jus Hey maying, you know, play this guy a certain way because he likes to do the you know ex or y all those things are so critical because they're able to help elevate the entire defense around him.
So yeah, I think you.
Know wherever he goes, you know, wherever you know he went in the rest of his career announced with Miami like he's I feel like all the younger quarterbacks are really gonna benefit from him because you know, obviously, like you said, Zavian Howard Is, it was such a big guy for for y'all. But I feel like that mentorship that that and that leadership that he has for Kendall is going to translate right back in there. So it's not to me ton' fel like y'all are going to lose that much. It's because of who Kindle is yeah.
I mean, you talk about the versatility men. Gillen Ramsey is probably the best inside outside cornerback there is in the National Football League and giving Anthony Weaver two of those guys, not to mention Javon Holland, very excited about what they can do with that schematically. One more question for you here, because you know they say tough times makes tough people. And for the Dolphins, like we're in this kind of mode right now of we've we've gotten to the playoffs a couple of years in a row. That's that's something that hadn't happened for the organization in twenty years. But the next over the hump moment is getting those playoff wins, making a deep push into January and hopefully into February. And I think that at times last year some of that late season adversity was something they're going to have to find a way to overcome. And you know, McDaniel's whole thing is adversity is an opportunity. So I bring that back to Kendall in the sense that he was from the sounds of it, from your time covering him, like he's kind of an even keel, same guy every day I'm curious what you learned about him as a personality and kind of a carrier of positive vibes, if you will, when things aren't going well, when the losses are piling up and he's still out there playing his best football. Is he kind of the guy that the other players would lean on in terms of, man, we've lost three games in a row. Things are tough, right now, let's lean on Kendall here to get us through this.
Well, yeah, and you know, what would I'll say, is, you know, and kind of going back to the locker room stuff. He was never someone who was going to be, you know, very boisterous, very loud, but you could feel his presence around you. And that's that was so key for I think for the entire defense, because I mean this defense went from third in the league in yards allowed in twenty twenty two to last in twenty twenty three.
That's a dramatic shift.
And then there's also the fact that they were losing four or five six games in a row, and you know, at that point a lot of players are gonna they're not pandicing, but they're trying to be resigned. So you know, it's kind of you know, it happens, right, it's it's it's it's the NFL. You're losing so much you kind of just wanted to stop. But you know, Kndall always did a very good job of being consistent, always being the same guy every single day and that stuff like it's not like it's not it's very subtle, but it matters a whole lot because he's very much a lunch pale guy, who guy who's just gonna come up and do his job every single day, every single play, no matter what. And he was still a like even though the team around like Herna was not, that was not as productive as he even wanted to be, he was still very good. I mean, he was fourth in tackles, he tied the team league in interceptions, he was third in pass breakups like that, that kind of stuff, like especially with young quarterbacks, that that matters because it shows you that, yeah, like situations aren't gonna always go the way you want them to go. In the NFL, You're gonna lose some games. Sometimes you're gonna lose a lot of games. But it shouldn't be able to change the fact that you still have a job to do. You still need to play your best, you still need to be productive, and Kendall did that. So that's why I'm I'm like, I'm sad to see him go because he's he's been such a good guy, such a good player. But I think y'all are gonna take very good care of him, Miami. I think he's gonna do the same for y'all two.
But hey, we don't play you guys for three more years unless the the you know, eight seventeenth game scheduling thing comes into play here, so you can root for him down here in South Florida. I appreciate your time today, Zach. He is at Zach Selby WC on Social Washington Commander's senior writer, Zach, thank you so much for your time today, man.
I really appreciate it, appreciate you.
Thrilled to be joined by senior writer and editor for Buccaneers dot Com, Scott Smith. Scott, I'm fired up to talk to you today, man. Welcome into drive time.
Well. Thanks. As I think we discussed earlier, I couldn't be happy to talk about a guy like Shack. He's just a wonderful human being.
I mean, yeah, that's where I wanted to go first here because we were exchanging emails, and you could not have been more effusive in your praise of just how special of a human being this guy is. And rather than guide you with a specific question, I just wanted to hear in your words why that is because we had Shack on the show and somehow he exceeded those very lofty expectations you set for us. But I just want to hear your experience here covering Shaq Bartt in Tampa Bay.
Well, he was.
Just just a delight to deal with in anything you had to do, whether it's interviews in the locker room or just around the facility. And you know, when he got here, he wasn't really a very decorated player, and he'd come into the league as an undrafted free agent, and I think he had sort of humble roots and then he exploded for us, but he never really kind of lost that humility, And you know, he went through some tough times that I think we'll probably talk about and handled everything with grace. And you know, he had the injury in twenty twenty two and and really handled that very well.
Also.
It's just I don't think I ever saw him in any point of anger or you know or difficult. He was never difficult to deal with at any time.
How did his teammates talk about him that way? Because I picture, you know, the locker room setting. Obviously the media loves to go to a guy like that, but I just, you know, the locker room ecosystem is such a delicate balance. I feel like that's the kind of guy you put in your locker room and it instantly just gets better.
Yeah, his teammates loved him absolutely, and it didn't hurt that. You know, he became such an integral part of a Super Bowl team, and he wasn't really the sort of raw, raw, outspoken leader type, but you could tell people look towards him as one of the team's leaders in the locker room. And and just the way he handled whether it was a winner or loss, or good times or bad, the way he handled himself in the locker room with the media around was kind of a trendsetter for the bucks in the locker room.
How did you see him evolve as a player and a person as your time went along there in Tampa Bay, Because, like you mentioned, you know, humble beginnings. I even go back to his college days when his football program that he was first at got disbanded, and he had to find a new place to play. It just seems like every step along the way he found adversity and found a way to overcome it. I mean, that was it. The first year he had eighteen and a half sacks for you guys, nineteen and a half nineteen and a half secks, My goodness. So, I mean you mentioned didn't change his personality wise, but I'm just curious his evolution as a player in person at his time in Tampa Bay.
I think it was just a matter of opportunity for him. As I'm sure you've read up on. He was with the Broncos, got there as a undrafted free agent, spent some time on the practice squad, and then over a course of four years, he was kind of back and forth between. He occasionally got opportunities to start, but he was mostly a rotational player, and his numbers were good in terms of sacks and pressures for the number of snaps that he was getting, but he wasn't getting that opportunity to be a full time starter. So he's basically in twenty nineteen signed with the Bucks. Is what you usually call a prove it deal, a one year deal, not a huge salary, but he came here because he believed he would have a shot to compete for a starting job. And we had a former second round pick who maybe was penciled in Noah Spence there, but he didn't really work out, and Shaq did indeed win the job in training camp that year and came out of the gates on fire. And then, as you said, he got nineteen and a half sex, which blew away our franchise single season record, which used to belong to Hall of Famer Warren SAPs. So that's some pretty good company right there. And he was the first Buccaneer ever to lead the league in sacks in a season, which is saying a lot with some of the pass roashers we've had through the years. So he really didn't I wouldn't even call it an evolution. I would say he got his opportunity and just exploded. And then he had another I think eight sacks in twenty twenty and was phenomenal in the playoffs. He had four sacks between the NFC Championship Game and the Super Bowl, and I think he pressured Patrick Mahomes eight times in the Super Bowl, and then he had another twelve sax season, and then of course he had the achilles tendon injury midway through twenty twenty two, which kind of you know, depressed his numbers since but forty five sacks in his was it five years with the Bucks, that's already fifth most in team history. So we saw a player who just needed an opportunity, get that opportunity and become a superstar.
That's what a cool story that I was to hear and talk about just taking the opportunity running with. That's been his entire career pretty much going back back I said to his college days. Really good stuff there. And you allude to this earlier Scott, and you know, the man, like I told you about when I met him, he walked into my office slash studio here, sees the photos of my children on my desk and just starts firing off questions about that maybe the most genuine first interaction I've ever had with not just an athlete, maybe a human in general. And you know, like you mentioned this earlier, so kind of pivot here to a tougher subject, but for him to have that daily courage after enduring what is the nightmare of every parent everywhere, and losing a young child. It just speaks to his character. I'm curious to hear from your perspective the strength and courage you saw from Shack during what is the hardest time he'll ever face in his life.
Yeah, I'm not surprised that he asked about your kids. I should have said this earlier when you were talking about what kind of guy he was. He's definitely a family man and he has him and Jordana have a great group.
Of four kids.
But they did lose their daughter, Ariyah last spring. She was two years old, and she drowned in their pool. It was a terrible, tragic accident that would shake any of us, of course, and of course I'm sure it did.
Uh.
He came to training camp, you know, I don't know four months later, whatever was three or four months later, and he sat with the media and talked about it, which I thought took a lot of strength and courage. And he said at the time that actually coming to work was good for him after all those weeks of you know, just being at home and with his when trying to console his wife and she was trying to keep him strong as well, and you know, and also still dealing with all of their other children. He had three older children as well, and they've welcomed one since. And he spoke and he said coming to work helped him because it wasn't like he stopped thinking about Araya at those moments, but at least it gave him something else to focus on a little bit, because he knew when he went home he's going to be thinking about her again and trying to keep his family strong and them all leaning on each other. So he talked about how they started the Array of Hope Foundation, which strives to do such things as give kids swimming lessons that wouldn't necessarily get them and dealing with AI cameras that might help these types of accidents and tragedies be averted. So it goes without saying that that was and I'm sure still is an extremely difficult issue and happening for the whole family. But I don't think you could have been more courageous or more strong about it.
Exactly the ultimate testament of the courage and strength that he displays and what I came to see from him and just to you know, ten fifteen minutes of getting to know him, there a little bit really good stuff there. Find him on social at scott s Bucks buccaneers dot com. Scott, thank you so much for your time today and taking us inside that just incredible story and this incredible person. We really appreciate today. Man, thank you my pleasure.
I don't think we're r on the schedule for you guys, so I hope check has a great seventeen games.
Yes, won't be until what twenty twenty? I guess next year? Right, could we pleasure you guys twenty one? So we'll see you then? All right, thanks Scott. I'm really enjoying these podcasts man, the analysis of watching the film for myself, talking to the players to test that knowledge, and then to get the comprehensive look at the player from the beat guys who covered them, and to allow someone to talk about these guys in a positive way that's not themselves saying hey, look at how cool I am. Right, I'm really I mean, it's my show. I should be a fan of it, but I'm just loving the way these podcasts are turning out. Let me know on social if you agree or fill a certain type of way about it. All right, that's my time on the podcast today. We still have a lot more these to go. On Monday, we're gonna hear from head coach Mike McDaniel. We're gonna recap the off season so far for your Miami Dolphins. We're also gonna run my interview with Jonathan Harris, and then also next week, we're gonna hear from Aaron Brewer and Jack driscoll on the Wednesday episode. On Friday, we'll hear from Jody Fortzen and Neville Gallimore. That's the schedule as it stands right now. That could change, but that's my plan as we go forward into the rest of free agency content.
Here.
In the meantime, you all please be sure to subscribe to the podcast on Apple, Spotify since you're tuned in wherever you get your podcasts from, go ahead and follow me on social at winkfld NFL. Follow the team at Miami Dolphins. Check out the Fish Tank podcast with Seth and Juice. Check out the YouTube channel for all of the video versions of these sit down chats with the players, media availabilities, Dolphins Today, and so much more. Last but not least, Miami Dolphins dot Com Until next time. Finn's Up, Carolina, Cameron, Daddy's Coming Home,
