MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Falcons coach Raheem Morris and Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel go back to their days together on the coaching staffs with Washington and the Falcons.
“It’s awesome, you know, being with Mike for all those years here in Atlanta and having the ability to grow with him,” Morris said Tuesday before the joint practices involving their teams kicked off. “I remember moving up in the offense, he was one of the people that was instrumental in teaching me the offense and what we did with (former Falcons offensive coordinator) Kyle Shanahan.”
McDaniel left with Shanahan after the Falcons lost Super Bowl 51 in February 2017. He was with the 49ers for five seasons before landing the Miami job.
“It’s just so much history there between us, and that’s like my little brother,” Morris said. “He’s one of those guys I talk about all the time, and (I have) so much respect for with what he’s been able to accomplish and do in this league.”
Morris believes that McDaniel’s offensive motions – called “cheat motions” – in the passing game are being copied around the NFL.
“He was one of the first, if not the first, to start it,” Morris said.
The Falcons have incorporated some of the motions and have used some to help tight end Kyle Pitts to get free off the line of scrimmage.
Mostly the Rams, 49ers and Dolphins used the motions, with the Falcons dabbling for now. Other teams complained about it, and there is a new sentence in the rule book for the 2024 season that states: “Any eligible backfield player who changes his stance does not have to come to a complete stop prior to the snap, as long as his actions are not abrupt (false start) or forward (illegal motion).”
So, we’ll have to monitor “cheat motion” moving forward.
Quick whistle for Cousins: Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins is still working his way back to 100% from his ruptured right Achilles. He’s moving better, but doesn’t appear fully comfortable.
“(Defensive players are) staying away from the quarterback,” Morris said. “I’ll obviously have the quick whistle for Kirk just to protect him, but other than that, man, it is going to be as you’ve seen. They’re accustomed to practicing that way. We’re accustomed to practicing that way. It’s just about keeping this thing as together as we can.”
Jarrett back, Trice out: Falcons defensive tackle Grady Jarrett was back with the team after he was excused from Monday’s practice for personal reasons.
Rookie outside linebacker Bralen Trice did not practice against the Dolphins. He was sick.
Dolphins declare victory: Miami wide receiver Tyreek Hill stopped short of declaring victory over the Falcons’ first-team defense on the first day of joint practices.
“Offensively, I feel like we took a step forward today,” said Hill, who caught a 50-yard bomb over Falcons cornerback Mike Hughes. “Whether it’s catching the ball, whether it’s throwing the ball or blocking, we all took a step forward today.”
He felt the Dolphins played through lulls.
“We held ourselves accountable when moments whenever we felt the offense going dry,” said Hill, of Coffee High in Douglas. “That’s one thing we really want to hone in on this year. When we have stale moments, we have to find a way to dig ourselves out of that.”
Miami wide receiver Jaylen Waddle, who has an undisclosed injury, did not practice against the Falcons.
Coaching practice, too: Morris is using the joint practices to make sure the coaching staff is communicating and switching in the personnel properly.
“Some of the adjustments you’re going to make from the unknown opponent, from the unknown things, the non-scripted periods,” Morris said. “It’s a lot of fun. The substitution packages. How you roll it. How you’re able to clearly, concisely be able to communicate with all your coaching staff.”
Tape won’t be shared: The Falcons and Dolphins have agreed to keep the videotape of the joint practices from the rest of the league.
“A lot of it is collaborative,” Morris said. “That’s why this tape won’t be leaked to anyone else, other than Atlanta and Miami. It’s well documented amongst our coaches to not let this tape go out. There’s some things that Mike is going to explore. There are some things that we’re going to explore. You don’t want those things out until (NFL teams) actually play in September.”
Morris trusts McDaniel and his staff.
“So, we’ll let those things play out,” Morris said. “That’s why you want to do it with trustworthy people that you absolutely got care for and belief in. You also want to collaborate with the tempo and how practice is going to be, and you want to be on the same page.
“That’s how you can mitigate some of the things that happen in these practices that we know about. You can’t avoid all of them, but obviously you take the most steps that you can to avoid as much as possible.”
Kickoff coverage: Like in the Hall of Fame game Thursday between the Bears and Texans, the kick coverage teams are winning the early battles under the new kickoff rules.
The coaches are finding that it’s difficult to block the coverage defenders.
The returns in the joint practice all were contained.
“It’s a big unknown, but it’s also a big excitement for us all as well,” Morris said. “It’s foreign to all of us how it looks.”
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