Mike Catalana (2:49)

Yeah, I know as reporters we're in, but not all the way in, right? We can't ever know everything. But you've been around this team a long time. Is the culture thing real? Like I know in Buffalo for years they didn't have a culture. Sha McDermott, Brandon Bean got there and obviously Josh Allen and that they talk about every week? It is about the culture there. Is that an issue in your opinion, from what you've seen and heard? Is that an issue in Miami?

Will Manso (3:17)

Yes, I think the easy answer is yes, but I think it goes to just kind of what you said right now with the, you know, Josh Allen gets there, they commit to him. Josh goes through his ups and downs early, though. You see the talent there, they become a pretty much instant winner within a few years. And now they're a premier franchise with the right culture, right winning cures a lot when it comes to culture. Right now the Dolphins aren't winning, you know, and when Mike McDaniel came in now, nobody was talking about the fancy watch and the sweatpants and the Air Force ones and all that stuff. They thought it was cool because Mike McDaniel was winning games and they were scoring a 70 point game and were the talk of the NFL. When you don't play well and when there's all this internal talk when guys leaving on the way out are putting you down or talking about the culture and you're losing games, then yes, I will tell you from my experience being around that team, you, you could call it culture, you could call it coaching, you can call it disconnect, whatever it may be. There is not a connection right now. There is not a relationship that seems to be working between McDaniel that's getting through to his players and the results on the field are showing It. So yes, they do have a problem, but a lot of that stems from the fact they're not winning football games.

Mike Catalana (4:22)

All right, so while we're on big picture, we're going to talk about the quarterback and Tua. And you know, it's Tua with Tyreek and we hear it and see it. You know, comments in the off season, some body language, maybe in the game on Sunday. Where is Tua as the de facto leader of this team? He's the quarterback, he's the guy they paid. And where is he with McDaniel and guys like Tyreek and the offense? Where. Where is that now for Tua?

Will Manso (4:52)

Well, I'll tell you this, Mike, I'm not a tool apologist. I'm not going to sit here trying to defend everything he does. You know, I think there are some clear issues that are going on right now from a physical perspective, from the way he's playing, just on the playing field, decision making. What he's doing is lacking a bit. It's regressed a bit. You know, people talk about his injury histories, concussions. This is not what I'm talking about. I'm just talking about sheer play right now. He is not playing well, but it's not all on him. There is a communication issue going on with what this offense wants to do. We saw it. Anybody watch that Patriots Dolphins game, the final drive, False starts, having to call timeouts, procedural penalties, not being ready, issues calling the play. And these are things that shouldn't be happening four years into a relationship of head coach and quarterback, but they're happening. They're happening in the worst moments of games. So that's number one. I think there's a disconnect there with him and Mike McDaniel that they have to figure out. That's amazing. Four years and they haven't figured out. Number two is Tyree Kill to me, has one foot in, one foot out. You know, he's saying all the right things. But I think internally, and you can see it within him, he is still the Tyree Kill that was frustrated at the end of last season that says those things. And now he's saying the right things. Credit to him, he's not, you know, he's not stirring things up, he's saying the right things. But I think with the idea that he's not happy with his quarterback, he's not happy with his offense, he's not happy with his role, he's not happy with losing, nor should he be. But I think as leaders. So you talk about the three leaders Right. The most talented player. Right. Tyreek, the quarterback into the head coach, Mike McDaniel. None of them seem to be in unison. And that's happening. That's a problem. So. So I think what you got, Mike, is you've got the quarterback into the most talented player on the team, I think you could say in Tyreek Hill and the head coach of Mike McDaniel, who don't appear to be in unison. You know, there seems to be this disconnect, and that's just my opinion for being around them. But I know I'm not alone in that thought, that there's always a, it's my fault. I'm going to leave the routine. But, you know, they each get the but in there, but this person or this group or this thing has to do their job. And when you start that finger pointing, like, yeah, I'm pointing myself, but I'm pointing at others. And I think it causes this confusion. The Dolphins are a team right now that are. That's lacking identity and I guess in a way, lacking culture.

Mike Catalana (6:58)

I think it was Mike Florio had a story come out saying the Chiefs are interested to get Tyreek back. That wouldn't stun me, only because he's been there, he's had success. Andy Reid, that's got to be on the table at some point, isn't it? I mean, is. He is still mega talent. But if the Dolphins decide we got to change this up a little bit, it's funny that they gave up a lot to get them, but couldn't that happen? I mean, I'm not saying that, you know, like they've told you we're trading them, but you would think that that could be something that happens during the year.

Will Manso (7:35)

Oh, absolutely. Look, have they hinted that that could happen? No. Most teams aren't going to leak information like that. And if anything, I think it was the Flora report that said there have been no. Or was it Schefter? One of those insiders said there have been no calls to the Dolphins, nor the Dolphins taking calls. I mean, that's just the way to me, people leak information. Like, hey, let's start talking. You know, we haven't talked just yet. I think, especially if there's a change in head coach and then potentially general manager, I think the first thing you have to do is, okay, how do we pivot from this? You know, and the easiest way is to trade the guy that was not happy at the end of last season. And so the wrong side of 30. That is, let's face it, at Times up and down with his play and his emotions, that at any moment something could happen. And I think you look at Tyreek and you say, this is the guy we have to move on from and try to start fresh. And I will say this. I hinted on earlier that Tyreek has been answering questions. Great. He's been great a lot with the media. He's been saying the right things on camera. He has been good this year. And by the way, for the ups and downs, not just the play, the off the field stuff, he's handled a very professional way. I don't think that's unintentional. I think Tyrique is trying to stay at his best behavior because he knows if those phone calls come in and he gets the opportunity to go to a great spot, like let's say, KC again, he doesn't want something else from the outside to derail that possibility.

Mike Catalana (8:46)

All right, so now let's go to the game they just played because obviously they start out the year just an abysmal game against the Colts and then they, they come back at home and if you just look at numbers, a little box score scouting, you say, oh, Tua, 26, 32, 315, couple of touchdowns, right? But when you started and you mentioned before, problems at the end of the game, you know, taking a sack there at the end, when you're, when you're stuck, you need a play. And achan not going out of bounds when they, you know, or did go out of bounds when they needed to try to keep the clock going. All the little things. How much of that do you think? And, and I wanted to get to you about the fan base because I know a lot of times we've talked about, you've said at some point they go, same old Dolphins.

Will Manso (9:35)

Yeah, it's a slogan.

Mike Catalana (9:37)

Same old Dolphins again.

Will Manso (9:38)

Yeah, it's the same old Dolphins in the sense that, you know, the same old Dolphins in many ways is different. Right. There are different things that do them in, but it's still the same result, which is something, right? Unusual does this team. And to your point, let's go through the sequence for those who maybe didn't see the game or just saw the highlights. Dolphins go down the field the fourth quarter. They get the ball with a minute 50 left and one timeout, down four. They've got to score a touchdown to get a chance to. Or down six. Excuse me. To get a chance to win, they've got to score touchdown. No field goals. They go down the field. Devon Hn appears to score. Go Ahead touchdown with a minute left. But he went out of bounds. Foot out of bounds. They call the playback, but they're at the 18 yard line. 18 yard line with a minute left. They get back to back penalties out of that. I mean, back to back penalties. Out of a completed pass that went out of bounds that you thought was a touchdown. There's miscommunication. Two goes out of bounds on a third down instead of throwing the ball somewhere, finding a guy, and then gets sacked in a fourth down. So you're third and fourth down. You didn't even get a play out on the field. Field somewhere. That's Mike, the definition of same old Dolphins. You know, if the throw is down the field and it's incomplete, if it's a Hail Mary and it gets picked off, okay, fine, those things happen. But the things that seem to happen to the Dolphins are things that don't seem to happen to other teams. You know, it's, it's the old saying, good teams find ways to win, bad teams find way new ways to lose. As they did on Sunday.

Mike Catalana (10:57)

Yeah. And when that happens, there's two ways it can go. I think with a fan base being mad, it's either angry or the team becomes dismissed or irrelevant. Are you feeling that now? Is it apathy Right now with the.

Will Manso (11:15)

Dolphins, there's been apathy a while, I think, Mike, I think. And in this town, look, you know, in Buffalo it's different, right? In Buffalo, ugly, good, great. Bills fans are gonna stick with their Bills. This is what the town is about, right? Buffalo Bills represent that town. And I know there are other pro sports, but it's, it's the Bills town, let's face it. This was a Dolphins town for a long time. But then the Heat came and the Panthers came and the Hurricanes football team had their dynasty. There's a lot of things to choose from. You got the Hurricanes in the top five in the country right now. You got the Florida Panthers of the back to back Stanley cup champions. You have the Miami Heat, who despite their ups and downs last few years, are always a brand that's big in this town. The Heat culture, the brand. The Dolphins are quickly falling behind. All those teams and all those passions. There's only so much money and passion to go around for a family, for an individual, as a fan, at some point you're just like, it's the Dolphins. I'll catch the game maybe on Sunday, or in this case on Thursday. I'll put the game on for a quarter. They're done. 13 nothing. Forget the Dolphins. There is that. And you see it in when you go to the games. I mean, it's a sellout, right? That's what they call it. But you look around, there are a lot of empty seats. You know, you look around and there's not that passion you throw around town. It's, you know, what's wrong with the Dolphins? Same old Dolphins. But there is an apathy that is built in 25 years without a playoff win. Among the things I just mentioned, other things happening in this town that's created an apathy that I don't blame fans. And by the way, Dolphins organization, they're very aware of that. They're. They're not naive enough to know that they're falling behind and they need to do something, something to fix it.

Mike Catalana (12:45)

Yeah. All right, well, let's get into the team itself, because it's. It's tough for any team except for the Bills. A road game in New York. It's a Thursday game. Thursday games are different. Sometimes we have seen where it's got to be a simplified game plan. You get more to sort of basics, and it can galvanize a team a little bit. You know, you're playing the Bills, a team the Dolphins have virtually no success in the Josh Allen era against. Is there a chance that this team has something in them? It's still early in the season that they go, why not? Why not change it around? Or they do make some adjustments because it's the quick week and nobody's expecting a lot out of them, that they could come into Buffalo and play a little free or play a little better and get away from home, maybe, and it might be. It might be something positive for them.

Will Manso (13:43)

Well, look at it this way. If they don't, then you need to probably fire. Fire the coach, Right? Because if you can't play with desperation in the most desperate of times against a rival and just punch, counterpunch, stick around. The odds of the Miami Dolphins going into Buffalo Thursday night, winning that football game are slim. We know that now. All kinds of things happen in football in a long season. Good teams will lose to bad teams, vice versa. It happens. But in this circumstance of a short week going on the road, everything is against the Dolphins. So show some fight. I think if the Dolphins go in there and do show that fight, as they did look, a few years ago, the playoff year, where they didn't have to win in there with a backup quarterback and they played a tough game in the second half and had opportunities, you left that game thinking, man, they fought, they Fought. You have to leave Thursday night feeling they fought. If they're 0 and 3. They fought though. They gave. They rushed out. They pressured him into mistakes. They. They stayed close. They had a chance in the fourth quarter, at least put a drive together to tie the show some light. Because, Mike, if they don't, I think that says more about their head coach and the culture, the things that you asked about earlier than probably anything can show. If you go in there and you lay an egg and you look like you have quit on your team, on your coach, on your teammates, that's a bad sign. It's a very bad sign.

Mike Catalana (14:54)

All right. We've talked about Tyreek, you know, about Jalen Waddle Tua hm. We've seen a lot. Yeah, He's a talent though, right? I mean, I say in the past game he's got that speed like he is and probably should be a weapon for them coming up on Thursday night.

Will Manso (15:12)

Well, I'll do this. You know, to your point about how do the Dolphins can they show life? Part of it is the emotion, right? The energy, the. The desperation. But from a football standpoint, their best chance to win is Devon Hin has a huge night. Their best chance to stay close is Devon Hn not just runs the ball, which you can. He's averaging well, you know, he's doing a good job. He's not getting a lot of carries, but when he gets him, he's making the most of it. But Mike, they split him out wide, they bring him out of the backfield. He's got a couple of touchdowns in a couple of games. Granted, one of them was a mobile top against the Colts, but the other day against the Patriots, they split him out. He cut quick crossing route, boom, Touchdown. I mean, he's a dynamic player. That's one player that they definitely hit on that you can build around the future. Say, okay, we got our dynamic back, and he's that kind of back that again, he could do it out of the ground, he could do it out of the backfield. As a pass catcher, he is quite simply their best chance. While people are going to look at Tyreek, always Tyreek going to have a big game. Can they get Jalen Waddle loose? Devon Hn needs to have a big game for the Dolphins to stay close and have a chance to compete Thursday night.

Mike Catalana (16:11)

Let's go to the other side of the ball and I see names. Like, you know, the Dolphins still have names. When you go through and you see Bradley Chubb and you see Jalen Phillips and you see Matthew Judon and they drafted Kenneth Grant.

Will Manso (16:25)

So get M. Fitzpatrick back was a. Yeah.

Mike Catalana (16:29)

And they made that move. But it looked like they, I mean they had issues. They've had issues in both games. You know Daniel Jones well and he, he torched him. Yeah, torched him in the first game. Is this defense still trying to figure out what they are? I know Rasul Douglas, former Bill is now there and I don't know how specifically he's playing. Is there something there in this defense? It looks like it's just going to take a while or is it just not a great collection? Even though like I said, it's names that people still recognize.

Will Manso (17:05)

Well, the disappointing part is teams are having success running the football. You know, you can attack them. The other day the Patriots just kept churning out yards and converting third downs. And look, they face two quarterbacks that could run in Daniel Jones and Drake May. But now you face the ultimate quarterback who could run in Josh Allen who could not just run but bully over. They are having problems and it's just go the first three games they happen to have these athletic quarterbacks that could run around and extend plays. And again now you get the best version of that in Josh Allen. That's a problem for them is getting off the field. And I think, you know, you get off the field, get some three out, it changes the complexion of a game. Dolphins defense isn't doing that. The biggest problem going to the season, Mike, is that their secondary was. The corners were a mess. You know, that's why they went out and got veteran like Douglas late in camp in preseason. He's not going to fix their issues. Anthony Weaver, who has been talked about as a potential interim head coach, if they do fire Mike McDaniel is a very good defensive coordinator. But you can only do so much with the defense, with the talent. You have their front and their pass rush with the guys. Bradley Chubb, Jalen Phillips, Matthew Judon and Chop Robinson is a very talented second year player, is very good. But if you can break through, run the ball and extend plays and quarterbacks and find guys running around the secondary, it doesn't really matter. So and again, when you go up against Josh Allen, ideally you'd love to pressure him and keep him in the pocket and sack them and frustrate them. That's so hard to do, especially with the back end of the defense that quite frankly can't hold for more than a few seconds. So it's going to be a problem. That's been the problem. And I don't know how that gets fixed because the personnel more so than the scheme is the issue right now.

Mike Catalana (18:40)

You know, sometimes they talk about three phases. So you're struggling. Offense is not in coordinated enough, the defense having their issues, and then you get a return for a touchdown, and then you give up a return for a touchdown.

Will Manso (18:56)

So you bad teams find ways to lose.

Mike Catalana (18:58)

Yeah, but that's wild. But, but in terms of the return, let's talk on the positive side for the Dolphins. There's an impressive play for you, right?

Will Manso (19:07)

Yeah. Malik Washington's the name that I think Dolphins fans again, Devon Aan is the guy the Dolphin fans hang their hat on. And so he's part of our future. Malik Washington is a guy they really like. Young wide receiver who hasn't got a lot of chances from a receiving standpoint. But you see the playmaking. We saw it on the 74 yard punt return. Tyree Kill said it after the game. He's like, man, I tell Malik every day, you've got it. You, you are so good. This kid is so special. They want to keep giving him opportunities and they will. And it wouldn't surprise me if there's some sort of an end around or a play or quick bubble screen or something to get him in space that they try to do Thursday night to get him in space to make a big play. But those are ways that, you know, this team could find a way to get engaged. Special teams, case in point, a 74 yard return. You take the lead, you're feeling great, and then the ensuing kickoff is return 90 yards against you for a touchdown. That's just the way this team is. But that's a player. And those are things that I think that we could see them try to do on Thursday night outside of just like, hey, try to get Tyree Kill open.

Mike Catalana (20:04)

Yeah, it's funny. Special teams can really hurt you, but then sometimes you get bailed out. I'm watching Tampa Bay last night, and they give up a blocked punt and then a long return on a punt, but then Baker takes them down the field at the end. And sometimes you can make up. If you've got the guys, you can make up for other mistakes. It isn't always working well. The Bills certainly saw it in their first game when the defense got torched. And then Josh Allen went. Josh Allen. And they ended up winning the game. But, you know, it's tough to have that. Like, you get a moment for the.

Will Manso (20:37)

Dolphins and then I think, I think you go back to that fourth quarter, that final drive, I think everybody thought, okay, this hasn't been the prettiest game. It's been a terrible start to the season. They got embarrassing. It's handy this game got out to a rough starts with a bad start, but your franchise quarterback has got the ball with a minute 50 left and all you do is go down the field in front of your home crowd and win the game. And they. And they couldn't do it. And they got. And it wasn't just that they couldn't do it, is that they were right there to do it and they gave it away. I forgot the exact quote of Mike McDaniel, but it was something to the effect of a paraphrasing because I can't remember the exact words. But you know, we had the game there and we gave it away. You know, it's essentially what he said. And that's true. It's frustrating. They were right there, 18 yards away with plenty of time and they're a leader and their players and they screwed it all up. All mistakes and penalties and timeouts and lack of communication. And that's the disappointing part that you can't say like, hey, maybe they'll turn things around because something as simple as that they can't do.

Mike Catalana (21:33)

Yeah, we all look at droughts. The Bills had the long one. We were just down against the Jets. The Bills playing against the jets. And of course they have the playoff streak. They haven't made the playoffs. But it struck me when I looked at the streak for the Dolphins of not winning a playoff game.

Will Manso (21:53)

25 years.

Mike Catalana (21:54)

Yeah. December against the Colts. I mean, the Colts were in the AFC east at the time. Right.

Will Manso (22:02)

Overtime win against the Colts at Har. Well, I don't know what the heck the stadium was called back then, but Lamar Smith had the game winning overtime.

Mike Catalana (22:09)

Touchdown and it had to be. Was that Harbaugh who was playing for the Colts? Was it. I'm trying to think who.

Will Manso (22:15)

I'll be honest with you, I don't remember who the quarterback was for the Colts. Yeah, that's a great question, Mike. I don't remember who that was.

Mike Catalana (22:22)

But, but you're talking about going back so far without a playoff win. And as you mentioned, you've had Heat championships, you've had Marlins championships, you've had obviously the Panthers and not winning a playoff game. You know. Yeah. For that franchise with the ones with this, you got the super bowl trophies in the, you know, they're collecting dust now. It's been a long, long time.

Will Manso (22:47)

But yeah, I look at it, you could only put it in perspective. Your eyes Right. Like I, I talked to Dolphin fans all the time, young and old, and you know, the older generation will tell you, I remember the 72 dolphins and the 73 dolphins in the great days, you know, and you have the younger generation that are, you know, 23 years old. They're like, I don't, I've never seen a playoff win. And I look at, from my perspective, my first year at the station was 1999, which was Dan Marino's last year. A couple a year later, we get that win. I'm thinking, okay, I'm covering a playoff win. You know, a team with history of Marino now passing the torch. It's 25 years later, they haven't won the playoff game. And I think back, I just turned 50 years old this year.

Mike Catalana (23:21)

There you go.

Will Manso (23:23)

I've never been alive for a Dolphin super bowl win. I mean, it's great. And I feel like I'm not a young guy, not a little guy, but she's 50 years. Over 50 years, you haven't won a Super Bowl. It's amazing. Again, for a franchise that has history, this is a historic, I think we can all agree through the ugliness, this is a historic franchise. Don Shuler, the all time winning, his coach, the perfect team. Dan Marino, one of the great quarterbacks of all time. And you could go down the list of hall of famers and those two things stand out. No playoff win in 25 years and no Super bowl win in over 50 years. That's incredible.

Mike Catalana (23:56)

Yeah, yeah, it is. Last thing I'm going to ask is, you know, there was a time when they were changing the divisions and Ralph Wilson did not want the Bills to lose their rivalry with the Dolphins because it was something between franchises. From your perspective, are they still rivals? I know they play in the division and they play twice, but do you still see it as a rivalry between the two? Because it has been, especially recently, has been pretty one sided.

Will Manso (24:30)

Yes, I do, I do, because I think there's two aspects to it. The older generation fan remembers the Jim Kelly, Dan Marinos and the great matchups and over the years and, and you know, and for a long time was the Dolphins dominance in the series. And now obviously with Josh Allen, it's been the Bills dominance. But there is something from the perspective of the Dolphins and the fans of like, hey, that's the team we're trying to get to. You know, for so long the Patriots were the standard in that stretch. And where the Dolphins stopped being good, the Patriots dominant, the Bills finally caught on at the end of Tom Brady and now Josh Allen is the guy. There's a legitimate rival there because that's the team that they want to be. It's the franchise they want to beat. It's the. The team that has owned you now from the Buffalo perspective, I don't know anymore because they have dominated office so much and the AFC has so much been about the Chiefs. You know, post Tom Brady has been about the Chiefs and that's probably right now Lamar Jackson with the Ravens. So I think the Bills rivals have sort of probably shifted toward that because their eyes are on Super Bowls where I think the Dolphins rivals remains the teams in the AFC east, especially the team to beat the Bills because that's where you need to get and start to get closer to if you ever want to get to that spot of winning the playoff game.

Mike Catalana (25:38)

Yeah, I think you're right. I think it's. It's evolved into that. The division is wild in that way because the Bills were so irrelevant for that middle stretch. They didn't really. No one looked at them as a real rival. The Patriots dismissed them. I mean they kind of did. And. And now obviously that has turned.

Will Manso (25:58)

Everybody's chasing them. Everybody's chasing that. So it's easy when you're the hated team, the chase team to be the rival as opposed to vice versa when you're the team trying to chase the ultimate thing, you know.

Mike Catalana (26:06)

Yeah. All right. Well, this has been awesome as always. Let everybody know where they can follow you to get a little more information on the. On the Dolphins as they get set for to play the Bills.

Will Manso (26:16)

Always easy, Mike. On social media, on X Twitter. It's just my name at Willmanso M A N S. So I usually you will find a lot of Dolphins talk and a lot of canes and. But if you want to chat some Dolphins or chat Bill's Dolphins, happy to, you know, come on by there. We could certainly chat and I get plenty of Bills fans giving me heat on there over the years. I will say this. You know this, Mike. If there's one thing I have been on is the Josh Allen train since day one. The first time I saw him play against the Dolphins, even in his young days when he was making mistakes, I thought, my God, this kid is going to be incredible. Not that that makes me some. I'm not Nostradamus for that. I think a lot of people saw the talent, but it is incredible to see what he has become with that talent to become the.

Mike Catalana (26:56)

Yeah.

Will Manso (26:56)

Premier player in the NFL.

Mike Catalana (26:58)

Yeah. And he's. He's found a way to get better and better each year, which is is something from where he started. Yeah. Will we see you, I see you at the, you know, you see at the Panthers games, we're going for the Cup. We see you doing the work with the Miami Heat and doing all the stuff down there.

Will Manso (27:13)

It keeps us saying if it was just the Dolphins, we'd be crazy.

Mike Catalana (27:16)

And you got the Canes as a top five team, so that's cool to say. Well, thanks again for being with us and we appreciate all of you being with us today. I know you enjoy these conversations. We have to get you ready for the game. It's a short week this week, but thanks very much to Will Manso and to all of you. Please make sure to like, comment and subscribe. We're enjoying ourselves here in the Connors and Ferris podcast studio. Dan and Jenna will be joining me. We'll be doing our podcast early. It'll be out in the morning on Wednesday. So to have that ready for you, to get you ready for the game also on Thursday. So make sure you look for that. For Will Manso down in Miami getting ready to cover the Bills and the Dolphins game coming up, I'm Mike Catalana. Thanks for watching Buffalo plus, and we'll see you next time on the Buffalo Plus YouTube channel.