Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Loose and motivated
Dolphins lack much playoff experience but there’s no enthusiasm shortage
DAVIE — The Miami Dolphins usually have trendy hip-hop music blaring from gigantic speakers at practice, but during their walk-through session Friday there was a special treat for the players.
Club LIV DJ Derek Walin was set up and spinning the hits during what could possibly be this team’s last practice. That all depends on how the Dolphins perform Sunday in their AFC wild-card playoff game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Winner moves on to thesecond round, while the loser’s season is over.
Considering the Dolphins’ locker room this week has resembled the let-out of a party where everyone’s had such a good time that nobody wants to go home, it is safe to say everyone in Davie wants the good times to keep rolling.
“They’ve worked really hard, pads on Wednesday, and they practiced really well,” Dolphins coach Adam Gase said in explaining why there was a DJ. “It was a great vibe
at practice, and guys were fired up about that. We got a lot of requests [for different DJs] already moving forward.”
Seeing as this is Miami’s first playoff berth since 2008, nobody in the organization is taking it for granted. In fact, players have adopted a “Do it for Cam” rallying cry, noting that the game will be veteran defensive end Cameron Wake’s first playoff game since he entered the league in 2009.
“It’s humbling,” Wake said. “Do it for yourself. But if that’s the motivation, I’ll take it.
“It’s hard to get in this position,” added Wake, who earned his fifth Pro Bowl selection this year. “It’s hard to win in this league. Any guy who is a part of it, my hats off to them. Do it for whatever the reason is, but do it.”
Only 13 of the current Dolphins have played in a postseason game in their careers. That leaves several veterans who haven’t had that experience, including defensive end Mario Williams, an 11th-year pro who has been on a team that’s reached in the playoffs but didn’t get to play in the game.
Guard Jermon Bushrod, one of three Dolphins players who own a Super Bowl ring, can explain the difference: “In the regular season you had another opportunity next week,” he said. “In the playoffs you don’t.”
Cornerback Byron Maxwell, who might miss the game because of an ankle injury, was a starting cornerback on Seattle’s championship team, and linebacker Spencer Paysinger played on the Giants’ most recent Super Bowl team.
Bushrod earned his ring as the New Orleans’ starting left tackle on the 2009 team. He went to the playoffs three times during his early tenure with the Saints and admits that he thought making it to the postseason was typical until a four-year drought began in 2012.
“Attention to detail goes higher, and the pace of play will pick up a little bit. It’s going to be more physical,” Bushrod said of the postseason. “Football is football, if you go 100 percent you’re going to feel it no matter when we play, but you’ve got to be on top of things in the playoffs.”
Bushrod’s main advice to his teammates is to “stick to the plan” and enjoy the moment, because “it’s hard to break into the tournament.”
“Every year you have to fight to get back, because it never gets easy,” Bushrod added.
Gase and his coaching staff have warned the team that the intensity of playoff games gets dialed up a notch, but he’s certain it is something they’ll have to experience to full understand.
“You try to explain to them as coaches. But sometimes as coaches, when you’re not playing with these guys, they are like, ‘Yeah, yeah, yeah.’ But, it’s real,” Gase said. “The intensity is real . ... You need to go through it, and they’ll feel it.
“Once we hit that stadium on Sunday, or even before the game, they’ll feel that it’s a different feel.”