Linebacker McMillan says ‘this is my year’
Raekwon McMillan is ready to give Dolphins ‘everything I’ve got.’
He’s only 22 and has never played in, much less started, a regularseason Dolphins game, but all agree he’s already a leader.
DAVIE — Raekwon McMillan is 22 years old and has never played in, let alone started, a regular-season game for the Miami Dolphins.
But all agree he is already a team leader. And with McMillan in the middle of Miami’s defense, it’s important to note he expects to be even better than he would have been as a projected rookie starter last season.
“Last year, I felt like going into it, I didn’t know all of the nuances,” McMillan said Friday. “I didn’t know everything about the defense.
“When I came to the sidelines last year, I was the one asking questions. I was the one that needed all of the answers. This year, I’m more of a teacher and I know a little bit more.”
McMillan tore up a knee on the first preseason play of his 2017 season, but he took a mature approach to the injury. McMillan is a bit of an old soul, it seems.
“I never got to the point where I got mad at myself or got down on myself,” he said. “I was a little disappointed that I wasn’t able to provide for this organization; but this is my year right here, so I’ve got to give them everything I’ve got.”
McMillan can run and tackle and can even cover. In fact, he says he shed a few pounds in order to work toward a possible three-down role.
“I try to study all of the threedown linebackers,” McMillan said. “Deion Jones, Luke Kuechly, Bobby Wagner and some of those guys. The guy from the Cowboys (Sean Lee) — those are all pretty good linebackers and I just study the game and how they play.”
McMillan admitted he spent some time during organized team activities in the spring thinking about the strength of his rehabili- tated knee. But that’s over. And he doesn’t even feel the need to wear a brace.
“I finally feel like I’m back to where I was and feelinga little better than I was when I went to camp last year,” he said.
Dolphins coach Adam Gase has seemed sold on McMillan’s value as a second-round pick from almost the moment they met.
“I think as a rookie, you saw leadership qualities,” Gase said. “You saw how smart he was and how fast he picked everything up. We’re trying to mini- mize how much he’s think- ing about because he processes a lot. Really, when he sees something once, he can recall it and he knows how to adjust our defense very quickly.”
Soon enough, McMillan will actually tackle a player for the first time since last summer. Gase and defensive coordinator Matt Burke have waited a long time to see the on-field impact he might have.
“That’s what middle linebackers live for, so I’m ready,” McMillan said.