Quinn’s mind-bending flexibility for Dolphins
Miami’s new attacking defense would seem to suit defensive end.
Defensive end Robert Quinn is 6-foot-4, 250 pounds. He’s strong, he’s fast and he knows how to contort his body.
DAVIE — Robert Quinn is 6-foot-4, 250 pounds and he’s strong and he’s fast. Yet his most valuable asset is one coaches and players at Miami Dolphins camp have been having a hard time wrapping their minds around.
How Quinn bends.
Defensive ends like Quinn are taught to fire off the ball as quickly as they can, aim toward an outside edge and then at precisely the right moment, stick a foot in the ground and pivot toward the quarterback.
You can’t just be fast. You can’t just be strong. You have to know how to contort your body. And contort Quinn does.
“He’s a unique athlete,” Dolphins defensive coordinator Matt Burke said. “He bends probably as good as anybody I’ve ever been around. It’s weird to watch sometimes, to be honest with you. He comes off the corner and sometimes you think he’s actually rushing too high and gets past the quarterback, then he just turns his foot and plants it and bends it. His knee is about 2 feet off the ground and he can really hug it. It’s pretty fun.”
In a recent news confer- ence, Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill brought it up without even being asked.
“It’s incredible how he bends the corner and his hips are 2 feet off the ground, but he’s running full speed around the corner,” Tanne- hill said.
Recent first-round draft choice Charles Harris, a defen- sive end, seemed to speak with reverence, and a tinge of jealousy, about how Quinn is able to control and direct his body.
, seeing him practice and seeing him going through cornering drills and stuff, it’s just like ‘Dang, how do you do it?’ ” Harris said. “It’s also motivating. For me, I look at it as I had the most bend on the team. Seeing him going through all of that is like, ‘I’ve got to get my stuff together.’ ”
Quinn excelled from 2012- 2014, with 10.5, 19 and 10.5 sacks. But, battling injuries, he took a step back the next two seasons and then recorded 8.5 last year, but he never fully grew comfortable with a transition to line- backer.
Quinn is back at defensive end in Miami, and he is being asked to do one thing really well.
“Get on your aiming point, key the ball and go as fast as you can, go as hard as you can go,” defensive line coach Kris Kocurek said. to miss Quinn’s speed, athhis NFL career, has actually
Miami players are openly leticism and ridiculous bend- been taken aback by watchraving about how they’re ability. Is it any wonder he’s ing Quinn practice. going to attack more this sea- been dubbed “Gumby” in “He’s another guy that son. Last season, there was so the past? doesn’t really say much,” much emphasis on gap integ“Flexibility,” Dolphins Burke said. “He just kind of rity and slowing the oppos- defensive tackle Vincent Taycomes out to work. He’s got ing run with proper reads. lor said. “He’s very flexible. a smile on his face. But just
The Dolphins feel that to Just the way I see him bend from an athletic standpoint, to be their best on defense, the corner and how low he me, he has a rare bend ability. they’ll need to unleash Quinn, gets, and just getting around That’s his trait and it’s almost Cam Wake, Harris and Andre all of those tackles, he’s a disarming to watch at times, Branch. very special player. He’s very the way he can corner.”
There hasn’t been any tack- flexible.” ling at Dolphins practices Burke, who has seen a lot yet, of course. But it’s hard of special pass rushers in