Mike McDaniel Intervenes in Scuffle During Dolphins Practice
Miami Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel intervened to break up a fight during the team’s practice against the Chicago Bears, this being one of three disputes that occurred in Friday’s session. The altercation occurred during drills in the red zone, near the end of practice, when Dolphins wide receiver Dee Eskridge and Bears safety Kevin Byard exchanged shoves after a play. Although the situation quickly calmed down, Dolphins center Aaron Brewer and Bears cornerback Tyrique Stevenson engaged in a scuffle, which Eskridge joined again, causing more teammates from both teams to intervene. While Tyreek Hill, who did not participate in Friday’s practice, pulled Eskridge out of the scrum, McDaniel ran toward the center of the group of players, shouting for them to stop. The Dolphins’ safety, Minkah Fitzpatrick, was unaware of McDaniel’s intervention until his press conference after practice, and instinctively said “oh no” when informed.McDaniel has made his aversion to fights in practice clear to the players, and Bears coach Ben Johnson said before practice that his players knew the consequences if they fought. Dolphins offensive lineman James Daniels explained his coach’s perspective after practice.I think that’s very dangerous, we need our head coach, you know? We don’t want him to get hurt, so I appreciate it. But I think we could separate them ourselves.
Minkah Fitzpatrick
There was another incident on Friday where Dolphins linebacker Jordyn Brooks had to be separated from an unidentified teammate on the sidelines. Brooks, one of the Dolphins’ leaders in the locker room, is someone who demands accountability from his teammates, Fitzpatrick said, and sometimes emotions can run high.He thinks fighting is a waste of time, we are here to practice. If you throw a punch in a game, you will be ejected. That’s how he sees it, and we really think the same. We’re not trying to fight, we’re just trying to practice, face each other, have good opportunities and then go home.
James Daniels
The Dolphins face the Bears at Soldier Field in the first preseason game for both teams on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET.He’s another guy who’s passionate about the game. He loves the game. Even today, he was demanding a high standard from people and got confrontational, but I think that’s necessary when you’re doing something to a high standard.
Minkah Fitzpatrick
