A couple days after Tua Tagovailoa candidly described the harsh coaching he received from former Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores, outside linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel offered a different take Wednesday.
Van Ginkel, 29, joined the Minnesota Vikings as a free agent in the offseason, reuniting him with Flores, who is currently the defensive coordinator in Minnesota.
š„ Former Miami Dolphins LB Andrew Van Ginkel on Tua Tagovailoa's comments about Brian Flores: "[Flores] is the reason I'm the player I am todayā¦ I'm just going to kind of leave Tua's comments to himself but for me I wouldn't be here without [Flores]." (@JeffWaldFox9) #GoFins pic.twitter.com/LUyUzqmFwz
ā FinsXtra (@FinsXtra) August 22, 2024
āWeāve got [Flores]ās back and trust what heās building here with this defense and the type of standard that heās built and weāre all just trying to live up to his expectations and standards he has for our defense,ā Van Ginkel told Jeff Wald of FOX 9 in Minnesota.
āObviously, [Flores] has a lot of respect from me. Iāve got a lot of respect for him and kind of who he is as a defensive coach and what he brings to the table. Heās the reason Iām the player I am today and I give him credit for that. ā¦ Iām just gonna kinda leave Tuaās comments to himself but for me I wouldnāt be here without [Flores].ā
On Monday, Tagovailoa told Dan Le Batard that constant criticisms from Flores caused self-doubt to sink in before Mike McDaniel was able to instill confidence in the quarterback again.
āIf you have a terrible person telling you things that you donāt want to hear or probably shouldnāt be hearing, youāre going to start to believe that about yourself,ā Tagovailoa told Le Batard. āThatās sort of what ended up happening.ā
On Tuesday, Flores had a measured response to the criticism, telling reporters that heās learned from past mistakes and heās āgenuinely happyā that Tagovailoa has found success under McDaniel.
Van Ginkel, 29, was a fifth-round pick in the 2019 NFL draft and finished his Dolphins tenure with 17 sacks.
