MIAMI GARDENS — Dolphins defensive linemen Christian Wilkins and Zach Sieler are good friends. We already knew that. But Tuesday’s edition of “Hard Knocks” delved a bit deeper into their friendship with some good footage from Sunday’s game against the New York Jets.
One shot included the duo singing “Chicken Fried” by the Zac Brown Band during games, both on the field and on the bench.
The episode also visited wide receiver Braxton Berrios at his home as he was decorating his Christmas tree with his girlfriend, social media influencer Alix Earle, who has six million followers on TikTok, and took a glimpse into his off-field life. The latter included Earle plucking Berrios’ eyebrows, a topic that came up as the show closed when players, during practice, discussed whose eyebrows appear to be manicured.
In one clip quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is quoted as saying, “Braxton Berrios, what does he bring to the team? TikTok, and um….Shoot. Sorry. That’s his girlfriend.”
Berrios told coach Mike McDaniel during Friday’s practice he’s ready for anything in the game and whatever the team needs, just let him know.
The Dolphins, of course, were attempting to bounce back from last week’s 28-27 loss to Tennessee, the game in which they blew a 14-point fourth-quarter lead in the final three minutes.
Miami hammered the Jets, 30-0, Sunday.
This episode probably had the best game footage of any episode on the series. It included good pregame, in-game and postgame/locker room clips.
The show opened with McDaniel watching game film and playing “Framed” by Eminem. Offensive line coach Butch Barry walks in McDaniel’s office and asks what’s up. McDaniel says “that’s my angry” and Barry replied, “That’s good. That’s when you’re at your best.” McDaniel adds, “Frankly, in life I’ve been at my best in times of adversity.”
The show also included a class at Pine Crest Elementary School in which a teacher was teaching her class math by using wide receiver Tyreek Hill’s race to 2,000 yards receiving. Hill had 61 yards receiving and the class added it to his previous total of 1,481 yards and figured how many yards he needs to reach 2,000.
The game footage included Hannah Sieler in Michigan watching the game on TV with, presumably, friends and family members. Hannah said they’re having a baby boy in March and she’d just had her baby shower on Saturday.
“I swear every time on Sunday morning he starts kicking,” she said of the baby. “He’s just so excited for gameday. It is the wildest thing. So he’s probably already got some football spirit in him.”
The game footage then cut to Sieler and Wilkins doing their thing, including Sieler getting an interception. The Sieler-Wilkins friendship is among the closest on the team.
“We’re salt and pepper,” Wilkins, who is Black, said of himself and Sieler, who is white.
“That, and Oreo, yes,” Sieler said with a laugh. “That’s the two favorites.”
The episode took a look at Sieler’s pre-Dolphins off-field life, which included living in a mobile home/trailer “in the woods,” with his wife, Hannah, before he became established.
The idea was if Sieler got cut they’d just pack up the trailer, and leave.
When he signed with the Dolphins they lived in a campground near the Interstate 95 and I-595 intersection for a while.
Overall, it was one of the best episodes along with the opening episode and the Jaelan Phillips injury episode (for the storytelling of the injury, not the actual injury).
— McDaniel, wearing a Givenchy hoodie in a Tuesday team meeting (the day after the loss), told the Dolphins that the Titans loss was the greatest thing to ever happen to the Dolphins because they’ll make it that way. McDaniel took the blame for poor play-calling near the goal line on one call.
— McDaniel, while talking to executive Tom Garfinkel, called Friday’s practice one of the best of the season.
— One interesting clip showed the wide receivers room and Hill discussing a route. “You want to shade his outside shoulder,” Hill explained, “and then you want to get two steps away from him and then left-right him.”
— Running back Raheem Mostert established franchise records for rushing touchdowns in a season and touchdowns in a season and that honor was highlighted in the show.
— Wilkins, after failing to sack Jets quarterback Zach Wilson, yelled at Wilson after one play, “Zaaach! Zach! Give it to me! I need one!”
— Before wide receiver Jaylen Waddle’s 60-yard touchdown reception, McDaniel is heard remarking on the sideline, “I’m really visualizing a one-play drive here.”
— Owner Steve Ross was shown in his box doing Waddle’s after-touchdown “waddle” along with Garfinkel after Waddle’s 60-yard touchdown reception.
— The episode closed at Pine Crest Elementary with the teacher in her classroom telling students getting the win after the loss was very important. Then it showed players in practice, led by Berrios, talking about getting their eyebrows plucked. Mostert admitted his wife plucks his eyebrows. Berrios, while pointing out Waddle might have his eyebrows waxed, opined everyone gets their eyebrows plucked but his eyebrow plucking has now become public.
“This was the worst day to be mic’d up,” Berrios concludes.
