Dolphins’ Chris Grier addresses Dalvin Cook, Tua, Apple signing, Fangio, more

Dolphins general manager Chris Grier addressed the availability of free agent Dalvin Cook on Tuesday, not ruling out a Miami pursuit but also making clear that the team is moving forward with the running backs on its roster.

“Dalvin is a tremendous athlete and football player and has been a productive player in this league,” Grier told Alex Marvez and Charlie Weis on Sirius XM Radio when asked about Cook.

“That’s why everyone is looking at him. People would love to have him. Whether it works out with us or anyone, we’re just very happy with the group we have and we’re moving forward with that group.”

Grier discussed every veteran from that group: “We feel we have good players there. Raheem Mostert has been a good player. He was playing really good at the end of the season....

“Jeff Wilson came over and played well. Both got dinged a little bit. They’ve both been good players in this league and have played in the system and know Mike [McDaniel].

“Salvon [Ahmed] has come on.... We’re excited for De’Von [Achane]. Myles Gaskin is a good player. With those guys, we feel good that we have quality NFL players.”

Cook returned to Miami after visiting the Jets on Sunday. Cook has said playing for his hometown Dolphins would be a “Cinderella story.” The Dolphins have shown some interest in Cook, but hadn’t made an aggressive pursuit as of Sunday.

Grier addressed other issues in the Sirius interview:

▪ On quarterback Tua Tagovailoa: “He’s attacked this offseason tremendously. A lot of that credit goes to that relationship between him and Mike. The two of them are in sync on everything. They talk a lot. He feels the love and belief from Mike in him. They trust each other explicitly.

“He’s done everything he possibly can. He’s stronger than he’s ever been. Attacked the weight room, jiu jitsu. It’s exciting to watch him grow into this. He’s a very prideful kid.

“I call him a silent assassin because he kind of keeps everything to himself. But he hears everything. He claims he doesn’t listen to stuff, but he will have subtle shots at people. That’s what you love about him. He has a different air about how he handles himself. His teammates feel it.”

▪ On signing Eli Apple and his and McDaniel’s decision to first discuss it with Tyreek Hill - who has trash talked with Apple in the past:

“Tyreek is a genius,” Grier said. “Mike and I called Tyreek and were like, ‘Hey, we’re going to work out Eli Apple. Everything good with you guys?’”

Hill said: “I love Eli. He’s my dog. You should definitely do that.”

Grier said: “We were excited to add him. I think it will be a good fit” in the wake of Jalen Ramsey’s knee injury.

▪ On rookie cornerback Cam Smith and competition to fill in for Ramsey, who’s out until December: “You can never have enough corners, especially in today’s game. We still want to make sure we have good quality competition there.

“Kader Kohou did a nice job for us, excited to see him in year two. We felt we could never have enough corners with all the injuries we had last year.

“Cam has done a nice job coming in here. He’s competing, had a couple nice plays yesterday. Talking to Jalen, he was talking about how incredibly talented Cam is. Just raw on some stuff, like all rookies are. We’re excited about his future. He’s working hard.”

▪ On Bradley Chubb: “Watching the relationship with [Chubb] and Jaelan Phillips. Those two are very close, work tremendously hard.

“Bradley has that little bit of a mean streak. He’s physical. It’s not about having him come here and have 15 sacks. It’s about everything else he does. He’s a really good run defender. It’s his all around game. The pressures he creates, tripping quarterbacks, how he hustles, chases the play, his motor and effort.

“Being around for Jaelan to learn from him and his experiences in the league, it has been exciting. Watching the whole group, Andrew Van Ginkel, we’re very excited with that group this year.”

▪ On the team’s speed: “When Mike came in, it was all about speed on offense. It puts a lot of pressure on the defense when you have especially the two receivers we have and the running backs we’ve had. These guys really enjoy the scheme.

“Mike caters it around the players’ strengths to allow them to be successful. That’s exciting watching how fast we are. Some of the GPS numbers we get are unbelievable, not just on offense. We’ve got some guys that can fly on defense.”

▪ On hiring Vic Fangio as defensive coordinator: “Getting Vic was a huge get for us. I’ve enjoyed getting to know him the past few months and what he’s looking for in players and how he approaches players and teaches players. Our guys have responded well.”