Feature Interview with Davone Bess

SC = scout.com

Asked how he's feeling heading into another season with the Dolphins, Bess said:
"I feel good right now. Obviously, having a year under my belt, I'm going out there a lot more confident. I can just go out there and play ball now. I don't really have to worry about thinking too much or the coaches throwing too much at me." (SC)

Asked what went through his head when he wasn't drafted, Bess said:
"Obviously, it was really disappointing not getting drafted. But at the same time, I use every negative thing and turn it into a positive." (SC)

When the interviewer said that he had a feeling that Bess would be ready to prove to everyone that they had made a mistake, Bess said:
"Exactly. I love being the underdog man! No pressure, no nothing. You can just go out and do what you've got to do. Just go handle your business and block everybody else out." (SC)

Asked to talk about why he's able to excel in Miami's offense, Bess said:
"We have a great coaching staff, and our offensive coordinator is really smart when it comes to picking certain players for certain roles. We're not a one-dimensional team, we're able to do a whole bunch of things within our offense. A lot of people didn't expect us to do as well as we did last year, to go that far. Obviously, that made us feel good and now we have something else to prove." (SC)

Asked what he's learned to appreciate about his QB, Chad Pennington, Bess said:
"We call him “the coach” in the classroom. He's one of the guys that makes me and all of the other players better. He's a real smart, humble, hardworking guy. For him to be heading into his tenth year is really valuable to our team. He's a big part of why we were so successful last year -- just his leadership role and his experience. You know, experience is half the battle in the NFL. The other half is just going out, playing ball and being confident." (SC)

Asked about how the training camp competition between Miami's WRs will be very competitive, Bess said:
"It's stressful, but everybody is working hard and there are no grudges. Everybody's going out and competing. Me personally, anytime the rookies or anybody has a question for me, I'm the first one to give my feedback and what I think they should do better. You know, I'm trying to help myself at the same time, making sure we all have an even shot. At the end of the day, the guys up top make the ultimate decision of who's going to play. All we can do is go out everyday, work hard and leave the rest to the coaches. The best will come out of the competition." (SC)

When the interviewer said that he had to be pleased with catching 54 passes with only 6 starts because some vets start 16 games and only catch 50 or 60 passes, Bess said:
"Yeah, I get excited. It was unfortunate when Camarillo went down and got hurt, but obviously, when he went down my role expanded. I made the most of the opportunity when the coaches gave me that shot and I've never wanted to look back. I take every opportunity like it's my last. Me and Chad built a pretty good connection towards the end of the season and he kept coming my way. Hopefully we can keep things going from the beginning of the season to the end and make it happen again." (SC)

Asked what about Tony Sparano inspires his teammates and him, Bess said:
"He just means business, you know? When you're a head coach, you've got to be somebody your players can respect. You can't just be a pushover. He's has respect from every single player. And it's a trickle-down effect from (Bill) Parcells and it comes on down to Coach Sparano, and from Sparano to the other coaches. That's what the ultimate goal is, getting all the players to buy into what the coaches are talking about and to believe in them. After that, it's just going and applying it to the field and making it work." (SC)

Asked what the mood has been when the Dolphin players have worked out together this offseason, and if they are excited about their prospects this season, Bess said:
"It's real exciting. We've been working hard for the past couple of months with offseason workouts. Next thing you know, training camp will be here, so it's going to be exciting to see what the 2009 Miami Dolphins are all about. We''re putting in the work. We're putting in the time. Now it's just a matter of us going out and wanting it more than our opponents." (SC)

http://nyj.scout.com/a.z?s=65&p=2&c=878065