MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Miami Dolphins defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver gave a passionate answer when asked about where his unit has gone wrong this season.
The Dolphins have allowed 30-plus points in each of the first three games, are last in the NFL in scoring defense and are one of only three teams in the league without a turnover.
Weaver, his signature smile fading and his tone sharpening during a roughly three-minute plea for improvement, said he knows his group can play better. But it starts with changing its attitude.
“I’m old school,” Weaver said. "I’m a nice guy. I smile, I do all those things, but all of our problems that we need to solve can be solved through violence. Yeah, they want to legislate it out of the game, but we play defensive football. Defensive football at some point you draw a line in the sand and you say, ‘I’m going to set the edge. I’m going to stick my helmet under this guy’s chin and I’m going to set the edge. I’m going to violently take the ball away.’
"And that’s what we need to do. With a steely-eyed focus, with resolve, with resiliency, and we’re going to stop people. And I am determined, we are all determined for that to happen.”
They have a chance for a turnaround Monday night against the New York Jets — a prime time matchup between two winless AFC East rivals. The Dolphins have won nine straight home games against the Jets and are 34-25-1 at home against New York.
Miami's defense is hoping to build on its second-half performance in its Week 3 loss at Buffalo. The Dolphins forced two Bills punts in the second half — nearly a third before veteran defensive tackle Zach Sieler was penalized for roughing the punter — to keep the team in the game after struggling to get off the field before that.
Weaver said the defense's lack of physicality hurt early in the game, adding that Buffalo “punched us in the face early” by being able to easily run outside zone.
“They’re gaining five or six yards, and we’re misfitting in all these things,” Weaver said. “That’s not a them thing, that’s an us thing. That’s something that we can control, but at some point, we’ve got to do it.”
Weaver fervidly challenged his defense to play better in meetings, and coach Mike McDaniel said that passion was evident all week.
“I think it’s a good representation of one of the reasons why Anthony Weaver is here,” McDaniel said. "I was very aware of his tonality throughout the week. ... We’re working together through that. It fires me up that (he) was hot.”
Players appeared to get the message. And they echoed Weaver's notion that they need to play with more physicality.
“We’ve got to be in a position where we can play fast, because I think when you are playing slow, you’re not able to be violent,” safety Minkah Fitzpatrick said. "You’re more reactionary than being aggressive. When we’re in a position to play downhill and put our shoulder pads on people, knock the ball off of people, I think that’s when you get that violence that he’s talking about. So just knowing what to do, communicating and playing with a sense of urgency.”
That communication will be important against Jets quarterback Justin Fields, who was cleared from concussion protocol this week and will start after being sidelined against Tampa Bay in Week 3.
The Dolphins struggle at times against mobile quarterbacks. In the past two weeks, Bills quarterback Josh Allen had four carries for 25 yards and Patriots QB Drake Maye had 10 rushes for 31 yards and a rushing TD.
Fields' playmaking ability presents a similar challenge.
“He’s a guy that can hurt you with his legs and with his arm," Fitzpatrick said. "So you’ve got to have a great rush plan. I think when you play guys like him, very similar to Josh Allen earlier this year, he’s a guy that if he doesn’t like what he sees in the backend, he’s going to think to tuck and run first. I think having a great rush plan, making sure you have multiple guys having eyes on him is crucial.”
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL
Buffalo Bills tight end Jackson Hawes (85) celebrates after scoring a touchdown against the Miami Dolphins during the first half of an NFL football game, Thursday, Sept. 18, 2025, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Buffalo Bills tight end Dalton Kincaid (86) runs past Miami Dolphins cornerback Jack Jones (23) for a touchdown during the first half of an NFL football game, Thursday, Sept. 18, 2025, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Buffalo Bills tight end Dalton Kincaid (86) scores a touchdown next to Miami Dolphins free safety Minkah Fitzpatrick (29) during the first half of an NFL football game, Thursday, Sept. 18, 2025, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — President Donald Trump on Thursday threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act and deploy troops to quell persistent protests against the federal officers sent to Minneapolis to enforce his administration's massive immigration crackdown.
The president's threat comes a day after a federal immigration officer shot and wounded a Minneapolis man who had attacked the officer with a shovel and broom handle. That shooting further heightened the fear and anger radiating across the Minnesota city since an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent fatally shot a Renee Good in the head.
Trump has repeatedly threatened to invoke the rarely used federal law to deploy the U.S. military or federalize the National Guard for domestic law enforcement, over the objections of state governors.
“If the corrupt politicians of Minnesota don’t obey the law and stop the professional agitators and insurrectionists from attacking the Patriots of I.C.E., who are only trying to do their job, I will institute the INSURRECTION ACT, which many Presidents have done before me, and quickly put an end to the travesty that is taking place in that once great State,” Trump said in social media post.
The Associated Press has reached out to the offices of Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey for comment.
The Department of Homeland Security says it has made more than 2,000 arrests in the state since early December and is vowing to not back down. ICE is a DHS agency.
In Minneapolis, smoke filled the streets Wednesday night near the site of the latest shooting as federal officers wearing gas masks and helmets fired tear gas into a small crowd. Protesters responded by throwing rocks and shooting fireworks.
Police Chief Brian O’Hara said during a news conference that the gathering was an unlawful assembly and “people need to leave.”
Things later quietened down and by early Thursday only a few demonstrators and law enforcement officers remained at the scene.
Demonstrations have become common on the streets of Minneapolis since the ICE agent fatally shot 37-year-old Good on Jan. 7. Agents have yanked people from their cars and homes, and have been confronted by angry bystanders demanding that the officers pack up and leave.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey described the situation as not “sustainable.”
“This is an impossible situation that our city is presently being put in and at the same time we are trying to find a way forward to keep people safe, to protect our neighbors, to maintain order,” he said.
Frey said the federal force — five times the size of the city’s 600-officer police force — has “invaded” Minneapolis, scaring and angering residents.
In a statement describing the events that led to Wednesday's shooting, Homeland Security said federal law enforcement officers stopped a driver from Venezuela who is in the U.S. illegally. The person drove away and crashed into a parked car before taking off on foot, DHS said.
After officers reached the person, two other people arrived from a nearby apartment and all three started attacking the officer, according to DHS.
“Fearing for his life and safety as he was being ambushed by three individuals, the officer fired a defensive shot to defend his life,” DHS said.
The two people who came out of the apartment are in custody, it said.
O’Hara said the man shot was in the hospital with a non-life-threatening injury.
The shooting took place about 4.5 miles (7.2 kilometers) north of where Good was killed. O’Hara's account of what happened largely echoed that of Homeland Security.
During a speech before the latest shooting, Walz described Minnesota as being in chaos, saying what's happening in the state “defies belief.”
“Let’s be very, very clear, this long ago stopped being a matter of immigration enforcement,” he said. “Instead, it’s a campaign of organized brutality against the people of Minnesota by our own federal government.”
Jonathan Ross, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer who killed Good, suffered internal bleeding to his torso during the encounter, a Homeland Security official told The Associated Press.
The official spoke to AP on condition of anonymity in order to discuss Ross’ medical condition. The official did not provide details about the severity of the injuries, and the agency did not respond to questions about the extent of the bleeding, exactly how he suffered the injury, when it was diagnosed or his medical treatment.
Good was killed after three ICE officers surrounded her SUV on a snowy street a few blocks from her home.
Bystander video shows one officer ordering Good to open the door and grabbing the handle. As the vehicle begins to move forward, Ross, standing in front, raises his weapon and fires at least three shots at close range. He steps back as the SUV advances and turns.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has said Ross was struck by the vehicle and that Good was using her SUV as a weapon — a self-defense claim that has been criticized by Minnesota officials.
Chris Madel, an attorney for Ross, declined to comment.
Good’s family has hired the same law firm that represented George Floyd’s family in a $27 million settlement with Minneapolis. Floyd, who was Black, died after a white police officer pinned his neck to the ground in the street in May 2020.
Madhani reported from Washington, D.C. Associated Press reporters Julie Watson in San Diego; Rebecca Santana in Washington; Ed White in Detroit and Giovanna Dell’Orto in Minneapolis contributed.
A protester yells in front of law enforcement after a shooting on Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Tear gas surrounds federal law enforcement officers as they leave a scene after a shooting on Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Protesters shout at law enforcement officers after a shooting on Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Law enforcement officers stand amid tear gas at the scene of a reported shooting Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
