Q&A: Find out what Dolphins center Mike Pouncey's real name is

• Mike Pouncey's brother, Maurkice, plays the same position for the Pittsburgh Steelers
• But they're real names aren't Mike and Maurkice, they're James and LaShawn
• But when they're real father, whose name was James, left the family, the Pounceys invented new names

A few weeks ago, Mike Pouncey made headlines for taking a shot at New York Jets linebacker Aaron Maybin, who had said his defense was looking to knock out Miami Dolphins running back Reggie Bush.

Pouncey is usually pretty reserved with his comments. But targeting the guy he blocks for set him off.

"Yeah, I don't really get involved in the media talking trash. I just let my play do all the talking," the Dolphins' starting center and 2011 first-round pick told USA TODAY Sports this week. "I think that's probably why I've been playing so good."

He added, "It was our star running back. We have his back on the field, and we trust he's going to have our back. We take a lot of pride in being great teammates."

That's the brotherhood of a football locker room. And Pouncey knows all about being a brother. His twin brother Maurkice is the Pittsburgh Steelers' starting center and his former sparring partner growing up.

The sibling rivalry got heated at times. But like Mike defended Bush, the Pouncey brothers still have one another's back. Mike reveals why in this week's USA TODAY Sports NFL Q&A.

I'll hit you with the tough one right out of the gate: Who's the better Pouncey brother right now?
(Laughs) My brother. Definitely.

Really?
Well, we feel like we're the same football player, man, and anytime I ever get asked that question, I say him and anytime he ever gets asked that question, he says me.

Right, but we're going to keep asking it until one of you breaks.
(Laughs) We won't break. We promised each other we won't give in.

I've met a lot of Mikes in my time. I don't know I've ever met another Maurkice. Where did the spread come from there?
We give our mom a hard time about it all the time because our first names are actually James and LaShawn. We hated those names growing up, so she finally let us start calling each other Michael and Maurkice and we just stuck with it our whole lives. Our real father left us when we were just a couple of months old and his first name was James. That was really the start of it, so whenever we were in elementary and middle school, we'd always tell the teachers don't call us by our first names.

How tough was that whole situation?
Our (step)father, he's been there since we were little kids and we didn't know any difference until we were 10 years old and they finally told us he wasn't our real dad. We don't even look at it like that. We just figure we came from him. He's been a great dad as far as getting us to where we want to be in life, whether it was in school or even our Little League coach growing up. Our parents are a big reason we're here now.

You've met your real dad?
We met him three times our whole life and none of those three times we met him has gone well.

Give me your best story about growing up with your brother.
Oh, we couldn't even play a card game together because we were so competitive we hated seeing each other win. Especially when we were playing against each other. I remember one time we were growing up and we played a pickup basketball game and it ended up turning into a fistfight.

Who won the game and, more importantly, who won the fight?
I actually won the game, but if I tell you I won the fight, he'll probably get mad. (Laughs) But I definitely feel like I won the fight, so you can go ahead and let him know that.

What do you like about Ryan Tannehill?
He plays with so much composure. He's a 24-year-old rookie that knows the offense. When he makes a mistake, you can't even tell. He's one of those cool, calm, collected guys. He makes all the right plays. Even when he's rushed and the pressure's on him, he's looking downfield to make plays.

He's come out of his shell recently?
It took a while. When you come in as a rookie and are the starting quarterback of an NFL football team, you kind of get the persona where you have to be serious 24/7. That's not the case. We're all kids. We've been spoiled our whole lives and now we get more spoiled by being in the NFL. He's never really had a chance to grow up and so now he's finally comfortable with himself in the locker room. He's a guy you like being around. He's a funny guy.

I know he's proud of his wife, and he should be…
Oh, yeah.

What have guys said to him, joking-wise?
(Laughs) They give him a hard time all the time. We just tell him how she runs the household and stuff like that. Just joking around, but she does a great job with our team as well, as far as community service and being around.

And I'm guessing they've told him she's not bad on the eyes?
(Laughs) She is very pretty, yes. She's very pretty.

Joe Philbin gave the offensive line a B-minus and he mentioned the failed fourth-and-15 play against the Colts when Tannehill got pressured. You agree with both ends of that?
No question. It's fourth-and-15. You never want to grade your offensive line higher than what it should be because you never want them to get the big head. Offensive linemen, you have to play as one. For the most part, we've done that this year. We have a lot of improvement to do, but we're halfway through the season and we've been playing well.

Agree with the B-minus?
I do. That's the same grade I'd give myself because I hold myself to a very high standard and if we don't win a game, you can't grade your offensive line as an A. You'd have to grade them down.

How would you grade what Philbin has done so far?
Oh, great. A-plus.

Of course.
No, seriously. I've seen both sides and he's a coach that always has us prepared to play. He's very specific on what he wants to do. He's the same guy and guys just love being around him. He's one of those guys that demands a lot of respect and a lot of effort out of his guys and that's what we go out there and do for him every week.

What's he done to earn the guys' respect so far?
He's treated us like professionals. He gives us the time we need to get healthy. He has us ready to play football games. We're going into games fresh this year. And he's just a guy that comes from a winning program and he's translated that over to the Miami Dolphins.

It's got to be rare for an NFL coach to say, 'Take your time and get healthy' rather than 'Get your butt out there,' right?
It is. And that's why you see winning teams and losing teams. That's part of taking care of your players and having the right coaching staff here and the right leadership on your football team.

Do you think in years past you guys played injured and it affected the performance on the field? Is that what you're saying?
I wouldn't say playing injured, because this league demands you treat the players with a lot of caution. But I'll say we're going into games a lot fresher this year.

Is Reggie Bush more of a mature runner this year? Has he grown in that regard?
He's definitely grown. And that's one thing these coaches demand. When they tell you to be on your landmark, to go to the outside leg of the tackle, that's where you're going to be every play.

How has he grown as a person? He just seems more mature.
Oh, definitely. Once you bring in a guy he's comfortable with and now he's finally accepted us as teammates and we've accepted him, he's great. I love Reggie Bush.

Yeah, I can tell because you defended him when the Jets started firing that trash talk.
Reggie's a special football player. We're a team and we believe we're going to let our talk be done on the football field. We're not going to do it through the media. We're going to play hard and our running back is a reflection of our offensive line. So when somebody tries to take him out, we have to prove they're not going to be able to.

Speaking of the Jets, Tim Tebow.
Mm-hmm.

No, that's it. That's what you do. You say 'Tim Tebow' and just let people react.
(Laughs) I already know what the reaction's going to be. He's a great guy, he's a very positive role model in our society. I was fortunate enough to play with him throughout college and I loved every moment of it. He's a guy that practices the same way he plays, he's a guy that lives by his morals and religion. And it's not bullcrap. He goes out and lives what he speaks about.

Did you talk to him after the last game?
I definitely did. I told him I miss him and I can't wait until his charity golf tournament in the offseason we take part in. I just wished him the best of luck and I hope everything works out for him.

He said something the other day about how he'd like to be more involved. Did you see that and do you agree?
I know what he can do. I don't know what the Jets have going on. I'm not part of that. But I know once Tebow gets his opportunity, he's going to go out there and do the best he can. He's always been a playmaker.

As a center, you line up very close to nose tackles. I mean, how close do they get?
(Laughs) Almost to the point where they're offsides.

Right, almost. So tell me, who has the worst breath?
(Laughs) I don't even focus on that. I'm trying to let all my guys know what defensive front we're in and who we're working to.

Have you ever talked to a nose tackle as you're snapping the ball?
No, but I have after the play.

Not even saying, 'Hey, I'm going to knock you on your butt'?
The only reason I don't – because I do like to talk during the game – is because I'm busy making all of the calls and, by the time I'm done, we're snapping the ball.

So after the play…
Yeah, I have to make up for the time lost when I wasn't doing it.

Best one-liner you've heard or delivered?
I can't really discuss out there because some of it just ain't right. (Laughs)

Allow me to rephrase: Give us the most printable one-liner.
I just tell them, 'Come on, come on. Keep coming. Let's work today.'

How many things do they do to try getting you to snap the ball early?
Not a lot, honestly. It hasn't happened as much this year because of our high-paced offense. We're up-tempo, so they're sucking wind and we're sucking wind and by the time they can say anything, we're snapping the ball.

But in the past, they've barked at you or something?
They'll say things, but I really haven't experienced it much. This is only my second year in the NFL. I've played against mature, great players that don't have to do that.

And you've never moved the ball or flinched or anything?
(Laughs) Oh, no. No question. I've never done that.

How dare I even ask, right?
(Laughs)