A Failure of Leadership

[Dolfanalyst]

https://nypost.com/2026/03/03/sports/raheem-mostert-calls-out-what-went-wrong-for-dolphins-in-mike-mcdaniel-era/?utm_source=nypost&utm_campaign=android_nyp&utm_medium=socially

[Sibster]

https://nypost.com/2026/03/03/sports/raheem-mostert-calls-out-what-went-wrong-for-dolphins-in-mike-mcdaniel-era/?utm_source=nypost&utm_campaign=android_nyp&utm_medium=socially

He's not wrong.   A perfect example of this was when the Dolphins first started under George Wilson.  He was known for being lax at times and being a drinking buddy with some of the players.   He let players he liked miss curfew.   I will give him credit.   He had a keen eye for talent.   A lot of the key contributors on those Super Bowl winning teams were brought in by him.

Then Don Shula came along and basically beat the shit out of this team.   Told them that things had to change drastically and it wouldn't be pleasant if they wanted to be winners.   The players hated him for it... until they started winning.  Then they loved him for it.

[Spider-Dan]

Mostert has long been bitter over being released.  He's hardly an unbiased source.

That article is also wrong on some very basic facts, which isn't exactly surprising for the NY Post:

McDaniel, who graduated from Yale and played his highest level of football as a high school wide receiver, is known for his wit during press conferences, but Mostert indicated that the Dolphins’ former coach lost the locker room during his time in the building beginning in 2022.

McDaniel earned four letters as a WR on the Yale football team, which means his highest level of football was NCAA FCS.

[Dolfanalyst]

Mostert has long been bitter over being released.  He's hardly an unbiased source.

His perspective converges with that of others close to the situation as well, as is noted throughout this thread.

That article is also wrong on some very basic facts, which isn't exactly surprising for the NY Post:

McDaniel, who graduated from Yale and played his highest level of football as a high school wide receiver, is known for his wit during press conferences, but Mostert indicated that the Dolphins’ former coach lost the locker room during his time in the building beginning in 2022.

McDaniel earned four letters as a WR on the Yale football team, which means his highest level of football was NCAA FCS.

When you consider the following, you should read that to mean that he played his best football as a high school wide receiver:

https://www.sportingnews.com/us/nfl/news/mike-mcdaniel-yale-playing-career-position/e7kaikroey8sxme2alelrvsf

[Dolfanalyst]

He's not wrong.   A perfect example of this was when the Dolphins first started under George Wilson.  He was known for being lax at times and being a drinking buddy with some of the players.   He let players he liked miss curfew.   I will give him credit.   He had a keen eye for talent.   A lot of the key contributors on those Super Bowl winning teams were brought in by him.

Then Don Shula came along and basically beat the shit out of this team.   Told them that things had to change drastically and it wouldn't be pleasant if they wanted to be winners.   The players hated him for it... until they started winning.  Then they loved him for it.

Again you just have to consider how wildly incompatible McDaniel's personality is with the nature of the game of football.

If you have a 0 to 100 scale that measures head coaches' personalities and zero is "clown nerd" and 100 is "Vince Lombardi," you don't need a head coach who scores 90+.  You can win with one with a score of at least 40 or 50.

But what you can't do is win with one with a score of zero.  That's far too incompatible with the game of football.  Tiddlywinks or pickleball, sure -- football, no.

You can win with him in football if he's a coordinator -- in that capacity he doesn't establish the "personality" or culture of the entire team.  The head coach will do that while he's restricted to his strength of Xs and Os.

And notice that's precisely where he was hired.

[Sibster]

Again you just have to consider how wildly incompatible McDaniel's personality is with the nature of the game of football.

If you have a 0 to 100 scale that measures head coaches' personalities and zero is "clown nerd" and 100 is "Vince Lombardi," you don't need a head coach who scores 90+.  You can win with one with a score of at least 40 or 50.

But what you can't do is win with one with a score of zero.  That's far too incompatible with the game of football.  Tiddlywinks or pickleball, sure -- football, no.

You can win with him in football if he's a coordinator -- in that capacity he doesn't establish the "personality" or culture of the entire team.  The head coach will do that while he's restricted to his strength of Xs and Os.

And notice that's precisely where he was hired.

Some guys peak as coordinators.   They were never meant to be head coaches.   

[Dolfanalyst]

Some guys peak as coordinators.   They were never meant to be head coaches.  

The NFL as a whole needs a better understanding of what it takes to transition from a successful coordinator to a successful head coach, as well as better methods of identifying that when reviewing the histories of head coaching candidates and interviewing them for head coaching jobs.  Lots of people are great at Xs and Os but don't have the characteristics necessary to lead a group of 50+ professional football players and establish the culture of a pro football team.

Again this is what Tedy Bruschi is saying about McDaniel here, in so many words, and it should've been detectable during McDaniel's job interviews with the Dolphins if they would've had their sights set correctly:

https://www.tiktok.com/@sinbadsports/video/7563768193152568590

[Spider-Dan]

When you consider the following, you should read that to mean that he played his best football as a high school wide receiver:

https://www.sportingnews.com/us/nfl/news/mike-mcdaniel-yale-playing-career-position/e7kaikroey8sxme2alelrvsf

Funny how we never see the same distinction made for successful college players who make it to the NFL and do nothing there.

The inclusion of that "fact" was itself just a gratuitous shot at McDaniel, made all the worse by its falsehood.  When, say, Mike Tomlin, John Harbaugh, or Sean McDermott were let go, I don't remember seeing any facts about the highest level of football they achieved as players.  This is more "He's not a real football guy" BS.

[Dolfanalyst]

When, say, Mike Tomlin, John Harbaugh, or Sean McDermott were let go, I don't remember seeing any facts about the highest level of football they achieved as players.  This is more "He's not a real football guy" BS.

You mean, head coaches who were actually successful?

[Spider-Dan]

Sean McDermott's level of "success" peaked at "Division Champion" or "AFC Finalist," which I suppose is fine if you're a franchise that has never won a Lombardi, but is a very small step up from the "Playoff Participant" level of success that McDaniel repeatedly achieved (which made him a more successful NFL head coach than Nick Saban, Brian Flores, and many other Serious Head Coaches).

Nevertheless, the inclusion of that (false) factoid about McDaniel's playing career is clearly intended as a swipe, which would seem to dovetail nicely with why you're continuing to defend it.

[Dolfanalyst]

Sean McDermott's level of "success" peaked at "Division Champion" or "AFC Finalist," which I suppose is fine if you're a franchise that has never won a Lombardi, but is a very small step up from the "Playoff Participant" level of success that McDaniel repeatedly achieved (which made him a more successful NFL head coach than Nick Saban, Brian Flores, and many other Serious Head Coaches).

Nevertheless, the inclusion of that (false) factoid about McDaniel's playing career is clearly intended as a swipe, which would seem to dovetail nicely with why you're continuing to defend it.

I don't have any problem with assailing the New York Post.  However, that's a far cry from the main point of the thread, which is that McDaniel simply doesn't possess the leadership characteristics necessary to head coach an NFL team effectively.