Dolphins fire Mike McDaniel

[Dave Gray]

I just saw it reported.  Damn.

[Dave Gray]

I am sad about think and I think that McDaniel got a raw deal.

He got saddled to a QB that didn't pan out.  He also made that QB the best in the league (statistically) at one point, before the wheels fell off.

Then lost the best WR in the game to injury.  ...still managed to be middle of the road.

I think this is bad and I'm sad about it.

[Dolfanalyst]

On Monday McDaniel told reporters he would be involved in the team's interviews to hire a GM.

However, that was the day before John Harbaugh was fired.

You do the math.

[Sibster]

He was given four years and never got beyond the first round of the playoffs.   Had the chance to take the division in 2023 and lost three key games he should've won.   The team regressed in 2025.   And now they are capped out.

Time for a tear down and rebuild.  Unfortunately, he has to be part of it.

[Dolfanalyst]

I am sad about think and I think that McDaniel got a raw deal.

He got saddled to a QB that didn't pan out.  He also made that QB the best in the league (statistically) at one point, before the wheels fell off.

Then lost the best WR in the game to injury.  ...still managed to be middle of the road.

I think this is bad and I'm sad about it.

What is the evidence we have that McDaniel produces an advantage over other teams via his functioning as a head coach?

Unless there is significant evidence of that, I don't think a serious fan of the Dolphins should be upset about this move.

[Dave Gray]

On Monday McDaniel told reporters he would be involved in the team's interviews to hire a GM.

However, that was the day before John Harbaugh was fired.

You do the math.

This seems likely.  They probably weren't going to can him and then Harbaugh hit the market.  We know that Ross likes those Harbaugh boys.

[Dolfanalyst]

He was given four years and never got beyond the first round of the playoffs.   Had the chance to take the division in 2023 and lost three key games he should've won.   The team regressed in 2025.   And now they are capped out.

Including the absolutely ridiculous game against Tennessee that year, where the team was a clown show with its rehearsed multi-player end zone celebrations despite playing poorly against a team it was favored to beat in a high-stakes game that would determine playoff seeds.  That game was the first revelation of this team's culture under McDaniel.

[Dolfanalyst]

On Monday McDaniel told reporters he would be involved in the team's interviews to hire a GM.

However, that was the day before John Harbaugh was fired.

You do the math.

Also, Adam Schefter reported that eight teams had reached out to Harbaugh just after he was fired.  Other than the Ravens which had just fired him, only seven teams had open head coaching positions at the time.

[Dolfanalyst]

I suspect McDaniel will go on to become a team's offensive coordinator and be successful in that role.  That's where he belongs -- implementing his Xs and Os expertise, without having responsibility for shaping an entire team's culture as its head coach.

"A team takes on the personality of its coach" -- not its offensive coordinator.

[Dave Gray]

Also, Adam Schefter reported that eight teams had reached out to Harbaugh just after he was fired.  Other than the Ravens which had just fired him, only seven teams had open head coaching positions at the time.

It was reported by Joe Schad that the Dolphins hadn't reached out to Harbaugh as of last night.

[Denver2]

Ross is the worst owner in the league.

[Dave Gray]

Ross is the worst owner in the league.

I normally defend a lot of what Ross does, but this seems bungled.  It's pretty transparent that we wanted to keep our guy until another guy came available, and now it's possible, if not likely, that we don't get the other guy anyway.

And we don't have a GM, so it's not like the GM is the one picking the coach, either.  This seems like he's managing the team like he's a reactionary message-board fan.

[Sibster]

Ross is the worst owner in the league.

I normally defend a lot of what Ross does, but this seems bungled.  It's pretty transparent that we wanted to keep our guy until another guy came available, and now it's possible, if not likely, that we don't get the other guy anyway.

And we don't have a GM, so it's not like the GM is the one picking the coach, either.  This seems like he's managing the team like he's a reactionary message-board fan.

Ross is a complete disaster.   If you ask him to make you a plate of scrambled eggs, he'll find a way to fuck that up.

[Phishfan]

By the time I read to the bottom and ready to reply I was still laughing at seeing Hill called the best receiver in the league. At one point you could have made that argument but not for a couple seasons. I rooted for McDaniel to start but it has become clear to me that this team wasn't going anywhere.

[masterfins]

I suspect McDaniel will go on to become a team's offensive coordinator and be successful in that role.  That's where he belongs -- implementing his Xs and Os expertise, without having responsibility for shaping an entire team's culture as its head coach.

"A team takes on the personality of its coach" -- not its offensive coordinator.

+1

Maybe down the road he can take what he learned in Miami and become a great HC, it just wasn't going to happen in Miami.  It's not like he was a terrible HC.