The Miami Dolphins made a surprising move on January 8th, when they decided to fire head coach, Mike McDaniel.
McDaniel was previously more-or-less assumed safe in his job, and was set to be part of the team tasked with finding the franchise’s new general manager after Chris Grier was fired mid-season, having spent almost a decade with the organization.
Many assumed that one of the reasons for McDaniel’s departure was due to the emergence of Super Bowl-winning head coach, John Harbaugh, as an available candidate for the role, he having been dismissed by the Baltimore Ravens on Tuesday after 18 years with the team.
However, in a long post on X on Thursday in the wake of the unexpected firing, ESPN NFL reporter, Jeff Darlington gave some insight into the reasoning behind why the team moved off McDaniel, and how they view the possibility of Harbaugh taking over.
“Some context into the Dolphins’ decision to fire Mike McDaniel, per multiple people involved in the decision: Owner Steve Ross met with McDaniel on Tuesday, and the outcome of the meeting left Ross very conflicted.” Darlington wrote on X.
“He really likes Mike — “loves his intelligence and offensive mind” — but Tuesday’s meeting resulted in some hard thoughts. Ross didn’t feel like the results were there, and despite the end-of-year production, Ross simply wasn’t comfortable moving forward with the “status quo.”
Darlington also added that – as of Thursday morning – the team had not made contact with the former Ravens head coach, and that the move was; surprisingly; supposedly unconnected to Harbaugh being newly on the market.
“Now for the elephant in the room: I’m told the Dolphins have not yet been in touch with John Harbaugh or anyone in his camp, and people close to the decision are adamant this decision to move away from McDaniel is independent of Harbaugh’s availability.” Darlington continued.
“I’m told the Dolphins will conduct the head coaching search after a GM is in place, which should be in the next few days. Yes, it obviously could lead to discussions with Harbaugh. And yes, one of the GM candidates (Chad Alexander) is very close to Harbaugh. But people close to the situation tell me this decision to fire Mike would have been made either way.”
Who Will Be The Dolphins’ Next Head Coach?
Harbaugh is the current favorite, per betting markets, but there are a number of other viable candidates for the position.
Chargers defensive coordinator, Jesse Minter and Broncos DC, Vance Joseph are both names to look out for if Ross and the new general manager decide that the team wants to go in a defensive direction moving forward, after nearly half a decade of an offensive-focused team.
Another one who is very much in the mix is fellow Super Bowl-winning head coach, Mike McCarthy, if the Dolphins want a more experienced head coach at the helm.
Dolphins’ Reason Behind Mike McDaniel Firing Revealed By Insider