The Miami Dolphins are set for a busy offseason. After going 7-10 in 2025, the Dolphins will have to find a new general manager, head coach, and quarterback after firing both Chris Grier and Mike McDaniel, while benching quarterback Tua Tagovailoa for seventh-round rookie Quinn Ewers late in the regular season.
On Friday morning, Miami crossed off the first big item on its to-do list by hiring former Green Bay Packers executive Jon-Eric Sullivan to be its new general manager. With Sullivan officially on board, the Dolphins can turn their attention to finding a new head coach, and one NFL insider recently predicted that the team would steal another key member of the Packers organization to come in and lead their team.
Dolphins Predicted to Hire Jeff Hafley as New Head Coach
While Grier got fired midway through the 2025 campaign, McDaniel was only fired on Thursday morning, meaning that the Dolphins had a head start on their search for a new general manager. Reports indicated that they wanted to tab someone to fill this position soon, and sure enough, that came to fruition when Sullivan was hired about 24 hours after McDaniel was shown the exit door.
With Sullivan in town, that will allow Miami to begin looking for a new head coach. Given Sullivan’s ties to the Packers, who he had been working for in some capacity since 2003, folks were quick to point out several head coaching candidates with ties to the team that could have an inside track to get hired by Sullivan.
The flashiest name on the list is Mike McCarthy, but one guy who is generating a lot of interest across the league as a head coach candidate is Green Bay’s current defensive coordinator, Jeff Hafley. While the team is only just beginning its head coach search, NFL insider Mike Garafolo believes that Hafley would make the most sense for the Dolphins when looking at candidates that have ties to Sullivan.
“For Giants fans who want John Harbaugh, the Dolphins GM hiring should be welcome news for you. Out of this group, my early call for Miami would be Hafley but we’ll see how it plays out,”
Garafolo wrote in a post on X shortly after Sullivan’s hiring was reported.
Should the Dolphins Hire Jeff Hafley?
GettyThe Dolphins have been predicted to hire Packers defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley as their new head coach
When teams are typically hiring a head coach, they tend to focus on guys who have either an offensive or a defensive background. The problem for Miami is that, right now, it needs help everywhere. The Dolphins have an unsettled quarterback picture currently, and their defense was woefully undermanned from the get-go in 2025 (although it did exceed expectations when all was said and done).
Hafley is obviously a defensive-minded coach, whereas a guy like McCarthy is more offensive-minded. Sullivan’s first job is going to involve him figuring out what sort of guy he wants to come in and lead his team. His ties with Hafley are obviously worth noting, and while that may give him a leg up on the competition should Miami be interested in him, it’s still far too early to know which way the Dolphins will go with their head coach search.
Dolphins Predicted to Hire Popular Packers Coach After Big GM Decision