Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel confirmed that he will participate in the interview process for the team’s next general manager and that he will continue as head coach until further notice. After a complicated start to the season in 2025, where Miami suffered defeats in seven of their first nine games, the team managed to recover with a streak of four consecutive victories, finishing one game away from reaching a .500 record. Despite this, the Dolphins (7-10) finished the season with a losing record for the second consecutive year, something that McDaniel described as a “failure”. My understanding is that I am the coach of the Miami Dolphins until I am told otherwise. When questioned about his job security, the coach, who is in his fourth year, stated that his understanding is that he remains the Dolphins’ coach until he is told otherwise. Furthermore, he mentioned that he will meet with team owner Stephen Ross to discuss how to move forward successfully.
McDaniel emphasized that the team is not willing to simply “try again” after this season. On the contrary, the intention is to attack the problems, control the controllable aspects, and improve the American football team, establishing a plan to achieve it. A source revealed that the team trusted McDaniel during difficult times and suggested that the problems were related to the quarterback position. McDaniel went on to bench Tua Tagovailoa after the Week 15 loss, opting for Quinn Ewers, a rookie selected in the seventh round. Tagovailoa finished the season with the fewest passing yards since 2021 and a personal record of 15 interceptions. McDaniel confirmed that there will be a competition for the quarterback position in 2026, and the team will strive to find the starter, either by bringing in a new quarterback or relying on someone already on the roster. Although McDaniel does not foresee a complete reconstruction in 2026, both he and the Dolphins face a difficult offseason. Tagovailoa and receiver Tyreek Hill, who missed most of the season due to a knee injury, represent a combined impact of $108.2 million on the salary cap for 2026. It will be complicated to trade both players without assuming most of their salaries, and releasing them directly would result in a huge impact on the salary cap. However, it is unlikely that both players will return in 2026 with their current contracts. McDaniel indicated that it will be Hill’s decision if he wants to continue his career, and that the team will continue to support his rehabilitation and maintain honest conversations when he is ready. Currently, the Dolphins are projected to be $6.4 million over the salary cap at the start of next season, but they possess five selections in the first three rounds of the 2026 NFL draft. McDaniel emphasized the importance of building through the draft, as Miami did with its 2025 class.We will meet later in the week to discuss what needs to be discussed. We both share the feeling that we are not where we want to be, and in this business, you must have an action plan to improve. I think those discussions are very important and healthy, and I believe the fans are counting on that happening.
Mike McDaniel
The Dolphins and general manager Chris Grier parted ways on October 31st. Champ Kelly has been serving as the team’s interim general manager. It is reported that three of the candidates to become the new general manager of the Dolphins are executives from the San Francisco 49ers (Josh Williams, Tariq Ahmad, and RJ Gillen) and coincided with McDaniel during his time with the franchise.I think 7-10 isn’t enough, 1-6 certainly isn’t enough, but the response they saw with our football came from somewhere. It’s our job to identify exactly the parts of the solution and build on that and nothing more. Therefore, I don’t see a complete rebuild. What I see is a team that needs to make smart decisions and combine those smart decisions so that interest can be transmitted.
Mike McDaniel
