Mike McDaniel’s Future in Miami Is Clouded by Late-Season Collapse and Locker Room Tension
After another disappointing loss, the Miami Dolphins find themselves facing more than just questions about playoff positioning. The conversation is starting to shift toward the future of head coach Mike McDaniel - and whether he’s still the right man to lead this team.
Despite earlier reports suggesting McDaniel’s job was safe, NFL insider Adam Schefter threw cold water on that assumption during an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show. According to Schefter, no decisions have been made yet regarding McDaniel’s status, and the situation is still “playing out in real time.”
“He might be safe, but he might not,” Schefter said. “Nothing has been decided there.”
That uncertainty comes at a tough time for a Dolphins team that appeared to be turning a corner not long ago. Miami had strung together a four-game winning streak and kept themselves within striking distance of a playoff berth. But that momentum came to a screeching halt with a loss to Pittsburgh, followed by a humbling blowout at home against Cincinnati - a game that exposed familiar cracks in both execution and effort.
McDaniel, for his part, isn’t publicly entertaining the speculation around his job. When asked about it, he stayed focused on the task at hand.
“There is plenty to focus on that I don’t spend my time thinking about the job I already have,” McDaniel told reporters, via the team’s transcript. “I try to do it to the best of my ability. I have some work to do to get our third quarters right, and we’re not going to have any time to waste because there will be a hungry Tampa team that we’re going to face in a week.”
That third-quarter issue he mentioned? It’s been a recurring problem all season - the Dolphins have struggled coming out of halftime, often losing momentum and control of games they had a grip on early. It’s a coaching issue as much as it is a player execution one, and McDaniel knows he has to own that.
But the frustration isn’t just external. Inside the locker room, the tension is starting to bubble up. Linebacker Bradley Chubb didn’t call out McDaniel directly, but his comments after the Bengals loss spoke volumes.
“Everybody needs to hold themselves accountable,” Chubb said. “We’ve been in this same position all year.
We have to figure out a way and hold ourselves to a higher standard. We’ve got two games to figure it out.”
“Everybody” includes coaches. And when a team repeatedly finds itself in the same frustrating spot - close but not quite there - that accountability starts at the top.
The Dolphins came into this season with expectations. Not just to compete, but to contend.
And while injuries, inconsistency, and some tough matchups have played a role in where they are now, the bigger issue is the lack of forward progress. Miami hasn’t looked like a team building toward something sustainable.
Instead, it’s looked like a team stuck in neutral - flashes of brilliance followed by stretches of head-scratching football.
Now, with two games left on the schedule and a playoff spot still technically within reach, the Dolphins are walking a tightrope. A strong finish could quiet the noise - at least temporarily. But if the slide continues, the organization may be forced to make a tough call on McDaniel’s future.
Because in the NFL, potential only gets you so far. Eventually, the results have to follow.