Dolphins Coaches Arriving, Staying, Possibly Leaving
Three days after the Miami Dolphins hired Mike McDaniel as head coach, there is some movement regarding his staff.
The Dolphins will be bringing 49ers assistant head coach/tight ends coach Jon Embree to serve in the same capacity and also will be bringing back Danny Crossman as special teams coordinator, both moves confirmed by a league source.
Also Wednesday, there was a report from NFL Network's Ian Rapoport that DB coach Gerald Alexander will be interviewing with new Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson for the team's defensive coordinator position.
All of that comes one day after a report from The Athletic indicating the Dolphins will be interviewing Falcons QB coach Charles London for the offensive coordinator role.
The move involving Embree drew this response from three-time 49ers tight end George Kittle: "Being able to start my career with you was the best possible thing for me," Kittle wrote on Instagram. "You showed me the standard at which you had to play to have a chance to succeed in this league. Always reminding me to have fun and to give great effort. You convinced me to never run out of bounds and to set the tone on each play, with or without the football.
"Continue to raise the bar!"
Embree spent the past five seasons with the 49ers after previous stints as tight ends coach with Kansas City, Washington, Cleveland and Tampa Bay sandwiched around a two-year stint as head coach at the University of Colorado in 2011-12.
Embree played 13 games for the L.A. Rams in the 1987 and 1988 seasons before his playing career was derailed by injuries. His father, John, played 20 games for the Denver Broncos as a wide receiver in 1969-70.
Along with Kittle, Embree coached tight end Jordan Cameron with the Browns in 2014, one year before he joined the Dolphins, and Tony Gonzalez for his final three seasons with the Kansas City (2006-08) when he was selected to the Pro Bowl each time.
CROSSMAN CONTINUING AS SPECIAL TEAMS COACH
Crossman was among the six assistant coaches who worked all three years under Brian Flores, who was hired in 2019 and was fired Jan. 10.
Under Crossman, the Dolphins have finished 24th, 7th and 22nd in Rick Gosselin's annual special teams rankings that appeared on SI Fan Nation sister site Talk of Fame Network.
Crossman joined the Dolphins after spending six seasons (2013-18) as special teams coordinator for the Buffalo Bills.
THE BOOK ON LONDON
London just finished his first season as quarterbacks coach for the Falcons after spending four seasons (2014-17) as running backs coach for the Houston Texans and three more (2018-20) for the Chicago Bears.
In his one year as QB coach for Atlanta, veteran Matt Ryan finished 18th in the NFL in passer rating with a mark of 90.4, one spot ahead of the Dolphins' Tua Tagovailoa and his 90.1 rating.
London, who played running back at Duke, spent one year (2010) as a pro scout with the Philadelphia Eagles.
ALEXANDER A HOT COACHING COMMODITY
Alexander, who joined the Dolphins coaching staff in 2020, is widely regarded as a rising star in the coaching ranks and he played a big role in the development and progress of young DBs like Brandon Jones and Nik Needham over the past two seasons and of Jevon Holland during his rookie year of 2021.
The Dolphins job represented Alexander's first opportunity in the NFL after internships with the Buccaneers in 2016 and the Titans in 2015. He joined the Dolphins following three years as DB coach at the University of California.
Prior to becoming a coach, Alexander had a six-year playing career in the NFL (2007-08) that included a two-game stint with the Dolphins in 2011.
