Dolphins Saturday Mailbag: Is It Time for an Experience Head Coach?

Part 2 of the post-McDaniel firing MIami Dolphins On SI mailbag:

From Noel B one:

Hello Alain, Merry New Year! Between Grier being fired, Tua regressing/benching and now McDaniel shown the door, which surprised you the most? Which the least? Can any GM/Coach/QB upgrade truly change the team's 2026 trajectory with so many holes to fill?....

Hey Noel, starting with the last question, without question a new QB/coach/GM combo can change the trajectory of the team and, yes, even with all the holes to fill. It’s happened in Miami before, with the most drastic example being 2008, though it wasn’t difficult to improve from 1-15. As for which of the three developments surprised me most, I think I’d go with McDaniel being fired because the signs simply weren’t there at the end of the season and McDaniel clearly spoke Monday like a guy who felt he was coming back. Then I’d go with Tua because the level of the regression was much more significant than any of us could have or would have expected.

From Roberto Pons:

Do you think Miami should be interested in Mario Cristobal? His style would work in the NFL. But I don't believe he will be interested.

Hey Roberto, I’m going to say this as politely as I can and prepare to duck because his team is in the national championship, but I’ve never been a fan of his game management (he is a great recruiter, though), so that would be a hard pass for me.

From Jay Fowlkes:

If Miami misses on both Harbaugh and Weaver, who is the next most likely candidate for the HC Position? Does Rizzi have a chance?

Hey Jay, the Dolphins missing on Weaver? I don’t think he would turn down an offer if it came his way. But playing along, somehow I would suspect the Dolphins’ new head coach will come from among the Green Bay connections (with maybe Jeff Hafley in the lead), John Harbaugh or Kevin Stefanski.

From Prince-Bishop Militantly Aardvark:

How much of this total teardown came out of carefully planned decisions by Ross and how much of it was a Champ Kelly/McDaniel project that Ross modified (hijacked?) at a late stage when a Harbaugh became available? The latter seems much more typical of Ross's sudden enthusiasms. Thoughts?

Hey PBMA, I think Harbaugh becoming available played a part only in the sense that it made Ross realize, probably after also getting feedback from the GM candidates, that an upgrade was needed with the head coach whether or not he was able to land Harbaugh.

From DolfanMark:

Will we ever win another playoff game?

Hey Mark, yes … the law of averages is bound to catch up to them at some point, right? I do understand it’s difficult to look at the Miami situation right now and have much hope, but I’m confident/hopeful this won’t be same old/same old with the Dolphins for very much longer.

From Eric from Hialeah:

Who are your guesses for next head coach (other than Harbaugh) and defensive coordinator?

Hey Eric, right now I’d be inclined to believe it’s going to be somebody from among Mike McCarthy, Jeff Hafley, Anthony Campanile if it’s not John Harbaugh or Anthony Weaver (which I don’t believe it will be).

From SciGuy17:

Is it time for Ross to hire his first experienced head coach? Any idea if Robert Saleh could be on their list?

Yeah, I think there’s something to be said for hiring an experienced head coach, particularly since the old method didn’t work as well as hoped with Joe Philbin, Adam Gase, Brian Flores or Mike McDaniel. And if the Dolphins go that route, I suspect they’d want to talk to Mike McCarthy and I also would reach out to Saleh, though I’m not sure he’s on their radar.

From Joey153:

Do you think that McDaniel sitting in on the GM interviews was really a chance for those GM candidates to get a feel for him? The idea being that they could get a chance to talk to him in order to say, "I won't take the job if he's here"? More so than to give him input.

Hey Joey, as it turned out, when McDaniel said he was going to be involved in the GM search process, that didn’t mean he was sitting in on the interviews but rather providing his input whenever asked.

From Tim Gore:

What is it about this current situation that suggests or leads you to think that the Dolphins will do something different or more radical than past GM and coaching changes?

Hey Tim, not quite sure what you mean by more radical. I can tell you they’re doing something different in separating three key components of the front office with cap guru Brandon Shore, the GM and the head coach. That’s something different, if the three all have their own specific area where there can be collaboration but also a clear pecking order in each aspect.

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