Miami Dolphins running back Raheem Mostert indicated that Mike McDaniel is intently focused on the upcoming season and predicted big things for the second-year head coach.
"He's totally locked in," Dolphins RB Raheem Mostert said of Mike McDaniel going into a second years as a HC. "He got his feet wet."
He said now that McDaniel is settled down, he's going to shock the league but added none of it will be shocking to him.
— David Furones (@DavidFurones_) May 2, 2023
Ordinarily, a new coach struggles adjusting to a new situation. In the case of McDaniel, he dealt with plenty of turmoil on and off the field, but still got the Dolphins to the postseason.
That playoff run ended after just one game. However, the defeat came on the road with the Dolphins forced to start the team’s third-string quarterback, Skylar Thompson.
Long before McDaniel’s first regular season with the Dolphins began last year, he was forced to navigate his way through issues that weren’t of his own making.
McDaniel was hired following the dismissal of former Dolphins head coach Brian Flores. Flores then subsequently filed a racial discrimination lawsuit against the NFL and all 32 of its teams, alleging that Dolphins owner Stephen Ross had urged him to intentionally lose games in order to enhance the team’s draft status.
A few months later, Ross was suspended and fined by the NFL for tampering in an effort to acquire Tom Brady and then-New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton.
From the perspective of McDaniel, the most costly byproduct of Ross’ actions was the forfeiture of the Dolphins’ top pick in the 2023 NFL Draft and loss of a third-round selection in next year’s draft.
Despite the loss of that top pick, the 2023 draft saw McDaniel and the Dolphins make an effort to bolster the team’s running game, a unit that includes Mostert.
With their second pick in this year’s draft, the Dolphins selected running back Devon Achane. The selection wasn’t a major surprise to close followers of the team, considering that it spent ‘considerable’ time with him in recent weeks.
If Achane does inject some new life into the Dolphins offense in 2023, it will help give the team a more balanced attack. Last season, quarterback Tua Tagovailoa frequently made use of his weapons at wide receiver, Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle.
Mostert’s analysis of McDaniel is obviously a positive one. However, until the Dolphins perform on the field, it remains to be seen just how much of an impact McDaniel will make this season.
