Report: Mike McDaniel was ‘adored’ within Dolphins ‘as a person’

Former Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel was “adored” within the Dolphins organization, but the team moved on from him on Thursday in a pivotal decision for the franchise.

Miami’s decision to fire McDaniel came as a shock to him and his inner circle, and it appears the Dolphins could make a run at former Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh.

“A very close associate of McDaniel told me Monday that he and Mike inner circle would be shocked if he was fired,” the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson wrote on X. “As we noted, Mike was surprised to get the news today. He was adored internally as a person, so a melancholy day from a personal standpoint inside offices. Treated everyone with class & respect. Harbaugh expects to interview multiple places, with Dolphins a strong contender.”

McDaniel spent the last four seasons as Miami’s head coach, and he led the franchise to a 35-33 regular-season record.

The Dolphins ended up making the playoffs twice under McDaniel’s leadership, but the team did not have any postseason success. The Dolphins lost both of their playoff games under McDaniel (one to the Buffalo Bills and one to the Kansas City Chiefs), keeping their playoff win drought alive. Miami has not won a postseason game since the 2000 season.

Over the last two seasons, the Dolphins took a step back, which was likely a contributing factor as to why McDaniel was let go, even though he was clearly a likable figure in the building.

Miami finished under .500 in each of the last two seasons, going 8-9 in the 2024 campaign and 7-10 in the 2025 season. The Dolphins also benched quarterback Tua Tagovailoa – a former first-round pick – toward the end of the 2025 season, which raises a lot of questions about the future at quarterback.

Tagovailoa is under contract next season, but the Dolphins may opt to go in a new direction at the all-important position.

Now that McDaniel is out, it appears Harbaugh is a candidate for Miami’s head-coaching vacancy. The Ravens fired Harbaugh after he spent 18 seasons with the franchise, leading the team to a 180-113 regular-season mark.

The Ravens won a Super Bowl with Harbaugh at the helm, and they made the playoffs in 12 of his 18 seasons with the franchise.

For McDaniel, it’ll be interesting to see if he lands somewhere else as a head coach this offseason. The 42-year-old is one of the top offensive minds in the NFL, and it appears he had a lot of fans within the Dolphins organization.

Hopefully, he’ll land on his feet now that his tenure in South Beach has come to an end.