Mike McDaniel keeps failing his biggest tests.
Because of the Miami Dolphins’ flawed backup quarterback plan, they’re 2-4 following Sunday’s maddening 16-10 loss to the Indianapolis Colts.
Now the final exam is about to begin: If McDaniel can’t get his loaded roster to consistently win when Tua Tagovailoa returns from injured reserve next week, the rationale for bringing him back in 2025 gets a bit thin.
Should Miami Dolphins’ Mike McDaniel Feel the Heat?
Yes, Stephen Ross just extended McDaniel’s contract. But for all of his struggles as Dolphins owner, Ross has rarely picked the cheap option over the right one.
And if he loses faith that McDaniel is the guy to lead the Dolphins to the Super Bowl, it’s not impossible to envision Ross moving on. Again.
McDaniel is now 22-20 (including playoffs) in two-plus seasons as Dolphins coach. After Sunday’s loss, he fell to 2-7 in games that Tagovailoa has missed.
But the way they’ve lost is the real problem. The Dolphins outplayed the Colts Sunday and still took the L — despite rushing for 188 yards (on 40 carries), gaining more yards (337-284), first downs (18-16), and having a higher third-down conversion rate (40%-30.8%).
The game’s difference? Fumbles by Raheem Mostert and Alec Ingold, another missed Jason Sanders field goal, and nine more penalties committed (including three that were either declined or offset).
McDaniel deserves some blame for a game plan that resulted in two combined catches between Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle, and for running a doomed fullback dive on third-and-1 on Miami’s penultimate drive, which led to the missed Sanders field goal.
“It’s a game of accountability,” McDaniel said after the game. “… Collectively as a team, we just have to play smarter football. I mean, it’s crazy. So that starts with me.”
Getting his QB1 back should be a big part of the solution. If Tagovailoa played Sunday, the Dolphins probably would have won, even with all of their mistakes.
But let’s not forget that Tagovailoa played the first six quarters of the season, and the offense stunk then too. This is an undisciplined team that has committed the second-most accepted penalties (49) among teams that have already had their bye.
“[Tua is] hungry to get back,” said quarterback Tim Boyle, who finished the game after starter Snoop Huntley got hurt in the second half. “He’s been around every meeting, every practice. He’s a bright, bright light for this team right now and I know he’s excited to get back and hopefully he can do that here soon.”
He’ll (health-willing) have 11 chances to salvage what increasingly looks like a lost Dolphins season.
The Dolphins at 2-4 were the AFC’s 12 seed entering the 4 p.m. window. They look more like a team that will be drafting in the top 10 than one that will be playing mid-January football.
Miami needs to finish 7-4 (and probably 8-3) to have any chance of making the playoffs.
But the Dolphins do, from a pure percentage standpoint, have the NFL’s easiest remaining schedule, with just four games against teams with winning records over the season’s last two and a half months.
What’s more, their offense when Tagovailoa returns will be among the NFL’s healthiest. The pieces are there for McDaniel to make a run.
And if he can’t, it’ll be damning — and revealing for his boss.
“I’m very frustrated because you think you’ve emphasized things correctly,” McDaniel said. “And you think you have certain things fixed and when they’re not, it’s not gonna be anybody else’s fault but me.
“It was wrong. I was definitely wrong. And you have to approach it that way. And so we have retooled stuff to clean up our game with the penalties and it’s still killing us. So I need to figure out something better, which is what, what I’ll be doing, starting the second this press conference ends.”