The Miami Dolphins are at it again. After Sunday’s impressive win over the Atlanta Falcons, some thought they were at least headed in the right direction. They aren’t. They absolutely aren’t.
On Thursday night against the Baltimore Ravens, the Dolphins were completely choked by the visitors, losing 28-6. The Dolphins now find themselves at 2-7 on the season, with one of those wins coming against the winless-at-that-time New York Jets. As one can imagine, head coach Mike McDaniel is out of answers.
“We were minus three [in turnovers], they were three for three in the red zone and we didn’t score a touchdown,” McDaniel said in his post-game press conference. “You have to cross your Ts and dot your Is in the National Football League. It’s very disappointing. Unfortunately, we will have to sit on the disappointment for 10 days.”
Let the speculation continue about Mike McDaniel’s future with the Dolphins. How long can this continue? Another game, another lackluster performance where the offense produced just two field goals. That’s it.
Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was brutal yet again, going 25-for-40 passing for 261 yards, no touchdowns, and one interception. He now has 11 interceptions on the season—about seven too many.
Jamison Hensley and Marcel Louis-Jacques of ESPN note that the road ahead for Miami doesn’t look much better.
“The frustration on the sideline wasn’t just palpable; it was filmed in high definition,” the duo wrote. “Coach Mike McDaniel and Gordon were shown mid-outburst in the first half, all while the Ravens looked like the team destined to turn around their sub-.500 start to the season.”
Miami now enters a 10-day mini-bye before hosting the Buffalo Bills in Week 10 and traveling to Madrid to play the Washington Commanders in Week 11.
“With the trade deadline coming Tuesday and a 2-7 record weighing down any optimism for this season, it’s reasonable to wonder how different this roster or coaching staff will look the next time Miami takes the field.”
Will Mike McDaniel be fired along with Chris Grier? Everyone knows that changes are coming, but when? It’s not exactly clear what waiting will solve.
Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk addresses the issue of how and when the Dolphins will relieve McDaniel and/or Grier of their job duties.
“These are fair questions to ask,” Florio writes. “Every year, roughly 25 percent of the league ends up looking for new head coaches. Coaches and General Managers get fired all the time. It’s the life they’ve chosen. The only question at this point for the Dolphins seems to be when, not if.
“So when? That depends on Ross. Maybe he wants to ride out the bad season, to take his lumps in order to improve the team’s 2026 draft positioning, in every round.”
The status quo is becoming a hard sell at Hard Rock Stadium. The boos were loud and repeated on Thursday night. Paper bags covered the heads of plenty of fans. One man even poked two holes in a popcorn bucket.
For Miami, patience is wearing thin, and the countdown to change may have already begun.
https://heavy.com/sports/nfl/miami-dolphins/stephen-ross-mike-mcdaniel-tua-grier/
