Dolphins fans may have to accept harsh Mike McDaniel truth after Bills upset

Many have pondered aloud over the years whether Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel has the ability to lead men and command a locker room.

Between South Beach-centric fashion choices, his slighter stature, and a penchant for stand-up comedy at press conferences, McDaniel has certain attributes that don't befit a typical NFL head coach. In the wake of general manager Chris Grier's firing, speculation is swirling about McDaniel's job security in Miami.

Somebody forgot to tell the Dolphins to quit on McDaniel in Week 10. They just beat the ever-loving brakes off the Buffalo Bills 30-13, snapping a seven-game skid (counting playoffs) to the reigning AFC East champs.

Mike McDaniel silences the haters with massive victory over Bills

Although Miami defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver deserves a lot of credit for his game plan against Bills superstar quarterback Josh Allen, the buck stops with Mike McDaniel at the end of the day.

Nobody would be bashing Weaver if the Dolphins had laid down on defense. They've done quite often this season, but nevertheless, all the ire would go toward McDaniel and his alleged inability to get players to buy in. That's despite being saddled with a roster that literally just got the GM fired — a move many Miami fans believed was long overdue.

Despite a very flawed collection of personnel on offense and defense, not to mention staring down the barrel of an irrelevant season against a superior opponent, McDaniel's Dolphins shined against Buffalo.

Sure feels like there's a Mike McDaniel perception shift happening...wonder if Stephen A. Smith is listening, or too busy playing Solitaire.

It's just a tired narrative that McDaniel can't coach based on his physical appearance. His schematic acumen is beyond reproach. Many count Tua Tagovailoa as an average QB at best, yet McDaniel has elevated him to the upper echelon at the position at times throughout his tenure.

McDaniel ascended the coaching ranks in large part due to his genius as a play designer in the run game. It's proven difficult to execute those schemes at times for the Dolphins, because Grier neglected the offensive line far too often for far too long.

PFF rated the Fins as the second-worst pass protection unit in the NFL entering Sunday's action, and the third-worst run blocking offensive line.

Miami's oft-suspect defense in 2025 has forced the team into more obvious passing situations than anyone with Tua Tagovailoa as their starter would prefer.

Everything seemed to break open on Sunday. De'Von Achane iced the game with touchdown runs of 59 and 35 yards. Tua overcame a couple interceptions and actually got some help from his bottom-10 defense. And McDaniel had many of his Dolphins firing on all cylinders.

All of a sudden, the 3-7 Dolphins have three highly winnable games on the horizon.

Maybe it's too little, too late for this season. In any case, Mike McDaniel proved Sunday he's not the problem in Miami.