Mike McDaniel's job as head coach of the Miami Dolphins is safe for the rest of the season. Beyond this year, however, nothing is written in stone. By now, most fans have heard the reports of Stephen Ross' support of his head coach.
McDaniel turned a 1-7 team into a potential playoff contender. The team now sits at 6-7 with four games to go. If he can run the table and get the team to 10 wins, the Dolphins' owner will have everything he needs to keep McDaniel around.
Many fans don't share that support. The winning streak has been great, but aside from the Bills, who have they really beaten? We spend a lot of time talking about "what-ifs" when it comes to one-score games, but they are all still losses. This is where former Dolphins linebacker Channing Crowder views the current coaching situation.
Channing Crowder sees a .500 future with Mike McDaniel as the Dolphins' head coach
Appearing on WQAM, Crowder laid his thoughts out for fans to hear, and some of us can see exactly what he is talking about. It's not a matter of making a change for the sake of change; it's a matter of making a change because what is here isn't working.
"If we go into next year with Mike McDaniel as the head coach, we are running a gerbil wheel."Channing Crowder
A strong end to the Dolphins season won't change how Crowder feels about Mike McDaniel coming back next season. #PhinsUp pic.twitter.com/rJjfuIHHAu
— 104.3 WQAM (@1043wqam) December 9, 2025
As much as it is easy to like what McDaniel does, the energy he brings, the fact that the players love him, doesn't equate to winning football in January. Crowder points out that in 2023, the Dolphins scored a lot of points, but they were not a very good football team overall. It showed down the stretch when they lost the division after holding a three-game lead late.
Miami has gone through a lot of change this year already. Chris Grier jettisoned trouble makers early in the offseason, dismantled the roster for cap reasons, they lost Tyreek Hill in Week 4, and Miami started horribly as the younger players learned the ropes.
Many fans believe that given the roster McDaniel was handed is enough reason for him to be kept another season, but again, aside from Buffalo, the Dolphins have beaten the Falcons, Commanders, Saints, and the Jets twice.
Crowder said that it is easy to get wrapped up in a win streak, but it doesn't change the narrative.
"We're in an up right now, I understand that, but I'm not going to let the ups overshadow the downs."Channing Crowder
He has a great point. It is easy to get blinded by wins, but when those wins come later in the year, when you are already behind the proverbial 8-Ball, there is a problem. The Dolphins have been knocked for the last four years for not being able to beat good football teams. Suddenly, they are a great team because they beat the Bills?
The other argument is that you can't keep cycling coaches and expect something to change. That isn't necessarily true. The Patriots are proving that you can actually turn it around in one year with the right coach.
Ross has a tough decision, but really it isn't. With Grier now gone, it's time to shake it up. The former GM has been a part of the team for far too long. Rip the band-aid off and make the move. Let the next GM choose the head coach, and let the head coach and GM evaluate Tua Tagovailoa for a year.
The only way this works for Miami is to stop doing the same things over and over again. McDaniel has had four seasons with the team, but the Dolphins haven't won a playoff game, and they are not close to doing so; in fact, they may be further from it than when he started.