Mike McDaniel's future as the Miami Dolphins head coach is unknown. Fans and media members alike believe he should be fired at the end of the season. Ultimately, it is Stephen Ross who will make that decision.
McDaniel is reportedly safe the rest of the 2025 season, but is getting rid of him the right choice? Not everyone thinks that. Former NFL executive Joe Banner believes McDanel has one of the best offensive minds in football. He even compares him to the likes of Andy Reid.
The longtime NFL executive recently appeared on "The Rich Eisen Show,: where he began discussing the situation in Miami. Banner believes the problems start with Stephen Ross.
"The owner really has one job; they can do more, and be helpful in some areas, but he has one job, they have to succeed from a fan perspective, because all the fan really cares about is how many games are you gonna win."
Joe Banner sees Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel as one of the best offensive minds in the NFL
He has a great point about Ross. The owner doesn't listen to his fans, but more importantly, he tends to be far more interested in building the brand itself than the product the brand is supposed to represent.
When it comes to McDaniel, Banner believes that the coach is one of the most brilliant minds in the league, but he also points out that being an offensive coordinator and a head coach are entirely two different things.
McDaniel will eventually get fired by Ross. He isn't a good head coach. When that happens, he will be scooped up by an OC-needy team where he will shine. For the Dolphins, they can't roll his duties back, so he will coach somewhere else.
The former Eagles and Browns executive also said what Dolphins fans have been saying for a long time. There was no reason that Chris Grier should have stuck around for nine years. He cites the draft issues, cap issues, and the coaching hires that he has made.
The biggest takeaway is what Banner says right from the jump.
"I'm concerned, if someone is rooting for them."
This alone is worrisome. Banner believes you need the right head coach, the right GM, and a team president. The Dolphins don't have any of that. They haven't since Ross took over the team in 2009. Miami isn't going anywhere soon, either.
The next offseason is crucial, but so was 2019, and every other year the team gutted the roster and pretended to know what they were doing to rebuild it.
Ross has been in a comfortable chair. He has had people around him the entire time he has owned the team whom he could trust and rely on. Whether that was Chris Grier or Mike Tannenbaum, Ross had trust. Now he needs to step outside of that comfort zone and get a fresh face to oversee the organization. If he can't, the Dolphins will continue on this same road.