Miami Dolphins fans have been repeatedly asked by Chargers fans what Mike McDaniel is really like. The replies are almost universal. Great guy, bad head coach. We can add liar to that list now as well.
McDaniel has met with the Chargers media, and he has discussed his new task of creating a winner in L.A. He may have sidearmed Tua Tagovailoa, but he has kept his opinion on the Dolphins a high one.
During his introduction to the L.A. media, McDaniel was asked about how his similar approach to Jim Harbaugh aligns with the offense.
Mike McDaniel's offensive scheme answers has fans laughing and warning Chargers fans at the same time
McDaniel is correct when he says his career has been based on the rushing attack. He was the run game coordinator in San Francisco before becoming the OC. In Miami, the promise of a renewed hard-nosed rushing attack quickly fizzled with the addition of Tyreek Hill.
"Prioritizing line-of-scrimmage play and being able to win games when you have a lead with nine minutes to go and can keep the defense off the field. I think those types of things — that’s where the like-minded, Football 101, core values of football kind of overlap.”"Mike McDaniel
I'm sorry, what? Not being on this island alone, many Dolphins fans took exception to the comments. When the Dolphins were winning and should have been running the ball, they were not. Until the last few weeks of the 2025 season, McDaniel stayed with the passing game until he finally realized that it didn't work.
Well I got news for McGenius: he did NONE of those things in his four years in Miami. He talks a good game but winners talk on the field. His teams were continually dominated at the line of scrimmage. Ask him about the loss at home to the Titans when they blew a big lead.
— Craig M (@Dolfan2334) January 28, 2026
He can speak all he wants about the line of scrimmage play, but he, too, wasn't pounding his fists for Chris Grier to give him better help. Grier always gave in to his coaches, and it has brought the team Liam Eichenberg, Larry Borom, and even oft-injured Austin Jackson.
In his four years with the Dolphins, the only offensive line he won with was after adding another tackle, Daniel Brunskill, to the line.
Chargers fans believe they are getting his incredibly talented offensive coordinator. Innovative, tough, schematically sound. They'd better hope that Harbaugh has a loud voice in the room to keep him focused.
It pains Dolphins fans to hear McDaniel talk about using the rushing attack to "Keep defenses off the field," when he didn't actually do that with any consistency with the Dolphins. This is despite having plenty of options to do so.
Chargers fans are not going to like some of what he does offensively, but McDaniel will always give their fans a reason to believe he can turn it around. Dolphins fans finally grew tired of the false promises. Hopefully, he does succeed. As we said earlier, ask a Dolphins fan what you think of McDaniel, and you will get, "He's a great guy." You root for those types, not against.