The Miami Dolphins' 2025 predictions started long before the season actually began, and one of those had Anthony Weaver taking over for Mike McDaniel by midseason. That didn't happen, but now fans are wondering if Weavers will be back in 2026.
Weaver's defense hasn't been very good this year. Two games stood out as incredible: hisgame plan against the Buffalo Bills at Hard Rock Stadium and his plan to stop Bijan Robinson against the Falcons. The rest of the games were either against really bad teams or didn't live up to the hype.
With the season rocketing toward its conclusion we have to wonder if Weaver will be back in 2026.
Anthony Weaver may have plenty of time to look for a new job after the Miami Dolphins season is over
It's easy to look at the Dolphins' four-game win streak and see positive change, but it's hard to overlook what the Steelers did to their defense, and the Bengals most recently. Unlike other seasons, there is no major injury to point to.
Minkah Fitzpatrick missed Week 16 due to injury, but he is one player, and you have to wonder if he would have made enough difference to change the outcome of the game.
Weaver continues to hear his name mentioned as a potential head coach in the next cycle, but with the way his team has played this year, it's hard to imagine he will get a realistic opportunity.
With the Dolphins, there is always another hand, and on the second one, you have to look at the scope of what he had to work with. Mike McDaniel will control Weaver's fate if he doesn't get snatched up by another team, but if McDaniel believes he needs to move on, he needs to look in the mirror first.
One of the common beliefs among the media and fans is that McDaniel's retention will be a result of the roster he was given by Chris Grier this year. If that is true, shouldn't Weaver be given the same respect?
If we are being honest, McDaniel was given far better personnel than Weaver was. Grier traded their best cornerback to the Steelers, released the other starter, Kendall Fuller, signed Artie Burns, and hoped that Cam Smith would turn it around.
Weaver was also handed Rasul Douglas and Jack Jones after camp and turned them into starters. That can't be ignored. His linebacker group has been stellar most of the season. Miami's biggest problems came on the edge and the interior.
Grier gave Weaver three rookie defensive linemen and left the edge in the hands of Jaelan Phillips and Chop Robinson. Robinson regressed, and Phillips wasn't able to make the impact many thought he would.
If Weaver is fired, and yes, it is a possibility, McDaniel will need to find someone else to run it, and that can't come from within, or it will be continuity for the sake of keeping the status quo. Weaver's future in Miami is worth watching once the season concludes, but if he is gone, that lump of coal McDaniel put in his stocking should have also been put in his own.