2025 is going to be an interesting season for the Miami Dolphins. There are a lot of questions going in, and there could be more coming out at the end.
Mike McDaniel needs to start showing growth as a head coach. In 2024, there were serious discipline issues, so much so that McDaniel had to address them during his post-season press conference. As fans wait and wonder what the rift between him and Jalen Ramsey is, and what will happen, McDaniel is heading into what many believe is a critical season.
Still, if he is able to remain Miami's head coach for the entire 2025 campaign, he will be the franchise's first head coach to remain with the team for at least four seasons since Dave Wannstedt in 2004.
Dolphins owner Stephen Ross does not have a great track record with finding head coaches. When he took over the team from Wayne Huizenga, he gave extensions to Tony Sparano and later Joe Philbin, and then fired them both a year later. Last year, Miami gave Mike McDaniel an extension.
Following the firing of Sparano, midway through his fourth season, Ross has since had trouble keeping his head coaches. Philbin was fired midway through his fourth season, Adam Gase was fired after three, and Brian Flores followed three years after his hire.
Mike McDaniel has the chance to match Dave Wannstedt's time with the Dolphins.
The Dolphins have not come close to replicating the years of Don Shula. Wannstedt came the closest, as he lasted 4.5 seasons before he resigned during the bye week in 2004. His 4.5 seasons just eclipsed the four full seasons of Jimmy Johnson right before his tenure.
McDaniel has three seasons under his belt, but will he make it through 2025? That is something we don't know and will be dependent on a lot of factors.
He has the team to compete, he has the system to be successful, but he has to learn to adapt, and more importantly manage a game.
What is sad is the fact that we are talking about four years like it is something magical. When, in reality, it's just sad.