There is not a single national member of the media or a local journalist who has heard murmurs of Mike McDaniel's job with the Miami Dolphins being on thin ice, yet almost all of them believe that it is.
The Dolphins are not looking to fire McDaniel, but he is undoubtedly under pressure. Working in his favor, however, is that the team has a soft start to the season that might be enough to keep the Dolphins on the right side of the win column.
While McDaniel can't listen to the outside noise, it might be some of the internal noise that is speaking a bit louder, if we turn it up and listen.
This offseason has been an interesting one, to say the least. Chris Grier has not done McDaniel many favors as it relates to the makeup of the roster, and some of these decisions put a big question mark on his future.
Dolphins have set Mike McDaniel up to fail with biggest offseason decisions
The Jalen Ramsey trade
Grier said Jalen Ramsey did not request a trade from the team, but the Dolphins were still trying to move him. Why?
The most logical thought is that McDaniel wanted him gone, but it wasn't at any cost. Miami took its time to make a deal and finally found one that worked in their favor by saving them money on Ramsey's contract. On the surface, it seems like a win for McDaniel, but in reality, it's a win for Grier.
Still, the Dolphins' secondary is undoubtedly worse without Ramsey, despite bringing back Minkah Fitzpatrick.
The Jonnu Smith trade
This is a lot more interesting because, unlike Ramsey, McDaniel never once said that he didn't want Jonnu Smith back. In fact, it was quite the opposite. McDaniel liked Smith, made it public that he wanted him back, and saw him as a big part of his offense this year.
Grier didn't care. He stood his ground on not giving Smith more money, and when Smith didn't back off, Grier found a trade partner. The move was in direct contrast to what McDaniel was saying he wanted.
The cornerback conundrum
The Dolphins are entering a season that could put both McDaniel and Grier on the chopping block. Grier has walked through this offseason making moves that would indicate he has absolutely no fear of losing his job; on the other hand, he isn't making moves that would suggest he is trying to save McDaniel's job either.
Grier kicked off the start of free agency by releasing Kendall Fuller, and his replacement was Artie Burns. Burns isn't a reliable option, leaving Cam Smith and Storm Duck to fight it out on one side.
The Dolphins got worse at a key position.
The Dolphins culture initiative could impact McDaniel's future
There has been a huge push for change within the Dolphins organization, not at the executive level, but instead, inside the locker room. McDaniel has let the team police themselves for three years. So far, that hasn't worked out the way McDaniel had hoped.
Players have been taking advantage of the situation. With all the talk of what needs to be done inside, and McDaniel taking front-and-center questions about it all, he seems to be showing signs of pressure to get it fixed. It hasn't helped seeing him in press conferences dropping NSFW lines from time to time either.
If McDaniel was getting frustrated with the constant barrage of Jalen Ramsey questions, he will need to make sure that there are visible changes on the field in terms of discipline, mental focus, and timeliness.
The good news for Mike McDaniel is the team
No matter what, the Dolphins head coach has a talented roster offensively and a good quality coach to run the defensive side of the ball.
Most of the first eight games of the season are winnable, and McDaniel can use that to his advantage to keep the team moving forward and proving that change can lead to winning.
If he wins, he keeps his job.