When former Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel agreed to become the next offensive coordinator for the Los Angeles Chargers, it was understood that some of the other coaches could follow him to the West Coast. Building a coaching staff is about building and setting relationships, so it's customary for coaches who have worked together before to reunite elsewhere.
Thus, when the news soon followed that offensive line coach Butch Barry would be joining McDaniel in LA, it surprised very few. However, the latest rumor mill has not only Dolphins fans puzzled and amused, but also much of the NFL.
As McDaniel continues to build his offensive staff with the Chargers, it's being reported that another former Dolphins head coach, Adam Gase, has "emerged as a possibility" in joining him in an offensive assistant coach role.
Former Miami Dolphins head coach Adam Gase is emerging as a candidate to join the Chargers
Former #Jets and #Dolphins head coach Adam Gase has emerged as a possibility to be hired by the #Chargers in an offensive assistant coach role, sources tell @CBSSports.
— Matt Zenitz (@mzenitz) February 7, 2026
Last coached in 2020 when he was with the Jets. Before Miami and the Jets, he was an offensive coordinator for… pic.twitter.com/f0y35pd28F
Admittedly, when I first saw the news, my initial thought was the gif that reads, "Now comes the part where we throw our heads back in laughter. Ready?" from the movie, "George of the Jungle."
Prior to receiving the head coaching job with Miami in 2016, Gase was well respected across the NFL. He had been the offensive coordinator with the Chicago Bears under John Fox the previous season and spent several years as a wide receivers coach and OC with the Denver Broncos before that. His time in Denver even earned him high praise from Hall of Fame quarterback Peyton Manning.
And that respect did carry over into Gase's rookie season with the Dolphins, leading Miami to a 10-6 record and its first playoff appearance in almost a decade. But the honeymoon phase was short-lived, and it was all downhill from then on.
In the two seasons after, Miami finished 6-10 and 7-9, respectively, leading to Gase's dismissal as head coach. Fair criticisms against him as head coach were that he spent too much time focused on the offense rather than the team as a whole and failed to make in-game adjustments (sound familiar?).
The New York Jets did not get the memo, however, of Gase's inaptitude to be an NFL head coach, as they immediately hired him to be their HC the following season after a strong recommendation from Manning. Gase's introductory press conference became one for the ages and gave a strong glimpse of what was to come for Jets fans under his tenure.
Gase went 9-23 in two seasons as the Jets' head coach and was then fired. Since then, he has not coached at any level. Although there were some rumors at the time that he had become an assistant high school football coach, they do not appear to be true.
In 2024, Gase became a strategic advisor for "The 33rd Team" and has occasionally visited the Broncos' facility, but that's the closest he's been to the NFL since his dismissal from New York. What exactly he can bring to the Chargers is anyone's guess, but like with many assistant coaches and coordinators in the NFL, it's possible that if he focuses on just one position or task, he could be a great coach again.
Yet, one has to believe that if that were true, another NFL team would have allowed him to prove it by now. In the meantime, Dolphins fans have to chuckle at the thought of Gase and McDaniel's personalities syncing up in LA -- and how long Jim Harbaugh will be able to handle it.