The Miami Dolphins’ offseason would probably be considered a successful one, to this point, by most who have followed along.
It’s been impressive to see them sway public opinion after starting the break with a surprise firing and a lawsuit by their last head coach. However, the hiring of Mike McDaniel, and the moves made by general manager Chris Grier, have done exactly that.
With all 32 teams in between OTAs and training camp, there’s a lot of reflecting and assessing that can be done at this moment.
Recently, Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer and Connor Orr went back and forth answering questions regarding the NFL offseason so far, and one of the questions was about which head coach has been the most impressive. Breer sided with Denver’s Nathaniel Hackett, but Orr picked Miami’s leading man, Mike McDaniel.
Here’s what Orr said about the Dolphins head coach and the situation he’s put his team in:
“The Dolphins head coach can recruit, and despite what you may think about Tyreek Hill’s comments on Tua Tagovailoa’s accuracy and how they could almost certainly backfire, he is already creating a sense of comfort around the quarterback. Tagovailoa has been hung out to dry by this organization for far too long.”
McDaniel has been a player favorite at every stop in his career, and the Dolphins have has been no different. He’s even been able to bring some players from San Francisco to Miami like Raheem Mostert, Trent Sherfield and River Cracraft. Coaches Jon Embree and Wes Welker followed him as well to South Florida.
That rapport that he builds with his players and staff shines with Tagovailoa, who spent the last year hearing rumors of other quarterbacks taking his job and playing for a coach who apparently wasn’t the best at showing his appreciation.
Now, Tagovailoa and the rest of the Dolphins are feeling the positivity radiating from their new head coach, but, for now, the tough task of winning games is still in front of McDaniel.
