A few weeks ago, Mike McDaniel’s coaching career was on life support.
The Miami Dolphins were in the throes of a miserable start to a season when the head coach already was on shaky footing. Just about every poll asking who would be the first NFL coach fired had his name at the top.
Suddenly, McDaniel appears to have weathered the storm. The Dolphins (4-7) have won 3 of 4, general manager Chris Grier was the sacrificial lamb, Titans coach Brian Callahan actually was the first coach fired soon to be followed by Giants coach Brian Daboll – and if Miami owner Stephen Ross does make a coaching change, it won’t come until after the season.
Most “Next NFL coach to be fired” polls have McDaniel behind the Falcons’ Raheem Morris, Raiders’ Pete Carroll and Cardinals’ Jonathan Gannon.
The Dolphins are on their bye week after defeating the Commanders in Madrid. They next play on Nov. 30 at Hard Rock Stadium against the New Orleans Saints.
Can the Dolphins still make the NFL playoffs?
There is a lot of football to be played until 2026, but, on paper, the Dolphins appear capable of winning 3 of their final 6 games, if not more.
Even the three teams left on the schedule that appear playoff-bound – Pittsburgh, Tampa Bay and New England – should have asterisks next to their spots on the schedule. Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers has a broken left wrist, the Bucs are trending downward with key injuries and the Patriots may have claimed the top seed in the AFC playoffs by Jan. 4 and likely would not play their starters when the Dolphins visit (we won’t talk about the weather).
The combined record of the other three opponents left – Saints, Jets, Bengals – is 7-23.
Stay tuned.
DOLPHINS NEXT GAMESaints at DolphinsSunday, Nov. 301 p.m., FOX
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Is Mike McDaniel still on NFL coach hot seat and Miami Dolphins surge?
Reporting by Nick Pugliese, Palm Beach Post / Palm Beach Post
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
