MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — The Miami Dolphins on Thursday fired head coach Mike McDaniel.

The team confirmed that Dolphins owner Stephen Ross met with McDaniel this week to discuss the 2025 season. After that meeting and reflection, Ross decided to move on.

McDaniel went 35-33 in four seasons with two playoff appearances and no playoff wins.He was named the 11th head coach of the Dolphins on Feb. 7, 2022.

Under McDaniel, the Dolphins have missed the playoffs over the last two seasons and have not recorded a playoff win since 2000, the NFL’s longest active winless drought.

The Dolphins are also looking for a new general manager after firing Chris Grier back in October. ESPN’s Tom Pelissero reported that the search is down to four finalists and NFL insider Jeff Darlington confirmed that Miami is expected to make a final decision on the position Friday.

McDaniel was responsible for helping quarterback Tua Tagovailoa improve but the 27-year-old had a league-high 15 interceptions and was benched for seventh-round rookie quarterback Quinn Ewers after Miami was officially eliminated from playoff contention following a 28-15 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Dec. 15.

McDaniel called his time with the Dolphins an “honor of a lifetime” in a statement released through the team.

His departure adds to a challenging offseason for Miami.

The Dolphins, who finished 7-10 in 2025, have several major decisions ahead, including the potential release of Tagovailoa and star wide receiver Tyreek Hill.

Tagovailoa is owed $54 million guaranteed in 2026, while a post-June 1 release of Hill would save the team around $30 million in cap space, according to The Sporting News.

Meanwhile, Tagovailoa spoke publicly about his future Monday, suggesting he would be open to a fresh start even if it’s on another team.

“That would be dope,” Tagovailoa said. “I would be good with it.”

Dolphins owner Stephen Ross also released a statement on McDaniel’s firing in a post on X Thursday morning:

Sources told NFL insider Ian Rapoport that the Detroit Lions have reached out to McDaniel about their vacant offensive coordinator position. McDaniel is a top candidate for any open offensive coordinator job.

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