Who is Mike McDaniel? Five things to know about the Miami Dolphins’ new head coach
In certain corners of the Miami Dolphins fandom and NFL internet, Mike McDaniel is already a cult hero for wise-cracking personality, decidedly un-coach-like appearance and offensive wizardry. His former players love him and fans are ready to fall in love, too.
After one of the most embarrassing weeks in franchise history, the Dolphins delivered a much-needed jolt of excitement by hiring McDaniel away from the San Francisco 49ers as the 11th coach in franchise history Sunday.
1. He’s a master at crafting a run game.
This season was McDaniel’s first as an offensive coordinator, and the 49ers’ rushing attack was one of the best in the league. San Francisco ranked seventh in the league in rushing yards and fifth in rushing touchdowns, and had a top-10 offense, in terms of yardage, despite attempting fewer passes than all but three teams.
For the four years prior, McDaniel was the 49ers’ run game coordinator and they ranked second in the league in rushing yards in 2019. He even helped solidify wide receiver Deebo Samuel as a star this season by unleashing him as a rushing threat. Samuel ran for 365 yards this season, which was fifth most among non-running backs.
2. He comes from the NFL’s hottest coaching tree.
The 2013 offensive coaching staff for the team now known as the Washington Commanders was already legendary, with San Francisco coach Kyle Shanahan as the offensive coordinator, Los Angeles Rams coach Sean McVay as the tight ends coach and Green Bay Packers coach Matt LaFleur as the quarterbacks coach.
Now they can add one more former assistant to the list of coaches produced because McDaniel was the wide receivers coach for Washington in 2013.
One of those three coaches has led their team to a Super Bowl appearance in three of the past four years and McVay has a chance to win a title next Sunday when his Rams take on the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl 56.
3. He’s one of only four minority coaches in the NFL.
With Miami embroiled in scandal after former coach Brian Flores sued the Dolphins and the entire NFL for racial discrimination Tuesday, Miami did at least replace Flores with another minority coach.
McDaniel is biracial — his father is Black — and the 49ers will actually get a handful of compensatory picks because of a new Rooney Rule stipulation encouraging teams to develop minority candidates. Those are just extra picks, not taken from the Dolphins’ cache.
The NFL’s only other three minority coaches are Mike Tomlin of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Robert Saleh of the New York Jets and Ron Rivera of the Commanders.
4. He doesn’t take himself too seriously.
In some ways, McDaniel could be a polar opposite to Flores, who embodied the stoicism and seriousness of New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick, his mentor, at the podium and wanted to win with defense on the field.
McDaniel will bring a defined offensive philosophy to the field and, at least when he was an assistant coach, is generally exuberant in the press conference room, cracking jokes about his 5-foot-9 stature, making references to at least one mid-2000s rapper and generally bringing personality to an often humorless situation. Maybe he gets some of it from his childhood friendship with comedian Dan Soder, who provides comic relief as the character Dudley Mafee on Showtime’s “Billions.”
5. He’s recovering alcoholic and open about his struggle with addiction.
McDaniel isn’t just a bright offensive mind or a charming personality. He’s also an inspiration with the way he has managed to battle alcoholism after his struggle threatened to derail his career. He credits his fellow coaches from his time with the Atlanta Falcons for helping him and he has been open about sharing his story because of the help he got to get through it.
This story was originally published February 6, 2022 at 7:53 PM.
