Mike McDaniel's Top NFL Landing Spots After Being Fired as Dolphins HC

After four years with the Miami Dolphins, Mike McDaniel will be looking for work this offseason.

The Dolphins announced on Thursday they have fired McDaniel after a 7-10 record this season and 35-33 overall mark since 2022.

McDaniel will have no shortage of jobs to choose from with seven other teams looking for a new head coach, as well as potential offensive coordinator and assistant positions if he wants to take a step back from being a head coach for a period of time.

The Cleveland Browns immediately stand out as a potential landing spot for McDaniel. ESPN's Jeremy Fowler reported on Dec. 31 that the 42-year-old would be a candidate for the Browns if they didn't retain Kevin Stefanski.

Stefanski was fired on Monday after seven seasons. The Browns already have a strong defensive foundation in place with Myles Garrett anchoring that side of the ball, but they badly need to find ways to upgrade an offense that has finished 32nd and 31st in points scored in each of the last two seasons, respectively.

Another team that could be attractive to McDaniel is the Las Vegas Raiders. When they were in the market for a new head coach last offseason, then-Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson was the preferred candidate by minority owner Tom Brady.

Johnson ultimately took the head coaching job with the Chicago Bears, forcing the Raiders to pivot with Pete Carroll and making Chip Kelly the highest-paid offensive coordinator in the NFL.

The Raiders remained a mess in 2025, but there are reasons to be optimistic that a coach with McDaniel's skill set could turn things around. He helped the Dolphins have the second-highest scoring offense in the NFL in 2023 with Tua Tagovailoa at quarterback and an offensive line that ranked in the bottom half of the league in run- and pass-block win rate.

Las Vegas, which owns the No. 1 pick in the 2026 draft, could add a young quarterback to a group of skill-position players that already includes Brock Bowers and Ashton Jeanty.

There's a lot of work to be done for the Raiders to fix their offensive line, but McDaniel's system has proven it can be effective with subpar protection.

If McDaniel doesn't like any of the head coach openings—or if he gets passed over for them in favor of other candidates—there are some ways he could rebuild his value as an offensive coordinator.

For example, if a team like the Baltimore Ravens goes for a defensive-minded person as their new head coach, adding McDaniel to the staff as offensive coordinator with Lamar Jackson at quarterback could create a lot of fireworks.

It would be a surprise if McDaniel isn't coaching on an NFL sideline in 2026. Even if there were some limitations to his ability as a head coach, his resume as an offensive guru is strong enough that he will get hired to a staff next season.