Coming into Thursday, January 8, 2026 there were seven teams in need of a new head coach.
It is the usual cast of characters, the Arizona Cardinals, New York Jets, Cleveland Browns, New York Giants, Atlanta Falcons, and Tennessee Titans with a new name, the Baltimore Ravens.
Then this morning the Miami Dolphins, a team with only three coaches the last decade (that surprised me I am not going to lie) joined the fray.
They have let go of Mike McDaniel who was 35-33 with two playoff games in his four seasons.
Now I know, only two playoffs and no wins, he sucks. Well, that is one less playoff game and win than Bruce Arians, who is probably the unquestioned best head coach in the Arizona portion of the Cardinals history.
McDaniel would bring an explosive, and consistent offense to the desert, with a good group of coaches to pull from.
The problem is, would his style work with this franchise? Another laid back, non-alpha coach who allows his players quite a bit of flexibility.
Also, would Arizona be high on his destination list? While he may not have as many options in terms of head coaching gigs, he could go put up monster numbers in Detroit as the Lions OC for two seasons while he waits for another job that has a little more appeal.
The reality is, this is the Cardinals. They usually don’t have access to the top options, even though they are in the only professional league in the world. So, if a semi-successful coach like McDaniel gives you the chance, should you jump at it?
