McDaniel
The Miami Dolphins have hired San Francisco 49ers offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel as their new offensive coordinator. McDaniel replaces former offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains, who was fired by the Dolphins in December.
McDaniel has spent the past three seasons as the 49ers’ offensive coordinator, helping the team to a Super Bowl appearance in 2019. He is widely credited with helping the team to one of the most dynamic offenses in the NFL, and has been praised for his innovative offensive schemes.
McDaniel is expected to bring a more aggressive approach to the Dolphins offense, as he is known for being an aggressive play-caller. He also has a strong track record of developing quarterbacks, having worked with Jimmy Garoppolo and Nick Mullens in San Francisco.
The Dolphins were one of the worst offensive teams in the NFL last season, ranking last in total offense and points scored. With McDaniel now at the helm, the team is hoping to turn things around and become a more explosive unit in 2021.
Mike McDaniel
McDaniel with the Atlanta Falcons in 2015
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| Miami Dolphins | |
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| Position: | Head coach |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | (1983-03-06) March 6, 1983 (age 39) Aurora, Colorado |
| Height: | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) |
| Weight: | 180 lb (82 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school: | Smoky Hill (Aurora, CO) |
| College: | Yale |
| Career history | |
| As a coach: | |
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| Head coaching record | |
| Regular season: | 9–8 (.529) |
| Coaching stats at PFR | |
Michael Lee McDaniel (born March 6, 1983) is an American football coach and the head coach of the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL). A former long-time assistant to Mike and Kyle Shanahan, McDaniel began his NFL coaching career as an intern for the Denver Broncos in 2005. McDaniel has served as an assistant coach for the Houston Texans, Washington Redskins, Cleveland Browns, Atlanta Falcons, and San Francisco 49ers from 2017 to 2021, holding his first offensive coordinator position in 2021. McDaniel has appeared in two Super Bowls, first with the Falcons in 2017 then with the 49ers in 2020.
McDaniel spent five seasons with the 49ers, mostly as the run game coordinator. His tenure concluded with their second NFC Championship Game appearance in three seasons; McDaniel served as the offensive coordinator that season before he left to become the Dolphins’ head coach.
Early life and playing career
McDaniel was born in Aurora, Colorado, in 1983. He graduated from Smoky Hill High School in 2001. He played college football as a wide receiver at Yale, where he graduated with a degree in history.
Coaching career
Denver Broncos
McDaniel was hired in 2005, at the age of 22 by his hometown Denver Broncos as a coaching intern under head coach Mike Shanahan. The Broncos in 2005 finished with what was at the time their best record since John Elway‘s retirement six years earlier, at 13-3. In the postseason, they defeated the defending back-to-back Super Bowl champion New England Patriots 27-13 in the Divisional Round before falling to the eventual Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers 34-17 in the AFC Championship Game.
Houston Texans
In 2006, McDaniel was hired by the Houston Texans as an offensive assistant under head coach Gary Kubiak, whom McDaniel worked alongside at the Denver Broncos a season earlier. During his tenure in Houston, McDaniel assisted 3 different offensive coordinators and future head coaches; Troy Calhoun, Mike Sherman, and Kyle Shanahan.
California Redwoods / Sacramento Mountain Lions
In 2009, McDaniel was hired by the California Redwoods, a team from the now-defunct UFL football league as a running backs coach under former Minnesota Vikings/Arizona Cardinals head coach Dennis Green. In McDaniel’s 2nd year, the team relocated to Sacramento and was subsequently renamed the Sacramento Mountain Lions.
Washington Redskins
In 2011, McDaniel was hired by the Washington Redskins as an offensive assistant, reuniting with Redskins head coach Mike Shanahan, who was McDaniel’s mentor 6 seasons earlier on the Denver Broncos. It was there where McDaniel worked alongside 3 other future head coaches; Kyle Shanahan, Sean McVay, and Matt LaFleur. In 2013, McDaniel was promoted to wide receivers coach following the departure of Ike Hilliard, who left to join the Buffalo Bills in the same position. McDaniel would not be retained under new head coach Jay Gruden.
Cleveland Browns
McDaniel was hired in 2014 by the Cleveland Browns as their wide receivers coach under new head coach Mike Pettine.
Atlanta Falcons
McDaniel was hired by the Atlanta Falcons as an offensive assistant coach under new head coach Dan Quinn in 2015.
San Francisco 49ers
In 2017, McDaniel was hired by the San Francisco 49ers as their run game coordinator under his long-time associate and new head coach Kyle Shanahan, whom he worked alongside for a total of 9 seasons on the Texans, Redskins, Browns, and Falcons. During the 2019 season, McDaniel and the Niners appeared in Super Bowl LIV, where they lost to the Kansas City Chiefs 31-20. On January 18, 2021, McDaniel was promoted to offensive coordinator, following the departure of passing game coordinator Mike LaFleur, who left to become the offensive coordinator for the New York Jets.
Miami Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins hired McDaniel as their fourteenth head coach on February 6, 2022. On September 11, 2022, McDaniel made his regular season head coaching debut against the New England Patriots and led the Dolphins to a 20-7 victory, marking McDaniel’s first victory as a head coach. McDaniel became the first Dolphins head coach since Nick Saban in 2005 to win their first game as Miami’s head coach, and the first in franchise history to win a season opener as a rookie head coach.
Personal life
McDaniel and his wife Katie have one daughter.
McDaniel is multiracial. His mother is white and his father is black. In February 2022, McDaniel said some family members from his mother’s side cut ties with him over his father’s race.
Head coaching record
| Team | Year | Regular season | Postseason | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Won | Lost | Ties | Win % | Finish | Won | Lost | Win % | Result | ||
| MIA | 2022 | 9 | 8 | 0 | .529 | 2nd in AFC East | — | — | — | — |
| Total | 9 | 8 | 0 | .529 | — | — | ||||
References
External links
- Asterisk (*) denotes interim head coach
# denotes interim head coach |
