Dolphins sign coach Mike McDaniel to multi-year contract extension

The Miami Dolphins have stamped their approval of coach Mike McDaniel for the long haul.

The Dolphins and their coach of the past two seasons agreed to a contract extension that will keep him leading Miami through the 2028 season, according to a league source Friday morning.

McDaniel’s original four-year deal had him signed through the 2025 season, so it’s essentially three years added to his contract.

The Dolphins hired McDaniel in 2022 and have revamped their offense under the former San Francisco 49ers offensive coordinator in his first two years in Miami.

In 2023, the Dolphins had the NFL’s No. 1 offense in total yards and were No. 2 scoring offense. It was the first time they led the league in total offense since 1994 and first time being top two in scoring since 1986.

The new deal for McDaniel keeps him tied to the organization for the duration of the current contract extension for quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, which was agreed upon last month. Under McDaniel, Tagovailoa has seen a resurgence over the past two seasons after an uneven first two professional campaigns under ex-coach Brian Flores.

McDaniel also works will with the team’s front office.

“I’m told McDaniel has an especially strong working relationship with GM Chris Grier, CEO Tom Garfinkel and cap guru Brandon Shore,” an initial report from ESPN said. “It’s the type of cohesive group that owner Steve Ross covets.”

McDaniel has a 20-14 regular season record over his first two seasons at the helm for the Dolphins. In both 2022 and 2023, he led the team to the playoffs — marking the franchise’s first pair of consecutive playoff berths since 2001 — but neither run led to a postseason victory, as the team still has a drought without a playoff win since 2000.

McDaniel has built one of the league’s top offenses behind Tagovailoa, wide receivers Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle and a run game that emphasizes the outside-zone scheme. He has maintained continuity on his offensive staff heading into Year 3 from offensive coordinator Frank Smith on down through several of his position coaches. Defensively, he reworked his staff after the Dolphins and defensive coordinator Vic Fangio parted ways this offseason, but the team hopes it can rely on Anthony Weaver in that role now.

McDaniel’s greatest trait as a coach may be his connection to players.

His ability to instill confidence in Tagovailoa turned the quarterback’s pro career around under his tutelage.

Overall, he has transformed the Dolphins, a team that’s been largely disappointing offensively since the turn of the millennium, into one of the league’s most explosive offenses.

His team, though, could still stand to be more productive in short-yardage situations and against top-tier opponents. In 2023, Miami was 1-6 against winning teams.

McDaniel has also struggled with replay reviews in his first two seasons as a head coach. He has only been successful on three of 13 career challenges.

McDaniel experienced a rapid ascension to the head coach ranks after just one season as offensive coordinator of the 49ers in 2021. Before that, he was run game coordinator in San Francisco under coach Kyle Shanahan, whom he has worked with at several of his previous stops.

From 2015 to 2016, McDaniel was an offensive assistant with the Atlanta Falcons, when Shanahan was offensive coordinator and Dan Quinn was at the helm. There, he had his run-in with alcohol abuse that motivated him to go sober, eventually leading him back onto a career path toward head coaching.

McDaniel was wide receivers coach for the Cleveland Browns in 2014 and was on the Washington Redskins coaching staff from 2011 through 2013.

He got his start out of Yale as an intern with the Denver Broncos in 2005 and then was an offensive assistant with the Houston Texans from 2006 to 2008.

That’s where he faced his first bit of adversity in the NFL assistant coaching ranks, getting fired and relegated to coaching in the now-defunct United Football League for the California Redwoods/Sacramento Mountain Lions as running backs coach.