On Thursday, the Miami Dolphins fired Mike McDaniel after finishing with a 35-33 record during his four seasons as head coach.
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The move appeared to surprise McDaniel. He expected to play a role in finding the next general manager to replace Chris Grier, who was fired on Oct. 31 after a disappointing 2-7 start to the season.
Miami went on to finish 7-10, benching quarterback Tua Tagovailoa in favor of rookie seventh-round pick Quinn Ewers for the final three games of the season.
Miami’s decision to fire McDaniel came two days after the Baltimore Ravens fired John Harbaugh, and while the Dolphins are actively interviewing general manager candidates. One name appears to be key in Miami’s search: Los Angeles Chargers assistant general manager Chad Alexander.
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Alexander spent a total of 20 years with Baltimore, becoming the Ravens assistant director of pro personnel in 2009, the second season of Harbaugh’s tenure as their head coach. He left the Ravens to become the New York Jets director of player personnel in 2019 before joining John’s brother, Jim Harbaugh, with the Chargers in 2024.
(It’s worth mentioning that the Chargers general manager, Joe Hortiz, came over to Los Angeles from the Ravens in 2024. He had been with the Ravens since 1998, one year before Alexander joined Baltimore.)
NFL insider Ben Dogra told Newsweek that the Dolphins made a change at head coach on Thursday with the intention of trying to land Harbaugh.
Miami is doing all it can to make a strong run for Harbaugh. The Dolphins appear to be sending a signal to Harbaugh that they want him by interviewing people he’s familiar with, planning to build an organization he’d be comfortable joining.
Harbaugh, 63, a veteran head coach and winner of Super Bowl XLVII, is going to want to join a team with a general manager he aligns with. That could be a candidate like Alexander.
With Grier and McDaniel out, the Dolphins under the leadership of owner Stephen M. Ross, vice chairman, president, and CEO Tom Garfinkel (and Daniel Sillman, son-in-law of Ross, has a voice in the search) want to reset the franchise to give the fan base in Miami a brighter future.
Harbaugh would certainly be a catch for the Dolphins.
While the Dolphins hope to land Harbaugh, the team believes they have better backup options in the coaching carousel this year than McDaniel.
“They think their second choice is better or equal to McDaniel,” Dogra said of Miami. “They’ve done their analysis. And listen, ‘We’re gonna try to go for this guy (Harbaugh). We want him. We’re gonna walk out the red carpet.’ But what if he doesn’t take it? They think the alternative is better than McDaniel.”
Another option for Harbaugh could be the Green Bay Packers. There has been chatter in league circles that new Packers team president Ed Policy could move on from general manager Brian Gutekunst and head coach Matt LaFleur if Green Bay loses to the Chicago Bears in the wild-card round.
Harbaugh might like the long-term options of a rebuild with the Dolphins more than taking a risk with a team like the Packers, who recently gave up their first-round picks in 2026 and 2027 to land star pass-rusher Micah Parsons.
Harbaugh is also the No. 1 choice for the New York Giants. However, the Giants already have a general manager in place with Joe Schoen set to return for a fifth season.
Former Cleveland Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski is the No. 2 option for the Giants. Stefanski, known for coaching quarterbacks, would be an ideal candidate for the Giants looking to develop Jaxson Dart during his second season in the league.
For more on the Dolphins and the NFL, head to Newsweek Sports.
