Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel has fielded a lot of questions about his job security over the course of the season and he got another one in his postgame press conference on Sunday.
The framing of this question was a bit different than previous ones, however. Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reported on Sunday morning that McDaniel is expected back as the team’s head coach in 2026. After a 45-21 loss to the Bengals, McDaniel was asked if that has been conveyed to him.
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“Yeah, I think like I’ve said before, the focus for me as a head coach, as you guys can see, there is plenty to focus on that I don’t spend my time thinking about the job I already have,” McDaniel said, via a transcript from the team. “I try to do it to the best of my ability. I have some work to do to get our third quarters right, and we’re not going to have any time to waste because there will be a hungry Tampa team that we’re going to face in a week. My focus is there. I think everyone depends on me to have my focus there and that’s where I’ll leave it.”
Sunday’s loss came in Miami’s first game since benching quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and figuring out the future of that position will be of utmost importance to the team heading into next season. If McDaniel is part of the decision-making process, the choice will have a lot to do with whether he’s back in 2027 as well.