Rams, Packers listed as possible landing spots for AFC head coach on hot seat

So far, only one head coach has been fired during the 2025 NFL season. But if the Miami Dolphins keep playing the way they have, Mike McDaniel could be next.

The Dolphins dropped to 1-6 after a lopsided road loss to the Cleveland Browns in Week 7.

“We did everything we could to lose the game,” McDaniel said after the defeat. “You saw a lot of frustration from the season seep into our play.”

Barring a miraculous turnaround, McDaniel’s time in Miami appears to be running out — whether that’s after their Week 8 matchup against the Atlanta Falcons or by season’s end. Either way, he’ll likely get another opportunity somewhere else, though probably not as a head coach.

Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer was recently asked if McDaniel could return to San Francisco, where he previously worked as an assistant under Kyle Shanahan. Breer said that scenario seems unlikely.

“McDaniel was Kyle Shanahan’s guy — the only assistant who was with him at every one of his stops since he first became an NFL position coach (Houston, Washington, Cleveland, Atlanta and San Francisco) — so I wouldn’t rule that out,” Breer wrote. “But I don’t think things were perfect at the end there, so I’d actually see McDaniel landing with the Rams or Packers as more likely, though in those cases, you have established, respected coordinators.”

The Rams’ offense is currently led by third-year coordinator Mike LaFleur, while the Packers’ Adam Stenavich has held that role for the past four seasons. Still, both teams’ play-callers are their respective head coaches — Sean McVay in Los Angeles and Matt LaFleur in Green Bay.

McDaniel has ties to both McVay and LaFleur. The three were assistants together with the Washington Commanders back in 2013.

However, Breer also believes McDaniel could find another job elsewhere as an offensive coordinator.

“There’s also the possibility that he looks outside his own football family and goes to work in a place where he’d just be handed the keys to the offense and allowed to make it his own show,” Breer added. “This is, of course, putting the cart before the horse, but if the Dolphins do decide to move on, McDaniel should have options.”

Once considered one of the NFL’s brightest offensive minds — mentioned in the same breath as Shanahan, McVay and LaFleur — McDaniel has failed to replicate their success. Now in his fourth season in Miami, he holds a 29-29 overall record.