The Miami Dolphins have interviewed and requested interviews for more than 10 potential candidates. Two of them have been Head Coaches in the NFL, Robert Saleh and Kevin Stefanski. Each and every other candidate would be a first time NFL Head Coach. In case you haven’t been paying attention, former Baltimore Ravens Head Coach John Harbaugh has all but signed a contract with the NY Giants to be their Head Coach, and is therefore no longer available. As the Dolphins conduct this very thorough search, there’s potential that some of these candidates are signed by other teams as there are 5 other Head Coach vacancies, the Baltimore Ravens, the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Atlanta Falcons, the Las Vegas Raiders and the Cleveland Browns. To be fair, the Steelers and the Ravens, two of the very best NFL organizations would have to have a leg up on the competition as each of their last Head Coach’s tenure lasted nearly 2 decades ), 19 years to be exact. On the flip side, our Miami Dolphins have gone through 6 Head Coaches during the span that both Mike Tomlin and John Harbaugh were with their respective teams. If a candidate is looking for stability, Miami isn’t the place. If they’re looking for a team with a great young QB, they’ll have to look elsewhere. If they’re looking for a team with a great roster that is flush with caps space, once again, they’ll have to look somewhere else.
Thankfully, there are only 32 Head Coaching jobs in the NFL, and at this moment, there are only 6 Head Coaching jobs available. Miami most certainly has fantastic weather, no state income tax, and an owner willing to pay to win, so the salary for any potential Head Coach here will not be an obstacle. I spend a lot of time on our Dolphins, but I’m not going to tell you that I spend a lot of time watching every other NFL team and have identified the best Head Coach candidate for the Dolphins. I’m not going to use AI either (Sorry Markey!). I do have a day job that occupies more than enough of my time, so I won’t profess from my vast or really non existent knowledge of these candidates who the right guy is. That doesn’t mean, however, I don’t have preferences. I do, and for various reasons that I will tell you about.
I’m not against hiring another first time Head Coach. That being said, I’d say my first preference would be Kevin Stefanski. Stefanski seems like a no nonsense type of guy, and as usual, teams flip from one type of personality to the other end of the spectrum. Where Mike McDaniel rewards a player for having a “good practice” by allowing them to choose the music they play at practice, with Stefanski it’s unlikely they even get a pat on the back. It’s expected, demanded even that players practice well. I would put Robert Saleh, not only as the other guy with Head Coaching experience, but as a bit of a hardass and no nonsense approach. He’s not there to be the players friends, he’s there to get them ready for each game and assure that they understand their assignments and how and when to do them. Anthony Campanile, our former LB Coach also strikes me as that type of guy. I like all of them, but Stefanski would be my top choice due to his experience and success as a HC.
The next tier of guys are Klint Kubiak, OC for the Seattle Seahawks, Chris Shula, DC for the LA Rams and Jesse Minter, DC for the LA Chargers. Not going to lie, there is some romanticism when you think of having Don Shula’s grandson here as a successful Head Coach, it’s a great story. He’s a little raw, but the DNA is there, and the name is all over the history of the Miami Dolphins. Klint Kubiak has done an excellent job with Jets castoff QB Sam Darnold and a young no name WR corps. Jaxon Smith-Njigba is now a household name, exploding this season into one of the NFL’s best WR’s with nearly 1800 receiving yards and 10 TD’s. Jesse Minter ran the 9th best defense in scoring allowing only 20.0 PPG and did so with a No Name defense led on the D-line by a couple of Dolphins castoffs, Teair Tart and Da’Shawn Hand. Chris Shula had the 10th best defense in points allowed with 20.4 PPG right behind Jesse Minter’s Chargers. Shula took a young defense with some excellent recent draft picks such as DE’s Jared Verse and Braden Fiske and safety Kamren Kinchens. Now that Jon-Eric Sullivan is in place, there’s some hope that we can start hitting on draft picks, rather than wallow in misery as in 2nd year OLB Chop Robinson evaporating before our eyes, Jonah “TWOPICKS” Savaiinaea, or maybe it should be “toothpicks” as it seems that’s what it seems like his arms are as he’s routinely pancaked and turnstiled by defenders. We need talent on this roster, and we need a coach that can make the most of it.
Back to Robert Saleh, who unfortunately for him, was hired by the New York Jets, where players and coaches alike go to fail. Yes, that’s like a guy standing in a glass house throwing rocks at his neighbors, because let’s face it, we’re right there with the Jets, always. So if we discount Saleh’s failure with the Jets as being with the Jets, Saleh is a guy who continues to have success with his defenses, and this year, he did so without a talented defensive roster. The leader in sacks with only 4 was DL Bryce Huff. DE Nick Boas was lost for the season early on in Week 3, and despite not sacking QB’s, the Niners had a staggeringly low total of 20 sacks, and for perspective, our toothless Dolphins defense had 39 sacks, but allowed a lot more points than the Niners defense. Saleh is a good coach, and he will get another opportunity as a Head Coach soon, maybe even this season, and maybe with the Dolphins. We’ll see.
On to new GM Jone-Eric Sullivan, or “Sully”. Sully has his work cut out for him, and his first order of work is identifying a Head Coach he can work with seamlessly and one that he believes will have success here in Miami. We have an awful lot of holes right now, the CB’s we signed off the scrap heap are free agents, so their success last season doesn’t help us much. CB’s that are signed for 2026 are as follows. Storm Duck (who is recovering from a season ending knee injury), Julius Brents (who has a torn MCL and meniscus injury), Jason Marshall who is healthy but started only 1 game. Isaiah Johnson tore his ACL in practice in late December (not back in ’63) but may or may not be available for the ’26 season. Jason Maitre is also on the roster but a PS squad only player who hasn’t yet played in the NFL. Th,th,th,th, that’s all folks! Once again you can thank former GM Chris Grier for doing a wonderful job with the roster and the cap. Complete failures in both respects. So Sully has to remove talent in order to add it, and that likely means the departure, either by cut or trade of OLB Bradley Chubb. Chubb is due to make $23.9M next season and we can’t afford that. I hope we’re able to trade Chubb, we could use the cap space and picks too, but he might have to be a post June 1st cut in order to free up space if the latter can’t be done.
The O-line, a perennial discussion here in Miami still needs work. While LT Patrick Paul and OC Aaron Brewer seem to be inked for their respective positions, LG Jonah Savaiinaea, RG James Daniels who played all of 3 snaps for the Dolphins is a huge question mark coming off of two major injuries in a row. So Markey will tell you it’s just bad luck, but when you continually draft or sign in free agency players with injury histories, or even coming of a major injury, you then put yourself and the team in jeopardy. Well, Chris Grier lost on Jeopardy and will most likely never be a GM again after his disastrous performance in Miami. Oft injured RT Austin Jackson who played only 6 games in 2025 and only 8 games in 2024 means he’s played 14 of 34 games in the last 2 seasons. It seems the O-line will once again need to be addressed with potentially 3 spots in question for 2026.
The D-line is a better story, although not a great one. 1st RD pick Kenneth Grant was below average this season but showed some growth overall. His rookie line mates actually exceeded his play, both DT’s Zeek Biggers and Jordan Phillips, Biggers a 7th RD pick and Phillips a 5th RD pick. We’re also really set at ILB with both All Pro LB Jordyn Brooks returning along with Tyrel Dodson. At OLB, tis a sad story. Chop Robinson was practically useless in 2025 contributing 21 tackles and 4 sacks as his snap counts diminished in his 2nd season from 53% to just 44%. We have to hope whomever is HC and the DC they hire can find a way to turn that around. With so many holes to fill, you’d have to think Chop is going to play a lot of football next season. At safety, bringing back Minkah Fitzpatrick, who played well last season for us, and then potentially we’ll see if Dante Trader Jr. who flashed some last season can grow into a starter.
On offense, the big ugly void at QB is staring right at anyone who takes this job. Sorry, you can’t look at this roster and think we’re going to have QB Tua Tagovailoa under center in 2026. If whomever is hired disagrees, I may have a breakdown. The best financial path is to have a competition at the QB position, Quinn ewers would be one guy and I’d love to draft another QB in ’26, not necessarily Day 1 or even Day 2, but a player who can provide competition and have potential to start if necessary. Listen, I’ve said it a bunch of times, if Tua Tagovailoa wants to get himself into awesome shape and come in here with the attitude that he’s willing to play to win, not to “not get hurt” and put his body on the line within reason, then I’m cool with him being part of the competition, but nothing can be handed to him, no way, no sir! He must earn that spot, and in addition, the other 2 QB’s on the roster MUST BE PREPARED TO PLAY, because even if Tua wins the job, how long he lasts if he does play to win, or how poorly he plays if he doesn’t, the other fellas better be ready to go!
WR and TE are two glaring holes. You have to believe that WR Tyreek Hill and his bloated salary has played his last game in Miami, if not the NFL altogether with such a gruesome knee injury. Jaylen Waddle is pretty much middle to bottom as far as #1 WR’s go. We definitely need talent to add to Waddle and the two Washington’s (Malik and Tahj), as well as resurrect Nick Westbook-Ikhine, and then develop Theo Wease. Malik looks like a solid slot WR, but we need someone to threaten the defense on deep balls and red zone balls like 50/50 balls. I though NWI was that guy, but McDaniel could never get him involved after having a career year with the Titans in 2024 with 9 TD’s.
Once again, Sully has a tough assignment ahead of him. He must identify the the right Head Coach candidate and then hopefully that candidate accepts the job. Then he has to find the time to comb through the roster and the cap situation and get prepared for Free Agency, where we can only pick up scraps as we are OVER THE CAP right now. He has to evaluate the roster and prepare for the upcoming draft and form a draft board with his new Head Coach, but ultimately, Sully will be responsible for the draft and making those choices with input from the HC, but the choice is Sully’s to make and will reflect on him and him only. It’s one of the reasons I’m so pleased we cleaned house, there will be no finger pointing here, one man is responsible, the wait it has to be. In that regard, we have done well, and I pray as a long time Dolphins fanatic, that we continue to make good choices
GO DOLPHINS!!! GO SULLY!!!
Finsmob Unleashed 
Thanks MikeE!
There are actually 7 other HC vacancies. You left off the Cardinals and Titans.
8 total vacancies
Ah, the Tuatastrophy continues.
Thanks BB Mike! Yeah, I was kinda trying to get this article out. I’ve been spending about 2 hours every Friday morning at the Dentist, got teefer trouble. Sucks!
No worries Mike. Everyone here GREATLY appreciates you and what you do for us!
No worries, I appreciate corrections and criticism too
I feel like BBM is being a bitch. lol
Chubb is on the books for 31.2m cap hit not 23.9m.
I agree 100% on Chubb. He will need to go either trade or cut.
I mentioned before that Chubb will only cost the team trading for him about 20m.
His cap hit is $31.2M, his salary is $23.9M
Oh, I thought his salary was 19.4m. Dead cap of 23.9m if cut or traded pre 6/1.
Of the guys we have looked at I think I am leaning towards Stefanski. I mean he did well for two years before he was forced to work with jerk off boy and the depleted roster that Cleveland was forced to go with after that bloated waste of space contract. On the other hand, he did NOT handle the QB position well this past season and the browns were a shit show under his watch.
I am conflicted and feel (like I said already) that they are going to fuck this up.
I just don’t know who I want. Just hope it works out.
The way he handled the QB situation last year makes me feel comfortable that he won’t just hand the job to the dart throwing gimp. That in and of itself makes me happy
BB Mike
https://www.spotrac.com/nfl/player/_/id/25100/bradley-chubb
That’s what I was looking at, base salary $19,450,000.
Doesn’t really matter though. He is not worth the 31.2m cap hit. That’s the 6th highest cap hit in 2026 (for now) for an edge defender. It is almost 7m more that the 2026 cap hit on Myles Garrett.
What a team trading for him will have to pay out drops Chubb down to around Alex Highsmith and AVG territory.
I am glad Chubb had a good and healthy season (I think he ranked 20 in sacks with 8.5). That should have increased his trade value.
Nice write up Mike. I ageee with KS. He was voted coach of the year twice while with Browns. He is my first choice if La Flure cannot get Green Bay to pony up.
BB Mike – You have to include the $4.55M signing bonus. That’s part of his ’26 salary
That’s where the $23.9M comes from
I also think Stefanski is my number 1 choice right now
tomlin would be 1 if I thought he wanted to coach – but it doesn’t look that way
I would probably rank
I basically want some one with NFL head coaching experience or that I can pretend is Don Shula…
Thank Mike E.
I want an experienced HC on the younger side if that’s possible…lol.
I don’t know any of them.
Do the right thing Sully…lol
Thank YOU
Has Sully had a press conference yet?
Nope!
Lol….he’s busy
😂
BB Mike – You have to include the $4.55M signing bonus. That’s part of his ’26 salary
——-
I realized later and went, “duh”. lol
I consider signing bonus as money already paid like the restructure bonus. That’s why I just go by total cap hit.
Gotcha!
I can only imagine what Sully is going through…holy shit!!!
GO!
I don’t need a pitcher of Kool-aid….lol
The Jets completed virtual interview with Dolphins cornerbacks coach Mathiew Araujo for their DC position.
Would we get another comp pick if they hired him?
I think it’s only for HC and GM.
Dang
Just saw a report that we’ve completed our HC interviews. I wonder who it will be. 🤔
Former Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel completed an interview for Tampa Bay’s offensive coordinator position, the team announced.
Sully has to build a football team from the ground up…I love it….give sone grace …lol
I believe that’s what the collective wanted on this blog…lol
^some
I wonder if the new HC will keep Weaver. If he gets fired/let go before he gets another gig, we don’t get any comp picks.
Who did we interview today? Anthony Campanile and Shula?
I guess the interviews today were Campanile and Saleh.
“OH What A Night”
And great info on the candidates.. i am not sure I want Cleveland stench … I think lean more toward Saleh .. he was a failure because they were the Jets I believe , thus he doesn’t carry their stench …
MikeE, Since I gave you a headache today:
So we have interviewed Kubiak, Stefanski, Hafley, Minter, Saleh, Campanile and Shula so far? I lost track.
I think you have it right. I know there were a few more requests but not sure what happened.
If by chance they were to hire the grandson, then they would be coached by a
SOASOAS
No Way! Surprised Son didn’t hit us with that. lol
Kubiak
Stephanski
Halfley
Minter
Saleh
Campanile
Shula is yet to be interviewed. Interestingly, Stephanski is the only one to interview in person.
I thought they interviewed Kelvin Sheppard too.
I pulled that from the official Dolphin’s tracker so if they did they didn’t put him on it.
Also interesting that Weaver isn’t being interviewed
If he doesn’t get a HC job I think he could be DC with Harbaugh and the Giants.
Harbaugh is already pursuing Weaver, if ya didn’t already know.
Hey there Wil! Good to see you! Yes, SOASOASOAS
pheloniusphish
says:
January 16, 2026 at 8:08 pm
Also interesting that Weaver isn’t being interviewed
————-
I hadn’t even thought about that until ya just brought it up. Interesting, indeed.
I posted on wrong pge
I wouldn’t mind Saleh….provided he gets a good OC
I see he’s another Michigander. Born in Dearborn, went to college at Northern Michigan.
Not sure I’d like him as our HC, but I’d like him as our DC. JMO.
His HC-ing record is 20–36 (.357), but he almost gets a mulligan for it all being with the stej.
However, he did have a lot of talent to work with on both Offense and Defense to make something happen.
I just don’t think he’s ready for another HC-ing gig… not sure he’d be able to assemble a great supporting cast being he’s essentially another 49ers’ coach (see Capri McD).
Alright, I suppose Kevin Stephanski would be our best bet at this point… though I like Klint Kubiak as well.
So I made a comment the other day, that we could do better than Stephanski, but we also could do a lot worse, and posted his career coaching record.
What I need to remind myself is that he is a 2x NFL Coach of the Year, IN THE AFC NORTH (against the Harbaugh Ravens, the Tomlin Stealers*, and the Burrow Bengals). He got saddled with Deshaun Watson (don’t know if he signed off on the deal), and that ate a shit-ton of their cap to make further moves in FA.
Out of the ones on the list I like Kubiak and Jesse Minter the best. I do not like Kevin Stefanski as a HC. He just has too many red flags for me. Complaints of no vision, no adaptability, time management, poor leadership, poor adjustments, his players didn’t like him.
He was ranked 30th out of 32 coaches on his NFLPA report card. Not to mention sabotaging Sanders, despite how people feel about the kid. We went through that with Philbin and Flores and both were 100% wrong to do it.
I think he’s going to be more of the same for us where things start to look good, maybe make the playoffs in the first or second season then the novelty will wear off and it goes down hill.
I respect your take, SB7. So we’re both pretty high on Klint Kubiak.
Klint Kubiak has quite the coaching tree above him… not to mention he can always fall back on his father for further resources…
https://www.pro-football-reference.com/coaches/KubiKl0.htm
I like Jesse Minter to be our next HC. I don’t really have a valid reason, just like him the best from what I’ve read.
Waller was there and they should have left together…lol
https://phinphanatic.com/darren-waller-just-gave-miami-dolphins-fans-more-reason-to-be-glad-mike-mcdaniel-is-gone-01kf3fm6ke19
I know it’s a different time, different era, but I don’t think players loved Don Shula when he was their Head Coach. They respected him, but not sure they liked him. Is it really that important for them to like the Head Coach? They seemed to love Mike McDaniel, did they win? Did they play better? NO, to both!
Mike E,
While I don’t think it is guaranteed A team will have success. If you have a head coach that is well legged by the players, I do think it is essential in today’s NFL. I’ve been in education for over two decades now and the kids have really changed. That translates up into the college level and also two NFL players. Kids are a lot different than they were 20 and 30 and especially 40 years ago when Don Shula was the head coach. It’s not just about respect anymore and listening to the coach or listening to your teachers, etc. You have to connect with these kids. You have to connect with these players in order to get most out of them and the most out of the team.
You’re probably right Bri, I hear ya!
Mets sign Boba Fett! Nice, should keep them relevant
Oops, that’s Bo Bichette. Sorry . . .
MikeE., I feel your pain. Something needs to be done with baseball. These teams that just throw out the cash make MLB so unbalanced.
The Reds offered Elly De La Cruz a contract that would have made him the highest paid Cincinnati Red in it’s history exceeding the 10yr 225m contract they gave Joey Votto and he turned it down.
He could be rich beyond his wildest dreams right now. Instead, he is on the books to make just 820k this season. What if you get a bad injury this season? Makes no sense to me.
He will
make double that if he plays hardball.
the real issue BBM is the deferred money. Ohtani is making $2 million a year for the next 10 years and then he gets the other 68 million a year after this contract is up. Thombs keep deferring money so they can throw all this crazy money at these players right now, and it’s only going to catch up to these owners at some point I would think I don’t know. I read an article a few months ago that said that the Dodgers had already made back all of the money they invest in in Otani anyway, so who knows
Wow, I didn’t realize QB Darian Mensah entered the transfer portal at the last minute and is leaving Duke.
I bet Miami will land him to be their next QB to replace Carson Beck.
Sounds like it is about the NIL money. Mensah could end up staying at Duke if they offer him more money.
isn’t it always about the money?
Offseason rumors are starting to swirl already. Some say look for the Eagles to trade Jalen Hurts to a QB needy team prior to the draft like the Jets. Reason is ongoing friction between Sirianni and Hurts.
Interesting.
I guess the hold up on Harbaugh’s deal with the Giants is they can’t come to an agreement on organization structure.
This is the main reason I didn’t want Harbaugh. This problem was going to happen anywhere he was going to try and go. He wants more power than teams are willing to give.
^^^
I don’t have a horse in this race. I just hope they find a good coach.
I will say Stefanski was highly regarded and liked here in Minnesota. People loved the guy. Fans. Media. Players. Coaches. I don’t think anybody said a bad word about the guy. Whether that was BS or truth, who knows?
It’s just a sign of the times that a coach did some tough coaching on an entitled little punk who felt he should be treated differently and just handed a job and his fans got upset because this little punk might have been coached hard. Sign of the times. Sanders should feel lucky he even got drafted. If his last name wasn’t Sanders, he probably wouldn’t have been.
Am I the only person on the planet that thinks giving into these young people and doing what THEY think is partly why our culture is failing? Why on Earth should I be complicit with a process that rewards giving in? Allowing these young people to say: “Hey, stop expecting tough things from me. Just tell me how great I am. Tell me my shit don’t stink. Tell me how wonderful I am and give me everything I want”. How is that the right way to do it? Why can I not expect young people to be open to criticism and not just giving them anything they want? Isn’t that how we got to this pathetic point in the first place? By giving everybody a participation trophy and telling kids that they’re all special without ever doing anything to prove it? It’s a big part of the problem with our society today. People are demanding things they feel they deserve without ever earning them. And then…when they don’t get that thing because they can’t earn it….its always somebody else’s problem.
Rant over
You are not alone
It all started with the “participation trophies”. You nailed it.
the pussification of our youth, its like a dem slogan
Perfectly said
Rant away…lol.
Some might call you an asshole ..lol
I agree with you…
Phel,
Hey, I’m just curious. You’re a military guy. Are they seeing this same kind of stuff in the military? I don’t think of the military as being a place where individualism is promoted or desired but is this stuff impacting how our military works? I know you don’t speak for “the military” but just wondering if you hear about the same stuff in those circles.
Varies from branch to branch. Marine Corps has never tolerated it, Air Force always has. I’ve heard from Army buddies say it has had an impact. Probably see it more in recruiting, where the kids haven’t been exposed to hard accountability. That was part of Hegsbeth’s drive to to raise the standards for boot camp.
There’s no harder criticism than someone shooting at you.
BBM,
It was more than that but that is emblematic of the systemic change. If I have to hear one more parent tell me how much they hate how much their kid is on their phone, I’m gonna move to Siberia! TAKE THE DAMN PHONE AWAY! It’s okay. Your child won’t die. They will, of course, whine and cry that they WILL die, but as a parent you know better. They’ll be okay and hey…maybe they’ll actually go do something productive or engage their creativity! Lol
Parents are like republicans, they’ve abdicated and their power and responsibility to the child in the room. And even worse, they’ve even begun to believe that the child is actually right! Lol
Phones and video games have given way to lazy parenting. Devices keep the kids occupied so the parents don’t have to entertain them.
BBM,
I don’t know about you, but my parents spent zero time trying to figure out how to entertain us. They expected us to entertain ourselves….and we did just fine. It was close a few times but nobody died. Lol
100%
You just described my childhood. When we weren’t in school, we were gone sometime after breakfast and usually not home until dinner. lol
I got in trouble a few times but learned a valuable lesson in the end.
I think Stefanski would be fine as an OC For an established coach like Andy Reid, I just don’t think he’s HC material. I mean anyone who signs on to coach the Browns has to be poor at decision making.
Good point. lol
I was looking at the 18 players we gave futures contracts to. The majority were our own practice squad players who have been with the team a year or more. A few others were added the 2025 offseason and a couple more we poached or added toward the end of this past season. There are 7 players basically new to the Dolphins:
OT Carter Warren 6’6, 311 – former 2023 4th round pick by the Jets out of Pitt. Cut in 2025 final cuts. Spent 2025 on Titans practice squad. I don’t think he will ever be more than a practice squad player or backup at best.
TE Cole Turner 6’6, 240 – former 2022 5th round pick by the Commanders out of Nevada. Left Commanders after 2025 final cuts and spent 2025 on Titans practice squad. He was a good receiving TE at Nevada where over his last 2 seasons he had 111 catches for 1282 yards and 19 TD’s.
QB Cam Miller 6’1, 211 – 2025 6th round pick by the Raiders. We poached him off the Raiders practice squad the last week of the season. Tom Brady liked him. To me, he’s just another small QB with a less than average arm. He can run but not fast.
ILB Jackson Woodard 6’2, 237 – UDFA. We poached him off the Texans practice squad in mid December. Woodard played 45 ST snaps for the Dolphins recording 2 tackles. I wanted us to draft him late or sign him as a UDFA last year.
RB Donovan Edwards 5’11, 205, 4.44 forty – UDFA signed by Jets in 2025 cut on final cuts and spent 2025 on Commanders practice squad. Dolphins poached him from the commanders the last week of the season. Meh, he could never become “the guy” at Michigan. Doesn’t have good vision and not very good at reading blocks.
LB KC Ossai 6’1, 237 – 2025 UDFA also signed by the Texans, was on their practice squad and later picked up by the Dolphins. His last 2 seasons were decent at Louisiana. He’s the younger brother of NFL edge rusher Joseph Ossia.
DL Kieth Cooper Jr. 6’3, 280 – 2025 UDFA signed by the Lions and was on their practice squad and later cut. Spent the rest of the season on the Browns practice squad. He’s kind of a tweener Edge/DE.
The only 2 that interest me are ILB Jackson Woodard and TE Cole Turner.
sb7,
Stefanski was voted as the NFL coach of the year twice. How is he not considered HC material? He was literally voted as the best HC over everybody else doing that job twice.
I do agree deciding to work for Cleveland was questionable but maybe he thought it would be a good professional challenge! Some may say the same thing about wanting to work for Miami. Lol
yep – and he was also completed sabotaged by management in the DeShaun Watson trade
@TomPelissero
Packers DC Jeff Hafley has emerged as a frontrunner for the Dolphins head coaching job, per sources. No final decisions made. More interviews are scheduled. Four other teams have requested second interviews with Hafley. But he appears to be the leading candidate in Miami.
@ArmandoSalguero
When Packers DC Jeff Halfey gets his second interview with the Miami Dolphins next 48 hours or so, he’ll have backing from GM Jon-Eric Sullivan. And he’ll communicate well. Will that be enough to get him the job offer? It cannot hurt
Yeah, I have posted this a 100 times before. I think Jackson Woodard will make the 53 at least as the #4 ILB.
If Sully is hiring Hafley, hopefully it’s because he’s going to be a great Head Coach and not because he’s more familiar with him. I trust it’s some of both
Stefanski may be the lead candidate/target for the Falcons. The Falcons are sneaking in a second in person interview with Stefanski prior to him meeting with the Titans on Sunday.
Randy
says:
January 17, 2026 at 1:43 pm
sb7,
Stefanski was voted as the NFL coach of the year twice. How is he not considered HC material? He was literally voted as the best HC over everybody else doing that job twice.
I do agree deciding to work for Cleveland was questionable but maybe he thought it would be a good professional challenge! Some may say the same thing about wanting to work for Miami. Lol
____
Because unlike the people who do the voting for these things, I actually do my research. Ron Rivera won the award twice as well. Half the people on that list of “winners” aren’t good head coaches. They just happened to have one good year among several really terrible ones.
The Hafley love from JES is definitely reaking of elbow rubbing, good ole boys club instead of looking to find the best candidate.
Randy,
I completely agree with you. I think the primary problem are parents and unqualified teachers. Teachers and parents want the kids to be their buddies, and mini versions of themselves. Kids will always have some similarities to their parents, but they are different people and need to find their own path. The only job teachers have is to educate on factual data. Don’t throw in your opinions, don’t change what you’re going to teach. Just pull out the book and teach. I don’t need a teacher to show my kid 78 different genders. Or teach them pronouns. Just teach them when to use pronouns in sentences. Teach them math, science, civics. That’s it. Do your job or go back to Starbucks.
Saban was able to get the most out of kids until adults changed the rules. It had nothing to do with kids needing buddies. They wanted what gave the best benefit…like every other player ever. If these new players need their asses kissed, they aren’t worth dealing with. Other players will step up. Sanders was a 5th round QB for a reason. He’s just not that good.
sb7,
I’ve been following Stefanski since long before he was in Cleveland. It’s weird how none of this stuff ever came up with him or his ability to coach until Sanders becomes part of the conversation and those who want to push the Sanders narrative have decided Stefanski is the problem.
I went and watched some stuff about this after your comments. Every single guy who talks about it says: This isn’t about Sanders. Yes, he sucked and had one of the worst rookie seasons ever, but it’s not about him. And then they go on to talk about Sanders for 30 minutes and how he was wronged.
Appears to be a pretty clear narrative that somehow it’s not simply because a 5th round pick who probably should have been a UDFA played like crap. We need to blame the HC for not being able to make chicken salad from chicken shit.
sb7mvp
says:
January 17, 2026 at 2:48 pm
The Hafley love from JES is definitely reaking of elbow rubbing, good ole boys club instead of looking to find the best candidate.
————
I agree 100%. And I suppose that’s why we didn’t go out of the way to hire Chad Alexander as GM, in order to lure John Harbaugh… it would have looked too obvious with the elbow-rubbing, good ole boys club.
I fail to see Hafley as the best HC candidate for us, truly: it reeks to me as well.
I hope what I said above makes sense in terms of the optics — or lack there of –of luring a HC.
Do or do not… there is no try (no half-stepping). I have a bad feeling about this.
Further translation: just get the best GM and the best HC available and fuck the optics… and fuck the buddy-system as well.
Seems we’re dancing around in the backfield instead of just running north and south.
Okay, last attempt trying to convey my thoughts in layman’s terms… LOL
If hiring GM Sully leads us to HC Hafley, we may as well have hired GM Alexander to lead us to HC Harbaugh.
If we were trying to dodge the optics of the good ole boys club (Alexander to Harbaugh), we’re not dodging the optics of the good ole boys club if Sully hires Hafley.
Just hire the best HC out there now, fuck the buddy-system! I’d be good with either of Kevin Stephanski or Klint Kubiak.
Texans at Pats could be a snow game tomorrow.
Enjoy it while ya can, these snow games. There will very shortly become a time where every stadium is domed, in order to host a Super Bowl.
These domes will probably be retractable, but snow games, IMO, are on their way out.
@JosinaAnderson
Breaking Now: John Harbaugh tells me he has now agreed to terms to become the next head coach of the New York #Giants.
listening to Romo talk about how the officials are taking to long to blow the whistle and watching Josh Allen ask for officials to blow the whistle while he’s pushing forward is just bad football
last week his OL pushed him into the endzone on a rush lush. Now they want the officials to blow the whistle to avoid an official
^
EXACTLY! Can’t have it both ways.
they can design a play where the QB drops forward for the first down. They don’t have to leave him upright and vulnerable
this isn’t much different than Mahomes and the fake slides
the nfl is in bad hands when their star QBs take advantage of how sensitive the league is to their health
Randy,
I like how you ignored everything else I said about Stefanski and keyed in on the point about Sanders as if it was my main point. I said about 6 other things that are pretty important to being a head coach before even mentioning the sabotaging of Shedeur, which he did in fact do. I’m not even a fan of Sanders or his dad. I just look at facts and make the call from there.
WTF was that from Josh Allen?
looked like he pitched it back, but it was knocked out
Don’t recall ever seeing the situational football play where the team trying to make the tackle holds up the runner to run out the clock
Shuekur could’ve saved his team 3 pts there, if he knew the situation and just rode the runner a couple of seconds
JES hiring Hafley….it is what it is. They all hire their buddies in this league. Plenty of examples everywhere. JES has been a part of a winning organization for 20 years. I will trust that judgement and the fact he should have learned a ton of how to run a team. The HC is important, but not as important as putting the right players together.
Pachyderm Passenger,
Exactly!
I’m sure if Hafley is our next HC everyone will know more about him than the people in the business. 😂
Well, it already seems everyone knows more about him than the people in the business. 😉
And IF Hafley is our HC hire, expect the Dolphins organization to say they finally got it right, after 1/4 of a century of futility.
And some still wonder why Steve Ross is viewed as a total buffoon.
broncos should re running the ball against this defense
That Acura ADX commercial has me pop-lockin’ over here!!! “More Bounce”, by Zapp!!!
And here we go again… the whistle didn’t blow after Josh Allen rushed for the 1st down.
The zebras have WAY too much control of the game.
Rules should apply to all, and all should obey the law. NO ONE is above the law, right?
How about some bloody consistency out of the zebras, right?
broncos blew this game
It’s not over yet, but I DO AGREE.
Man, I wished we could’ve hired Payton. Fun game.
I’m so sick of every fucking team I’m rooting for losing
nvmd, we good, LOL
White was being a little bitch about the PI. It was obvious PI. I think the first PI call was BS though.
yes, but the play before that was PI, can’t keep letting Buffalo get away with it
Agreed on the 1st no call play it should have been PI.
And on the first PI they did call, there was a roughing too that was declined, so it didn’t matter anyway.
when the buzzer sounded for my laundry I knew Buffalo was in trouble🤣
Buh-bye, Bills!!!
Buffalo paid the price for kicking off in OT
I was kind of surprised at that. I get it during the regular season, but it felt like for the playoffs you want the first opportunity to have the ball once it’s actually sudden death (after both teams possess once).
OD would say the “O” in Buffalo is for many Super Bowls they’ve won
yes he has
where’s OD?
Denver tied the record set by Minn in 2022 and KC last year
with an 11-2 record in 1 score games
in 2023 Minn was 7-10, and KC was about the same this year
before next season starts bet on the under for Den wins
winning those one score games seems to even out
the way to beat Buffalo is don’t give them a chance to know what they need to do
if Denver had gotten a TD on its 1st drive Buffalo would’ve answered
back in the early 90s I wanted Buffalo to beat the Giants in that wide right SB loss, because I thought they’d have gone away after a win, now I celebrate their playoff exits
really thought everything was lined up for them this year with KC and Balt out
Hafley is guaranteed to be our next HC, with our GM also being from GB
not sure about either, but even though Philbin was from GB, we’ll have some stability at the top
Why even compare Hafley to Philbin? Other than GB over 10 years ago nothing is similar between the two.
because both are from GB people already are, its the only comparison I see
M13, we hire a new GM with the resume for the job and already we’re going to skip him and go right to Ross? You might have RDS. 😂
LOL
😆
I prayed for the ah duh day, I didn’t have to ah listen to ah another um interview with ah that um schmuck
Who is Barack Obama?
😉
😂
same type of jackass
Hafley has a flat top, so that alone tells me he isn’t Joe Philbin
flat toppers are no nonsense type of guys and what we need after Mickey Mouse’s country club
😂
He looks like Chet from Weird Science, not some tough guy.
how would you like a nice greasy pork sandwich
I need to OD it, before I say anything nice about our 2 former Packers
17-0, Seahawks! Still the 1st quarter.
Oh, the 49ers (just like our Phins) have so many people on IR.
STOP IT! No more Shanahan BS! That’s a blueprint for IR.
We need availability from starters, more so than having to constantly use the ‘next man up’.
I swear, if it hadn’t been for the trade for CMC, Shanahan would be out of a job.
And Achane ALMOST saved Capri McD’s job.
congratulations on another year without a ring Bills!
He looks like Chet from Weird Science, not some tough guy.
——-
LMAO!
The game should have been over with a safety on the hold that wasn’t called against Buffalo in the end zone. But hey…that’s the NFL.
Bo Nix out for the year.
Damn that is tough. Feel sorry for the kid.
that is a bummer
I was picking Pats vs Seattle in the SB anyway.
revenge SBs, Cheats vs Rams/Seahawks
Falcons hire Stefanski
I almost knew that was going to happen when Atlanta set up a last minute second interview before he went to the Titans tomorrow.
Awful news about Bo Nix.
get NE out and I don’t really care who wins it
It looks like we’re going to hire Hafley. I think I’m cool with a defensive coach as I watch the Seahawks play. 😂
don’t think it makes much difference O or D HC
in Miami, with So Beach and other distractions, might be better to have a D guy as HC
SB – just so you know, my best friend is a Steelers fan, he agrees with your assessment of Tomlin