The Miami Dolphins head coaching search has entered a new and more serious phase. After meeting with their two known finalists — San Francisco 49ers offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel and Dallas Cowboys OC Kellen Moore — the Dolphins could soon make an offer.
Update: While Kellen Moore was indeed assembling a coaching staff based on his belief that he had a real chance at the Dolphins head coach job, it appears to be for nothing (at least this year) as the Miami Dolphins have agreed to terms with Mike McDaniel to be their next head coach.
Kellen Moore was a serious candidate for the Miami Dolphins job
While McDaniel has been seen as the frontrunner for more than a week, Moore remains a plausible candidate. So much so, in fact, that PFN Insider Aaron Wilson has heard from league sources that Moore has been gauging interest among fellow assistant coaches about potentially joining his staff, should he get the Dolphins job.
That suggests that he emerged from Saturday’s interview with the team — his second since the Dolphins fired Brian Flores the day after the regular season ended — believing he had a realistic chance of getting hired.
Moore, 33, has just four years of coaching experience. Yet, he is viewed as a rising star after overseeing a Cowboys offense that ranked first in yards (407.0) and points (31.2) per game and third in yards per play (6.0).
That body of work was enough for Moore to land head coaching interviews with the Dolphins, Jaguars, Broncos, and Vikings.
Mike McDaniel remains an intriguing option
McDaniel, meanwhile, met with the Dolphins for 10 hours Friday. He kept the meeting just three days after Flores accused owner Stephen Ross of offering him $100,000 per loss during the team’s tanking 2019 season. Ross stridently denies the accusation.
On Friday, the same day as McDaniel’s interview, reports surfaced that the 49ers are hiring what many view as McDaniel’s replacement. Former Chargers head coach Anthony Lynn is reportedly joining Kyle Shanahan’s staff as an assistant head coach.
Moore and McDaniel are two of seven known candidates for the Dolphins job. The others: Rams assistant head coach Thomas Brown, former Bills offensive coordinator (and new Giants head coach) Brian Daboll, Bills defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier, Cardinals defensive coordinator Vance Joseph, and Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn.