 McDaniel with theMiami Dolphins, 2023 | |
| Miami Dolphins | |
|---|---|
| Position: | Head coach |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | (1983-03-06)March 6, 1983 (age 42) Aurora, Colorado, U.S. |
| Height: | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) |
| Weight: | 180 lb (82 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school: | Smoky Hill (Aurora) |
| College: | Yale (2001–2004) |
| Career history | |
As a coach: | |
| |
| Head coaching record | |
| Regular season: | 28–23 (.549) |
| Postseason: | 0–2 (.000) |
| Career: | 28–25 (.528) |
| Coaching profile atPro Football Reference | |
Michael Lee McDaniel (born March 6, 1983) is an American professionalfootball coach who is thehead coach of theMiami Dolphins of theNational Football League (NFL). A former long-time assistant and descendant of theShanahan coaching tree, McDaniel began his NFL coaching career as an intern for theDenver Broncos in 2005. McDaniel served as an assistant coach for theHouston Texans,Washington Redskins,Cleveland Browns,Atlanta Falcons, andSan Francisco 49ers from 2017 to 2021, holding his firstoffensive coordinator position in 2021. McDaniel has appeared inSuper Bowl LI with the Falcons in 2017, andSuper Bowl LIV with the 49ers in 2020 as an assistant coach alongsideKyle Shanahan.
McDaniel spent five seasons with the 49ers, mostly as the run game coordinator. His tenure concluded with their secondNFC Championship Game appearance in three seasons; McDaniel served as the offensive coordinator the season before he left to become the Dolphins' head coach.
McDaniel was born inAurora, Colorado, in 1983. He graduated fromSmoky Hill High School in 2001.[1] He played college football as a wide receiver atYale, where he graduated with a degree in history.[2][3]
McDaniel was hired in 2005 at the age of 22 by his hometownDenver Broncos as a coaching intern under head coachMike Shanahan.[4] The Broncos in2005 finished with what was at the time their best record sinceJohn Elway's retirement six years earlier, at 13–3. In the postseason, they defeated the defending back-to-back Super Bowl championNew England Patriots 27–13 in the Divisional Round before falling to the eventual Super Bowl championPittsburgh Steelers 34–17 in the AFC Championship Game.[5]
In 2006, McDaniel was hired by theHouston Texans as an offensive assistant under head coachGary Kubiak, whom McDaniel worked alongside at the Denver Broncos a season earlier.[6] During his tenure in Houston, McDaniel assisted three different offensive coordinators and future head coaches;Troy Calhoun,Mike Sherman, andKyle Shanahan.
In 2009, McDaniel was hired by theCalifornia Redwoods, a team from the now-defunctUnited Football League as a running backs coach under formerMinnesota Vikings andArizona Cardinals head coachDennis Green.[7] In McDaniel's second year, the team relocated toSacramento and was renamed the Sacramento Mountain Lions.
In 2011, McDaniel was hired by theWashington Redskins as an offensive assistant, reuniting with Redskins head coachMike Shanahan, who was McDaniel's mentor six seasons earlier on the Denver Broncos.[8] It was there where McDaniel worked alongside three other future head coaches:Kyle Shanahan,Sean McVay, andMatt LaFleur. In 2013, McDaniel was promoted to wide receivers coach following the departure ofIke Hilliard, who left to join theBuffalo Bills in the same position.[9] McDaniel would not be retained under new head coachJay Gruden.
McDaniel was hired in 2014 by theCleveland Browns as their wide receivers coach under new head coachMike Pettine.[10]
McDaniel was hired by theAtlanta Falcons as an offensive assistant coach under new head coachDan Quinn in 2015.[11]
In 2017, McDaniel was hired by theSan Francisco 49ers as their run game coordinator under his long-time associate and new head coachKyle Shanahan, whom he worked alongside for a total of nine seasons on the Texans, Redskins, Browns, and Falcons.[12][13] During the2019 season, McDaniel and the Niners appeared inSuper Bowl LIV, where they lost to theKansas City Chiefs 31–20.[14] On January 18, 2021, McDaniel was promoted tooffensive coordinator, following the departure of passing game coordinatorMike LaFleur, who left to become the offensive coordinator for theNew York Jets.[15]
TheMiami Dolphins hired McDaniel as their fourteenth head coach on February 6, 2022.[16] On September 11, 2022, McDaniel made his regular season head coaching debut against theNew England Patriots and led the Dolphins to a 20–7 victory, marking McDaniel's first victory as a head coach.[17] McDaniel became the first Dolphins head coach sinceNick Saban in2005 to win his first game as Miami's head coach, and the first in franchise history to win a season opener as a rookie head coach.[18]McDaniel also helped the Dolphins defeat theBills for the first time since the 2018 season.[19]
McDaniel led the Dolphins to a 9–8 record, giving Miami their first playoff berth since2016.[20][21] The Dolphins fell to theBills 34–31 despite a late rally in the fourth quarter of the Wild Card Round.[22]
McDaniel led the Dolphins to a historic 70–20 victory over the Denver Broncos in Week 3 of the 2023 season, the first time a team scored 70 or more points in the Super Bowl era.[23] The team recorded an NFL-record 726 offensive yards, the first to record 700 or more yards since 1951.[24] He led the team to a 11–6 mark in the 2023 season.[25] The team lost to the Kansas City Chiefs 26–7 in the Wild Card Round.[26]
The Dolphins finished with an 8–9 record in 2024, missing the playoffs for the first time in McDaniel's head coaching tenure.[27] The Miami defense finished 4th in fewest yards allowed, but starting quarterbackTua Tagovailoa missed six games and the Dolphins’ offense struggled without its top passer. Hours after a 32–20 loss to theNew York Jets knocked them out of the playoff chase on the season's final weekend, Dolphins owner Stephen Ross announced after Sunday’s game that Miami would continue to be led by general managerChris Grier and Coach McDaniel “with (his) full support.”[28]
McDaniel is biracial. His mother iswhite and his father isblack.[29] McDaniel grew up close friends with comedianDan Soder inAurora, Colorado.[30] McDaniel's relationship to the NFL began when, as a child seeking autographs at the Broncos'training camp at theUniversity of Northern Colorado, he lost hisCharlotte Hornets ball cap. After Broncos staffer Gary McCune bought him a replacement, McCune met and married McDaniel's mother.[31]
McDaniel and his wife Katie have one daughter.[32]
| Team | Year | Regular season | Postseason | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Won | Lost | Ties | Win % | Finish | Won | Lost | Win % | Result | ||
| MIA | 2022 | 9 | 8 | 0 | .529 | 2nd in AFC East | 0 | 1 | .000 | Lost toBuffalo Bills inAFC Wild Card Game |
| MIA | 2023 | 11 | 6 | 0 | .647 | 2nd in AFC East | 0 | 1 | .000 | Lost toKansas City Chiefs inAFC Wild Card Game |
| MIA | 2024 | 8 | 9 | 0 | .471 | 2nd in AFC East | — | — | — | — |
| Total | 28 | 23 | 0 | .549 | 0 | 2 | .000 | |||
