It was about a month ago, in a conference room near his office in Miami Gardens. New Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel wasn’t merely answering a question about others doubting his ability to fill his new role. He actually raised the topic himself.
He’d heard the whispers that, shorter and slighter than most NFL coaches, he’d struggle to command a team when trouble hit. That he wouldn’t be able to turn a room full of alphas back on the right path. That it was a matter of time before the Yale-educated, 39-year-old run-game savant from San Francisco would be proven to be in over his depth.
McDaniel told me, on a steamy August day, that he was ready.
“That’s how I see what the job is, is in the hardest moments where people are gonna be most uncertain about themselves or the team or really everything—that is my moment when I’m supposed to lead,” he said. “That is the moment that gives you purpose. Whatever I become, it is what it is, but I know that I will be trying to be as good as I could possibly be. And to be that, I have to be that person. That’s where you separate yourself.
“ Well, that’s defined in those type of moments. That’s what is cool about the position. I’m just waiting for those things to happen all the time, because I know they’re coming. And that’s where you define yourself, really.”
So far, so good. Last week, the Dolphins came back from a 35–14 deficit in Baltimore to win 42–38. This week, the result may have been even more dramatic. They outlasted a loaded Bills team that had looked unstoppable through two weeks in a steam room doubling as Hard Rock Stadium. It added to the two wins McDaniel had already registered over Super Bowl–champion coaches and gave Miami sole possession first place in the AFC East heading toward a Thursday-night showdown with the defending conference champion Bengals.
Even better, when those big moments came, his Dolphins responded in the biggest way.
The newly dubbed Butt Punt happened with 1:37 left. Miami was up 21–17 and in position to force the Bills to drive the field for a touchdown. Instead, Thomas Morstead clanged his kick off the rear end of personal protector Trent Sherfield, and it ricocheted out of the end zone for a safety. Now all the Bills would have to do is return the free kick, get into field goal range to win the game and get out of Florida.
It’s where the worst has happened for the Dolphins in the past. It’s now where, thanks in large part to McDaniel, Miami expects its best.
