One of the bigger topics in the NFL this year that isn’t going anywhere anytime soon is the mess that is the Miami Dolphins. Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and head coach Mike McDaniel have become a headlining duo on what some are calling the “Tua Wrongs Don’t Make a Right” tour—playing out on the 2025 Test Stephen’s Patience Tour. You should see the t-shirts.
NFL insider Ian Rapoport weighed in on the Dolphins’ job-security situation yesterday on YouTube with a take that pretty much everyone could expect. It’s fine—it’s not rocket science with the Dolphins right now—we all know the days of McDaniel and general manager Chris Grier are numbered.
“(The Miami Dolphins) are going to roll forward with what they have, hoping the results are different,” Rapoport said, highlighting the true insanity of Dolphins’ ownership. “I think one thing that the past week’s events has showed us is that change is coming to the Dolphins. Obviously, (Mike) McDaniel is someone that Stephen Ross really likes and respects. He supported him, he chose him, he has invested in him with a big-time contract extension. He does not want to fire him. The results, though, have to change.”
The reality? They won’t.
### Change Is Coming to the Miami Dolphins Organization
There must be a method to owner Stephen Ross’s line of thinking. With a failing head coach and a quarterback who, in all likelihood, needs a fresh start elsewhere, Ross could be thinking that McDaniel is still the guy to lead this ship—at least down the super-high-draft-pick road. In this view, they could draft a suitable replacement for the aforementioned signal-caller who needs to go.
Whether or not that’s actually the case, no one really knows. But Rapoport insists that change is coming one way or another.
“And I think because of the ugly losses, because of Tua Tagovailoa throwing teammates under the bus and then recanting and walking all of that back,” Rapoport continues, “it has forced the entire nation to look at the Miami Dolphins and say, ‘What are they gonna do?’ So the Dolphins are going to get back to work this week with the hopes that the results are different, but I can pretty confidently say change is coming to the organization. It’s just a matter of how and when.”
### Former Player: Dolphins’ Regime Has to End
Rapoport isn’t alone in calling for changes in Miami. Former Dolphins guard Richie Incognito weighed in, calling the entire situation a disaster.
“I hate the whole situation they have brewing down there,” Incognito said. “This is a dumpster fire, and you have McDaniel and Tua throwing bags of gasoline into the dumpster fire.”
Incognito didn’t hold back in his criticism of leadership within the organization.
“We look at this guy on TV, I do not see a leader of men. When I’m going out there on Sunday, and I want to rip someone’s head off, I’m not getting fired up by this guy’s (McDaniel’s) pregame speech.”
He also pointed the finger squarely at Tua.
“Tua, last week, was talking about guys being late and he’s talking about leadership. Well, the leadership starts and ends with Tua because you’re the franchise quarterback. Everyone was taking sides on ‘Was he pointing fingers at the locker room?’ I think when he said ‘leadership,’ he was pointing the finger at Mike McDaniel.”
Incognito sees deeper issues beneath the surface.
“When you have people constantly late in a professional sports organization, that shows fractures. That shows favoritism. That, to me, is the biggest flaw in this entire operation.”
### What’s Next for the Dolphins?
One can only wonder if there are office pools in South Florida taking bets on when the hammer finally falls. Does McDaniel get fired before Tua actually gets benched? When will Grier have to turn in his playbook? Are parlays available?
As the Dolphins continue to stumble, one thing is clear: change is inevitable. The only question left is how soon it will come—and how deep the overhaul will be.
https://heavy.com/sports/nfl/miami-dolphins/mike-mcdaniel-tua-tagovailoa-stephen-ross-ian-rapoport/
