Copyright yardbarker
Whispers suggested last week that Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross could fire head coach Mike McDaniel if the club fell to 1-8 on the season via a loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Thursday night. However, such rumors arose before Miami improved to 2-6 by notching a surprising 34-10 win at the Atlanta Falcons in Week 8. For an article published on Thursday morning, Marcel Louis-Jacques of ESPN addressed the McDaniel-sized elephant hovering over the Dolphins this fall. Is Stephen Ross planning to fire Mike McDaniel? "A team source said Ross' disappointment with the results doesn't mean he's in any rush to fire McDaniel," Louis-Jacques explained. "The source said Ross is patient and a believer in the process; there's a limit, but Ross will remain tolerant as long as there are clear steps toward improvement." Back in the summer, McDaniel seemed to understand the "very clear" reality of his situation after he failed to guide the Dolphins to a single playoff win over his first three seasons in charge. Miami then only tallied a victory over the lowly New York Jets (1-7) across the campaign's first seven weeks before the Dolphins crushed the Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. A September report detailed supposed culture issues that have allegedly affected the Dolphins throughout McDaniel's tenure. Before the Atlanta game, some understandably wondered if McDaniel had lost the locker room. For Thursday's piece, Louis-Jacques revealed that "multiple players said the team still believes in McDaniel." Will Dolphins become sellers before trade deadline? Interestingly, McDaniel hinted earlier in October that the Dolphins won't become sellers before the Nov. 4 trade deadline arrives despite the club's disappointing record. It seems he may have had some inside information regarding the team's plans when he offered those comments. "Rumors have circled on social media about Dolphins players being available at the trade deadline, particularly wide receiver Jaylen Waddle, and linebackers Bradley Chubb and Jaelan Phillips," Louis-Jacques wrote. "A team source told ESPN the Dolphins aren't looking to offload players, and McDaniel publicly disregarded trade rumors as 'baseless.'" Louis-Jacques added that there is still "cautious optimism inside the Dolphins' building." One wonders if that could change if Miami suffers a blowout home loss to 2-5 Baltimore on Thursday evening.
