Copyright CBS Sports
The Miami Dolphins parted ways with general manager Chris Grier after nearly a quarter-century of work, including almost a decade as the top personnel man for the team. That Grier is not making it to 2026 comes as no surprise, though the timing of it did catch some across the league off guard. Firing Grier just before the trade deadline, with the Dolphins at 2-7 in a lost season, signals a franchise ready to hit the reset button. But sources caution against the idea of a fire sale in South Florida. Interim general manager Champ Kelly will not just give away Dolphins players in his own audition for the permanent job, be it in Miami or elsewhere. And the cupboard should have some players still there -- including quarterback Tua Tagovailoa -- when the next GM takes over in early 2026. Though Miami owner Stephen Ross is turning the page on Grier, he is not doing the same with head coach Mike McDaniel. The embattled fourth-year coach is the offensive play-caller for the team, and a move to unseat McDaniel before the season ends could result in an even worse output for the 25th-ranked offense. A source tells CBS Sports the plan is for McDaniel, who signed a contract extension in 2024, to at least finish out the season as Miami's head coach. "I have always been and remain committed to building a winning team that consistently competes for championships," Ross said in a statement Friday. "I am incredibly proud of our leadership as an NFL organization and our continued commitment to the community, but our performance on the field and our team-building process have not been good enough. There are no excuses. I want to thank the fans for their continued support and passion for this team. You deserve a championship-caliber team you can be proud of. There's much work ahead to return the Dolphins to sustained success, and that work begins now, finishing the season strong, evaluating all areas of our football operation, and moving forward with a clear vision for the future." Grier is one of the most well-liked and respected personnel men in the NFL today. One GM recently told CBS Sports how much of a joy it was to work with Grier in getting deals done because of how gentlemanly he is while being direct and straightforward to work with. Grier has served as the GM since the 2016 season, accumulating a record of 77-80 over the decade at the top with five winning seasons and three playoff appearances. He came to Miami from New England at the turn of the century and worked his way up the personnel ladder. He took over after the 2015 season and helped hire Adam Gase as the head coach in a marriage that lasted just three seasons. Rarely do general managers get the opportunity to hire three head coaches with nary a playoff victory, but Grier has long had the respect of Ross. It was the owner who picked Grier over Brian Flores during that 2021 split, and it was Ross who decided to retain Grier after the disappointing end to last season. His most consequential decision in a decade as GM came in 2020 when Grier chose Tagovailoa with the No. 5 overall pick over Justin Herbert, who went a pick later to the Chargers. The 2020 season was the last time Grier drafted a player who wound up making it to the Pro Bowl. One source who knows Grier said in September he sensed Grier had recently been feeling the "pressure of it all." He left last year on one of the hottest seats in the NFL, and his acceptance of Ross's move Friday is evidence that he knew his time was up. The next GM -- and perhaps next head coach if and when Ross makes the move on McDaniel -- will almost certainly have Tagovailoa on the team. He signed a four-year, $212.4 million extension in July 2024, and the financial ramifications of releasing him ahead of next season are too punitive for any NFL team to absorb. Tagovailoa's 87.6 passer rating is 23rd among qualified passers this season. He has three games with multiple turnovers this season, accounting for a third of the year. While no team may take the quarterback off Miami's hands, there are plenty of other Dolphins players teams are interested in. Wide receiver Jaylen Waddle is at the top of that list, but for weeks sources have said Waddle would not be traded. With Tyreek Hill out for the season (and perhaps career), Waddle is by far Miami's top receiving option both this year and next. Waddle, who turns 27 next month, is also under contract through the 2028 season. There is little reason for the Dolphins to part with him. Pass rushers Bradley Chubb and Jaelen Phillips are far more likely to be dealt before Tuesday's trade deadline. Chubb has a base salary of just $1.22 million, half of which an acquiring team would have to take under their cap. Phillips, a former first round pick, is playing on his fifth-year option of $13.25 million, which means a team would need about $6 million in cap space to fit Phillips unless the Dolphins eat some of his contract (which in turn would result in a higher draft pick for Miami.) Bradley Chubb landing spots: Could Dolphins trade pass rusher before deadline after firing GM Chris Grier? Cody Benjamin Making those decisions over the next few days will be Kelly, who began his NFL personnel career nearly two decades ago with the Broncos. Kelly was a finalist for the Jets GM job in 2019 that went to Joe Douglas, and he's been interviewed for several other GM gigs in the time since. In 2023, Kelly served as the interim GM of the Raiders after Mark Davis fired head coach Josh McDaniels and GM Dave Ziegler. When Davis opted to go with Antonio Pierce as his first-time head coach, Davis decided he needed a veteran GM in the role and hired former Chargers GM Tom Telesco for the gig. Davis would fire Telesco and Pierce a year later, and Kelly joined Miami this past offseason in a senior personnel role. It does Kelly, his reputation and his résumé no favors to negotiate bad trades in the next few days. Sources say Kelly knows other teams may smell blood in the water, but he will not give away players to charity. If he does a good job, Kelly will likely be considered for the permanent role. Sources outside of Miami point to several other potential candidates for the job, though Miami will not be able to interview for the position with people currently employed until January. Eagles assistant GM Alec Halaby has been with Philadelphia his entire career, winning two Super Bowls and going to another. The Harvard educated Halaby has been a part of every decision GM Howie Roseman has made for years, and he has done more player evaluation than people around the league may think given his background. Ross and Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie are also close, so a Lurie endorsement would likely go a long way in Miami. In that vein, other Eagles personnel men like Jon Ferrari, Jeff Scott, Charles Walls and others could and should be considered. Colts assistant GM Ed Dodds has been a finalist for a number of jobs in recent years. The native Texan keeps a low profile, but there is no ignoring the AFC-leading Colts and the roster they have put together. Bears assistant GM Ian Cunningham cut his teeth with the Eagles and Ravens before joining Ryan Poles in Chicago. He had the Arizona GM job a few years ago but turned it down, and he has been a finalist for several jobs since then. The years of being so close to jobs have prepared Cunningham well for the next step. Browns assistant GM Glenn Cook is a Miami native, having played linebacker at the University of Miami in the mid-2000s. Cleveland's record could hold just about anyone there from getting an external promotion this cycle, but Cook has gone deep in several GM rounds with the Commanders and Bears, among others, in the past few years. Packers VP of player personnel Jon-Eric Sullivan interviewed with the Raiders, Jets and Titans this past season. He has been in Green Bay his entire 20-plus-year career, and he has been Brian Gutekunst's right hand as they have built the NFC leaders. And rounding out the half-dozen is Commanders assistant GM Lance Newmark. He was in the final two for the Jets job in the winter after a long and quiet career in Detroit. Newmark has taken part in rebuilding two programs in a short amount of time. These are just a few of the potential names the Dolphins could bring in. Miami's GM job is the only one open so far this cycle. Last year there were four openings, and there were five the year before that. After such turnover the last few years, league sources have wondered if there would be as many as three this upcoming cycle.
