Among the Black Monday firings came a surprise. The Miami Dolphins have fired head coach Brian Flores after three seasons with the team. In those three seasons during a full-blown rebuild of the franchise, Flores was only one game under .500, at 24-25.
After a 5-11 season in 2019 with what some expected to be one of the worst rosters in the history of the NFL, Flores and the Dolphins followed up with a 10-6 record in 2020, in which they barely missed the playoffs. Miami seemingly took a huge step back in 2021, starting 0-7. Flores, however, became the first coach in NFL history to win seven games in a row after losing seven in a row. The team finished the 2021 season with a 9-8 record.
Despite those impressive accomplishments in a rebuilding period, Flores is out as head coach. Here are TGH’s picks for the next Miami Dolphins head coach.
Jim Harbaugh
Stephen Ross, the Dolphins’ owner, has already come out and said that he will “not be the one to take Jim Harbaugh from the University of Michigan.” That may or may not be true. After making a controversial decision firing Flores, Ross should deflect a bit on a staking their claim to a hot head coach candidate.
The offseason is long, though, and Harbaugh may want back into the NFL. If he does, the Dolphins cannot miss their chance to hire him. This roster is technically still rebuilding and Harbaugh is a good free agency recruiter (honed by his time recruiting in college as of late). He can get the most out of the talent that is there and diagnose the holes that remain in the roster while masking them.
He is also very adept at getting the most out of his quarterbacks and has proven he can run a semi-two quarterback system. For a talent in Tua Tagovailoa, who is looking a bit underwhelming, that could be a godsend and a franchise-changer.
Again, do not take Ross at his word here. They could still go after Harbaugh.
Byron Leftwich
Speaking of coaches that can raise the play of Tagovailoa, Byron Leftwich could also be a boon for the young quarterback.
Harbaugh played in the NFL, sure, but Leftwich has played more recently and has been around a winning culture in Tampa Bay for the last few seasons. He has also been working with Tom Brady, who may be the gold standard in quarterback success.
If Leftwich brings Bruce Arians’ player friendly, looser style of coaching to Miami, then it will certainly be a culture change. Flores was known as a no-nonsense coach that demanded a lot of his players during his tenure there. That change may be welcome, even though no stories of players tiring of Flores’ style have been reported.
Eric Bieniemy
Bieniemy will forever appear on these kinds of lists until he locks down a head coaching position. That much is inevitable.
Kansas City’s offense under Bieniemy has been fantastic, apart from some major hiccups this season. All sins can be forgiven if the Chiefs somehow return to the Super Bowl, though. He is still a major name in head coaching candidate circles, regardless.
He is indeed one of the most creative offensive coordinators in the game right now. He will have weapons like DeVante Parker and Jaylen Waddle to play with if he signs there, and a decent defense for the coordinator of his choice to take advantage of. The hire makes sense, and may make even more sense if the Dolphins decide to move on from Tua.
Featured image courtesy of USA TODAY Sports
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