Entering Week 4 of the 2024 NFL season, the Miami Dolphins are not just 1-2, but they have looked nothing like they did a year ago. In fact, the Dolphins look like a team in the middle of rebuilding instead of a roster loaded with talent.
Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel and general manager Chris Grier have long believed the current roster is capable of winning the Super Bowl, but without Tua Tagovailoa, the Dolphins look like a team that might finish with a top-five draft pick in 2025.
Other teams are exposing many problems, and the Dolphins need to figure them out quickly if they are going to find any success in 2024. A 1-2 record isn't a "sky is falling" situation, but there are signs that both the head coach and general manager are in over their heads.
1. Mike McDaniel is still making rookie head coaching mistakes
For two previous seasons, the joke was that McDaniel couldn't win a challenge and should keep the flags in his pocket. Now, fans are turning their heads away from the once-beloved coach. McDaniel's inexperience as a head coach is shining brightly. He isn't learning from his mistakes and has not demonstrated an ability to fix the problems.
McDaniel has not shown any growth in adjusting his game plan on the fly. Great head coaches can make adjustments throughout a game to put their team in a position to win. McDaniel hasn't shown he can do that. Where most NFL coaches will ride what is working or force defenses to change to beat them, McDaniel still continues to get too cute.
Previous Dolphins head coaches have been fired for the same mistakes McDaniel is making now. Fans continue to wonder why, when the running game is working well, McDaniel opts to throw the ball instead, especially when it isn't working.
2. Chris Grier's stubbornness with roster has exposed the team in every aspect
Chris Grier has been adamant for more than a few years that the team's offensive line is just fine the way it is, and he has convinced his head coach. Now, the Dolphins' line is being ripped apart by injuries and poor play. Grier believes the Dolphins' system doesn't need to protect the quarterback if the ball is released quickly, but when it can't be released in less than two seconds, the line can't protect anyone.
At wide receiver, the Dolphins GM has especially failed. Knowing that Odell Beckham Jr. wasn't going to be healthy and after losing several other WRs, Grier still believes that adding to the unit from bargain bin options is still going to work. It didn't work with Grant DuBose or Robbie Chosen, but for some reason, they believe Dee Eskridge will.
Grier has avoided spending too much on the defensive line, and it is showing. The linebackers still need to be upgraded, and the Dolphins still don't know how to use a tight end. McDaniel shoulders that blame, too. Regardless, the roster is a mess outside of their top players.
3. Dolphins have built a system based on speed and no substance
The Buffalo Bills are the best team in the AFC East, and the Kansas City Chiefs continue to be the best team in the AFC, if not the league. Both teams have great quarterbacks, way above-average offensive lines, and physical defenses. The Dolphins... are fast.
Grier and McDaniel built a team of sprinters, but speed needs room and defenses have figured out how to take away that speed and slow it down. The Dolphins don't have a system in place. The entire team is based on how fast they can run and execute a play. This year, they have been put in shackles.
Grier is more to blame for this than McDaniel because he has been building this roster for eight seasons, and they are still not consistently winning.
4. Dolphins' quarterback situation could have easily been avoided
There isn't much to say about the quarterback situation in Miami. No one faults Grier for the money he gave Tua. Now, the team's long-term future will come with big question marks.
What hurts this team is that both Grier and McDaniel view Skylar Thompson as a viable option at quarterback. In reality, the Dolphins were too worried about making Tua feel less internal pressure and thus avoided signing a reliable and productive backup. Now, the team is failing as a result, and there are no ideal options available to them in the free agency market or via trade.
