The Miami Dolphins were unstoppable on offense last season. Now, that offense is no longer working. Mike McDaniel, who is usually so quick with a joke, is in danger of failing completely.

It took a lot of effort to find a grumpy Mike McDaniel in the past two years. His press conferences were regularly posted on the internet because they were good for a laugh.

In the fall of 2024, however, things look different. You hardly ever see the 41-year-old with the corners of his mouth turned up. The Miami Dolphins are currently in ruins and their coach is on the fast track to failure – and that’s no exaggeration.

The statistics also show this. With 11.3 points per game, the Dolphins have the worst offense in the NFL. A complete turnaround from last year, when they had one of the best offenses in the league. Only the Jaguars have fewer wins than the Dolphins. And the one win they do have was against those Jaguars.

Is this all because of Tua Tagovailoa and his severe concussion? Of course not. Because in the one and a half games that Tua has played this season, the offense has only looked marginally better.

So that means it’s up to the playcaller: And that’s McDaniel. The head coach calls the offensive plays. So he’s not only taking the blame for the results, but also for the offense’s production in Miami. And both are unsatisfactory, to say the least.

Boos for run plays – McDaniel at a crossroads

So unsatisfactory that the fans at Hard Rock Stadium booed when a run play was called in the first quarter against the Tennessee Titans. In the third quarter, the fans were downright disgusted with their team’s performance. Or rather, non-performance.

Naturally, the fans want to see their superstar receivers Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle in action. That doesn’t work when running back De’Von Achane runs the ball into the opponent’s defensive line without gaining any yardage.

McDaniel’s playcalling is simply uncreative and weak. Tua’s absence is no excuse. The Green Bay Packers were also missing their quarterback, but a good head coach like Matt LaFleur managed to adjust his offense in such a way that points and even victories were scored.

And Green Bay doesn’t have a single wide receiver who even comes close to matching the qualities of Hill or Waddle. That’s the difference between a good head coach and a very good one.

For McDaniel, this season is about maintaining his reputation as an offensive guru. That’s why the Dolphins hired the 41-year-old in the first place. When a team is doing well, it’s substantially easier to lead them and have fun with reporters. Now he has his first crisis.

Whether McDaniel survives this crisis as head coach is entirely up to him. Can he be more than just the joker from the Rocky Mountains? Even without Tua, the Dolphins have a far from bad squad.

But what they are currently putting on the pitch is not NFL-worthy. And in the end, the coach is responsible for that.