The Miami Dolphins have gotten off to a disappointing start to the season, but there has reportedly been no panic among the team behind the scenes.
The Dolphins were blown out by the Indianapolis Colts in Week 1 and then lost a tough home game to the New England Patriots on Sunday. The losses came at a time when head coach Mike McDaniel was already viewed as being on the hot seat, so the pressure could soon reach a boiling point.
According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, Dolphins players still believe they have a strong enough team and locker room to turn their season around. Fowler spoke with one Miami player who revealed the message that McDaniel delivered to the team following Sunday’s loss to the Patriots.
The message was some variation of, “Be present and control what you can, knowing it doesn’t matter whether we’re 0-2 or 2-0,” Fowler says.
The Dolphins moved on from several key players this past offseason and feel they have a better culture, though that has not translated to success through the first two weeks of the season.
One thing is for certain — Dolphins fans are getting impatient. The team finished 8-9 last season, which was McDaniel’s third season as head coach. Miami made the playoffs in each of the two years before that, though they lost in the opening round both times.
Prior to Sunday’s game, a plane few above Hard Rock Stadium in Miami carrying a banner that said “Fire Grier, Fire McDaniel.” The message was one calling for both McDaniel and Dolphins GM Chris Grier to be fired. McDaniel insists he was unaware of the banner, though he understands where the fans are coming from.
Things certainly will not get easier for the Dolphins on Thursday night, when they will face the Buffalo Bills on the road. A blowout loss in that game would make the seat underneath McDaniel hotter than ever.
