Has there ever been a coach who seemed more destined to wind up in Florida than Washington Commanders offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury?
While Kingsbury may have turned down opportunities to interview for NFL head coaching jobs after last season, it’s hard to see him making that same decision if the Commanders thrive again this season.
Add that with what seems like another close to certain outcome — Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel eventually being fired — and you can see how Kingsbury might be the perfect fit as the next head coach in Miami.
Kingsbury was a rumored head coaching candidate in the last cycle, most notably tied to the Dallas Cowboys and New Orleans Saints, but made the decision to return for at least one more season coaching superstar quarterback Jayden Daniels.
McDaniel, on the other hand, seems like a prime candidate to be the first NFL head coach fired this season. It might be a miracle if he makes it to Halloween.
McDaniel is in his fourth season as Miami’s head coach but coming off his first losing season after playoff appearances in 2022 and 2023. The Dolphins opened the 2025 season with a 33-8 loss to the Indianapolis Colts in Week 1.
“Questions about Mike McDaniel’s long-term status with the Dolphins were already bubbling under the surface,” Bleacher Report’s Brent Sobleski wrote on September 8. “But a dismantling at the hands of the Colts, who hadn’t won a game in Week 1 since the 2013 campaign, firmly places the Miami head coach on the hot seat. The Dolphins looked completely unprepared for the start of the season, and Tyreek Hill’s obvious frustration on the sideline is a powder keg ready to explode.”
Dolphins Seem On Track For All-Time Terrible Year
While McDaniel’s fate seems sealed in Miami after his team looked lost, poorly coached and highly unmotivated in the opener, the bigger question might be exactly how bad the Dolphins are going to be this year.
With a lame duck head coach in McDaniel, lame duck quarterback in Tua Tagovailoa and a disgruntled best player in wide receiver Tyreek Hill, there’s definitely a chance the Dolphins could rival their 2007 team for the worst record in franchise history.
That season, the Dolphins went 1-15 and wound up with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2008 NFL draft, where they drafted offensive tackle Jake Long over future NFL MVP quarterback Matt Ryan, who went to the Atlanta Falcons at No. 3 overall.
That could mean a high pick in a quarterback rich draft in 2026 — one that could very well tie the 1983 and 2024 drafts with six quarterbacks taken in the first round.
Kingsbury Would Get Second Chance As NFL HC
It would be Kingsbury’s second stint as an NFL head coach — and second chance getting to pick a quarterback high in the first round.
Kingsbury went 28-37-1 as the head coach of the Arizona Cardinals from 2019 to 2022. His first move after being hired was to determine who the team would pick at No. 1 overall in the 2019 NFL draft and used the pick on Oklahoma quarterback Kyler Murray.
