A troubling trend continues for Dolphins HC Mike McDaniel
Mike McDaniel may be an up-and-coming head coach leading the Miami Dolphins, but one of his shortcomings reared its ugly head Sunday against the New England Patriots.
Midway through the first half, McDaniel lost a questionable challenge, his first of the year. While this may seem inconsequential, McDaniel struggled with challenges during his first year with the Dolphins, losing six of seven in 2022, and the troubling trend continued on "Sunday Night Football."
The challenge in question occurred after Dolphins linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel hit Patriots quarterback Mac Jones as he threw, forcing his pass attempt into the ground. Despite replays showing that the ruling of incomplete by officials on the field appeared correct, McDaniel tossed the challenge flag anyway.
If officials had reversed the call, the Dolphins would have gained possession, having clearly secured the would-be fumble, so perhaps McDaniel was hoping for little luck to get the ball back. Unfortunately for McDaniel, referees confirmed the call, costing the Dolphins a timeout and a challenge.
Lauded for his game-planning and play-call skills, McDaniel has the Dolphins offense off to a red-hot start behind quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and the game-breaking duo of big-play wideouts Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle. However, coaches' challenges shouldn't be an aspect to overlook.
Ultimately, Sunday's decision didn't matter much, as the Patriots eventually punted on the possession. Nevertheless, at some point, McDaniel will have to either pull the trigger or hold back on a challenge in a crucial situation.
If McDaniel doesn't clean up how he approaches challenges, it could eventually come back to bite the Dolphins. The NFL grind is hard enough without hurting yourself, and McDaniel's record on challenges certainly isn't helping the Dolphins. McDaniel has to pick and choose his spots more carefully, or it might be time to hand off challenging duties to someone else.
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