McDaniel's New Gig Now Official

Included with the announcement were a photoshop of the infamous shot of McDaniel driving by The Elbo Room to troll Buffalo Bills fans after the Dolphins' 30-13 victory at Hard Rock Stadium last November. There also was a short video clip where McDaniel was asked to introduce himself and had a set of fan questions in front of him in a bowl, prompting McDaniel to quip: "This isn't going to be a vape question, is it? I know how you guys roll."

That, of course, was in reference to the Chargers' schedule release video of 2023 making light of McDaniel being caught vaping on the sideline the previous season.

Reports linking McDaniel to the Chargers surfaced a couple of weeks ago, with the caveat being that McDaniel wouldn't land one of the open head coaching positions around the NFL.

McDaniel interviewed for the head coach openings with the Tennessee Titans, Las Vegas Raiders and Baltimore Ravens, as well as for offensive coordinator positions with the Detroit Lions and Philadelphia Eagles.

McDaniel informed the Cleveland Browns the day he met with the Chargers that he no longer wanted to be considered for their head coach opening, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero. The Browns still are looking for a head coach. McDaniel also canceled an interview with the Buffalo Bills that was scheduled to take place in South Florida on Friday.

From a non-football standpoint, the Chargers' job has the location appeal because McDaniel's wife is from California.

From a football perspective, there's a delicious irony here that joining the Chargers would mean McDaniel would go from coaching Tua Tagovailoa to coaching Justin Herbert, moving from the fifth overall pick in the 2020 NFL draft to the sixth pick. And all reports indicate the chance to coach Herbert was a big part of the appeal for McDaniel.

With the Chargers, McDaniel will work under veteran head coach Jim Harbaugh and lead an offense that features 2025 first-round pick Omarion Hampton at running back, a solid trio of young wide receivers in Ladd McConkey, 2024 first-round pick Quentin Johnston
and Tre Harris, as well as having star tackles Rashawn Slater and Joe Alt returning after missing all (Slater) or most (Alt) of the 2025 season because of injuries.

Joining the Chargers also would mean a return to Hard Rock Stadium for McDaniel, who served as head coach of the Dolphins the past four seasons before being fired Jan. 8.

McDaniel produced a 35-33 regular season record (plus 0-2 in the playoff) in his four seasons as Dolphins head coach, and the team finished sixth and first overall in total offense in 2022 and 2023 before falling to 18th and 26th the past two years.

Landing the Las Vegas head coach position would have put McDaniel in a position to coach Fernando Mendoza, who's widely expected to be the first overall pick in the 2026 NFL draft, along with 2025 fifth overall pick Ashton Jeanty, and working with Raiders minority owner Tom Brady.

WHERE DOLPHINS HEAD COACH WENT AFTER LEAVING

George Wilson (1966-69) — Didn't coach again

Don Shula (1970-95) — Retired

Jimmy Johnson (1996-99) — Retired

Dave Wannstedt (2000-04) — Head coach, University of Pittsburgh

Nick Saban (2005-06) — Head coach, University of Alabama

Cam Cameron (2007) — Offensive coordinator, Baltimore Ravens

Tony Sparano (2008-11) — Offensive coordinator, New York Jets

Joe Philbin (2012-15) — Assistant head coach/offensive line coach, Indianapolis Colts

Adam Gase (2016-18) — Head coach, New York Jets

Brian Flores (2019-21) — Senior defensive assistant/linebackers coach, Pittsburgh Steelers

Mike McDaniel (2022-25) — Offensive coordinator, L.A. Chargers