Mike McDaniel's status as Dolphins HC cools off following overtime win in Spain

Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel made history as his team beat the Washington Commanders, 16-13, in overtime to win the NFL's first game in Spain.

More importantly for McDaniel, the Dolphins have won three of their last four games, and his once scorching hot seat is cooling off. 

Mike McDaniel keeps Dolphins together on the field

A week after upsetting the Buffalo Bills, McDaniel needed his team to keep proving it would still fight for him despite its losing record. With the win against the Commanders, though, McDaniel's Dolphins have put themselves in a position to turn their season around after losing six of their first seven games.

On Sunday in Madrid, Spain, McDaniel coached his team to a come-from-behind overtime victory over a reeling Commanders team. While McDaniel is an offensive-minded head coach, Sunday wasn't a high-scoring affair, but the Dolphins offense still put up 311 total yards and averaged 5.8 yards per play. 

In the end, though, it was the defense that came up with the biggest play of the day, when cornerback Jack Jones intercepted Commanders backup quarterback Marcus Mariota on the first play of overtime.  

In three of their seven losses, the Dolphins lost by one score, winning only one one-score game back in Week 4 against the New York Jets, 27-21. It nearly could've been another one-score loss after McDaniel made the head-scratching decision to go for it on fourth down instead of trying for the field goal at the end of regulation.

In the end, it worked out for McDaniel when kicker Riley Patterson made a 29-yard field goal for the win. Sunday was just the Dolphins' second one-score victory and their first overtime win of the 2025 season.