You've seen this kind of story play out before, one involving an embattled head coach on the hot seat who ultimately gets fired, and then he winds up joining his former employer, the San Francisco 49ers, as a coordinator.
If you're thinking Robert Saleh, who was terminated in the middle of last season as the New York Jets' head coach, only to return to the Niners for his second stint as defensive coordinator, you'd be correct.
And it's possible you might be correct a year from now, should the same fate befall Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel.
McDaniel is squarely on the hot seat, magnified by the fact he hasn't solved Miami's lengthy playoff-win drought that stretches back to 2000 despite bringing his innovative offense to South Beach when hired there back in 2022 after almost exclusively serving as 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan's understudy.
In the wake of the Dolphins' blockbuster trade of All-Pro cornerback Jalen Ramsey and Pro Bowl tight end Jonnu Smith to the Pittsburgh Steelers for All-Pro safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, one can assume things aren't too bright for McDaniel's future.
Especially in light of what another former Dolphins and Niners player, running back Raheem Mostert, said not long after news of the trade broke:
Hot take: Be a Pro-bowler on the Dolphins, get treated like sh*t. Happy for my guys though! GO BALL OUT!! https://t.co/RyDBVE8h1i
— Raheem Mostert (@RMos_8Ball) June 30, 2025
Ouch.
It's a massive shot at McDaniel, and any subsequent shortcomings from the Dolphins here on out could easily indicate the final act for him out in Miami.
Yet that could segway to yet another San Francisco reunion.
49ers may leap at chance to rehire Mike McDaniel (if Dolphins fire him)
The 49ers zeroed in on Saleh during the offseason after dismissing their defensive coordinator from 2024, Nick Sorensen, after one unsuccessful season.
Granted, the context for a would-be McDaniel reunion is slightly different. True, the Niners already have an offensive coordinator in Klay Kubiak, who was promoted to the role during the offseason and could possibly be next in line for a head-coaching gig in 2026, depending on how San Francisco's offense performs.
But Shanahan remains the 49ers' key offensive mastermind, although it's fair to say he more than valued McDaniel's presence, both as a specialist and coordinator.
Should Kubiak ultimately depart and McDaniel suddenly finds himself unemployed, well... there's your opportunity.
Much like Saleh welcomed a return back to the Bay Area, McDaniel might entertain the same, although it's probably going to take plenty more stress points for him to reach such an outcome.
If it ever does.
But it's possible.
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