With the Miami Dolphins being eliminated from playoff contention, players and coaches are conducting end-of-year press conferences. This means many players who the media hasn’t heard from consistently had their opportunity to review a turbulent season.
Some of these press conferences, namely those by the team’s vocal leaders, reveal an unnerving pattern in player behavior.
Player Quotes
Interior Defensive Lineman Zach Sieler, who has been a focal point of Miami’s defense since the Brian Flores regime, specifically mentioned punctuality as a future focus for the team.
“…we need to stay focused this year on making sure everyone’s here, making sure we’re on time, and we’re focused on winning it all next year.”
Similarly, Bradley Chubb touched on involvement in the off-season.
Blunt comments just now from Chubb and Sieler, two very good leaders. Gist is players need to hold themselves to higher standard. Be on time, as Sieler said. Be present in offseason, Chubb said.
— Barry Jackson (@flasportsbuzz) January 6, 2025
Terron Armstead‘s comments alluded to accountability and the possibility that some players may have been given preferential treatment.
“Starts with Mike. Come in with that approach that we’re going to be a great team, nothing less, and holding everybody to that standard every day and people fully buying into it.”
McDaniel Responds
A day after the player interviews, General Manager Chris Grier and Head Coach Mike McDaniel, held their own press conference. This one was filled with questions of accountability, with Mike McDaniel giving some insight into his process regarding holding players accountable.
McDaniel utilized fines for players who continually arrived late to practice. However, in his own words, they were not enough.
“Fining guys didn’t particularly move the needle in the way we need to, so we’ll adjust”
Furthermore, McDaniel made a definitive statement regarding his feelings on repeat offenders.
“If your actions continually lead to fineable offenses, you are telling me without words that you don’t want to be here.”
Can they Fix it?
The Dolphins have several tough decisions to make in the personnel department. However, all of them will be in vain if they cannot solve the culture problems brewing in the building.
Despite fans having Super Bowl aspirations, the team didn’t maintain the habits to live up to them, at least according to its leaders. Regardless of who’s on the roster, this cannot remain the case.
If the pairing of McDaniel and Grier is to be successful, they must create buy-in. This means having extensions of the coaching staff: players who can maintain a culture as well as accountability.
This change doesn’t necessarily begin with the stars. Regarding the in-city Miami Heat, players like Udonis Haslem were lauded for extending Pat Riley and Erik Spoelstra’s message and serving as role models for the roster’s youth.
Reward Loyalty
It’s plausible to anticipate a bit of a reset year for Miami’s cap. If the team moves on from Tyreek Hill, among others, they could open up future cap space while acquiring immediate draft capital. Similarly to years past, Miami may opt to take dead cap hits now in order to maintain talent later.
However, this is just the beginning. Miami’s talent acquisition mindset must change. Rather than rewarding player performance in games, the Dolphins must prove to home-grown talent that hard work pays off. After letting drafted talents such as Andrew Van Ginkel, Christian Wilkins, and Robert Hunt walk last year, the team must work to restore a reputation for maintaining its youth. This not only sets them up for sustainability but also earns them a favor that translates to hard work.
Miami had the oldest roster in football this past year, which translated to a sub-500 record. This alone signaled that things needed to change. Now, with Dolphins players and coaches preaching the same message, it’s safe to say that change will come this off-season. Whether or not it leads to wins is a different question, but Miami is certainly attempting to restore its public image after a disappointing 2024.
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