The Miami Dolphins‘ rough season started hitting another low on Sunday. After wrapping their campaign with a win over the New York Jets last week, Miami looked poised to build momentum. But Tua Tagovailoa‘s team blew a 17-0 lead in the first half and fell 27-24 to the Carolina Panthers. The defense seemed to be clueless about Bryce Young, who converted a fourth down earlier, eventually tossing a late 4-yard touchdown with under 2 minutes remaining to seal the win. Now, with the Dolphins’ struggles piling up, head coach Mike McDaniel is on the hot seat.

Fans are growing restless, and some even believe he could be the first head coach to get fired this season. With Tua Tagovailoa and the team’s lackluster stint this season, the front desk is also losing patience with McDaniel. According to NFL analyst Tony Pauline, “Dolphins’ Ownership is reportedly losing patience with HC Mike McDaniel and the end of his tenure in Miami could be soon.”

This could be true, as after the game, McDaniel spoke to the reporters and revealed that he had a postgame conversation with Dolphins’ owner Stephen Ross, and it did not sound pleasant.

“He was really frustrated, just like I was,” McDaniel said Monday, via ESPN’s Marcel Louis-Jacques. “We talked about the challenge ahead to get ready for the Chargers, and that was really the extent of it.” Ross’ frustration is justified, especially considering how the Dolphins lost.

So far, the work McDaniel was hired for has not happened. He was hired after a successful run with the San Francisco 49ers and brought in to maximize Tua Tagovailoa’s strength, win the AFC East division, and push for a Super Bowl contender.

In McDaniel’s first two seasons, Miami made it to the playoffs but never advanced past the first round. Last year, they missed the postseason entirely, and this year has been going completely downhill. Although Tagovailoa had a decent outing on Sunday, but has struggled in the season otherwise. Compounding the issues is his massive contract. It would be costly to get rid of him. It’d cost the Dolphins $79.2 million in dead cap space to cut Tagovailoa.

Tua Tagovailoa sends a strong message on giving up

The Miami Dolphins almost pulled it off….and then they didn’t. After a crushing 27-24 loss to the Carolina Panthers, quarterback Tua Tagovailoa didn’t hold back on how the team needs to respond. He made it clear he’s fully committed to turning things over, and he is pushing his teammates as well to match the mindset. “No one wants to start the season one and four,” Tua said. “It’s not like our team goes out there and we want to give up this or we want to not convert our third downs in the second half. You know, there are just so many things that go into it. And we got to figure this out.”

“It’s tough. No one wants to start the season 1-4. It’s not like our team goes out there and we want to give up this or want to not convert our third downs in the second half. There’s just so many things that go into it — and we’ve got to figure this out. We’ve got to figure this out now. This feeling s—s. It’s not a good feeling.”

Tua Tagovailoa completed 27 of 36 passes for 256 yards, but that wasn’t enough to lead the Dolphins to victory. Miami rushed for just 19 yards…their lowest score since Mike McDaniel was hired as the head coach in 2022. Mike McDaniel echoed that frustration as well. He thought the team was ready for a big run, but after witnessing the 17-0 lead vanish, it was a whole different tale. “We are a much better team than letting a 17-0 lead eviscerate. We will be focused on getting that stuff corrected immediately,” McDaniel said.

The message from both is crystal clear. The Dolphins are better than this, and they know they are capable of more, but it’s high time they prove it now. It could also result in McDaniel’s departure from Miami.