For a coach fired just a week ago, Mike McDaniel isn’t spending much time on the open market. The Baltimore Ravens are already knocking, and they’re looking for a spark after moving on from a franchise icon. After the Ravens fired HC John Harbaugh following an 8-9 season, the team could be lining up as many as 16 initial candidates before choosing his replacement. But as the Ravens officially engage with McDaniel, the question isn’t just about filling a vacancy; it’s about whether one of the league’s most innovative offensive minds can reboot a system built for years around Lamar Jackson.

“We have completed an interview with Mike McDaniel for our head coach position,” the Ravens’ official account announced through an X post on January 15.

Mike McDaniel was fired as the Dolphins’ HC on January 8 after the team wrapped up a 7-10 season with him. But McDaniel has since emerged as a candidate for several head-coaching jobs and offensive coordinator roles in the NFL. In the last four years, while he was Miami’s HC, he had a 35-33 regular-season record.

The 42-year-old coach’s NFL coaching career began in 2011 with the Washington Commanders as a coaching staff member alongside Kyle Shanahan, Matt LaFleur, and Sean McVay. Then, after years as a wide receivers coach and offensive assistant, McDaniel became the San Francisco 49ers’ run game coordinator in 2017. He held that position for four seasons before earning a promotion to become the 49ers’ offensive coordinator in 2021.

Following an underwhelming 2020 season, Mike McDaniel helped breathe life back into San Francisco’s offense. From 2019 to 2020, the 49ers averaged 131.1 rushing yards per game, sixth-best in the NFL, a stretch that helped him land the Dolphins’ head coaching job. Then, as Miami hired him in 2022, McDaniel quickly installed a motion-heavy system that simplified reads for Miami’s quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and fully unleashed receivers Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle. And McDaniel’s schemes worked in Miami, at least at first.

In McDaniel’s first season as HC, the Dolphins snapped a five-year playoff drought by finishing 9-8 and earning a Wild Card spot. In 2023, the Dolphins then improved to 11-6 and returned to the playoffs again. Miami’s offense also jumped from sixth overall in McDaniel’s first year as HC to No. 1 in total offense and passing offense in 2023. At that point, it looked like McDaniel had cracked the code in Miami, but he could not sustain the success. 

In 2025, the Dolphins opened with a 1-6 record, then rallied to win five of their next six games to revive their playoff hopes, only to stumble again. The Dolphins went 1-3 down the stretch to finish with a 7-10 record. That collapse ultimately led the franchise to move on from McDaniel.

Still, many around the league once viewed Mike McDaniel as one of the brightest young offensive minds. The lingering question is whether Tagovailoa’s uneven development dimmed McDaniel’s reputation more than it should have. From Baltimore’s perspective, the bigger question is obvious: can McDaniel design an offense that elevates their franchise QB, Lamar Jackson, from MVP-level star to Super Bowl champion?

The Ravens’ need for an offensive spark is undeniable, especially after the unit slipped from No. 1 in the NFL down to 16th in 2025. In that light, Mike McDaniel might look like the right kind of swing to get things back on track in Baltimore. Meanwhile, after 18 seasons in Baltimore, John Harbaugh has already turned the page with an NFC East team.

John Harbaugh accepts the head coaching job in New York 

Baltimore’s mediocre past season can’t be pinned entirely on Lamar Jackson’s injuries, as several of John Harbaugh’s in-game decisions drew criticism. And when the Ravens failed to return to the playoffs, change felt inevitable at the helm. Still, considering his résumé – a Super Bowl title, a 13-11 playoff record, and six division titles – was it really a surprise that Harbaugh landed a coaching job almost immediately after leaving Baltimore?

On January 15, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that John Harbaugh and the New York Giants are close to finalizing a deal that would make him the franchise’s next HC and one of the highest-paid coaches in the NFL. Harbaugh had no shortage of suitors, but he visited New York first on January 14, and the potential that he saw in the franchise’s rookie quarterback, Jaxson Dart, reportedly sold him on a future with the team.

Top Stories

Travis Kelce Announces New Career Move Away From Chiefs After Confirming Retirement Stance

Ben Roethlisberger Announces Stance on Accepting Steelers Job After Making Coaching Demands to Front Office

Tony Romo Announces Concerning Health News as CBS Broadcaster Addresses Mistakes During Bills-Jaguars Telecast

Josh Allen Announces Tough News for Bills Amid Sean McDermott’s Concerns Ahead of Broncos Game

John Harbaugh Already Makes First Big Giants Decision For Jaxson Dart & Co. – Report

From the Giants’ perspective, they aren’t just hiring experience with John Harbaugh – they’re expecting that his track record with QBs will help develop Dart. Harbaugh won a Super Bowl with a traditional pocket passer like Joe Flacco. Later, he also reshaped Baltimore’s offense around Lamar Jackson and helped turn him into a two-time MVP. But there’s also a front-office ripple effect as Harbaugh’s arrival could quietly buy more time for Giants’ general manager Joe Schoen.

The Giants have struggled after Schoen took over as GM in 2022. The team had a 22-45-1 overall record and fired HC Brian Daboll in the middle of the 2025 season. Many expected Schoen to follow Daboll out the door, but that didn’t happen. In that sense, hiring Harbaugh feels like a final, high-stakes swing from Schoen for the GM position. Harbaugh is expected to sign a five-year deal and begin a new chapter in New York.