ESPN radio host dissects Dolphins' pressure entering 2025 season
Certainly, it feels as though that's the case for head coach Mike McDaniel. McDaniel guided the Dolphins to playoff appearances in each of his first two seasons at the helm, but Miami couldn't advance beyond the Wild Card round in either of those postseason trips. Then, the Dolphins slumped back to an 8-9 finish a season ago and missed the playoffs entirely.
After an offseason marked by trade uncertainties surrounding two of the franchise's biggest stars in cornerback Jalen Ramsey and in tight end Jonnu Smith, the heat is cranking up on Dolphins general manager Chris Grier as well.
ESPN radio host Chris Canty dissected just how much pressure is on the Dolphins heading into this 2025 campaign on his morning show, "Unsportsmanlike."
"They have to have some shown improvement. It's time. They've been there long enough to establish their program. They've invested in Tua. They gave him the contract. They committed to him even though he only had one full season healthy. No playoff wins to show for it.
"It's time for Mike McDaniel to show that this way of playing football can have success when it matters most in the NFL. This philosophy of pace and space, similar to what we talk about with NBA teams, playing basketball on grass, you have to show that that ends up leading to being able to have success once you get into the playoffs, being able to consistently get to the postseason. And so, I am skeptical of whether or not they're going to be able to do that. Again, I struggle to have faith in the Miami Dolphins because of what I've seen. You have to look at the context, you have to look at the history around it. You have an oft-injured quarterback in a style of play that doesn't necessarily lend itself to being able to have success," Canty said.
Canty's critiques of the Dolphins are criticisms that plenty of Miami fans share.
While it's difficult to evaluate the Dolphins minus quarterback Tua Tagovailoa for large stretches of last season, the organization's decision makers will bear the brunt of the backlash for the franchise's shortcomings if Tagovailoa once again proves injury-prone in 2025.
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