Sportsnaut
Before the Miami Dolphins made it to Week 7, head coach Mike McDaniel said any and all trade rumors surrounding the team were “baseless.” Earlier on Sunday, before the Dolphins were embarrassed in a 31-6 loss to the Cleveland Browns, more Dolphins trade rumors emerged.
However, now that the Dolphins have shown that they’re not capable of beating the Panthers or the Browns, coach McDaniel is starting to get fed up. Last week, the biggest controversy following the Dolphins’ latest loss was Tua Tagovailoa throwing anonymous teammates under the bus.
This week? Coach McDaniel telling reporters that changes are likely coming to the Dolphins’ lineup before their Week 8 matchup against the Atlanta Falcons.
“If you are negatively affecting the football team routinely, I don’t have a choice but to assess a different player,” McDaniel said. “I have to coach a lot better as well. We’re going to find who and what we’re made of.”
McDaniel’s comments come at an interesting time, not just because the Dolphins lost their third game in a row. But more so because they come a week after Tagovailoa aired some of the team’s dirty laundry to the media in a public setting. Perhaps it’s no coincidence that McDaniel decided to bench Tagovailoa late in Sunday’s blowout loss, on the same day the team promoted seventh-round rookie Quinn Ewers to No. 2 QB duties, ahead of former first-round draft bust Zach Wilson.
It’s hard to imagine Ewers would get a chance to make the first start of his NFL career against the Falcons, who have had a top-ten defense this season. Yet, after Tagovailoa’s comments, combined with the fact that he completed just 12-of-23 attempts for a paltry 100 yards to go with three interceptions, perhaps it’s time to see what another QB can do under center.
Ewers did get that chance for a brief moment on Sunday, and he completed 5-of-8 passes for 53 yards, but he also took two sacks, the same as Tagovailoa. Either way, if the Dolphins don’t make some changes to the starting lineup soon, we’d imagine far bigger changes could be coming, perhaps even at head coach.
Related: Miami Dolphins Could Trade Star Pass-Rusher
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