Chris

Grier

ESPN’s Adam Schefter was the first to report the “mutual” split between Grier and the Dolphins. A long-time employee of the Fins, Grier got his start with the team in 2000 as a scout and worked his way up to general manager in 2016. The firing of Grier is the first major move the Dolphins have made following their dreadful 2-7 start to the season, and potentially buys head coach Mike McDaniel a little bit of time. Grier notably traded CB Jalen Ramsey and TE Jonnu Smith to the Steelers this past offseason in exchange for S Minkah Fitzpatrick, and then brought Darren Waller out of retirement to fill the void left by Smith. During his 10 years as the team’s primary roster builder, Grier failed to lead the team to a division title or playoff win. Once the Dolphins hit nine losses this season, they will have had five losing seasons under Grier. Senior personnel executive Champ Kelly is expected to take over as the team’s interim GM, and could have some big decisions to make ahead of next week’s trade deadline with the Dolphins looking like obvious sellers.

Specifically, the Dolphins are “attempting to acquire” more Day 2 picks. Kelly expects the Dolphins to load up on offensive linemen, defensive linemen and cornerbacks if they are able to bolster their Day 2 war chest. The Dolphins currently have just two total picks in Rounds 2 and 3, but have four picks in Rounds 4 and 5. While his intent to trade back is clear, it would be unsurprising to see GM Chris Grier package two or three of those to go get his preferred player(s) on Day 2 as well. Kelly notes that, entering last year’s draft, Grier has made more trades since 2019 than any other executive.

In a statement released by owner Stephen M. Ross shortly after the disgruntled Tyreek Hill spoke to the media, the team affirmed its commitment to the head coach and general manager. The statement notably adds that the Dolphins “will take a hard look at where [they] have fallen short and make the necessary changes to deliver our ultimate goal” of building a championship team. McDaniel’s fantasy-friendly scheme remains in Miami for the time being.

Coach Brian Flores was surprisingly relieved of his duties on Monday, but Grier will stay in the job he has had since 2016. The Dolphins are 47-50 over that span and have serious questions to answer moving forward including what to do at quarterback with Tua Tagovailoa seemingly not up to the task and how to fix a perennially broken offensive line. That said, Miami does have a budding star in Jaylen Waddle and talent on defense. It would not be surprising if this is a playoff team next year.

The Dolphins originally held the third overall pick but gave that up to San Francisco. They were then holding the No. 12 pick but subsequently relinquished a future first to the Eagles to move up to No. 6. The second move seemingly returned some of the value they earned with the first trade-back but it also put them at a potential pivot-point in the draft. If the Falcons hold on to their selection and take a non-QB at No. 4, the Dolphins will be in a spot to sell a premier passer to a needy team. New England and Denver would be ideal trade partners for the Phins as both teams have solid rosters but are missing the quarterback necessary to make the postseason.

Trading up to the No. 3 overall pick entails swapping with the Lions, who are reportedly “high” on Auburn DT Derrick Brown. Having said that, jostling to nab an offensive tackle makes little sense for the Dolphins, who hold three picks (No. 5, No. 18, No. 26) in the first round. Assuming Giants GM Dave Gettleman has his sights set on one player in particular, Rapsheet’s scenario (if true) means the Dolphins covet that one individual even more. Washington is also still “listening” to offers for both Trent Williams and the No. 2 overall pick, and the Giants have made it known they wouldn’t mind dropping back to collect more picks, as well. Buckle up.

Grier also praised signee QB Jake Rudock (who has thrown a total of five career passes), noting the 2016 sixth-rounder was a “big kid” who was “in a similar offense.” Grier said no decision had been made on the future of Ryan Tannehill just yet, a lie as transparent as the notion the Dolphins are trying to win in 2019. Miami will undoubtedly take a chance on a signal-caller in April’s draft, but he could simply be a project who plays behind a one-year veteran stop-gap until the team can lockdown a top-three pick this upcoming season. It’s still plausible the Dolphins restructure Tannehill’s contract in order to maneuver a trade rather than outright release him as they go for broke in what will clearly be a rebuilding year.

Mike Tannenbaum previously had final say in the front office, but he is being reassigned. With Adam Gase also out, Grier looks like he has won something of a power struggle in Miami. Grier’s first order of business will be finding a new coach, but he will also have to make a big decision about Ryan Tannehill this offseason.