Mike McDaniel’s dance card is filling up this week.
Tom Pelissero of NFL Media reports that McDaniel is set to interview with the Falcons and Ravens this week about their head coaching vacancies. This comes after word on Sunday that he will interview with the Browns and last week’s word that he’ll meet with the Titans.
McDaniel spent the last four seasons as the Dolphins’ head coach and was on Kyle Shanahan’s staff with the 49ers before going to Miami. He moved to the 49ers with Shanahan after working on the Falcons’ staff in 2015 and 2016, which was the same time that new Falcons president of football Matt Ryan was the team’s quarterback.
McDaniel is also drawing interest from the Lions for their offensive coordinator vacancy and other teams looking for a change at that spot could also throw their hat in the ring for McDaniel’s services.
Rams defensive coordinator Chris Shula is a popular name in this year’s head coaching searches.
The Dolphins and Titans requested interviews with Shula ahead of Sunday’s win over the Panthers and they got some company over the weekend. Adam Schefter of ESPN reports that the Cardinals, Giants and Raiders also want to speak with Shula about their vacancies.
Shula was a college teammate of Rams head coach Sean McVay and has been on the Rams’ staff since McVay joined the team in 2017. He’s also the grandson of Don Shula, which adds some intrigue to Miami’s request to speak to him.
Shula will be able to interview virtually with teams this week and he won’t be the only Rams assistant balancing the interview circuit with preparing to face the Bears. Offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur has heard from the Cardinals and Raiders while pass game specialist Nate Scheelhaase is on the list for the Browns, Raiders and Ravens.
Former Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel had an unhappy visit to Cleveland during the regular season and he’ll be hoping things go better when he meets with the team this week.
Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com reports that McDaniel will interview for the Browns’ head coaching job on Monday.
It will be the first interview for McDaniel since he was fired by the Dolphins last week. He is also slated to interview for the Titans’ vacancy on Wednesday.
McDaniel went 35-33 over four seasons in Miami. He took the Dolphins to the playoffs in his first two seasons, but they were 15-19 over the last two years.
Starting this week, former Ravens coach John Harbaugh will attack the interview process with an enthusiasm unknown to mankind. And with leverage the NFL hasn’t seen in decades.
Harbaugh has multiple options for his next stop. He’s being selective. And he could end up having even more choices, based on what happens in Green Bay and (if the Bills lose today) Buffalo.
He’s in position to request a very large salary. He’s in position to seek control over the roster. He’s in position to ask for the team to let him hire a General Manager, even if it means firing the one they currently have.
That doesn’t mean everyone would do it. But it only takes one who is sufficiently desperate to give Harbaugh what he wants. And if Harbaugh gives a little on one term, he could get more on another.
Harbaugh also has another potential play, one that we addressed on PFT Live after the Ravens moved on. He could take a year off and work in TV, like Sean Payton did four years ago. It would make Harbaugh the odds-on, A-list candidate throughout the next season, hovering over every hot seat as the next coach, if the current coach gets fired.
If Harbaugh decides to wait, the hot spots for 2027 would be (possibly) the Jets, the Bills (if they don’t make a change this year), the Bengals, the Colts, the Chiefs (if Andy Reid decides to retire), the Cowboys, the Commanders, the Buccaneers, the Panthers, and the Saints.
Either way, Harbaugh’s effort to explore his next coaching job starts soon. And he could decide to take a job now, or to take a job later.
Matt Ryan is moving from TV to the Falcons. Raheem Morris could be moving from the Falcons to TV.
Morris, who was fired on Sunday after two seasons as the head coach in Atlanta, may eventually shift to broadcasting.
Via Sean Keeley of AwfulAnnouncing.com, Ian Rapoport of NFL Media floated the possibility of Morris making a move to media on Saturday.
For now, Morris is on the radar screen of the Giants, Titans, and Cardinals, each of whom are looking for new head coaches.
Morris previously coached the Buccaneers from 2009 through 2011. He worked for more than a decade as an assistant before getting a second shot. Still only 49, Morris could take a break from coaching, or make a permanent break from the non-stop grind for an easier way to make a living — even if being a head coach generally pays better.
But, hey, someone needs to take Ryan’s spot at CBS. Why not Morris?
