Giants hire Dolphins candidate Daboll; Moore expected to stick with Cowboys

The Dolphins had Daboll among a list of three candidates set to be interviewed early next week, according to a report by NFL Network. By the process of elimination, that would leave McDaniel in the driver’ s seat to land the head role in Miami unless the Dolphins bring back another coach interviewed during the initial round last week, like Arizona Cardinals...

Take Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator Brian Daboll off the list of candidates available to the Miami Dolphins for their coaching vacancy.

The New York Giants announced Friday night that they had hired Daboll to be their coach.

The Dolphins had Daboll among a list of three candidates set to be interviewed early next week, according to a report by NFL Network. The others were San Francisco 49ers offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel and Dallas Cowboys offensive coordinator Kellen Moore.

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, however, told Dallas’ 105.3 The Fan on Friday that he believes Moore will return to the Cowboys next season. By the process of elimination, that would leave McDaniel in the driver’s seat to land the head role in Miami unless the Dolphins bring back another coach interviewed during the initial round last week, like Arizona Cardinals defensive coordinator Vance Joseph, or extend their search to others they have not yet spoken to.

Daboll, who was the reported favorite to land the Dolphins’ job earlier in the week, passed up on an opportunity to work with quarterback Tua Tagovailoa again and return to Miami. Daboll was the Dolphins’ offensive coordinator in 2011 under coach Tony Sparano and he had the same role with the Alabama Crimson Tide during Tagovailoa’s freshman season in college.

Going to New York, Daboll, who has been lauded for his work with Buffalo’s offense and quarterback Josh Allen, is quickly reunited with new Giants general Manager Joe Schoen. Schoen, who spent a decade as a Dolphins executive, took the job last week after a successful stint as Bills assistant general manager.

Jones’ comments came Friday morning before the Daboll news broke.

“I get a sense they do not reach out, and I believe he’ll be back next year,” Jones told the Dallas sports radio station.

When asked if that’s what he wants, Jones replied with a definitive “yes.”

With the Moore and McDaniel interviews still on the slate, the Dolphins could also look to add another coach into the second round of interviews. In addition to Joseph, who was Miami’s defensive coordinator in 2016 before taking his first head coaching job with the Denver Broncos from 2017-18, the Dolphins have Bills defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier and Los Angeles Rams running backs coach Thomas Brown as options.

The Dolphins also interviewed Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn, who has previous head coaching experience in which he reached a Super Bowl with the Atlanta Falcons, but he decided he would return to Dallas on Thursday.

Moore, 33, presents a coach that could identify greatly with Tagovailoa. He was the last left-handed quarterback to start in the NFL before Tagovailoa. Moore was a backup as an undrafted quarterback with the Cowboys and Detroit Lions after a storied college career at Boise State where he went 50-3 from 2008 to 2011.

Quickly after retiring from playing quarterback, Moore got into coaching, first as quarterbacks coach for the Cowboys. After one season in that role, he was promoted to offensive coordinator and play caller beginning in 2019. As Dallas changed coaches from Jason Garrett to Mike McCarthy, McCarthy retained Moore.

The Cowboys offense elevated itself to No. 1 in points and total yards this season. Moore would become the NFL’s youngest active head coach should he land the role.

McDaniel, 38, still has at least one playoff game to coach, with his 49ers in the NFC Championship Game on Sunday night against the Rams. While he does not call plays in San Francisco, the Yale grad who has worked under 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan is instrumental in developing the team’s offensive game plan and has a background in orchestrating the run game.

The Daboll move could benefit former Miami Hurricanes national championship-winning quarterback Ken Dorsey in his coaching career. Dorsey, the Bills’ quarterbacks coach and passing game coordinator, is likely to become offensive coordinator either with the Bills or Giants, according to ESPN.

Dorsey, a two-time Heisman Trophy finalist with UM, can take credit, along with Daboll, for his work with Allen since 2019. He also coached Cam Newton as the quarterbacks coach for the Carolina Panthers from 2013 to 2017 and was assistant athletic director at FIU in 2018.