Former Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel to interview for Buccaneers OC job

Rick Stroud, Tampa Bay Times on Jan 14, 2026

Published in Football

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TAMPA, Fla. — It may be a pie-in-the-sky hope, but if former Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel doesn’t land one of the head coaching jobs — Browns, Titans, Falcons or Ravens, so far — he’s interviewing for, he could have interest in becoming the Buccaneers offensive coordinator.

McDaniel, 42, is scheduled to interview with head coach Todd Bowles for that role on Friday, and he would be the No. 1 play-calling target for many NFL teams.

Tampa Bay also completed a meeting Wednesday with former Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken, though he indicated neither side is in a rush to make a decision.

“Went good,” Monken said in a text to the Tampa Bay Times. “... They aren’t in a hurry, nor am I.”

McDaniel, who was fired after four seasons last week, is considered one of the best play-callers in the NFL. He was a big branch from 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan’s coaching tree and an innovator, particularly in the run game.

After several seasons on Shanahan’s staff, McDaniel reached the playoffs each of his first two years with the Dolphins before they were eliminated in the wild-card round.

In 2023, the Dolphins led the NFL in total offense (401.2 yards per game), and quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was the game’s most prolific passer with 4,624 yards.

But McDaniel’s teams struggled to 8-9 and 7-10 finishes the last two seasons. Injuries were part of the story, but there also were organizational issues.

General manager Chris Grier was fired during the season. Tagovailoa was benched prior to the Week 16 game against the Bengals for rookie Quinn Ewers.

The Bucs needed only to win their Dec. 28 at Miami and beat the Panthers in their final game to win the NFC South and host a playoff game. But they fell to Ewers and the Dolphins, 20-17.

With nine head coaching openings, it would seem to be a longshot for the Bucs to land McDaniel as an offensive coordinator.

Many of those teams are waiting to see where former Ravens head coach John Harbaugh lands, and then the dominoes will begin to fall.

But if McDaniel doesn’t get a head coaching offer or believes there may be better options a year from now, perhaps he’d be willing to move up the peninsula in Florida and coach Baker Mayfield.

There also would be some carryover in the Bucs offense from the Dolphins scheme. Former Tampa bay offensive coordinator Josh Grizzard, who was fired after one season, worked for two seasons under McDaniel in Miami and brought many of those principles to Tampa Bay.

McDaniel also plans to interview for the Lions offensive coordinator position.

Monken, 59, has interviewed for the Browns head coaching job and also could be waiting to see where Harbaugh lands for a possible reunion. He would be a perfect candidate for the Bucs in that he’s an experienced NFL play-caller, something they didn’t have with previous coordinators Dave Canales and Liam Coen.

Monken also spent three seasons (2016-18) with the Bucs as receivers coach and offensive coordinator under Dirk Koetter. The next year, Monken worked with Mayfield in Cleveland, although the play-calling duties were handled by head coach Freddie Kitchens.

Monken interviewed for the Bucs offensive coordinator job in 2023, but at the time Kyle Trask was the only quarterback under contract. Instead, Monken got a chance work with two-time Most Valuable Player Lamar Jackson in Baltimore.

Under Monken, Jackson won his second MVP award in 2023. He followed that up the next season with a career-high 41 touchdowns and only four interceptions. The Ravens had the league’s No. 1 offense.

Prior to that, Monken helped Georgia to two national championships while serving as offensive coordinator from 2020-22.

The Bucs completed a virtual interview with Giants interim head coach and offensive coordinator Mike Kafka on Tuesday. They also had virtual interviews with former Titans head coach Brian Callahan, Falcons offensive coordinator Zac Robinson, Lions quarterbacks coach David Shaw and Cardinals quarterbacks coach Israel Woolfork.

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