The Buffalo Bills and the Cleveland Browns are among a handful of teams in the NFL that still need a head coach, and they aren’t any closer to finding one after Mike McDaniel withdrew his interest in their openings.
According to The Athletic’s Dianna Russini, McDaniel had a scheduled meeting on Friday in Florida with the Bills, but it never happened. Russini adds that McDaniel remains a candidate for the Las Vegas Raiders head-coaching job. However, McDaniel could still end up as the Los Angeles Chargers‘ offensive coordinator.
Mike McDaniel would be inheriting a great situation with Chargers
McDaniel, if he becomes the Chargers’ offensive coordinator, will inherit the 12th-best offense in the NFL (333.8 yards) and have one of the better quarterbacks in Justin Herbert (3,727 yards and 26 touchdowns this season) at his disposal. While leading the Miami Dolphins offense, McDaniel had the 26th-best unit (300.7 yards) and had inconsistent quarterback play from Tua Tagovailoa (2,660 yards and 20 touchdowns).
Potentially entering a good situation with the Chargers, McDaniel has a chance to learn under a more experienced offensive mind in head coach Jim Harbaugh, who spent 14 seasons as a quarterback in the NFL and has been solid as a head coach with a 66-31-1 record. This opportunity for McDaniel could help him with his next head-coaching job.
Could Mike McDaniel be a fit as Raiders head coach?
McDaniel not taking a great head-coaching job like the Bills, who have the reigning MVP in Josh Allen as their quarterback, means he’ll likely opt for the Chargers gig. The Raiders are an interesting option for McDaniel, but unless there’s a guarantee that the franchise drafts Indiana’s Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback, Fernando Mendoza, McDaniel is better off staying with the Chargers.
With Mendoza likely to be the first overall pick in the draft, the Raiders could do well to pair an interesting offensive mind in McDaniel with the talents of partial owner and legendary former quarterback Tom Brady, and the Raiders could be in a better position to compete next season.