The Miami Dolphins fired Brian Flores following a Week 18 victory over the New England Patriots that gave them a winning record for back-to-back seasons for the first time in 15 years.
While they eventually hired Mike McDaniel to be the next head coach of their organization. They interviewed and met with a number of coaches, but there was always a rumor about Sean Payton, who had stepped down from his role with the New Orleans Saints, coming to Miami Gardens.
According to the South Florida Sun-Sentinel’s Dave Hyde, there was a deal ready to be offered to Payton that would’ve given him $100 million over five years, making him the second-highest-paid head coach behind only Bill Belichick of the New England Patriots.
This was supposed to come into play around the same time that the Dolphins were making a push for Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady.
Once Flores dropped his lawsuit against the Dolphins, Stephen Ross and a number of other teams, it appears that talks about these moves seemed to end.
While the Dolphins have denied these rumors in the past, Brady was the first to be publicly asked last week.
“I had a lot of conversations about a lot of people, as I’ve had for the last three-four years in my career about different opportunities while I’ve been playing football,’’ Brady said. “I kind of made a decision about what I‘d like to do.
“I think, for me, the most important thing is where I’m at now, and what I hope to do. That’s been my commitment to this team, this organization.”
That’s not a denial.
Hyde also details that “Dolphins owner-in-waiting Bruce Beal recruited Brady, who wanted a proven coach, and recruited Payton. They headlined a cast of assembled talent. Vic Fangio was the Dolphins’ choice as defensive coordinator, a source said, giving them one of the top defensive minds to work with a developing unit.”
There’s been a lot of smoke to this potential fire billowing into the South Florida air, and the Dolphins have been quiet on all fronts. If they were to get caught having these conversations, they would be penalized for tampering. Considering the allegations in Flores’ lawsuit, they definitely don’t want any of that.