According to both Adam Schefter and Chris Mortensen of ESPN, the Miami Dolphins will hire Green Bay Packers offensive coordinator Joe Philbin to be their next head coach. Terms of his contract are reportedly already agreed upon and a press conference is slated for Saturday.
Philbin, who has held the role of offensive coordinator since 2007 in Green Bay, beat out Broncos offensive coordinator Mike McCoy and Miami secondary coach and assistant head coach Todd Bowles for the position. All three men went through two rounds of interviews with GM Jeff Ireland and owner Stephen Ross.
Some, including ESPN’s John Clayton, figured McCoy was the front runner after the final round of interviews were completed. Philbin was a favorite of Ross, and that might have trumped any hiring that Ireland wanted to make.
Philbin’s hiring completes what has been a whirlwind couple of weeks for the 27-year coaching veteran. While in the process of interviewing in both Kansas City and Miami, Philbin’s 21-year-old son Michael fell through the ice on the Fox River in Oshkosh and drowned. That tragedy also conincided with the Packers preparation for their Divisional Round game against the New York Giants, a contest in which the Packers lost 37-20 last Sunday. Philbin was present at the game and served in his full capacity despite Michael’s funeral being on the Friday before the game.
Now, Philbin will take over a franchise that has been through several coaches and quarterbacks over the better part of the last decade. The Dolphins finished 6-10 in 2011.
Philbin also becomes the first of what could be many Packers assistant coaches to move on from their time in Green Bay. It’s entirely possible that Philbin could take several assistants from Mike McCarthy’s staff with him to Miami, including quarterbacks coach Tom Clements. However, the Packers may also want to promote Clements to their offensive coordinator position that is now vacant with Philbin’s departure. Either way, buckle up—because we could see a good chunk of the Packers coaching staff in other locales next fall. The Oakland Raiders, who are now run by former Packers director of personnel Reggie McKenzie, have yet to make their own head coaching hire.
One also has to wonder if Philbin to Miami means that free agent quarterback Matt Flynn will be tagging along with him sometime this spring or summer. Flynn has shown during his time as Aaron Rodgers backup that he deserves a chance to be a team’s starting quarterback, and the opportunity to have that chance with the only offensive coordinator he’s known as a professional football player could be one he can’t pass up.
——————Zach Kruse is a 23-year-old sports journalist with a passion for the Green Bay Packers. He currently lives in Wisconsin and is working on his journalism degree, while also covering prep sports for The Dunn Co. News.
You can read more of Zach's Packers articles on AllGreenBayPackers.com.
Follow @zachkruse2——————
Congrats Joe Philbin, good luck and may peace be with you. Thank you for everything you did for GB.
Maybe Philbin can convince GM Ireland that Flynn is worth a high draft pick and the Pack and Miami construct a handshake deal after they tag Flynn. In addition to the pick, Flynn would be out of the conference.
It will be interesting to see what value, if any, the Pack departing assistants give to Flynn.
Sorry to see Joe go, but glad that he gets some recognition. Given his family’s recent tragedy a fresh start with a new team may be best for him and his family on both a personal and professional level. Good luck Joe.
And thanks.
Good luck to a good coach and great member of the Packer family.
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