To the delight of most Dolphins fans, offensive coordinator Chan Gailey resigned on Wednesday morning. This came after a fake report by ESPN already said he was fired and Brain Flores saying in his end of year press conference Gailey would be back for next season. 

This will not be the third year in a row Miami will have a different offensive coordinator under head coach Brian Flores. The question becomes, does Miami make an outside or inside hire. To be frank, I have no clue, so I’m going to cover all my bases and give several options. 

Also, I have zero inside sources, so this is speculation for the most part. There is a chance they hire someone not on this list, but I have a feeling all of these names will at least be considered in some way.

 

George Godsey, Dolphins, TE Coach 

Likelihood: High

Confidence Meter: Meh 

Godsey is the popular name on Dolphins’ Twitter right now because there is a sense among Dolphins’ reporters they will promote from the inside. The big reason for this is because Godsey was put on the sidelines to communicate with Tua during the Cardinals game when Miami was missing coaching members. His relationship with the QB seems to be a good one from the outside looking in. 

Godsey does have some experience working with QBs and as an offensive play-caller. He spent the 2018 season as the QBs coach for the Detriot Lions, where he helped Matthew Stafford record 3,777 yards and 21 touchdowns. 

The last time he was an offensive coordinator was in 2016 when he coached for the Texans. In 2016, Houston’s offense only averaged 17.9 points per game, ranked 28th in the league. In their defense, they did have four different starting QBs that season. 

In 2015, Godsey’s offense averaged 19.9 points per game, which finished 26th in the league. 

The reason I’m not overly bullish on this has less to do with the numbers and more to do with philosophy. I know Godsey is more of a “Flores guy” than a “Gailey guy,” but in-house hires always worry me. Why was Godsey passed over for Gailey in the first place? And will he do things differently enough to make a difference? 

Those two questions are important because if he’s going to be basically the same as Gailey, what’s the point? 

Mike Kafka, QB Coach/ Passing Game Coordinator, Chiefs 

Likelihood: Longshot 

Confidence Meter: Inject into my veins

This is my dream hire for the Dolphins. Sadly, like most dreams, there is a slim likelihood this one comes true. Kafka was getting some head coach buzz before the season ended but hasn’t gotten any interview requests that I can find. 

That tells me one of two things. One, he might’ve been promised Eric Bieniemy’s job as the Chiefs OC if he gets a head coaching job. Two, he would go with Bieniemy and be the OC for whatever team hires him. Those things are far more likely than him coming to Miami to coach up Tua, but hey, a man can dream, right? 

Kafka spent his first season coaching QBs with the Chiefs in 2018, which is the year Patrick Mahomes blew up the league and won MVP. Listening to and reading interviews, it seems like Kafka played a key role in helping Mahomes, although it is hard to tell exactly how key of a role it was. 

I’ve also seen some reports from insiders saying some people in the league believe Kafka is more responsible than Bieniemy for the Chiefs’ success. Take that with a grain of salt if you want, but it’s out there. 

Before coming to Kansas City, Kafka was a QB in the league. He played six seasons for various teams as a backup and was drafted in the fourth round back in 2010. He also spent a season serving as an offensive assistant for Northwestern, who scored a whopping 26 points per game, which if you have ever watched Northwestern, then you know that’s a lot. 

As I said, there isn’t much of a chance he gets the job; there are better options for him in places he would be more comfortable. Why give up a chance to stay with the Chiefs and coach Mahomes? 

 

Luke Getsy, QB coach/Passing game coordinator, Packers

Likelihood: Low

Confidence Meter: Thumbs up

Getsy’s name isn’t one I’ve heard get thrown around too often at all, but I think it’s worth looking at the Packers staff given what they’ve accomplished recently under HC Matt Lefleur. Getsy was promoted to his current spot this season, and the Packers’ offense is thriving. 

Getsy has extensive experience working with WRs, which Miami could really need right now. He worked with current Titans WR Corey Davis when he was at Western Michigan, helping him to become a first-round pick. 

He’s also helped develop the likes of Devonte Adams and Jordy Nelson while he was the WRs coach of the Packers. Getsey is better known for his work with WRs, but he also played QB at the University of Akron and broke a lot of their school records before entering the NFL as an undrafted free agent. 

There isn’t a ton of information about Getsy out there, and I can’t find a connection to Flores either; however, I like his resume, and I think Tua would thrive in a Lefleur offense. 

Pep Hamilton, Quarterbacks coach, Chargers 

Likelihood: Fairly Low

Confidence Meter: Thumbs up 

Hamilton has received a lot of credit for the work he did with rookie QB Justin Herbert this season, who burst onto the scene and had one of the best rookie campaigns of all time. The Chargers will need a new coaching staff after firing HC Anthony Lynn, meaning Hamilton could be a free agent. 

There is a chance whoever the new HC ends up trying to retain Hamilton— I would try as to keep as much around Herbert that makes him comfortable as possible— but Miami might be able to entice him with a promotion to OC. 

Outside of coaching up Herbert this season, Hamilton’s also seen success coordinating for the Colts in 2014 when they lead the NFL in passing with QB Andrew Luck. Hamilton also saw success coaching Luck when he was at Stanford. 

More recently, Hamilton spent time at Michigan as the passing game coordinator under Jim Harbaugh during the 2017 and 2018 seasons. Obviously, that doesn’t fill me with a ton of confidence, but he could milk a lot of wins out of some pretty limited passers while there. 

Again, I feel Hamilton sticks with Herbert and LA, but if I am Miami, I would be on the phone with him right now before they hire a new staff. 

 

Anthony Lynn, Former Chargers HC

Likelihood: Medium 

Confidence Meter: Meh 

Let’s talk about Hamilton’s former employer. Lynn was recently fired, and rightfully so because his coaching cost the Chargers multiple games this past season. With that said, Lynn’s offenses have performed fairly well. 

His offenses ranked 8th, 3rd, 12th, and 15th overall in DVOA, which is pretty solid all things considered. Lynn was the OC of the Buffalo Bills after they fired Greg Roman under HC Rex Ryan. Lynn did a pretty good job with Tyrod Taylor and the offense while he was there. 

He described his offensive philosophy as “I want to play smart, physical football. I want to be explosive down the field… We’re going to play a little bit faster and see if we can put a little pressure on the defense.” 

I like the being explosive down the field part of that for sure. Also, “smart, physical football” sounds like it came right out of Brian Flores’ mouth. Lynn’s experience is also fairly appealing even though his decision making with Justin Herbert is questionable at best. 

Ken Dorsey, QBs coach, Buffalo Bills 

Likelihood: Medium? 

Confidence Meter: Thumbs up 

Dorsey seems to be a popular name amongst Dolphins fans, making sense given how successful he was as the Miami Hurricanes QB. Obviously, I love former QBs who are now coordinators too. 

The draw for hiring Dorsey now is how well Josh Allen has developed under him and OC Brian Daboll. Allen has gone from one of the rawest and most inaccurate QBs in the NFL to an MVP candidate. Something like that doesn’t happen overnight and requires some excellent coaching. 

Dorsey also helped Cam Newton win the MVP award back in 2015 and coached him during his first six seasons, which were by far his best. 

The main question I have is how much of it was his doing and how much was Daboll. Dorsey is also in the same spot that Kafka is in. He could be in line to take Daboll’s job when he gets hired as an HC, or he could be Daboll’s OC wherever he gets hired.   

He’s a Miami guy for sure, which makes me think this is more possible than some of the others. However, convincing him to leave Josh Allen or Brian Daboll is a lot harder than it actually sounds.