Dave Hyde: Can Troy Aikman save the Dolphins? Steve Ross can only hope

Dave Hyde, South Florida Sun Sentinel on Jan 1, 2026

Published in Football

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FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Here’s the news: Miami Dolphins owner Steve Ross hired ESPN analyst and Hall of Fame quarterback Troy Aikman weeks ago to consult with him in a search for a general manager, according to a team source.

It is a genuine search, too, one that will cover the league and go wherever needed. Interim GM Champ Kelly will be interviewed like any other candidate. But that’s all he is at this point: Any other candidate.

Coach Mike McDaniel? Ross hasn’t made the decision on his future — or at least he hasn’t shared it inside the team, the source said. But the Aikman hiring involves some murky issues involving McDaniel that seem even murkier now.

First, does Aikman tell prospective general managers they inherit McDaniel with the job? If so, does that limit the pool of candidates, considering some don’t know the coach and perhaps others wouldn’t want to work with him (or vice versa)?

Second, Aikman already had been hired by Ross when he uncharacteristically criticized McDaniel’s tactics and time management a few weeks ago in the loss to Pittsburgh.

“I’m flabbergasted by what we’ve witnessed here in this fourth quarter with the Dolphins,’’ Aikman said. “And now they want to call timeouts. It just is about as ridiculous a fourth quarter as I’ve seen in a long time.”

Does it matter? Could it? Aikman, the source said, is simply charged with bringing general manager candidates to Ross and isn’t involved in the coaching question. But one bleeds into the other in some form, doesn’t it?

Underpinning all this is the basic idea of Aikman being involved in a front-office search. Can they get his thoughts on quarterbacks, too? Wouldn’t that be pertinent here?

Aikman meets with the hierarchy of the two teams on his broadcast schedule each week, so there’s no question he has behind-the-scenes access that many don’t. He also goes back with other names — for one, former Dallas Cowboys teammate Alonzo Highsmith, now in the New England Patriots front office.

To understand why Ross wanted Aikman, understand the role former Golden State Warriors General Manager Bob Myers had for Washington Commanders’ owner Josh Harris.

Myers, like Aikman, was a franchise outsider who had won championships and then shifted to television.

Unlike Aikman, who is a respected Hall of Fame quarterback, Myers built a basketball dynasty with his decisions.

So, the question isn’t so much if Aikman knows football or understands winning or has inside access in his role as an TV commentator.

It’s simply whether he can help Ross find a football mind to run a front office. It also suggests Ross has tired of going down more conventional paths previously like former Kansas City general manger Carl Peterson or Hall of Fame coach Tony Dungy.

The other issue in play during this search is the structure of the new Dolphins. Since GM Chris Grier was fired in late October, Ross has had three people report as equals to him: McDaniel, Kelly and Brandon Shore, a team vice president dealing primarily with the salary cap.

Teams like Detroit, Chicago and the Los Angeles Rams have a similar three-headed structure. Do the Dolphins continue in this manner? And do they report directly to Ross or through an intermediary like, say, team president Tom Garfinkel?

All these questions are in play inside the Dolphins as they set to finish another disappointing season Sunday in New England. A year ago after the finale, Ross issued a statement that Grier and McDaniel would return.

No such statement will be coming Sunday. Ross felt so pained by firing Grier that he felt the need to have a full search rather than make the easier choice of just giving the job to Kelly.

Aikman will lead that search. He has previously expressed an interest in being a GM, but he told the Dolphins that’s not in play here.

What’s in play is Ross is so desperate to pull this franchise out of its football coma that he’s going an unconventional route. He’s tried other accepted ways. Maybe this one works?