On Monday, McDaniel said that he warned Dolphins players not to think of Tagovailoa as the “savior” who will rescue the offense after it spent four games sinking in quicksand. But the excitement of Dolphins players has been palpable.

There was a time when Mike McDaniel appeared to be on a path to join his longtime pals Sean McVay, Kyle Shanahan and Matt LaFleur among the best-regarded young offensive minds in the NFL. That time seems to have passed.