Orlando Sentinel (Sunday)

Breaking down McDaniel’s 1st coaching staff, now complete

- By David Furones

New Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel completed his coaching staff within two weeks of arriving in Miami.

McDaniel, who last season served as offensive coordinato­r for the 49ers, has brought in coaches he has worked with in San Francisco, retained a number of coaches on the Dolphins’ staff and handpicked a few others, including bringing Dolphins great Sam Madison back to coach cornerback­s on Wednesday night.

The 38-year-old first-time head coach will have a combinatio­n of experience­d coaches, that can offer him guidance when he needs it, and up-and-coming contempora­ries.

Here’s a breakdown of McDaniel’s staff, which was finalized on Friday afternoon:

Frank Smith, Offensive coordinato­r

Smith, who turns 41 on Monday, becomes an NFL coordinato­r for the first time and can anchor an effort to revitalize the Dolphins’ run game and develop the offensive line. He was run-game coordinato­r and offensive line coach with the Chargers in 2021 after being tight ends coach the previous six seasons for the Raiders and Bears. He was the assistant offensive line coach with the Saints from 201014. Smith, a Miami (Ohio) grad, was an offensive coordinato­r in college, with Butler, before reaching the NFL.

Josh Boyer, Defensive coordinato­r

Boyer is the key member of the defensive coaching staff being retained from the Brian Flores era after holding the coordinato­r title the previous two seasons. Boyer was stripped of his play-calling duties last November, and Miami’s turnaround on defense began shortly after that. He will have to bounce back in 2022 as the man fully in charge of the defense now that Flores and Alexander are no longer around.

Danny Crossman, Special teams coordinato­r

Crossman, 55, brings an experience­d voice with nearly 30 seasons of coaching experience as he closes in on his 20th in the NFL. Before joining the Dolphins in 2019, he coached special teams with the Bills, Lions and Panthers, dating back to 2003.

Darrell Bevell, Quarterbac­ks coach/passing game coordinato­r

Bevell will be tasked with taking quarterbac­k Tua Tagovailoa to the next level in his third season, and he’s worked with some great passers in his past: Brett Favre, Aaron Rodgers, Russell Wilson, Matthew Stafford and Trevor Lawrence as a rookie last season. He has been offensive coordinato­r with the Jaguars, Lions, Seahawks and Vikings, quarterbac­ks coach with the Packers and finished the past two seasons as an interim head coach in Jacksonvil­le and Detroit.

Eric Studesvill­e, Running backs coach/associate head coach

The Dolphins’ offensive side of the coaching staff was largely overhauled, but the one constant from Flores’ time for McDaniel will be Studesvill­e. He loses his co-offensive coordinato­r title, but remains to lead the running backs. He’s coached the position for 25 years in the NFL, including working with former stars Tiki Barber, Willis McGahee, Marshawn Lynch and Knowshon Moreno. He’s another experience­d voice for McDaniel. Wes Welker, Wide receivers coach

Welker first made a name for himself as a player for the Dolphins before he truly broke out with the New England Patriots. Now, he’s back in Miami to coach a receivers corps that will be headlined by Jaylen Waddle. McDaniel brought Welker in from San Francisco, where he spent the past three years as wide receivers coach, a tenure that had him as Pro Bowl wideout Deebo Samuel’s position coach.

Jon Embree, Tight ends coach/ assistant head coach

This is another coach McDaniel brings with him from his time with the 49ers and, at 56 years old, can offer him guidance. Embree coached George Kittle with the 49ers and also has taught the likes of Tony Gonzalez and Chris Cooley in his extensive experience leading tight end units.

Matt Applebaum, Offensive line coach

Coming from the college ranks at Boston College, Applebaum is in charge of fixing a line that struggled in every aspect last season, with only right guard Robert Hunt a bona fide NFL starter. At BC, he coached three linemen that are 2022 draft prospects in guard Zion Johnson, center Alec Linstrom and tackle Tyler Vrabel. Having Smith as offensive coordinato­r should help the young assistant coach.

Austin Clark, Defensive line coach

McDaniel retained the position coach of arguably the Dolphins’ most solid unit in 2021. The 31-year-old Clark brings continuity to the defensive staff after last year brought a huge jump for Christian Wilkins and Zach Sieler, while defensive end Emmanuel Ogbah led the team with nine sacks. Anthony Campanile, Linebacker­s coach

Another holdover from Flores’ tenure, Campanile brings energy and intensity to coaching the linebacker­s. He has chemistry with Miami’s leading tackler, Jerome Baker, who has also shown flexibilit­y to play on the edge. If Miami brings in a high-end inside linebacker either through free agency or the draft to anchor the defense, this player will surely welcome Campanile’s style of coaching.

Tyrone McKenzie, Outside linebacker­s coach

A former NFL player as a special teams contributo­r and linebacker on practice squads, the 36-year-old McKenzie is a hands-on coach that likes to get involved in drills, even letting his linebacker­s tackle him (while he’s padded). He has been an assistant with the Colts, Lions, Titans and Rams since 2017.

Sam Madison, Cornerback­s coach/pass game specialist

The four-time Pro Bowl selection with the Dolphins is back in Miami, and this time to coach. Since leaving, Madison, who has 38 career intercepti­ons, won a Super Bowl as a player with the Giants and another as an assistant coach with the Chiefs in 2019 — in Miami against McDaniel’s 49ers. Before heading to Kansas City, Madison also had a local high school coaching stint at powerhouse St. Thomas Aquinas, with former teammates Jason Taylor and Twan Russell also on the staff. Madison’s spot is the one that was previously being held for Charles Burks, but Burks is leaving for another opportunit­y with the Cincinnati Bengals.

Steve Gregory, Safeties coach

Gregory is a former NFL safety who was with Flores’ staff with the title of coaching assistant last season. He was defensive backs coach of the Detroit Lions in 2020, so he has experience at such a position. Gregory also has the familiarit­y of knowing Miami’s upstart safeties Jevon Holland and Brandon Jones.

Other notables

Headlining the other assistant coaching roles is Patrick Surtain as a defensive assistant. He is reunited with Madison after they formed one of the top cornerback tandems from the late 1990s through the early 2000s on the Dolphins. Between Madison, Surtain and Welker, this staff has three members of the 2004 Dolphins’ roster on it. Surtain won three state championsh­ips as coach of South Florida high school football powerhouse American Heritage.

Lemuel Jeanpierre is still with the Dolphins as assistant offensive line coach, a demotion from leading the offensive line in 2021. Last season’s wide receivers coach, Josh Grizzard, also was retained, but in a quality control role.

Chandler Henley, who was college teammates with McDaniel at Yale, joins the Dolphins as assistant quarterbac­ks coach after spending last year in Atlanta as assistant offensive line coach for the Falcons.

The rest of the staff: Mike Person (offensive assistant), Aldrick Robinson (offensive assistant), Kolby Smith (offensive assistant), Mathieu Araujo (assistant defensive backs), Steve Ferentz (assistant linebacker­s), Derrick LeBlanc (assistant defensive line), Ryan Slowik (senior defensive assistant), Brendan Farrell (assistant special teams) and Dave Puloka (head strength and conditioni­ng).

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