MIAMI GARDENS — The frustration of the Miami Dolphins fan base with the team’s perpetual mediocrity is reaching a boiling point.
And it showed in as clear a message as possible ahead of Sunday’s home opener against the New England Patriots.
A group of fans strung together the funds to fly a banner over Hard Rock Stadium with a direct message as to their wishes for the franchise’s coach, Mike McDaniel, and general manager, Chris Grier.
The banner, which appeared starting at around 11 a.m. Sunday as fans were tailgating at stadium parking lots, read: “Fire McDaniel. Fire Grier.”
The message comes on the heels of the Dolphins’ embarrassing 33-8 season-opening loss to the Colts in Indianapolis a week earlier.
During the past week, a GoFundMe page started by a fane named Kyle Sullivan started crowdsourcing funds to fly the plane. It started with a goal to raise $900, and as of Sunday morning, it had more than double the necessary amount with 130 donations.
“My brother is expecting his first born son this year, and it got him thinking about generational trauma,” the fundraising page organizer wrote. “As our family was gathered for the first Dolphins game of the season, he asked an important moral question, ‘is it fair to my son to raise him as a Dolphins fan?’ They’ve been trash for 25 years, and with this front office, they will be trash for another 25 years.”
The Dolphins have the longest active playoff win drought in the NFL, last winning a postseason game in 2000.
Here’s another look at the plane a group of Dolphins fans ordered to fly over Hard Rock Stadium with the anti-Grier and McDaniel message ahead of the home opener. https://t.co/48K5fhDLuX pic.twitter.com/LEFZTtkfDK
— David Furones (@DavidFurones_) September 14, 2025
Grier holds the longest active GM tenure in the league without a playoff win. While the Dolphins have made two playoff appearances in McDaniel’s first three years as coach, it’s still largely considered underwhelming to have yet to make a deep playoff run given the talent on those rosters and investment in high-priced player contracts.
McDaniel, when he spoke Monday, understood that fans are frustrated after the team missed the playoffs at 8-9 in 2024 and started the 2025 season with a blowout loss.
“Fans are frustrated for a loss that they, like us, don’t think that’s acceptable,” McDaniel said. “I’ll call it what it is. It was embarrassing and not anything that paying fans sign up for.”
It’s not the first time Dolphins fans have taken to the skies to voice frustration with the front office. On at least two separate occasions early in the 2010s, similar was expressed toward then-GM Jeff Ireland. Miami Hurricanes fans flew multiple banners pleading for the firing of ex-coach Al Golden in the middle of that decade.
Inactive list
Dolphins pregame inactives offered little in terms of surprises.
Safety Ashtyn Davis, the only player who entered questionable Sunday with a knee injury, was active.
Running back Jaylen Wright (knee) and cornerback Ethan Bonner (hamstring) were ruled out after they entered doubtful. Also inactive after being ruled out Friday were cornerback Storm Duck (ankle), tight end Darren Waller (hip) and defensive tackle Benito Jones (oblique). Right tackle Austin Jackson was placed on injured reserve Saturday after he was ruled out Friday.
Wide receiver Tahj Washington and quarterback Quinn Ewers were healthy scratches. Ewers was available as an emergency third quarterback.
Patriots starting right tackle Morgan Moses was active after entering questionable.
This story will be updated.