Cote: Miami tops 49ers and talk of Dolphins firing GM Grier in offseason is silly, dumb | Opinion

Deck the halls with boughs of discontent. ‘Tis the season to fire everybody.

This is what happens in football (and most sports) every year. Team owners never get rid of themselves , so the heat is predictably on coaches and quarterbacks when seasons fail. Scant is the difference between playoff and layoff. So if you don’t make one, you probably risk the other.

The Miami Dolphins beat the San Francisco 49ers, 29-17, Sunday in their home finale. A nice win, but one that only hoisted the Fins’ season record to 7-8 with two to play.

Miami helped its slim playoff chances but still needs a miracle. Like, see-a-rainbow-while- hitting-the-lottery luck. Two losses by the Broncos or Chargers in their final two games, plus a Colts loss, may be required. And Miami winning out.

Playoffs not likely, in other words.

“Brother, we’re just focused one one game at a time right now,” said quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.

Dolphins won with a short Tyreek Hill touchdown catch (Tua’s career 100th) and five Jason Sanders field goals until De’Von Achane’s late 50-yard scoring run made it seem more lopsided than it was.

The two games left are at Cleveland and at the Jets, both on the road, both in likely cold weather.

Miami must win both and pray for a handful of other results to align just right. Highly unlikely. The Fins are going down with a fight, but almost certainly still going down.

So it has been comical to gauge the reaction as the Dolphins season went off the rails at 2-6 and never quite recovered. The vitriol on social media from fans has been the expected, the standard. Forget that Tagovailoa made the Pro Bowl just last year, had a great season. Now he’s a bum, right? Same with coach Mike McDaniel.

But some media reaction also has been silly-extreme, and this has mostly focused on general manager Chris Grier, the man who drafted Tagovailoa and hired McDaniel. Suddenly he’s the ripe scapegoat in a world where somebody must always be to blame (when injuries or other circumstances are not enough).

This marks the 51st consecutive season since Miami’s last Super Bowl championship, and the 40th straight season since the franchise’s last Super Bowl appearance. (Happy anniversary, by the way.)

Generations have grown up, and old, waiting for the Dolphins to be King Sport royalty again.

I get the impatience. I do.

Y’all know by now I grew up a Dolphins fans. Was at the very first game in 1966. Collected Royal Castle trading cards. Pennant on the bedroom wall.. Yada yada yada.

But rational thought is invited here. Most welcome, in fact.

Tagovailoa missing four games to a concussion probably cost Miami a playoff spot this season. Top defenders Jaelan Phillips and Bradley Chubb missing all or most of the season injured didn’t help.

Grier’s draft picks have included Jaylen Waddle, Minkah Fitzpatrick, Laremy Tunsil, Xavien Howard, Mike Gesicki, Christian Wilkins, Tagovailoa, Phillips, Jevon Holland and Achane. All good picks. Chop Robinson seems to be working out.

The Tyreek Hill trade certainly worked.

The McDaniel hire may be cast in some doubt, now, by some. But just a year ago we all loved it.

Before this season, Miami’s four consecutive winning seasons were the club’s longest such streak since 2003. The consecutive playoff appearances were the first since 2001. The Fins’ being top five in offensive scoring and yards in the same season had last happened in 1994.

The evidence is strong that Grier has been Miami’s most productive roster-builder in a quarter century. Dwell on this season’s letdown. Fine. But you cannot deny that.

This season has been a disappointment (thus far) however you parse it. Yes.

But to say it demands a house-cleaning is absurd.

Tagovailoa, McDaniel, Grier — they do not have carte blanche moving forward; each has pressure on him.

But each has earned the right to return in 2025.