Miami Dolphins aren't winning playoff games, but recent survey still shows they're the happiest players in the league
It's been a hot minute since the Miami Dolphins have delivered a playoff win for their fans. However, that hasn't stopped them from being among the most pleased group of players in the NFL on a day-to-day basis, per a recent survey. On Wednesday, the NFLPA put out the results of their league-wide survey based […]
It's been a hot minute since the Miami Dolphins have delivered a playoff win for their fans. However, that hasn't stopped them from being among the most pleased group of players in the NFL on a day-to-day basis, per a recent survey.
On Wednesday, the NFLPA put out the results of their league-wide survey based upon responses from 1695 players about their own respective teams and workplace conditions, and the Dolphins organization scored the highest in the league.
The NFLPA survey report had this to say about the Dolphins:
The Dolphins retained their crown as the top-ranked team in the 2025 Report Card. Owner Stephen Ross is once again the highest-graded owner, and the team is ranked No. 1 in seven of the 11 evaluated categories. The quality of the facilities is matched by the quality of the people in the building, making for an extremely positive player experience. The team also renovated their gameday locker room at Hard Rock Stadium this summer. The stadium locker room is not an area evaluated in these surveys, but this is another example of just how committed the team is to providing an elite player experience.
While the facilities and staff contribute to a highly positive player experience, there is still room for improvement. Players would like a better home game hotel, and more sideline passes for family members before games.
Ranking #1 of 32 teams in 7 of 11 categories is pretty impressive. That could help Miami try to entice some free agents starting next month, as well as the lack of an income tax in the Sunshine State.
The categories where they ranked first are: food/dining area, training room, training staff, weight room, strength coaches, team travel, and ownership. They came in second in nutritionist/dietician, third in treatment of families, fourth in locker room, and sixth in head coach.
The feedback from the players about Mike McDaniel showed he's receptive to player feedback and respectful of their time. The report had this to say about the response around McDaniel:
-98% of Dolphins players feel their head coach Mike McDaniel is efficient with their time, a rank of 7 out of 32.
-The players feel that McDaniel is highly receptive to locker room feedback on the team’s needs, ranking him 4 of 32 head coaches in the league.
Naturally, while it's good that players feel McDaniel is receptive to locker room feedback, the question that Miami fans care more about is can he lead the roster sufficiently to take the team back to the playoffs in 2025 and finally end a quarter century of playoff futility? Much of that answer will obviously depend on the success of the moves that he and Chris Grier decide upon this offseason to fill a number of gaping holes on the roster.
Still, it at least can't hurt that the players are happy going to work each day. Now, if they can take that happiness and turn it into something that could make their fans equally happy once the playoffs roll around in January.
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