Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel says ‘Players play’ for Texans’ DeMeco Ryans

Miami Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel knows what DeMeco Ryans is all about.

The two were on the San Francisco 49ers coaching staff together from 2017-21. As McDaniel rose up from run game coordinator to offensive coordinator in their last year together, Ryans similarly rose through the ranks as a defensive quality control coach (2017), inside linebackers coach (2018-20), and then defensive coordinator (2021).

“I couldn’t be more confident in an individual in terms of a guy being made for this position of head coach in the National Football League,” McDaniel said at the NFL combine via Aaron Wilson from KPRC-TV. “DeMeco is a special breed unlike any that I’ve come across in my walks of football life.”

McDaniel also got to see Ryans at the beginning of his playing career in 2006 when he joined the staff as an offensive assistant under new coach Gary Kubiak. Ryans was the Texans’ second-round linebacker from Alabama and earned NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year that season.

“You’re talking about a guy who, as a 22-year-old, walked into an NFL building and led an entire defense as a captain and really the best player on the defense from day one,” said McDaniel. “Fast forward to him as a coach. I saw him cutting his teeth as a position coach, really as a position assistant, and then as a position coach. You’re talking about a guy who makes an appearance to the coaching world look easy.”

For McDaniel, the way Ryans coaches produces results on the field.

Said McDaniel: “Players play for him, players believe in him. He has the disposition to handle the natural turbulence as careers go from this scope. I couldn’t be happier for an individual who is more deserving, and really, this is a dream of his. He felt very connected to the Houston fan base and held that in high regard and in high esteem.”

McDaniel led the Dolphins to the playoffs for the first time since 2016 in his first season with Miami last year. Nothing would energize Texans fans for the long-term if Ryans were able to have similar success in his rookie year on the sidelines.

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Story originally appeared on Texans Wire