Dolphins' Jeff Hafley: success 'not gonna be measured in wins and losses' this year
First-year Miami head coach Jeff Hafley told Stephen A. Smith the 2026 season is about development and building an identity, not the scoreboard.
New Miami Dolphins head coach Jeff Hafley is setting a candid tone for Year 1, telling Stephen A. Smith that wins and losses will not be the barometer for the 2026 season.
Marcel Louis-Jacques (@Marcel_LJ): Dolphins coach Jeff Hafley to @stephenasmith: "Success is not gonna be measured in wins and losses this year -- and I know nobody wnats to hear that. I want to see where we end and how far we can take this thing, and how much we develop these players ... Success for me is gonna be we go on that field and we play so hard that even you turn it on and say, 'man those guys are flying around.' "I just think this year's so much about develpping who we are as a football team, finding the right guys and by the end of the year saying, 'we've got something real powerful moving forward.'"
Hafley, hired this offseason alongside new general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan, inherits a franchise that has hovered around mediocrity in recent years. The duo represents a reset after a stretch of middling results.
The first-year head coach framed the campaign as a building year, emphasizing player development and establishing an identity over the scoreboard. It is a message that signals patience is the operating assumption inside the building.
"Success for me is gonna be we go on that field and we play so hard that even you turn it on and say, 'man those guys are flying around,'" Hafley said, pointing to effort and culture as the early markers of progress.
With a new front office and coaching staff in place, the quote underscores that Miami views 2026 as the foundation for a longer climb back into contention in the AFC East rather than a win-now push.