Magnetic Mike McDaniel won't shy away from big personalities, big expectations | Schad

PHOENIX — Mike McDaniel looked sharp in an off-white, corduroy-sleeved jacket and he was as sharp as ever with witty responses to questions ranging from Washington owner Dan Snyder to Jalen Ramsey's persona.

"I look at it like, 'Wow, the organization's worth that much,'" McDaniel said of the pending sale of a franchise he once worked for. "And, you know, I couldn't get free coffee?"

McDaniel, donning a bright yellow backpack, approached his second NFL owners' meeting breakfast media availability with a more relaxed, good-natured tone than his first. Last year, McDaniel executed a goal to tone things down after his whirl-wind Miami Dolphins hire.

On Monday morning in Phoenix, McDaniel was confident and humorous.

Ramsey once brought a Brinks truck to a football practice.

"Didn't know that," McDaniel quipped.

What is your plan to sort of manage this collection of star players with big personalities?

"My plan is, obviously I have to be a bigger star than them," McDaniel joked.

McDaniel is disarming and witty and charming and, yeah, so what if he's a little quirky.

More than anything, the Dolphins have a football coach who is relatable. He connects with people with humor. But he's also dead serious about his goals and objectives.

McDaniel is not afraid to work with larger-than-life personalities like Ramsey and Tyreek Hill.

"Guys that have a star ability that have been All-Pros and big personalities, you can shy away from it," McDaniel said. "Which, I think a lot of people run into problems. Or you can really lean into it."

McDaniel is leaning into everything about the talent. And the increased expectations.

"Getting to the playoffs is cool," McDaniel said. "Over that. You want to win."

What you need to know about what Mike McDaniel said here in Phoenix

Malik Reed on reuniting with Bradley Chubb and Vic Fangio, who's 'about the business'

Dolphins' Braxton Berrios thrilled to be coached by Wes Welker

McDaniel was talking about the incredibly difficult AFC East, which is probably, at some point, going to see Aaron Rodgers added to the New York Jets.

"If you are able to (contend) within that very good competitive division, you are much more battle tested for the games that really, really matter," McDaniel added.

McDaniel realizes that in order to win big, Miami needed to add big talent.

And, it turns out, his ability to connect with practically everyone makes him the ideal head coach for all of these star talents.

McDaniel realizes that Miami has won so little, for so long, that he needs to exude confidence about his teams' ability to do things it has not done for so long.

Most oddsmakers have the Dolphins as the third choice in the AFC East, behind Buffalo and the Jets, and yet about the seventh choice to win the Super Bowl.

Is McDaniel different? Well, yeah.

But maybe taking a different approach is just what Miami needs. Let's consider that Nick Saban, Cam Cameron, Tony Sparano, Joe Philbin, Adam Gase and Brian Flores have a total of zero playoff victories in Miami.

McDaniel said the team did its research into Ramsey. Last year Miami learned Hill was perceived as a good teammate who wanted badly to win. Reports were similar on the mercurial cornerback.

McDaniel is not afraid of expectations and not afraid of managing personalities.

"He's got a magnetic personality," McDaniel said of Ramsey. "And that's really cool. I like where we're at with the various complements and personality on defense. So that fires me up."

Joe Schad is a journalist covering the Miami Dolphins and the NFL at The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at jschad@pbpost.com and follow him on Instagram and Twitter @schadjoe. Sign up for Joe's free weekly Dolphins Pulse Newsletter. Help support our work by subscribing today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel on Jalen Ramsey, big expectations