Jon-Eric Sullivan's first move as Dolphins manager revealed; update on John Harbaugh, Jeff Hafley

Published on: Jan 09, 2026 11:40 PM IST

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Jon-Eric Sullivan is expected to hire Miami Dolphins' next head coach (AP)

Jon-Eric Sullivan is expected to join the Miami Dolphins as their new general manager

Jon-Eric Sullivan is expected to join the Miami Dolphins as their new general manager. According to multiple reports, the organization has finalized the hiring of the former vice president of player personnel for the Green Bay Packers, who will now be in charge of hiring Mike McDaniel's replacement. The head coach was fired this week following Miami's poor season. They have now missed the playoffs in consecutive seasons.

Sullivan spent 22 seasons with the Packers, starting off as a scouting intern in 2003 before earning a full-time position with the team’s football operations department in 2004.

In 2022, he was named VP of player personnel, with Green Bay making the playoffs in three of the last four seasons.

Big update on John Harbaugh, Jeff Hafley and Mike McCarthy

The Dolphins have been strongly linked to ex-Baltimore Ravens coach John Harbaugh. Other potential candidates in the run to replace Mike McDaniel are Packers defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley, Mike McCarthy, who was Green Bay's coach for over a decade, and Jaguars' DC Anthony Campanile. All of them have had a connection with Sullivan.

The Tua Tagovailoa issue

Sullivan will also need to figure out what to do with quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, who was benched for the final three games of the season because of poor play.

Tagovailoa threw for 2,660 yards with 20 touchdowns last season but showed a stark decline in accuracy and mobility after signing a four-year, $212.4 million extension in July 2024. He finished second in the NFL with 15 interceptions, which was a career high.

Tagovailoa is guaranteed $54 million for 2026, and the Dolphins would incur significant hits to the salary cap by releasing him. Releasing him next year would result in a $99 million dead cap charge. If the move is designated as a post-June 1 release, those charges are split over two years, with $67.4 million allocated to the 2026 cap and $31.8 million in 2027.

(With AP inputs)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Yash Nitish Bajaj
Yash Bajaj is a Chief Content Producer with a strong foundation in US coverage, digital strategy, and audience-focused storytelling. As part of the US Desk at Hindustan Times, he covers a wide range of topics - from American politics to sports (NFL, NBA, derbies, MLB and more). Before joining Hindustan Times, Yash served as Deputy News Editor at Times Now, where he oversaw international coverage and led a team of six. In this role, he significantly expanded global traffic through strategic planning, SEO-driven content execution, and meticulous trend tracking across platforms. He is experienced in managing high-pressure breaking-news shifts, coordinating live coverage, and building newsroom systems that improve speed, accuracy, and reach. Prior to Times Now, Yash held a position at Opoyi, where he headed the Sports and US news team. He developed broad editorial strategies, guided reporters across multiple beats, and played a key role in recruiting and training new talent. His responsibilities also extended to social media management and experimenting with innovative content formats. Yash holds a Bachelor of Mass Media (Journalism) from HR College, Mumbai University. His interests extend well beyond the newsroom: he is an enthusiastic explorer of AI tools, a movie buff with an ever-growing watchlist, and someone who enjoys unraveling conspiracy theories for fun.Read More

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