Stephen A. Smith’s Latest Ridiculous Take: Why Firing Chris Grier First Was Actually the Right Call
Look, I get it. Stephen A. Smith is paid handsomely to have opinions—loud ones, controversial ones. But his latest take on the Miami Dolphins firing general manager Chris Grier? This one missed by a country mile.
Not Twenty minutes after the revelation, Stephen A. claims that this was a racial controversy on “First Take” questioning why “the brother gets fired first.”.
Here’s the thing that seems to have escaped ESPN’s highest-paid talking head: Chris Grier deserved to be fired. Not because of his race, not because of some conspiracy, but because he’s been running the Dolphins into the ground for nearly a decade.
The Chris Grier Era: A Masterclass in Mediocrity
Let’s talk numbers for a second, because unlike Stephen A.’s rant, numbers don’t lie. Grier has been with the Miami Dolphins for 26 years in various capacities. He’s been the general manager since 2016. That’s nine years at the helm. You know how many playoff wins the Dolphins have racked up during his tenure as GM? Zero. Zip. Nada.
But wait, it gets better. Six years ago, ownership handed Grier the keys to a complete rebuild. The directive was simple: build a championship-contending roster. Fast forward to 2025, and what do we have? A roster so poorly constructed that even the most optimistic Dolphins fan knows they’re watching a sinking ship.
Why Mike McDaniel Gets a Pass (For Now)
Stephen A. wants to know why head coach Mike McDaniel isn’t getting canned alongside Grier. It’s a fair question, but here’s the answer: timing matters in professional sports.
Make no mistake, he’s absolutely fired at the end of the season. But giving him the rest of this lost season to figure things out (or prove he can’t) is the smart play. Worse for worse, it will help the team get a top pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Besides, and this seems to have completely escaped Smith’s attention, McDaniel is biracial. So Smith’s implication that the Dolphins are protecting the white coach while firing the Black GM doesn’t even hold up.
The Real Problem With Stephen A.’s Take
What’s frustrating about Stephen A. Smith’s reaction isn’t just that it’s wrong —it’s that it’s lazy. It’s the kind of analysis that ignores context, dismisses facts, and reaches for controversy for clicks, soundbites, and social media engagement.
That’s the major problem with ESPN nowadays, the focus on controversy instead of putting out a better product. Doug Gottlieb said it best on his radio show “These takes driven people away from ESPN”. Chris Grier wasn’t fired because of his race. He was fired because he’s been objectively terrible at his job for nearly a decade.
What Happens Next in Miami
The Dolphins promoted Champ Kelly, their assistant general manager who came over from the Las Vegas Raiders, to interim GM. The reality is that the Dolphins are the 2025 season is cooked.. They’ve got a lame-duck coach, an overpaid quarterback with durability concerns, and a roster that needs significant retooling.
The Takeaway
Now look, Stephen A. Smith makes millions of dollars a year to provide hot takes on ESPN. That’s his job, and he’s admittedly very good at drumming up controversy and does great as an analyst at ESPN. But this time, he swung and missed badly. The Miami Dolphins didn’t fire Chris Grier because of his race. They fired him because he failed at his job for nearly a decade.
Mike McDaniel will likely be next, and when that happens, it won’t be because he’s biracial. It’ll be because the team he’s coaching can’t win games that matter. Chris Grier has to go and honestly its 5 years too late.
