The last 72 hours have been crazy for the Dolphins. The retired linebacker Shaq Barrett announced that he was coming out of retirement, but had it been any good for the Phins? Perhaps not. There were doubts that the LB wanted to play for the Buccaneers. However, the head coach, Mike McDaniel, blocked his plans. He spoke about the decision at the post-game conference after the Packers matchup.

While talking to the reporters, the HC said, “The timing I don’t think was necessarily ideal.” But he also quashed those rumors that Barrett wanted to play for the Bucs. And the decision wasn’t only his. He also discussed this with the GM Chris Grier, who agreed. Subsequently, they decided not to activate him off the reserve list or play him on the team. It also blocked him from moving to another team.

It means that Shaq Barrett will never play for the Miami Dolphins or in the NFL again. He was signed by them in March 2024 after playing 5 seasons each for the Broncos and later for the Phins. But on July 20, 2024, he announced his retirement on Instagram to spend more time with his family. But looks like he has changed his mind.

In August this year, the LB appeared on the Up & Adams Show with Kay Adams and declared his love for the Bucs. While talking about his decision to retire, he said, “I wouldn’t do it for any other scenario or any other team or anything like that. I’ve got a lot of history down there.” But that’s not happening now. Now, after losing the Thanksgiving game against the Packers, the Phins are in a precarious situation.

The HC isn’t concerned about the future of former Bucs star linebacker.

Mike McDaniel looking over Phins future after blocking Bucs LB

Shaq Barrett had a pretty impressive run with the Bucs. When they won the Super Bowl in 2020, he had 57 tackles (43 solo) and 8 sacks in 15 games in the regular season. But he saved his best for the last. During the 2020 playoffs, the LB recorded 9 tackles (6 solo) with 4 sacks. The Phins HC could have talked with the LB to play for them. But he chose not to, and he is fine with that decision. He is looking at the current scenario.

Mike McDaniel said in the Packers post-game conference, “You have to be clean and we weren’t.” Now, he will have to work on his team before the week 14 matchup against the Jets. With a 4-7 win-loss record, the Phins can qualify for the playoffs if they win all their remaining games. However, they still have to depend on other teams as well.

There have been many hiccups in their season. In week 2, their QB Tua Tagovailoa got injured with a concussion and was out. He is back in the locker room. Will they qualify? We’ll find out soon.