Dolphins owner Stephen Ross and general manager Jeff Ireland met with McCoy at Ross' offices in New York, the final interview in the team's second round of the coaching search. Green Bay OC Joe Philbin and interim Dolphins coach Todd Bowles each had second interviews on Wednesday.

 

The three candidates became finalists after Jeff Fisher turned down the Dolphins last Friday to become coach of the St. Louis Rams. McCoy completed his first interview with Miami on Monday.

 

The Miami Herald reported Thursday that McCoy considers himself to be the frontrunner for the Dolphins job. He feels confident enough about his chances that he canceled an interview with the Raiders scheduled for Wednesday.

 

According to the Herald's sources, McCoy did not want to send the wrong message to the Dolphins by interviewing with another team. Though if he actually is the frontrunner, he could use the fact that other teams want to hire him as leverage, but no one ever accused football coaches of being masterful negotiators. Needless to say, the Raiders were not pleased by McCoy's counting of his chickens before they hatched.

 

The Dolphins, meanwhile, are not saying a word about the interview process. The team has not even publicly confirmed that McCoy, Philbin and Bowles are their three finalists, even though the entire world knows they are. 

 

McCoy's confidence was echoed by super-agent Drew Rosenhaus, who told Joe Rose on his radio show Thursday "I'd be surprised if he's not the next head coach of the Dolphins." Rosenhaus cited McCoy's skills at developing young quarterbacks as the reason he could be the team's best choice.

 

With the second round of interviews complete, Ross and Ireland are expected to make a final decision within the next few days.