At 0-3, the Miami Dolphins aren’t exactly the hottest ticket in town. But the Dolphins are still an NFL franchise, and the NFL rules America, so forgive head coach Jeff Hafley for his perplexed reaction to sparse reporters at his press conference on Monday.
The Dolphins’ livestream caught the earnest moment before the presser officially began.
“Is that everybody that’s coming?” Hafley said.
An off-camera reporter offers that “it’s Heat media day,” referencing the Miami Heat’s 2026-27 NBA Media Day. Hafley mulled that over for a moment before saying, “At the same time, huh?”
Dolphins HC Jeff Hafley was visibly taken aback by the lack of reporters at his press conference today, with many of them attending Heat Media Day instead:
Coach: “is this everyone that’s coming …?”
Reporter: “it’s Heat media day.”
It’s clear what team runs this city 🔥 pic.twitter.com/rPlngtUW5Q
— HeatMuse (@Heat_Muse) September 28, 2026
Hafley didn’t dwell on it, transitioning seamlessly into an otherwise routine presser.
HeatMuse, StatMuse’s Miami Heat account on X, posted, “It’s clear what team runs this city [fire emoji].”
It’s true that the new-look Heat with Giannis Antetokounmpo are more newsworthy than anything the Dolphins have to offer right now. But while that’s a fun way to frame it for fan fodder, Hafley’s presser illustrated a much grimmer reality.
Miami is one of many cities across the country suffering from a gutted local media presence. More often than not, framed under the vague umbrella of cost-cutting and restructuring, newspapers are repurposing reporters from other beats to cover sports or abandoning the sports beat entirely.
In Miami specifically, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel laid off Dave Hyde, who had been the paper’s sports columnist for 36 years, in June. This month, the Miami Herald sports department lost Greg Cote and Michelle Kaufman as part of larger McClatchy layoffs at newspapers nationwide.
About Megan Armstrong
Since first getting published as a student by the Kansas City Star in 2013, Megan Armstrong has gone wherever curiosity and stories have taken her, specializing in sports, media, music, and culture coverage. She also has an extensive background in interviewing and profiling public figures. Her work has appeared in Billboard, Boardroom, Bleacher Report, Esquire, GQ, GRAMMY.com, NYLON, Newsweek, Teen Vogue, The Hollywood Reporter, UPROXX, and elsewhere.