TAMPA, FL – DECEMBER 27: Offensive coordinator Adam Gase of the Chicago Bears looks on against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the game at Raymond James Stadium on December 27, 2015 in Tampa, Florida. The Bears defeated the Buccaneers 26-21. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)

With seven current openings on the NFL head-coaching job market, being the first team to make a hire was rather urgent. The Miami Dolphins broke the tape first, nabbing arguably the top candidate available.

According to several reports, the Dolphins have hired Chicago Bears offensive coordinator Adam Gase to be their new head coach. Miami Herald beat writer Adam Beasley was first with the news, later confirmed by ESPN’s Adam Schefter. The official announcement is expected Saturday afternoon.

Gase spent last season with the Bears after six years with the Denver Broncos, the final two as offensive coordinator.He was highly in demand as a head coaching candidate once the season ended, reportedly also interviewing with the Eagles, Browns and Giants.

Running the Denver offense with Peyton Manning, the Broncos led the NFL in points, total yards and passing yards per game during Gase’s two years in that position. This past season, Chicago quarterback had the highest rating of his career (92.3), affirming Gase’s reputation as an offensive guru. With a talented signal-caller in Ryan Tannehill, Miami clearly wanted to fulfill their quarterback’s potential with a dynamic offense.

The Dolphins reportedly interviewed seven candidates for their head coach opening, including interim coach Dan Campbell and former Broncos and Redskins coach Mike Shanahan. An interview with Patriots defensive coordinator Matt Patricia was scheduled, but has now obviously been canceled.

It also appears that Gase is already putting a staff in place, according to Fox Sports’ Alex Marvez. Given that defense isn’t Gase’s strength, that seems particularly important. 

“We did exhaustive research on all of the candidates ahead of time and conducted thorough and detailed interviews with each person,” Dolphins owner Stephen Ross said in an official statement.

“In the end, I was convinced and the search committee was unanimous Adam was the right leader for our football team who best met all of our priorities. He has high-energy is competitive and driven to win with a mindset of teaching and developing players.”

Gase becomes the 12th head coach in Dolphins team history. He’s the fourth to be hired for the position with no prior head-coaching experience, following Joe Philbin, Tony Sparano and Cam Cameron. At 37, Gase also becomes the youngest head coach in the NFL.

About Ian Casselberry

Ian is a writer, editor, and podcaster. You can find his work at Awful Announcing and The Comeback. He's written for Sports Illustrated, Yahoo Sports, MLive, Bleacher Report, and SB Nation.