Operatives for the Dolphins have contacted people close to former Steelers coach Bill Cowher about the team's head coaching job, according to a CBS Sports report. The report, which cited a source with knowledge of the situation, said Dolphins owner Stephen Ross was resorting to back channels to avoid the kind of criticism he received in January 2011 when he publicly courted then-Stanford coach Jim Harbaugh while current Dolphins coach Tony Sparano was still under contract. Miami is still winless on the season.