Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Fangio hiring speaks volumes about Dolphins
It’s all coming together for the Miami Dolphins, or so it seems.
Vic Fangio, the franchise’s newest meaningful acquisition, was introduced Monday.
Fangio, as highly-regarded as they come, is a major cog in the organizational wheel that has recently added coach Mike McDaniel, wide receiver Tyreek Hill, edge rusher Bradley Chubb, left tackle Terron Armstead, to name a few. They’ve all been acquired in the past 12 months.
The grand plan, the one highlighted by drafting quarterback Tua Tagovailoa with the No. 5 pick in 2020, continues coming together. Things are locking into place.
Monday saw Fangio, another big piece of the championship puzzle, if all goes according to plan, talk defense.
For his part, Fangio didn’t make any big promises. He’s still in evaluation mode.
But he said good things, such as when he was asked how he maximizes players’ talents.
“I’ve always believed in just trying to improve every player as an individual,” he said, “and then hopefully you do that well enough to where their position group improves. Their position improves the defensive group so you really do it from the ground up. And there’s a lot of good young players here that I think have room to grow, and hopefully myself and the staff will get that.”
Monday also saw Fangio hire Renaldo Hill, the former Los Angeles Chargers defensive coordinator, to be the Dolphins’ passgame coordinator.
Now, all of a sudden, the Dolphins’ coaching staff, among Fangio, Hill and quarterbacks coach Darrell Bevell, a former interim head coach who reportedly turned down offensive coordinator interviews this offseason for Washington and the New York Jets, has some star power.
Of course, you must always keep in mind the sum total of these parts last season only added up to a 9-8 record and a wild-card round playoff loss, so it’s not as though the Dolphins are an assistant coach away from a title.
And these parts must add up to surpass AFC opponents such as Super Bowl champion Kansas City, and Cincinnati and Buffalo among others.
When you look at things that way, the Dolphins remain in the same position as they’ve been in any of the past, say, 10 offseasons — a .500-ish team looking to take that next step.
But Fangio, who was possibly the best assistant coach on the market, gets the Dolphins closer to taking that next step.
Yes, general manager Chris Grier has to make some significant maneuvers to fill some gaps on offense and defense, in both free agency and the draft.
And Tagovailoa, Armstead, and Pro Bowl cornerback Xavien Howard must stay healthy.
The Dolphins, however, are making progress with the Fangio acquisition, they’re moving forward.
Fangio, the former Denver head coach and former architect of a Chicago defense that ruled the league in 2018, is a major hiring.
Fangio, you would think, is the head coach of the defense, the man in charge. Fangio takes the role you hoped former Dolphins coach Brian Flores would have utilized with his offensive coordinator, a guy who can do it practically by himself.
The idea here is turning Fangio loose, letting him, pretty much, install the defense he wants along with the personnel he wants.
There are limits, of course. Fangio can’t just get anyone he desires. Grier is still the general manager, and McDaniel is still the head coach, but you get the idea. You’d like to think there’s a great level of autonomy that will result in a much-improved product on the field.
Off the field, business-wise, every NFL offseason is about selling hope, and that’s what the Dolphins are doing with this signing.
Fans pay attention. Of course Fangio helps them become a better team and a better defense.
But Fangio’s hiring continues sending a message to fans (and players) that the Dolphins are going to do their best to acquire the best.
The plan might not work. Buffalo is going through that fear right now.
Cincinnati remains optimistic.
Kansas City is living the dream.
The Dolphins, however, are going for it.
They’re trying to win the Super Bowl next season.
Fangio is part of that strategy.
This isn’t one of the Dolphins’ meandering, ‘Let’s see what happens next’ plans of the 2010s, this is the Dolphins trying to make a straight line to the top of the NFL.
Let’s recap the major acquisitions of the last year.
McDaniel. Tyreek Hill. Armstead. Chubb. Fangio.
Fangio didn’t say all the right things at Monday’s introduction.
In fact, he said little at all. But he didn’t have to say anything.
We know the deal.
Yeah, the Dolphins are a long way from a title.
But Monday’s introduction might show they’re a step closer.