3 Miami Dolphins players Vic Fangio needs to get more out of
By Matt Serniak
Now that the dust has settled and all is right in the world, we can start to wonder what the Miami Dolphin’s defense will look like with Vic Fangio running the show.
I think the biggest thing we’re looking forward to is simply having a defense run competently. Seriously, besides more impact plays, and an increase in turnovers, the thing I want the most out of a Vic Fangio led defense is just common sense, obvious approaches in particular situations or you can just call it better situational football.
For example, we shouldn’t see the defense backed up 16 yards on 3rd and 17 from the 17 like we did in the Chargers game which led to the Chargers going for 7 instead of 3. We also shouldn’t see the defensive backs playing way-off-coverage on 3rd and 4 when bringing tons of pressure. Sort of stupid to do that and yet it happened too often when it should happen never.
I also expect Vic Fangio to be able to realize faster when something isn’t working that pivoting to something else the defense can accomplish is the prudent move. If 0-blitzing, which I don’t expect to see much of again, isn’t working then playing more zone needs to not just be an option but it needs to be an option that’s been practiced and able to be utilized.
I know we’ll be pontificating all off-season on what kind of defensive strategies and hallmarks Fangio will be bringing to the Dolphins. We know he likes running a 4-3 defense with rotating safeties with the philosophy of not blitzing a ton. That might be exactly what happens. But I will say, we all thought Mike McDaniel was going to be running the ball left and right, and not only did the Dolphins pass the ball seemingly every play, but McDaniel also didn’t even run the ball when it was working. My point is, we don’t know what we’ll see until we see it. It’s an easy-on-the-fence type of statement but I think it’s accurate.
What I do know is that there are a few players that need to be elevated, who needs to produce a bit more. These players are solid but more is needed especially because they have the ability to give more. Vic Fangio, in my opinion, has the wherewithal to get the most out of these players. In doing so, the entire defense will be elevated. On to the list.