- Fangio can coach defense. The Dolphins ranked 10th in total defense last season.
- It’s tough to imagine some Dolphins players tearing up when they learned Fangio was one and done.
It’s making its way to South Florida as predictably as hurricane season.
Defensive players on the Philadelphia Eagles are rushing to back their coordinator, Vic Fangio, forming a human shield against an attack from Miami, where Fangio was employed a year ago.
“I love Vic, man,” defensive tackle Jalen Carter told Eagles reporters Wednesday. “Old school, man. He’s fun to talk to. I heard a lot of good news about him because I was in Miami working out, so I had a couple of Miami players out there and I was talking to them. I heard a lot of good news. They’re saying a lot of good stuff.”
Dolphins fans and players may have experienced a second encounter with their morning Cheerios over that one. Carter and defensive back Darius Slay were asked about Fangio after Dolphins safety Jevon Holland was asked about new Miami DC Anthony Weaver and made it clear he’s not mourning Fangio’s defection. The dagger came when Holland was asked if it’s the fact that Weaver is a former player that makes the difference.
“I just think that it’s the fact that he’s a good person makes a difference,” Holland said.
Doesn’t leave much to the imagination, does it? Contrast that to when Slay was asked about Fangio in light of Holland’s criticism.
“I don’t know what happened over there,” Slay said. “But from my point of view over here, he’s a great dude. I’ve been hearing nothing but great things about him.”
What are we to make of all this?
Here are five truths to hold self-evident:
1. Sorry, but the Eagles’ comments mean nothing.
This is no reflection on Carter and Slay. It’s more a reflection on today’s NFL. Saying that players are encouraged to parrot the company line is as obvious as pointing out voluntary workouts aren’t very voluntary for many. Fact is, players feel constant pressure to fall in line in both cases. It’s not just millions of dollars on the line. It’s that they’re wired in such a way that independent thinking on football matters often is tantamount to letting down the team.
So the Eagles are praising Fangio? What did anyone expect them to say? Last August, one Dolphins player said he has “a lot of respect … a lot of praise” for Fangio. But by October, that same player — Christian Wilkins — not only had another opinion of Fangio, he voiced that opinion. Informed that Fangio had publicly criticized him, Wilkins said, “That’s his opinion.”
2. Fangio can coach defense. Well.
The Dolphins ranked 10th in total defense last season despite their only Pro Bowl player, cornerback Jalen Ramsey, missing two months with a knee injury.
You have to go back 13 years for the last time the Dolphins’ D made the top 10.
3. So how did players really feel about Fangio?
Granted, that’s a question rather than a statement. But without having “Hard Knocks”-type all access to meetings, I’m uncomfortable making a blanket statement.
Are there players glad he’s gone? No doubt.
Does it constitute a majority? Wouldn’t surprise me.
Was it unanimous? This is where it gets dicey.
“It’s no different from any other team,” one agent with Dolphins connections said on condition of anonymity. Meaning there was a segment of players who didn’t like playing under Fangio, another segment fine with him and likely a segment who didn’t care much either way on a personal level as long as the results were there on a professional level.
It’s tough to imagine Holland or Wilkins tearing up when they learned Fangio was one and done. Same applies to cornerback Cam Smith. Fangio refused to play Smith even though he was the team’s top pick last season.
4. Let’s see how Fangio does in Philly.
Fangio wanted to return to the Philadelphia area and got his wish. He’s with a good franchise. But the Eagles ranked 26th defensively in a 2023 season in which they took a stupefying nosedive. Now, losing edge rusher Haason Reddick to the Jets hurts.
Let’s see what Fangio can do with the Eagles. Let’s compare it to how Weaver fares in Miami, recognizing that if Weaver is as good as some including John Harbaugh say, McDaniel could be facing a fourth straight year with a new DC next summer. If Fangio’s old-school ways mean he can’t relate to today’s players, we’ll know soon enough.
5. As for what Holland said …
Holland said how he felt. Again, it’s not every day players do that anymore. As a journalist, I’m not about to blast him for speaking what’s on his mind.
But if it were me? I would have stuck to why I prefer playing for Weaver. I might have been critical of Fangio as a defensive strategist or taken a shot at how he deals with players or his assistants. Maybe all of it.
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Even on a personal level, talk about how relatable Weaver is. Inspiring. Likable. Whatever.
You can do all of that without inferring that Fangio isn’t a good person. There’s nothing to be gained from crossing that line.
Now you can fire back and say what about when Ron Jaworski, acting as Fangio’s mouthpiece, went on radio and said some players on the Dolphins were more interested in heading to South Beach than the gym? Doesn’t that drift into the area of personal attacks, since it’s about a person’s work ethic? It is.
And there’s nothing to be gained from that, either.
Dolphins reporter Hal Habib can be reached at hhabib@pbpost.com. Follow him on social media @gunnerhal. Click here to subscribe.
