Miami Dolphins defensive coordinator Vic Fangio has consistently offered himself up as a tribute for his defense’s failures.
That trend continued Thursday when he took blame for Kader Kohou’s complete inability to cover Stefon Diggs in the Dolphins’ 48-20 blowout loss to the Buffalo Bills in Week 4.
The Bills targeted Kohou just five times Sunday but completed four of those attempts for 101 yards and two touchdowns — good for a perfect 158.3 passer rating.
Wow, Stefon Diggs fights off Kohou and runs for a touchdown. Flag was an illegal contact call against Kohou. pic.twitter.com/jCcHqvOCkb
— Ian Valentino (@NFLDraftStudy) October 1, 2023
Diggs finished the game with six catches for 120 yards and three scores — a total that almost certainly would have been lower if Fangio had asked Xavien Howard to shadow the dynamic receiver, which was Howard’s preference.
From the current NFL standings to team depth charts to coverage of every game in the 18-week NFL schedule, we have all the news from around the league to keep you up to speed!
Miami Dolphins DC Vic Fangio Shoulders Blame
Fangio told reporters present at his weekly media availability that “in hindsight, maybe” he should have had a different plan for Diggs, who leads the NFL in touchdown catches (four) and is fourth in the AFC in receiving yards (399) through four weeks.
“We gave Diggs a lot of attention — obviously, not enough, as far as schematically,” Fangio said, per the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. “In hindsight, I don’t really feel bad about that decision. I’ve got confidence in Kader. It didn’t work out. The second-guessing is justified.”
Vic Fangio answers for not having Xavien Howard shadow Stefon Diggs on Sunday. pic.twitter.com/C1oeshF5FW
— David Furones (@DavidFurones_) October 5, 2023
The plan ahead of the season never was for Kohou to play the kind of snaps that he has. But with the injury to Jalen Ramsey, the decision to trade Noah Igbinoghene, and the slow development of rookie Cam Smith, the Dolphins don’t really have much of a choice.
MORE: Why Miami Dolphins Coach Mike McDaniel Is Sticking With Liam Eichenberg
Asked why Smith didn’t even get snaps on defense when the game was out of reach, Fangio replied, per the Miami Herald:
“He has to keep improving in practice. We’ve been giving him a fair amount of reps. We need to keep seeing consistent progress.”
Kohou on the year has allowed completions on 17 of his 22 targets for 204 yards and two touchdowns. The passer rating against him is 135.4.
Howard, meanwhile, has been much better. Opposing quarterbacks have completed 63.6% of their passes against him for 8.1 yards per attempt and a 72.9 rating.