MIAMI DOLPHINS, Fla. — There was an undeniable distance between Vic Fangio and his Miami Dolphins defensive players in 2023 — both literally and figuratively.
Fangio, as Dolphins defensive coordinator, would barely talk to his players except at the half — and that was by design. He elected to call the game from the coach’s booth and have assistant coach Anthony Campanile relay each play via radio to Jerome Baker or Duke Riley.
Expect a far more streamlined process under Weaver, who intends to be on the field during games in his first season as Dolphins DC.
Miami Dolphins DC Anthony Weaver’s In-Game Plans
“I’m a downstairs guy, man,” Weaver told reporters at his introductory news conference Thursday.
“I need to feel what’s going on in the game, feel how the players are reacting to the situation, and hopefully be a positive influence in whatever reaction that is. I don’t think you can have that same effect from up in the booth.”
That back and forth wasn’t a priority for Fangio, who knew what he liked and wouldn’t change.
Before the season, Fangio explained why he was a booth guy and not a sideline guy.
“I think it’s the best place to watch the game from,” he said. “There’s a reason they film the game from up there for the tape. There’s a reason the owners, who can sit anywhere they want, sit there. It’s the best place to watch the game from, and you can see things and adjust better.”
Certainly, that is an advantage. But it has an isolating effect.
And the extra layer of in-game bureaucracy — needing a middleman to relay his calls — certainly can slow things down or create confusion.
“It’s kind of teaching an old dog new tricks,” Fangio explained back in December. “I got so used to – that was the way it is, especially being in the box. Then, when they made it available that you could do it from the box, I was just too ingrained to my system of doing it. I didn’t want to have to mess with the controls and all that.”
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Weaver’s preference means that both the Dolphins’ offensive and defensive play-callers will be on the sidelines on gamedays (assuming Mike McDaniel will again be the team’s functional offensive coordinator in 2024).
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