Sean Payton tried to get Vic Fangio to Denver but Miami Dolphins won out

The Miami Dolphins haven’t won a lot of coaching bids over the years but they got their guy with Vic Fangio. Sean Payton wanted him too.

When Sean Payton took over the Broncos head coaching job after being “traded” by the Saints, Vic Fangio was a target. It didn’t work out.

Payton spoke with the media today and was asked about Fangio and he has a lot of good things to say. Including that he tried to “twist his arm” to get him to come to Denver. Why didn’t it work out? For starters, it wasn’t too long ago that Fangio was fired by the Broncos.

Miami got this win and now Fangio is running the Dolphins defense. What was it about Miami that attracted him to the Dolphins? We can assume part of that is because of Mike McDaniel who also wanted him in Miami and likely made a big pitch. It also helped that Miami likely offered a lot more money.

Another reason is that Fangio has a house on the Florida panhandle and as such, he is closer to home.

Regardless, Fangio has control and chances are he has full authority and final say over the defensive side of the ball. Chris Grier of course will make roster decisions and free agent signings but Fangio, it would be safe to assume as almost full control over what players do and do not make the team. Fangio will consult with both McDaniel and Grier but if he is adamant about a player, it would be surprising if the Dolphins didn’t give in.

While Stephen Ross won’t get the credit for bringing in Fangio, he will pay the salary and he can, in some small way, consider this a victory after losing out on Payton last year, being fined for tampering with him, and not losing Fangio to him after Payton took the job in Denver.