SCHEFTER: Brandon Staley scheduled to meet with Dolphins for vacant defensive coordinator position

<div><figure> <img alt="Los Angeles Chargers v Las Vegas Raiders" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/TmcS0tZKbRSY9uQ1zVCfCutyNHg=/0x0:6000x4000/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73087370/1856478391.0.jpg"> <figcaption>Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images</figcaption> </figure> <p>ESPN’s Adam Schefter is reporting that former Chargers’ head coach Brandon Staley is scheduled to meet with the Miami Dolphins this weekend for their vacant defensive coordinator position. </p> <p id="uFZ1R2">When the <a href="https://www.thephinsider.com/">Miami Dolphins</a> and defensive coordinator Vic Fangio agreed to part ways, one of the first names that were linked to the team — outside of linebackers coach Anthony Campanile — was former <a href="https://www.boltsfromtheblue.com/">Los Angeles Chargers</a> head coach Brandon Staley. </p> <p id="oJUrex"></p> <p id="m60Kbx">According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Staley will meet with the <a href="https://www.acmepackingcompany.com/">Green Bay Packers</a> later today before meeting with Mike McDaniel and the Dolphins for their DC vacancy this weekend. </p> <p id="tuKxH9"></p> <div id="85KNCv"> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true"> <p lang="en" dir="ltr">Former Chargers’ HC Brandon Staley is meeting today with the Packers about their defensive coordinator job, is scheduled to meet with the Dolphins about their DC vacancy this weekend, and has drawn interest from the Rams about being a potential Raheem Morris replacement, per… <a href="https://t.co/76Bk9ItNVV">pic.twitter.com/76Bk9ItNVV</a></p>— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) <a href="https://twitter.com/AdamSchefter/status/1750921841613340821?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 26, 2024</a> </blockquote> </div> <p id="GpWV1h"></p> <p id="ZKK5dJ">Staley, 41, began coaching in 2006 as a graduate assistant at the University of Northern Illinois. After ten seasons coaching collegiately, Staley made the leap to the NFL in 2017, joining Vic Fangio’s defensive staff in Chicago. After two seasons with the Bears, he would depart with his mentor to Denver. </p> <p id="5WFl4q"></p> <p id="xxa7xj">In 2020, he would take over for Wade Phillips in Los Angeles, leading the Rams to a strong season. Staley’s defense would finish the year first in points and total yards allowed. This would position the young defensive mind to become the head coach of the Los Angeles Chargers in 2021, where he spent three seasons leading the team to a 24-25 record. </p> <p id="h4IFBo"></p> <div id="dqzBOk"><div style="max-width: 660px"><div style="left: 0;width: 100%;height: 450px;position: relative"></div></div></div> <p id="Gtu6Sx"></p> <p id="YEO0qc">He now looks to land on a team where he can build his reputation back up; could that be the Dolphins? Never say never. After all, he does have a pre-established relationship with Jalen Ramsey. Here’s a snippet from <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com/?id=66960X1641938&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Ftheathletic.com%2F3028685%2F2022%2F01%2F06%2Fchallenge-me-mercurial-or-misunderstood-jalen-ramsey-just-needs-to-know-the-answers%2F&referrer=sbnation.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.thephinsider.com%2F2024%2F1%2F26%2F24051725%2Fbrandon-staley-scheduled-to-meet-with-miami-dolphins-for-vacant-defensive-coordinator-position" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">The Athletic</a>. (H/T/ <a href="https://twitter.com/Phindiana13/status/1750258133488828649/photo/1">@Phindiana13</a>)</p> <p id="X09Nca"></p> <blockquote> <p id="3Ikk4p"><em>“The “Star” position is not new, nor is it unique to the Rams. But the possibilities for its evolution and development within the Rams defense is designed to be unique to Ramsey. Former Rams defensive coordinator and current Chargers head coach Brandon Staley, who along with Cooley and Pleasant first began to brainstorm the position with Ramsey in 2020, wanted to make him the center of a solar system around which other players orbited depending on his place on the field.</em></p> <p id="3iysFn"><em>From the personnel department to the coaching staff to the defensive scheme itself, the Rams made it clear to Ramsey that they wanted to rebuild their entire secondary around him. That was a language he was not accustomed to hearing. Ramsey felt valued, but he also didn’t miss the challenge posed: He was expected to grow.</em></p> <p id="4K34P3"><em> “That’s when you get the best out of him, “ Cooley says. </em></p> <p id="1Ubaq3"><em> “When he doesn’t feel like he’s challenged, that’s when he’s not his best self.”</em></p> </blockquote> <p id="MTRYZm"></p> <p id="6xxhpK">The article continues: </p> <p id="ik7hjK"></p> <blockquote> <p id="DL96BR"><em>“During the 2020 offseason, with the Rams’ practice facilities shut down, Staley, Pleasant, Cooley and Ramsey texted or FaceTimed every day, bonding over scheme and analysis – and in the case of Staley and Pleasant, the young families they were building.”</em></p> <p id="sZOeyC"><em>“In Ramsey, the defensive coaches found a collaborative mind who also tested them. They found that he learns best by listening, that sometimes his eyes aren’t on the film during study sessions because he can better see what is unfolding on the field in his head by hearing it described.”</em></p> </blockquote> <p id="kllQ1d"></p> <p id="eqzI3g">Will Brandon Staley be the next Miami Dolphins defensive coordinator? No one can say for certain. But if Jalen Ramsey has any say in it — which I would imagine he does — the answer could be a resounding “yes”. </p> <p id="gSojNH"></p> <p id="uYgpw4">Take your time, McDaniel; this decision is important. </p> <p id="Y1jD5b"></p> <p id="vOYyie"></p> <p id="1pLmPc"><em>How would you feel if Brandon Staley was the Dolphins’ next defensive coordinator? Who si your preference to replace Vic Fangio? What are your thoughts about Miami’s defense heading into the 2024 NFL season? Let us know in the comments section below!</em></p></div>