Vic Fangio believes Jevon Holland can become one of the league’s top safeties

The Miami Dolphins welcomed Vic Fangio as a change of pace at defensive coordinator following three years of Josh Boyer’s blitz-happy philosophy.

The 36-year coach didn’t tip his hand by describing his defense with buzzwords or tip his hand when it comes to blitzing.

“As needed and when I want to,” Fangio said of blitzing at his opening press conference. “Versus having to. If you have to, that’s not a great feeling.

“We’re in charge of not letting the other team score and we will do anything and everything to do that. I’ve been places in the past where we pressured a lot. I’ve been places where we didn’t pressure very much. You’ve got to fit the scheme to the players that you have while also factoring in the opponents that you’re playing.”

The Dolphins are developing a handful of budding stars that spent most of their career with a blitz-first mindset, but things will change with Fangio running the defense. The former head coach of the Denver Broncos mentioned that he’s looking forward to teaching Miami’s young defense — especially safety Jevon Holland.

“I haven’t studied him enough since he’s gotten the NFL as far as what can I teach him, but I do know I really liked them the year he came out in the draft,” Fangio said of the 2021 second-round pick. “I like his physical ability, his combination of size, speed, quickness, he’s got good instincts. I think he’s smart from a football standpoint...

“I’m hopeful and confident that he can be one of the top safeties in the league.”

Holland played in all 17 games for the Dolphins with 96 tackles, 1.5 sacks, one forced fumble, and two interceptions. Miami struggled with injuries in the secondary, which limited what the team could do with the second-year safety, who was the team’s last line of defense for most of the season.