Josh

Boyer

The Dolphins fell from 10th to 15th in defensive DVOA without Brian Flores, who has picked up both head coach and defensive coordinator interest this offseason. Boyer has a Patriots background so he’s likely to resurface somewhere on that tree’s staff if he wants to keep coaching in the NFL. It’s not really Boyer’s fault that Xavien Howard was oft-dinged this year and that Byron Jones wasn’t able to play, but his answer to that seemed to mostly be blitzing and the mid-season trade for Bradley Chubb did not keep Miami from having to go to that answer.

Boyer is a longtime Patriots assistant who joined Brian Flores in Miami in 2019. He assumed the defensive coordinator position when Patrick Graham left to join the Giants in 2020. Boyer made clear to the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson that he called defensive plays in 2021, refuting a report that he had not been the play-caller. Regardless, the Dolphins’ defense should be expected to shift somewhat in 2022. Boyer plans to emphasize his focus on the secondary and he should have more autonomy over the unit with McDaniel’s expertise being on the offensive side. The Dolphins had an extremely easy schedule in the back half of 2021, but they dominated on defense over that stretch. Coaching continuity on the defensive side of the ball gives Miami a good shot of building on that success in 2022.

He’ll take the place of Patrick Graham, who is headed to New York to become the Giants’ defensive coordinator. A long-time Patriots assistant, Boyer defected to Miami along with head coach Brian Flores last offseason. Miami’s secondary struggled under Boyer in 2019, though he didn’t have much talent to work with, particularly after All-Pro Xavien Howard was lost to a season-ending knee injury.