The Miami Dolphins made their first hire under new head coach Jeff Hafley, bringing in former Buffalo Bills special teams coordinator Chris Tabor.
The Miami Dolphins have hired Jeff Hafley, and his most pressing matter is to start getting his coaching staff together.
Hafley has already brought in his first hire, former Buffalo Bills special teams coordinator Chris Tabor. Tabor spent the 2025 season with the Bills, but with Sean McDermott out, the team is likely bringing in a brand new coaching staff of its own.
Special teams is and always will be an important part of any team, and Tabor led the Bills to being one of only six teams to secure a kickoff return touchdown.
Per Statmuse, the Bills had the 13th-best special teams under Tabor.
Tabor has over 30 years of coaching experience, beginning at the collegiate level in 1993. He worked his way up through the college ranks, landing his first NFL job with the Chicago Bears in 2008 as an assistant special teams coach.
Tabor would eventually be promoted to special teams coordinator in 2011, where he remained in 2017, eventually serving in the same role for the Carolina Panthers, Bills, and now with the Dolphins.
Hafley has at least one coordinator notched in his coaching staff, and the expectation is that he will continue to hire his staff throughout the weekend.
The Dolphins need to get going on their coaching staff hires, along with filling out the front office under new general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan.
Sullivan already pulled off a hire of his own, bringing in former Atlanta Falcons assistant general manager Kyle Smith to serve in the same role with the Dolphins.
Despite what appears to be a quick transition into bringing in a new coaching staff and front office staff, the Dolphins need to square away both to prepare for the Senior Bowl, along with the start of the league year.
The Senior Bowl is on January 31, and will give the Dolphins a chance to scout upper level classman at the collegiate level for the upcoming 2026 NFL Draft.
Free agency is also right around the corner, as it officially starts on March 11. By that time, Sullivan and Smith, along with the other front office staff, need to figure out a plan to cut down the severely negative cap situation for the Dolphins.
The new coaching staff will also need to make their recommendations for players they want to target in free agency and in the draft.
For now, the Dolphins have at least their new special teams coordinator in place.