Vic Fangio's ability to coach a defense has never been in doubt.

Fangio got a shot to be a head coach with the Denver Broncos and it didn't work out, but after he was fired it wasn't going to be long before he resurfaced as a coordinator.

The Miami Dolphins, looking to boost their defense, hired Fangio. They paid him well too.

Fangio joins the Dolphins and will be the NFL's highest-paid coordinator according to NFL Media's Tom Pelissero.

The Dolphins made the playoffs this season and had a close wild-card round loss to the Buffalo Bills. The offense improved a lot in head coach Mike McDaniel's first season on the job. The defense lagged behind. The Dolphins were 24th in points allowed and 18th in yards allowed. They fired defensive coordinator Josh Boyer after the season.

Fangio could change the Dolphins' defense in a hurry. He has spent 22 years as either a defensive coordinator or head coach. His defenses have finished in the top 10 of points allowed or yardage allowed 10 times. He was 19-30 in three seasons as Broncos head coach, but his defense wasn't the biggest problem in Denver.

The Dolphins are looking to take another step after a good growth season. They were willing to spend big to fix the defense.