The Miami Dolphins are getting to know their newest defensive coordinator, Kevin Coyle, who spent 11 seasons with the Cincinnati Bengals, the last nine of which as the team's defensive backs coach. Though there wasn't obvious connections between Coyle and head coach Joe Philbin, the Dolphins newest head coach liked Coyle for his "teaching ability".
Former Bengals offensive guard and current play-by-play for the Bengals radio network Dave Lapham reflected on Coyle to The Palm Beach Post on Friday:
"He understands the fundamentals and the techniques, and in his role cultivated multiple Pro Bowl guys in his tenure," Lapham said. "I have a lot of confidence he will succeed."
"He's been good with different kinds of personalities," Lapham said. "He raised Jonathan Joseph from a pup and he's a Pro Bowler (with Houston) now. He took Adam (Pacman) Jones, who had been out of the game for a while and is like a wild horse, and contained him. When Nate Clements came in (to replace Joseph) this year, he and Kevin hit a chord of mutual respect.
"All those guys are different, yet they all responded to Kevin Coyle. He's got the people skills to figure a guy out and handle his hot-button issues."
With Coyle departing, the Bengals are now tasked with finding a new defensive backs coach.