MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — New Miami Dolphins head coach Jeff Hafley has made his first addition to the staff, hiring Chris Tabor as special teams coordinator, ESPN’s Adam Schefter confirmed Friday.
Tabor, 54, comes to Miami after only one season at the same position with the Buffalo Bills.
His future with the Bills was uncertain after the team fired head coach Sean McDermott, and the move marks Tabor’s fifth NFL team as an special teams coordinator.
Tabor began coaching in college from 1993 to 2007 before moving to the NFL as the Chicago Bears’ assistant special teams coordinator in 2008 under legendary special teams coach Dave Toub.
He helped develop players such as Hall of Fame returner Devin Hester.
Tabor then led the Cleveland Browns’ special teams from 2011-17, overlapping with Hafley, who was the team’s defensive backs coach in 2014-15.
During Tabor’s season with Buffalo, running back Ray Davis earned first-team All-Pro honors as a kick returner.
Pro Football Focus ranked the Bills’ special teams ninth overall, compared with the Dolphins’ 28th.
The move means that Craig Aukerman, Miami’s special teams coordinator last season, is out after one year.
In addition to Tabor, the Dolphins hired Kyle Smith as assistant general manager, NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported.
Smith, 41, previously worked in the front offices of the Atlanta Falcons and Washington Commanders. He spent 2023-25 as Atlanta’s assistant GM under Terry Fontenot before the team fired Fontenot.
Smith, the son of former Chargers general manager A.J. Smith, joins the Dolphins’ front office under new general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan. The elder Smith was named NFL Executive of the Year after orchestrating the 2004 draft-day trade involving Eli Manning and Philip Rivers.
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