Hafley, the former Boston College head coach, joined the Dolphins in a virtual interview on January 14. He has interviewed with at least six of the nine teams with head coaching vacancies, including a scheduled interview on Saturday with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The Packers hired Hafley as their defensive coordinator in 2024, luring him away from Boston College where he was 22-26 in four seasons. He led Boston College to three bowl-game invites during his tenure, but COVID-19 concerns cancelled two of the games.
Before taking the Boston College job, Hafley had been the co-defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach at Ohio State for the 2019 season. He has had various defensive coaching positions, primarily working with the defensive backs, with the San Francisco 49ers, Cleveland Browns, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFL as well as at Rutgers, Pittsburgh, Albany, and Worcester Polytechnic Institute at the collegiate level.
The NFL prohibits coaches under contract with a team from interviewing with another team in person before January 19. Teams must also not be in the playoffs, or they must be on the bye before the Super Bowl, before a coach can be interviewed in person.