Joe Barry, the San Diego Chargers linebackers coach the past four seasons, was named the Washington Redskins defense coordinator, the team announced Tuesday.

The Redskins turned to Barry after they were spurned by Vic Fangio, who accepted an offer to be the Chicago Bears’ defensive coordinator.

“We talked to Vic, and we knew he had a lot of offers on the table,” Redskins coach Jay Gruden said at a Senior Bowl practice in Mobile, Ala. “We just wanted to get him in and see what he was all about so he could see our situation, and he chose to go to Chicago. As far as the offer is concerned, we knew it was kind of a long shot him coming anyway.

“Because obviously he’s a great candidate and great football coach, it would’ve been stupid for us not to reach out and try to get him.”

The hiring of Barry continues the makeover of the team after a 4-12 season. The team added general manager Scot McCloughan and offensive line coach Bill Callahan, and fired defensive coordinator Jim Haslett after his fifth season with the team.

Barry, 44, coached linebackers for eight seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and he coached linebackers in 2010 at USC.

Barry served as the Detroit Lions’ defensive coordinator in 2007 and 2008. The Lions were 0-16 in 2008 with a defense that allowed 517 points. The 2007 Lions allowed an NFL-record 422 completions and a 70.1 percent pass completion rate.

“I think it’s molded him,” Gruden said. “One thing we know is he can handle adversity. That’s important.”