The Dallas Cowboys are searching for their fourth defensive coordinator in as many years. You already know that since it has been said a lot in the lead-up to, and obviously throughout, this process so
far.
Isolating a filter, so to speak, on the time in question though, this is only the second time they are doing it in one particular way. To be clear this is only the third defensive coordinator search that Dallas has been a part of as Dan Quinn is a part of the “four in four years” narrative, but within the three searches only two have happened with a sitting head coach. The first time was ahead of Mike McCarthy’s final season when the team gave him Mike Zimmer and the second time is now after Brian Schottenheimer’s initial campaign.
We could get a little bit deeper with this idea if we really wanted to as well. While the Cowboys were looking for a defensive coordinator with a sitting head coach in Mike McCarthy, they were also doing so with the whole world knowing that the season they were looking to hire for was the final one on McCarthy’s contract. That lame duck status hung over everyone associated with the 2024 team, but we are not here to discuss that as much as we are to contextualize what the search processes were like relative to one another, and more importantly, how they differ.
It is nice to see a wide net being cast
This whole idea really crystallized for me last week after seeing a tweet from Mauricio Rodriguez. I vividly recall the “search” that Dallas underwent two years ago, but for some reason seeing the names brought it fully to the front of my mind.
The most serious candidates who the Cowboys involved for the same level of search two years ago were Ron Rivera, Rex Ryan, and the eventual job winner in Mike Zimmer. Keep in mind that at the time two (Ryan and Zimmer) had not recently been coaching and the other was the man who created their need as Dan Quinn took his job in Washington.
Conversations around the 2024 team invariably lead to a sweeping under the rug of sorts and this is no different. The candidates were likely so limited because of the situation with McCarthy. That isn’t and wasn’t shocking, but it was of the team’s own doing.
All of this context is important because not only have we seen the names of the aforementioned Jim Leonhard, Daronte Jones, and Ephraim Banda, but the Cowboys search is pretty expansive at this point as time has passed. Jonathan Gannon, Zach Orr, Christian Parker, Charlie Bullen, and Demarcus Covington have all joined the fold. Jeff Ulbrich hasn’t because the Atlanta Falcons wouldn’t let him, but this is one of those rare instances where the Cowboys deserve credit for simply trying as they attempted to interview him.
This list is refreshing in a lot of ways. Quantitatively we are already well above what the team looked into two years ago, but on the subject of numbers the ages of these coaches matter as well (all due respect to Rivera, Ryan, and Zimmer).
Ron Rivera was 62 years old in 2024. Rex Ryan was 61. Mike Zimmer was 67.
Matt Eberflus is currently 55 years old. Heck, Dan Quinn was the youngest of all involved when he was hired in 2021 (he was 50). Mike Nolan was 60 when Dallas hired him in parallel with Mike McCarthy if you want me to keep going.
Being older is not a bad thing, that’s not the takeaway here. The takeaway is that it’s a deviation from the norm. The Cowboys are trying something new and different. What is particularly impressive about this is that these are, with the exception of Aaron Whitecotton who the team is also reportedly considering, outside and external names.
The Cowboys have burned up benefit of the doubt for a lot of people and have a long way towards rebuilding trust, but this does seem like movement in the right direction. Now we just need to see who they pick.
