Cowboys reach out to NFC East rivals as interview request for vacant DC gig continue – Joseph Hoyt, Dallas Morning News
Dallas has put in interview request for multiple defensive coordinator candidates within their division.
And now there are eight.
The Dallas Cowboys requested two new defensive coordinator candidates to interview
on Wednesday, a person familiar with the situation told The Dallas Morning News, in Philadelphia Eagles defensive passing game coordinator Christian Parker and Charlie Bullen, who finished the season as the interim defensive coordinator for the New York Giants.
Parker, 34, has been with the Eagles the last two seasons. He helped lead a secondary that played a significant role in the team’s Super Bowl win last year. Parker spent three seasons in Denver as the team’s defensive backs coach prior to joining the Eagles. Vic Fangio, the current defensive coordinator of the Eagles, originally brought Parker to Denver before bringing him to the Eagles, as well. There should be intrigue about the idea of plucking a young disciple of one of the best defensive minds in the league.
Bullen, 41, has been with the Giants the last two years, as well, serving as the team’s outside linebackers coach before he was promoted to interim coordinator after the Giants fired Shane Bowen, the previous defensive coordinator, in late November. The Giants allowed an average of 21 points per game under Bullen’s direction, including 17 in the season-ending win over the Cowboys.
Keep up to date with all the defensive coordinator search and rumors here.
The Cowboys aren’t being subtle about their intentions with pending defensive coordinator hire – Mauricio Rodriguez, AtoZ Sports
The Cowboys clearly have a type when it comes to their defensive coordinator search so far.
The Dallas Cowboys are taking their time with their defensive coordinator hire, and for good reason. Some candidates on their radar are still going through head coaching interviews and one many consider a favorite is still competing in the NFL playoffs—Jim Leonhard from the Denver Broncos.
But as we wait, there’s one thing we’ve learned from their search. The Cowboys are favoring defensive coaches with a specific background, and it happens to be one that fits with one of the team’s biggest weaknesses: The secondary.
Cowboys favoring DB coaches
Five out of eight candidates the Cowboys are known to be considering have a background of coaching defensive backs. Out of the six coaches with no coordinator experience at the NFL level on their interview list, four coach defensive backs (and three are currently passing game coordinators). The two exceptions are in-house candidate and defensive line coach Aaron Whitecotton, and New York Giants linebackers coach Charlie Bullen (who was interim DC in 2025).
As for the only former NFL head coach on the list so far, Jonathan Gannon, he rose through the NFL ranks coaching defensive backs in Minnesota and later Indianapolis.
Hiring pass game coordinators to be defensive coordinators or even head coaches has become a popular practice in the NFL. With the passing game dictating so much of today’s game, it’s become a priority to build a solid foundation of coverages to deal with the many threats of modern offenses.
In the past, the theme of the Cowboys’ defensive coordinator searches was former head coaches. This year’s search, which appears to be spearheaded by head coach Brian Schottenheimer more than the front office, it appears to be young coaches who can figure out how to coach defensive backs.
The NFL playoffs could not have gone better for the Cowboys – Shane Taylor, Inside The Star
After a wild first weekend of the NFL playoffs, the Cowboys sit with the 12th and 20th overall picks in the 2026 draft.
You might be asking yourself, what do I mean? The Dallas Cowboys did not even make the playoffs, and correct they did not, but outside of that, the wildcard round went about as perfectly as possible for Dallas.
It always sucks not watching the Cowboys in the playoffs, but the good news is they fired Matt Eberflus, the Packers lost and so did the Eagles.
The Cowboys will have their own first round pick in April at no. 12, and with the Packers choke job against the Bears, they now will have the 20th overall pick from the Micah Parsons trade.
If the Packers had won that game and who knows, maybe the next, Dallas could have moved as low as 25 or 26, but as I noted, without the Cowboys playing, the NFL playoffs have went just about as well as they could have hoped.
The crazy thing is, the Packers finished the regular season 9-7-1, just ahead of the Panthers (8-9). Both teams were eliminated Saturday in the Wild Card round. Had Carolina defeated the Rams, the Cowboys would’ve picked No. 19 instead of 20.
Cowboys labeled as a “top fit” for free agent running back Travis Etienne – Matthew Holleran, Blogging The Boys
The uncertainty at running back for the Cowboys may lead to adding one in free agency.
One positive aspect of the Dallas Cowboys’ 2025 season was the performance of their running back group. Coming into the year, there were real questions about the quality of the position group, and many believed they were one of the worst running back units in all of football.
As the season went on, we learned that could not have been further from the truth, and the performance of Dallas’ running backs as a whole was one of the bright spots in a lost season.
Javonte Williams, whom the Cowboys signed to a one-year deal last spring, was the star of the show, putting together the most complete season of his NFL career. Behind Williams, 27-year-old Malik Davis was a quality backup running back, averaging 4.8 Y/A and providing some much-needed juice to the run game in the second half of the season.
As good as Dallas’ running backs were this season, the position group’s future is once again uncertain as we head into the offseason. Both Williams and Davis (RFA) are free agents this spring, and the Cowboys have unproven Jaydon Blue and Phil Mafah as the only two running backs on their roster that are under contract for next season.
Blue or Mafah are both still young and could certainly turn into productive running backs as they continue to grow, but it’s almost a certainty that Dallas will pair them with a veteran running back next season. The most likely scenario appears to be the Cowboys re-signing Williams, which they have already expressed interest in doing at the end-of-season press conference.
But if Williams’ strong year prices him out of a return to Dallas, the Cowboys may have to look elsewhere for their veteran running back. If they do that, a potential option could be Jacksonville Jaguars running back Travis Etienne. In a recent article the Cowboys were listed as one of the “top fits” for the former first-round pick.
10 players the Dallas Cowboys could draft with two selections in the first round – Nick Harris, Fort Worth Star-Telegram
The Cowboys have a ton of options in the first round as they look for instant impact.
DB Caleb Downs, Ohio State
2025 stats: 68 tackles, 5.0 TFL, 2 INT, 1.0 sack (ninth in Heisman Trophy voting)
Height, weight: 6-0, 205 pounds
By far and away considered the best defensive back in the draft class, Downs would be a day one starter anywhere in the secondary for the Cowboys. While mostly a box safety with specialties playing the run and covering a large pass range, Downs has flexibility to play at the nickel spot or as a rover linebacker/safety hybrid. For a new defensive coordinator, it would immediately give him a piece to move around and experiment with in a lot of areas to find Downs’ highest impact. Although the safety position is typically devalued in the first round, Downs could go before the Cowboys have a chance to pick. But if he is available at No. 12, it’s hard to imagine many better players would be on the board.
DL Rueben Bain Jr., Miami
2025 stats: 46 tackles, 13.0 TFL, 8.5 sacks, 1 INT
Height, weight: 6-3, 270 pounds
Speaking of versatile pieces, would the Cowboys rather have flexibility on the defensive line? If so, Bain would be another fun piece for a new defensive coordinator. While he played the majority of his snaps on the edge, Bain did play 17% of his snaps in 2025 at defensive tackle, where he flashed in the run game and in pass rush situations. How many teams decide to take an edge rusher in the top 11 will determine Bain’s availability, but his impact as a multifaceted pass rusher and run defender would make him an intriguing option at No. 12 if he’s on the board.
