Dan Quinn is off to Washington as the Commanders new head coach, which leaves a hole for the Dallas Cowboys to fill at defensive coordinator. The club is set to begin interviews this week and the job should be looked at favorably to prospective candidates considering the talent Dallas possesses on defense.
However, one hurdle to landing their preferred coach for the coordinator job has been speculated to be the uncertain long-term status of head coach Mike McCarthy. He is entering the final year of his current contract, and, after another early playoff exit in 2023, arguably has the hottest seat among coaches in the league. You could argue that a coach may not want to hitch his wagon to what could be a volatile situation in 2024, but owner Jerry Jones doesn't see McCarthy's lame-duck status as a major problem in this upcoming search.
"I don't anticipate that being an issue at all," Jones said, via the official team website. "If they take the job, they will be coordinator of the Cowboys. They would be looking at that right there and all that goes with that. If they're aspiring, they know there's a chance to be a head coach someplace, because the one that just left is."
It is a good selling point in the Cowboys' pitch to these candidates that a strong few seasons leading this talented defense could send them down a similar path to Quinn's and become a head coach someday. As for Quinn, Jones said that he was "an outstanding coach" for the Cowboys and he is not surprised to see him back as a head coach in the league.
"I felt ultimately two years ago that Dan wanted a head-coaching job, so it doesn't surprise me that he's landed a head-coaching job," Jones said. "I couldn't look at a crystal ball and see what direction that might go back then, but it doesn't surprise me -- the fact that he's got head-coaching credentials [and] been to a Super Bowl."
Jones noted that the Cowboys don't "have a timeline" for when a decision will be made at finding a new defensive coordinator. Among the reported candidates is former Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer, who was also the Cowboys defensive coordinator back in 2006.
