Dan Quinn chose to take a job as the Commanders’ new head coach, therefore the Cowboys are looking for a new offensive coordinator. Although there are many applicants for the position, Mike Zimmer has been identified early on as a leading prospect.
With 13 seasons as a coach with the Cowboys in the late 1990s and early 2000s, including seven as their defensive coordinator, Zimmer has a deep connection to the franchise. But most famously, Zimmer faced off against his prospective new boss often throughout his eight seasons as head coach of the Vikings
However, Quinn’s replacement is a complicated possibility. Quinn was a huge success in Dallas by most measures, but his
The Cowboys must have mixed feelings about what comes next. While there are many excellent things Quinn accomplished in Dallas that should be carried over into the following year, there are also some obvious problems. Quinn’s well-known inability to handle offences in the Shanahan style was by far his greatest flaw.
The fact that 15 of the 32 NFL clubs this past season employed an offence that might be considered a branch of the Shanahan coaching tree made this a clear issue for the Cowboys. The number of teams seeking to hire coordinators with such schematic backgrounds is increasing, as well. As we already know, there are presently 18 spots available for the upcoming season, with some coordinator positions remaining unfilled.
In other words, in today’s league, defences risk their lives if they can’t contain the Shanahan attack. Quinn had constructed some very strong defences in Dallas, but it was concerning that he was still having trouble with the league’s most popular system. Furthermore, in the instance
Therefore, why would Zimmer—who hasn’t been a full-time coach since being fired as head coach of the Vikings in 2021—be the solution? To begin with, he provides a coaching profile that is comparable to Quinn’s. Both were long-respected for their defensive abilities and were past head coaches who saw varying degrees of success before fizzling out.
Similar to Quinn, Zimmer has long enjoyed considerable success on defence. When Zimmer was the head coach of the Vikings, he called defensive plays and made sure that Minnesota’s defence was among the best in the league. In fact, Zimmer’s Vikings finished fourth in EPA/play allowed throughout his eight years as head coach.
Zimmer has not only performed admirably all around the defence
It should be noted that Zimmer’s sample size is far less than others because he hasn’t been a coach for the past two years, during which the popularity of the Shanahan offence has surged. Nevertheless, he faced Shanahan and Sean McVay five times as head coach and twice a year during his final three seasons in Minnesota. He also battled Matt LaFleur’s Packers.
Even with all the offensive adjustments made over the last two years, the sample size may not be large enough to be very predictive, but Zimmer has undoubtedly been tried against this kind of offence. In addition to his positive experience opposing this technique, it appears that he has been studying game footage and analytics, akin to Mike McCarthy.
But one significant distinction between Quinn and Zimmer is how they see their careers developing over time. Quinn was only 50 years old when he arrived in Dallas, and if he was successful with the Cowboys, many anticipated that he would reappear as a head coach. That is precisely what transpired, but far more quickly than anyone had predicted.
However, this summer marks Zimmer’s 68th birthday. In a world where the 71-year-old Bill Belichick was unable to get a position with eight openings, it seems improbable that Zimmer would be doing head coaching interviews annually in the same manner that Quinn has done each offseason since moving to Dallas.
It would be unrealistic to call Zimmer a sure thing given how much has changed since he last coached football. Although Zimmer has a long and impressive defensive resume, his inability to call quality defences was more of a factor in his collapse in Minnesota than his micromanagement of the offence. There is a lot to admire about this possible hire when you take into account the possibility that Dallas wouldn’t really have to worry about him departing for a better job if he is successful.
