FRISCO: Interviews for Dan Quinn’s replacement at The Star started on Monday and Tuesday after the former defensive coordinator for the Dallas Cowboys left to seek a head coaching position in Washington, sources tell CowboysSI.com. Known figures like as former Cowboys assistant coach Mike Zimmer, former Washington head coach Ron Rivera, and current Dallas defensive line coach Aden Durde are on the list of potential candidates.
The discussion with Zimmer is still ongoing, but as of Tuesday, the session with Rivera is over, according to a source.
Rivera, the guy Quinn succeeded in Washington, is a name that might be on the list of interviewers. However, there are indications that the Joneses started this process with Zimmer in mind. Not that I have anything against him, but Dallas would be well to keep an open mind in this situation. There are a few other intriguing names available, but not many have emerged as candidates. Though they haven’t been strongly connected to the Cowboys, former Patriots coach Bill Belichick and Titans coach Mike Vrabel are also looking for jobs.
Among Cowboys staff members from 1994 to 2006, the most well-known and related name is former Vikings head coach Zimmer, who also held the position of defensive coordinator for seven years, from 2000 to 2006. Rivera, who most recently led the Carolina Panthers to a Super Bowl berth as head coach, was fired by the Commanders. Rivera worked as a defensive coordinator at San Diego and Chicago before to becoming a head coach.
The sole known internal contender is Durde, a less well-known person who has reportedly already conducted interviews; worker Al Harris is also highly rated. Before moving to Dallas as a defensive line coach in 2021, Durde spent two seasons as an outside linebackers coach and one as a defensive quality coach under Quinn in Atlanta. Along with former Cowboys employee Joe Whitt Jr., who moved to Washington with Quinn, Durde participated in the NFL’s Coach Accelerator Program in May of this year. Since then, several teams have expressed interest in signing Durde as a coordinator.
