Dallas Cowboys Next Head Coach Should Be Rob Ryan

New Orleans Saints defensive coordinator Rob Ryan with father Buddy Ryan and New York Jets head coach Rex Ryan – William Perlman/The Star-Ledger via USA TODAY Sports

First of all, Jones could fix a moral error in short order, thus resting his highly fragile ego that certainly has it’s share of loyalty as it’s candy shell.

Finally, Jones would have a true head coach that also brings with him some proof in the pudding—and Ryan looks like he can pack away some pudding.

I’m not going to waste much time discussing Garrett, but I’ll simply add that there is and was little, if anything, suggesting that he’s even head coaching material, let alone destined to be a successful one.

We know that Garrett played football at Princeton, which is not exactly the same as lining up in the SEC on Saturdays, and hardly ever touched the field again thereafter.

We know that Garrett’s father, Jim, was a scout for the Cowboys from 1987 through 2004. He also served as an assistant coach for the New York Giants, New Orleans, and Cleveland Browns from the early 1970s to 1984. Almost all of those teams were awful.

Brothers John and Judd were never factors in the NFL as players, but the former was asked to leave the Cowboys as tight ends coach following last season. John now coaches wide receivers in Tampa Bay for the Buccaneers—check out their record, just for a goof.

A third brother is an English teacher.

All we can see here is some good educations and a whole lot of hanging around in the NFL for no obvious reasons. Nowhere is there anything but an aura of Ivy League privilege and connections—this is not to say that the Garrett’s aren’t hard working people, but where’s the true football goods?

Now, let’s examine the Ryan family tree.

It all starts with father Buddy, a man Dallas fans of longer than a decade probably know quite well. The eldest Ryan authored the only defense I can think of that’s still recognized, universally, by a single year followed by a single National Football League franchise: 1985 Chicago Bears.

No, Buddy was never quite the head coach that he was a defensive coordinator, but his five seasons leading the Philadelphia Eagles was nothing to scoff at. A lack of postseason success aside, Ryan still put together a defense that, by itself, made the Eagles a contender. On top of everything, Ryan is remembered as a defensive assistant that reached the Super Bowl with three different franchises, which includes the 1968 New York Jets and the 1976 Minnesota Vikings, in addition to the ’85 Bears.

Now, this is what I call a coaching pedigree.

Rob’s twin brother, Rex, is currently the head coach of those same Jets that Buddy won a Super Bowl with decades ago. It’s important to remember that Rex took the Jets to the AFC Championship Game in his first two seasons as head coach. With anybody other than Mark Sanchez at quarterback prior to this season, who knows where the only current head coach named Ryan would be right now.

So, what about Rob?

Jones may have stated this week that Garrett will again serve as head coach in Dallas in 2014. He made similar comments about Gailey during the final weeks of his brief, yet successful, run as Cowboys head coach.

What else is Jones supposed to say when repeatedly asked about the status of his seemingly “lame-duck” head coach?

Jones needs a winner for a head coach and Rob Ryan should be his choice. Ryan wouldn’t be a bigger name than Jones can tolerate—but Ryan might be the guy who steps up and tells Jones to back off, something Garrett has never seemed willing to do.

Can you imagine any Ryan we know of going through the kind of offseason Garrett just did without visibly and confidently maintaining his perception of being the true leader of the team?

Hardly.

Should New Orleans make a deep impact on the NFC playoffs, or perhaps another trip to the Super Bowl, Ryan could very well be one of the hottest prospects for a head coaching gig in 2014.

I simply hope that Jones spends as much time at The Landry Hat as he does listening to sports talk radio in Dallas-Ft. Worth.