Dan Quinn’s Cowboys future now secure after Thursday HC hires

Dallas Cowboys fans can take a giant sigh of relief. On Thursday morning, Tom Pelissero revealed that defensive coordinator Dan Quinn told Dallas that he is staying with the team for the 2022 season. After a frustrating loss in Super Wild Card Weekend and a lack of definitive answers from owner Jerry Jones about next season, Quinn’s choice to stay is the best news the Cowboys have had in weeks.

The defensive coordinator interviewed for five different head coaching vacancies over the last few weeks: Chicago Bears, Denver Broncos, Minnesota Vikings, Miami Dolphins, and New York Giants. There were many reports that Quinn was a favorite for the Broncos job.

Early Thursday morning, the Broncos announced that they were going with Green Bay offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett. After that, a source told ESPN’s Adam Schefter that Quinn withdrew his name from consideration for the Bears job. That role now belongs to Indianapolis Colts defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus who also happens to be a former Cowboys assistant.

While the Dolphins, Vikings, and Giants jobs still remain vacant, it appears Quinn prefers to stay in Dallas rather than taking one of those positions.

Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn tells the team that he will return for the 2022 season

This is excellent news for the Cowboys. Quinn became a highly-targeted candidate after helping the Dallas defense make a huge turnaround this past season. For a franchise known for weak defenses, Quinn changed the narrative. His squad led the league with 34 takeaways, and he helped to shape young players like Micah Parsons and Trevon Diggs.

Offensive coordinator Kellen Moore is still in talks for some head coaching jobs, although it appears he will remain in Dallas at this point. It seems most Cowboys fans would love to see Moore take another job, which is a very different sentiment from the virtually unanimous sigh of relief about Quinn staying in Texas.

There are rumors that Quinn may be waiting for the Seattle Seahawks job to open, but that likely won’t happen for at least another year, if it does at all. This quote from Quinn in the final weeks of the season may be part of the reason he stayed as well.

"“I wasn’t coming here to look at what my next job would be. I wanted to come in here and have a blast and hopefully kick a** and make an impact. I’m having a blast right here with this crew and going for it. That’s where my mind is, that’s where my heart is. I don’t really spend a lot of time thinking about down the road or what’s next. I just like really being in the moment with the guys.”"

We’re glad to have you back, Quinn!

Kellen Moore reversing course, reportedly likely to stay with Cowboys

After taking several interviews for head coaching vacancies, Aaron Wilson of SI reports that Kellen Moore is likely staying with the Cowboys.