It is hard to fathom just how bad the Dallas Cowboys botched the process that led them to hiring Brian Schottenheimer as head coach. By waiting a week to make a decision on Mike McCarthy, the Cowboys left their entire coaching staff in limbo.
In doing so, they have already lost multiple prized assistant coaches. That includes defensive backs coach Al Harris, who is now the Bears' defensive passing game coordinator, and special teams coordinator John "Bones" Fassel, who took the same job with the Titans.
Those are huge losses and you can all but add Mike Zimmer to that list after Cowboys insider Ed Werder reported that Zimmer won't return as defensive coordinator and will likely retire from coaching in the NFL. That has been the fear out of Dallas since the season ended.
The Cowboys and Schottenheimer will have to move quickly to find Zimmer's replacement. That may happen sooner than you think.
Cowboys closing in on hiring Matt Eberflus as next defensive coordinator
According to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network, former Bears head coach Matt Eberflus will interview for the defensive coordinator job on Monday and he's expected to get the job if everything goes to plan.
Eberflus was linked to the vacant defensive coordinator job minutes after Dallas hired Schottenheimer and speculation has only grown since then.
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It was actually reported he got the job, but that was premature. The Cowboys have to go through the interview process before making a hire. That includes interviewing at least one minority candidate to meet the NFL's Rooney Rule requirement.
The team has since interviewed multiple candidates, including Bears secondary coach Andre Curtis, who worked under Eberflus in Chicago. According to ESPN, Dallas also sat down with Dolphins outside linebackers coach Ryan Crow.
While it's not ideal that Micah Parsons and Co. will have to learn their third defensive scheme in as many seasons, the Cowboys would be hard-pressed to make a better hire than Eberflus.
It's well-documented that Eberflus was in over his head as Bears head coach, but he's had immense success as a defensive coordinator. The Colts were a top-10 scoring defense three times in Eberflus' four years as DC. They were also top-10 in rushing yards allowed as well as takeaways all four years.
Eberflus is also a linebackers whisperer. He was the Cowboys' linebackers coach for six seasons before taking the Colts' DC job in 2018. While Dallas' linebacker play improved dramatically last season, it's been among the weakest positions on the roster in recent years.
Eberflus had a huge impact on Sean Lee's rise to stardom and he made Anthony Spencer a respectable player. Remember Shaquille Leonard in Indianapolis? He was an All-Pro all four years with Eberflus as his DC then fall off the face of the earth after his departure.
Eberflus could have a similar impact on rising star DeMarvion Overshown and 2024 third-round pick Marist Liufau, who came on really strong towards the end of the season.
Hiring Schottenheimer did little to move the needle, but the Cowboys are doing their best to assemble a stacked coaching staff around him.