ESPN insider: Dallas Cowboys expect Dan Quinn to return as Mike McCarthy's DC if not hired away

The Dallas Cowboys suffered a first-round playoff loss at the hands of the Green Bay Packers during which they surrendered 48 points. Despite the sting of the embarrassing loss, the team is reportedly planning to hold on to defensive coordinator Dan Quinn, according to ESPN’s Ed Werder. The Cowboys want Quinn to return as Mike McCarthy’s right-hand man if one of the five teams he’s interviewing with this week doesn’t hire him away.

The former Falcons head coach has already completed interviews with the Tennessee Titans and Carolina Panthers this week. He’s also slated to meet with the Commanders, Seahawks, and Chargers over the next few days.

Quinn, 53, has served as Cowboys defensive coordinator for the past three seasons. The team has managed to fend off teams looking to poach the coordinator each of the last two offseasons but he’s made it clear he eventually wants to take the reins of his own team again at some point.

Dallas’ defense took a big jump in 2023, finishing as the No. 5 ranked unit in the league. Prior to joining the Cowboys, Quinn spent five-plus seasons as the head coach of the Atlanta Falcons. He also famously coached the “Legion of Boom” defense in Seattle, helping lead the Seahawks to a Super Bowl victory in 2013.

Cowboys opt to retain head coach Mike McCarthy

The Dallas Cowboys have chosen to retain head coach Mike McCarthy for a fifth season despite the disappointing first-round playoff loss last week. Team owner Jerry Jones assigned blame for the loss against the Packers to everyone within the organization, not just McCarthy, and said this week that he still believes the former Green Bay coach will lead Dallas to a Super Bowl.

“I believe this team is very close and capable of achieving our ultimate goals and the best step forward for us will be with Mike McCarthy as our head coach,” Jones said in a statement. “There is great benefit to continuing the team’s progress under Mike’s leadership as our head coach. Specifically, there are many layers of success that have occurred this season as a result of Mike’s approach to leading the team, both with individual players and with our team collectively.

“Mike has the highest regular season winning percentage of any head coach in Cowboys history and we will dedicate ourselves, in partnership with him, to translating that into reaching our postseason goals. Certainly, Mike’s career has demonstrated post-season success at a high level, and we have great confidence that can continue.”

The Cowboys must now turn their attention to the 16 players heading toward free agency in March. They also have several young stars looking for contract extensions this offseason.