As unfamiliar as this may sound to many of us, Jerry Jones made it clear yesterday that Garrett will have the final say on all staffing decisions.
"I want to be real clear," Jerry Jones said, taking the podium from Jason Garrett in yesterday's press conference. "We're going to operate on the basis that he has the final say on any person on this staff, period. That's on the staff now, remaining on the staff, or joining the staff." Garrett's highest priority will obviously be to get a defensive coordinator. It seems like the Cowboys, pardon me, it seems like Garrett has his eyes set on Todd Bowles as the DC. According to Tom Orsborn from the San Antonio Express-News, Jerry Jones described his interview with Bowles as "spectacular". The only problem is that Bowles is still under contract with the Dolphins, and while the Cowboys received permission to interview him for the head coach position, they'd have to get Miami's okay again to consider him for a DC position. Calvin Watkins from ESPN Dallas reports that in private, the Cowboys - I'm sorry - Garrett wants him.
Word around Valley Ranch is that Wade Phillips and the Texans might also be interested in safeties coach Brett Maxie, but as of Thursday evening the Texans had not asked for permission to speak to him. Offensive assistant / quality control man Wes Phillips might follow his father to the Texans as well.
It is not yet fully clear who the four assistants are that Stephen Jones said have contracts that expire after this season. Ray Sherman is a sure bet to be one of them. David Moore from the DMN writes that there are actually only three members of the staff whose contracts are about to expire – receivers coach Ray Sherman, quarterbacks coach Wade Wilson and tight ends coach John Garrett. So who could that mysterious fourth man be?
ProFootballWeekly.com writes that both OL coach Hudson Houck and special-teams coordinator Joe DeCamillis have contracts beyond this year. Both are likely to return. Sherman is also likely to be back, and after his interview with Jerry Jones, might even see the assistant head coach title added to his door, perhaps with a little pay raise thrown in for good measure.
When asked when he hoped to have his staff completed, Garrett said,
"No timetable for that. Obviously you want to act as quickly as you can so you can go forward on the 2011 season."
Garrett also hinted at the Cowboys could continue to look outside as other clubs make wholesale staff changes with the arrival of new head coaches: "We'll evaluate everything in the organization," Garrett said. "With that comes the evaluation of our coaches and the understanding that there is always change in the National Football League at the coaching level, and we have to respond to some of those changes."
Our own KD Drummond wrote yesterday that Jason Garrett’s emphatic answer of "Yes" when asked about a dual role of head coach and offensive coordinator was making news. Well, where some observers saw an emphatic "Yes", others saw a monosyllabic "Yes" that could also be read as "Yes, for now, and I'm not going to say anything more right now". Garrett may continue to hold the playsheet, but don't close the door yet on either somebody coming in or being elevated internally to handle the bulk of the OC duties.
David Elfin from NFL Fanhouse.com did a quick rundown of which coaches in the NFL double as OC. Not many:
The only other news [...] was that Garrett [...] will continue to run the offense. The only NFL head coach in 2010 who didn't have an offensive coordinator was New England's Bill Belichick, who happens to be the only active leader with three Super Bowl championships on his resume. [...] So Garrett will call the plays for the Cowboys while Super Bowl winners Mike Shanahan, Tom Coughlin and Sean Payton (all of whom have offensive backgrounds) employ coordinators.
Should I stay or should I go: Current Dallas Cowboys Coaching Staff
| Offensive Coaches | Defensive Coaches | Specialty Coaches |
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Ray Sherman Wide Receivers |
Paul Pasqualoni Defensive Coordinator |
Joe Juraszek Strength and Conditioning |
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John Garrett Tight Ends |
Dave Campo Secondary |
Joe DeCamillis Special Teams |
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Skip Peete Running Backs |
Reggie Herring Linebackers |
Chris Boniol Kicking Consultant |
|
Wade Wilson Quarterbacks |
Bobby King Assistant Linebackers / Defensive Quality Control |
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|
Hudson Houck Offensive Line |
Brett Maxie Secondary / Safeties |
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Wesley Phillips Offensive Assistant / Quality Control |
||
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Keith O'Quinn Offensive Assistant / Quality Control |