Joe DeCamillis and John Garrett Could Be Next Cowboys Coaches To Leave

The remaking of the Dallas Cowboys coaching staff is just getting started. Monte Kiffin has been hired as the new defensive coordinator, but the makeup of the rest of the coaching staff is still subject to change.

The hiring of Kiffin has meant that all the defensive assistants are still trying to figure out their futures. Some may get an offer to stay, some may have the option of following Rob Ryan when he gets off vacation and starts his five-minute job search, and some may just be forced to start sending out resumes. The rest of the staff is also under scrutiny and it is all but certain that more changes are coming.

Nick Eatman of DallasCowboys.com has already tweeted that assistant strength and conditioning coach Walt Williams is leaving the staff, apparently to look for work outside of the NFL, and news reports at ESPN are now confirming it. Who will be the next to go? Two names seem to crop up a lot when that question is asked.

The more prominent of the two is special teams coordinator Joe DeCamillis. He interviewed with Chicago for the head coaching job, but did not make the short list. However, there is now a report that he may be trying to parlay that into taking over the Bears' special teams.

Taken along with some tweets coming out of the guys at DallasCowboys.com, it sounds like DeCamillis may have been told he is not in the plans for next year. There was mention made of the team not wanting to undercut him while he still had a shot at a head coaching job, which sounds a lot like word was out he was not going to be around. The special teams performance has been a bit up and down for the Cowboys over the past few years. The return game has been inconsistent, and it was not until Dwayne Harris emerged during last season that the team appeared to have that problem solved. His history is strictly that of a career special teams coordinator so he may be getting a bit "type-cast" there, and given the rather mediocre performance lately, this might be a phase of the game where some new leadership could benefit the Cowboys. The Bears have looked at him during the HC job search, and this may give him a leg up. It would allow a fairly amicable divorce, since the team would be able to frame it as allowing him to leave rather than pushing him out - but with the clock ticking on a supposed desire to finalize the staff before they leave next week for the Senior Bowl, that may not be allowed to play out all the way.

DeCamiilis' possible departure may be engineered to look like it is conflict free, but the other most frequently discussed potential move is being portrayed as all about conflict. The future of Jason Garrett's brother John, currently the tight ends coach, is seen as an issue between Jason Garrett and Jerry Jones.

Jones doesn't look to be done making changes and it appears he wants John Garrett out of here. If that's the case, there might be a power struggle between the head coach and the owner.

However much of a real power struggle this is, and how much is just media types trying to generate headlines, it looks certain that the "other" Garrett is planning to move on, with reports he has applied for the head coaching job at the University of Delaware (home of the fighting Blue Hens - sorry, I just think that is cute). This does look like a get-out-while-the-getting-is-good type move.

A move to Delaware would likely result in a pay cut, but there's unrest with the Cowboys staff after consecutive 8-8 seasons.

I don't know how much of this is being forced on Jason Garrett, and I doubt we will ever really know. It does illustrate the fact that some people are always looking for a negative way to portray things, and can always find something. However, it is clear that in the long run, being the head coach's brother did not help that much.

While neither DeCamilis or John Garrett has officially been shown the door, it looks like they are getting some pretty strong hints. We will try to keep you updated as things develop.