Cowboys news: ESPN reports the Cowboys will be moving on from Jason Garrett

Cowboys to move on without Jason Garrett, source says - Ed Werder, ESPN

ESPN is running with the news that Jason Garrett is out, not only as head coach but that he will not be with the organization in 2020. So far, there has not been confirmation from the Cowboys so we still wait to hear official news.

Jason Garrett’s time with the Dallas Cowboys is coming to an end.

A source told ESPN’s Ed Werder that after showing an “abundance of care and respect” for Garrett, Jerry Jones and Stephen Jones have decided the coach will not be part of the organization moving forward.

According to multiple sources, the Joneses and Garrett did not have their scheduled meeting at The Star on Thursday after meeting on Monday and Tuesday without any resolution on the coach’s status. Garrett’s contract is set to expire on Jan. 14 and his status with the team has been an issue since last February when the Cowboys opted not to offer him an extension.

For now, we wait for further confirmation.

We also had this tweet:

The rest of the news links come from before ESPN’s announcement and may, or may not, still be relevant.

Several factors fueling delayed announcement in Dallas with regards to the future of Jason Garrett - Patrik Walker, CBSSports.com
Jason Garrett's future with Cowboys is unknown and there are several factors that are delaying this announcement.

Is this all simply a long, drawn-out way for the Cowboys to announce Garrett will return as head coach?

Put nothing past Jones, admittedly, but the expectation remains the same, in that Garrett will not receive a new contract to remain head coach of the Cowboys -- barring a miracle rivaling the one that occurred on 34th Street.

The more likely scenario is that Jones is having a hard time doing what will ultimately be done anyway, and for understandable reasons, regardless of who agrees. The Hall of Fame owner has a mountain of time, money and energy invested in the growth of Garrett as an NFL mind, and it goes back much further than when the latter was brought to Dallas as offensive coordinator in 2007. Even when Garrett served as backup for Troy Aikman during the Jimmy Johnson era, he was allowed to sit in on coaches’ meetings to get a better understanding of what it took to truly lead an NFL club.

Talks continue to touch on idea of Jason Garrett staying with the Cowboys in some capacity in 2020 - RJ Ochoa, Blogging The Boys
The longer Jerry Jones and Stephen Jones deliberate, the more people think that Jason Garrett sticks around with the Cowboys.

While the idea of general manager Jason Garrett is definitely far-fetched, we still could be looking at a world that keeps him around the team in some other sort of capacity. What kind? We can only guess.

But consider that these rumblings are coming from reliable reports like Slater, and as recently as Thursday morning, ESPN’s Adam Schefter. In appearing on GetUp, Schefter noted that there is a “remote” possibility that Garrett stays as the team’s head coach but that the organization could find a way to keep him in the “family.”

Adam Schefter: You have to understand that the Joneses run the Cowboys like a family organization. They are a family organization. And Jason Garrett is a part of the family. And because he’s a part of the family, it’s hard to take him out of the family. This has gone on for so long, you wonder if they’re going to carve out a role for him to stay within the family somehow. I don’t think anybody believes that he’s staying on as the head coach of the Dallas Cowboys.

Mike Greenberg: That’s the important piece that I want to get here. The fact that this is taking as long, or as comparatively long, as it is, does not mean in your mind that there is a significant chance he comes back as head coach?

Adam Schefter: I was told there is a remote chance of that happening. Remote. So it’s not out of the question, you never know. But it’s not likely. It’s not the expected outcome. But I guess it can’t be completely dismissed.

The Dallas Cowboys Need to Take a Gamble With Next Head Coach - Jess Haynie, Inside the Star
Jerry Jones and the Cowboys front office need to swing for the fences when they start their hunt for a head coach.

It’s time for Jerry Jones to take a real gamble again, like he hasn’t done since hiring Jimmy about 30 years ago. Otherwise, the risk is not really improving this team much or at all from what we’ve seen the last decade.

I don’t necessarily mean pulling someone from the college ranks, either. Yes, I think a guy like Lincoln Riley or Matt Rhule would be the right kind of hire at this point. But I’m not limiting my search there.

What about a guy with some baggage like Josh McDaniels? Yes, he had a bad run as Broncos head coach 10 years ago. But like Belichick when he went back to working for Bill Parcells, McDaniels has been learning from from a legend and perhaps will be stronger for his bad experience.

As a Jedi master once said, “the greatest teacher, failure is.”

Hopefully, Jerry Jones has learned from these 25 years of ultimate failure with the Dallas Cowboys. It’s been a long time since we added to the trophy case and a lot of that has had to do with uninspired choices for head coaches.

The next Cowboys head coach’s first order of business should be to fix the defense - Kevin Sherrington, SportsdayDFW
The next man who steps into fill the shoes of Cowboys' head coach will have a messy defense to sort out and fix first.

The next head coach’s first order of business is to fix this defense. They need help up front and, as always, on the back end. What they need more than anything, though, is a grounding in fundamentals. Basic stuff. Like tackling. And lining up.

Looking at you, Michael Bennett.

In his brief tenure, Bennett proved to be the classic Cowboy. Played hard and made some big plays. And then he’d blow everything up by jumping offsides.

Frankly, you didn’t need a Hall of Fame quarterback or a wiz-bang play-caller to beat the Cowboys.

Just a hard snap count.

Hard to say exactly where the Cowboys’ defense went wrong this year. Except for Byron Jones and Jeff Heath, of all people, everyone who was here the year before went backwards. Coincidence? The definition of poor coaching, if you ask me. Maybe Rod Marinelli and Kris Richard simply didn’t mix well. Whatever the reason, the only area more disappointing than the Cowboys’ defense was on special teams, which were awful. And as Jerry famously said after the loss in Foxborough, special teams are all about coaching.

Troy Aikman thinks Jerry Jones needs to give up some control for Cowboys to find tangible success - SportsdayDFW
Troy Aikman thinks that nothing will change on the field for the Cowboys until Jerry Jones changes the way the front office operates.

Aikman: I think there needs to be one voice. I don’t think that players should be hearing from anyone other than one person and I don’t think the public should be hearing anything other than from one person and that should be the head coach.

There are some teams out there that really want to win. I mean, everybody wants to win, right? But some teams will do anything they can and they don’t even know where to begin. There is more than one way to win. I understand that and I appreciate that. But in Dallas, the way we did it, the only way It has been done under the Jones ownership has been with the head coach that everyone answered to. There was no question in the locker room who was determining our future and that was Jimmy Johnson.

Cowboys fans & media don't understand why Jerry Jones hasn't made a decision regarding his head coach- Mickey Spagnola, DallasCowboys.com
Jerry Jones only marches to one beat and that's his own. As many wait for a decision regarding Jason Garrett, nothing seems imminent.

So we hurry up and wait.

And while we do wait, most impatiently, for Cowboys owner Jerry Jones’ decision on Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett and his expiring contract, let’s have a short history lesson.

In 1998, when the Cowboys parted ways with head coach Barry Switzer, Jones did not announce hiring Chan Gailey to coach the Dallas Cowboys until Feb. 12, nearly two weeks after the Super Bowl.

In 2000, after Jerry decided to move on from Gailey after seasons of 10-6 and 8-8, he didn’t name Dave Campo head coach until Jan. 26, the week of the Super Bowl. And, by the way, since Jones knew after three consecutive 5-11 seasons under Campo he was going to make a change as soon as the season was over, he quickly hired Bill Parcells, as a matter of fact, 17 years ago to today, Jan. 2, 2003.

As the (Jerry) World Turns the Cowboys are now a soap opera of Dallas proportions - Clarence Hill, Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Days removed from the Cowboys tumultuous 2019 season ending in disappointment, the Cowboys world is resembling a soap opera.

Now, there is speculation of whether the two sides are discussing retaining Garrett in another capacity, possibly in the front office. That is also a nonstarter.

Garrett specifically said following the season-ending 47-16 victory against the Washington Redskins last Sunday that he wants to continue coaching. He would like it to be with the Cowboys, but he wants to continue coaching period.

Also, there is no legitimate place of substance for him in the front office. The aforementioned Jerry Jones is the general manager. Stephen Jones is vice president of player personnel. And Will McClay runs the scouting department.

Additionally, what prospective new coach would comfortable with his predecessor walking the halls with a direct voice to ownership.

The delay continues but the only logical outcome and resolution remains the same. The Cowboys will move on from Garrett and begin the search for a new coach.

Is a Dak-Friendly Greg Roman of Ravens a 'Name To Keep An Eye On' in Cowboys coaching search? - Mike Fisher, Sports Illustrated
One candidate that is growing his popularity as a potential head coach for the Cowboys is Ravens' OC Greg Roman. Could he be a match made for the Cowboys current personnel?

Does offensive creativity matter? Even if its “run-first’’ creativity? Does the nurturing of QB Dak Prescott matter? Yes, so much so that our colleague Charles Robinson of Yahoo writes, “I’m told there is some support for a look at Roman. Dak isn’t Lamar Jackson, but Roman’s run-dominant concepts are appealing.’’

Jackson and Prescott are different players, and another successful pupil, Colin Kaepernick (Roman was his offensive coordinator in San Francisco when the Niners went to the Super Bowl) is different still. But getting the most out of quarterbacks is certainly on his resume. And with the Joneses completely committed to paying Dak as their “franchise QB,’’ that may be “Line 1’’ around here, as Garrett likes to say.

The Cleveland Browns have officially been granted permission to interview Roman for their head coach opening. Other teams will likely follow suit, and if the Ravens remain as hot in the NFL Playoffs as they were in the regular season, he’ll have additional suitors.

When does all of this happen?

“I think everything has its place,” said 22-year NFL assistant Roman, whose Ravens have a first-round bye. “You’ve got to be able to compartmentalize. … When that opportunity comes, it will be addressed. Right now ... My focus is certainly on our guys and our team and our offense.”

What Should Expectations Be For The Cowboys in 2020? Rob Phillips & David Helman, DallasCowboys.com
Would it be too much to ask for the Cowboys to make a quick rebound in 2020?

Rob: We still don’t know the future of the coaching staff. We do know that the young core of the roster is expected to be back, starting with Dak Prescott, whether he’s on a long-term deal or not. The biggest questions to me are on defense. Six players who started games last year are eligible for unrestricted free agency, including top cornerback Byron Jones. The offensive personnel looks more solidified, even though Amari Cooper also has an expiring contract.

David: It’s tough to even guess what to expect until we see how the coaching situation gets resolved. But regardless of what happens, the goal will remain the same: “take the next step.” I still think this is a talented roster. The Cowboys have some tough decisions to make, but I don’t see why they can’t field a squad that’s capable of making the playoffs in 2020.

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