FRISCO, Texas – The Cowboys reached an agreement with former Atlanta Falcons coach Dan Quinn to become the Cowboys’ next defensive coordinator.
Reports emerged on Monday that Quinn was flying in for a job interview after the Cowboys parted ways with first-year defensive coordinator Mike Nolan last Friday.
The Cowboys reportedly had virtual interviews with Falcons secondary coach / passing game coordinator Joe Whitt Jr. and Carolina Panthers defensive passing game coordinator Jason Simmons. Both worked on the previous team of Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy in Green Bay. Cowboys senior defensive assistant George Edwards was also on the expected interview list.
But the Cowboys decided on Quinn, the former 2015-20 Falcons coach who led Atlanta to a Super Bowl appearance in 2016 and previously served as the defensive coordinator for the Seattle Seahawks’ “Legion of Boom” defense in 2013-14 who won a Super Bowl and reached another.
The Falcons dismissed Quinn from his role as head coach last October after a 0-5 game, including a 40-39 loss to the Cowboys in Week 2.
During his two years in Seattle, Quinn ran one of the most talented defenders in NFL history. 2013 champion Seahawks conceded just 14.4 points per game and led the league in total and defending passes, defeating the Broncos led by Peyton Manning in Super Bowl XLVIII.
Last Friday, the Cowboys split from Nolan and defense coach Jim Tomsula after the defense ended the season with the most points allowed (473) and the second most run yards allowed (2,541) in franchise history .
It remains to be seen what kind of scheme Quinn will install in Dallas, but a strong tip: he ran a traditional 4-3 scheme in Seattle, and Atlanta mostly had a 4-3 base appearance as well.
In 2020, Nolan installed a more multiple layout than the 4-3 system that Rod Marinelli and Kris Richard ran in previous years for Dallas. But the change never came in consistently, in part due to a completely virtual off-season program during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I totally underestimated the impact of not being with the team in early spring and during the training camp,” said Cowboys owner / general manager Jerry Jones, last Tuesday at 105.3 The Fan. “With the change in the coach, and if you want, especially on the defensive side of the line, if you want, a change in technique, a change in some philosophy there.”
The Cowboys are now ready to restart defense with Quinn as the new coordinator.