Dan Quinn's New Cowboys Defense - Dallas Sports Nation

With Mike Nolan fired, and for a good reason, the Dallas Cowboys held interviews to replace the defensive coordinator.

The Dallas Cowboys allowed the most points in franchise history and finished at a 31st ranking in the run defense. Having an offense that had to score 40 points every time to stay in the game was unacceptable.

And even though there was an improvement in some areas, Mike Nolan had to be let go for the defense to showcase the talent on that side of the ball.

After a few short days of interviews, two of those being Joe Whitt Jr. and Jason Simmons. With both having a background in Green Bay with Mike McCarthy, the front office set their focus quickly.

That focus being three year deal with Dan Quinn: former head coach for the Atlanta Falcons.

Dan Quinn was fired as the Falcons head coach in 2020 in 5 games after going 0-5. Alarming for sure, but one season or even a couple of seasons can’t create a legacy. In his five years in Atlanta, Quinn coached a 43-42 record. That record including a trip to that infamous 28-3 Super Bowl. When you look at Dan Quinn’s head coaching career, you scoff and want him as far away from your team as possible. However, when you look at his coaching career of the job he was hired for, you can see that he would make a great defensive coordinator.

As defensive coordinator in the NFL, Quinn started his career as a leader of the special, and emphasis on special, Seattle Seahawks defense in 2013 and 2014. They held the title of the number one defense both years. The Legion of Boom really wreaked havoc on offenses. And in both of those years that Quinn was defensive coordinator, the Seattle Seahawks were able to make back-to-back Super Bowls.

Now that defense doesn’t have Kam Chancellor, Richard Sherman, or Earl Thomas (…yet…maybe), but energy, preparation, and attitude are everything. There is talent on that football team, and if there could be a coach to get into the bottoms of those players and tell them what they need to do with some fire and technique, they could be a real problem to offenses other than their own.

The feedback from Cowboys Nation and others is about half and half. When you look at Dan Quinn’s career as a whole, there are holes. But one thing about this hire is that it gives the Dallas Cowboys a chance.

With the sparks of hope and promise that the defense showed with a subpar defensive coordinator, imagine what they can do with someone with grit. It takes away their excuses.