Rather than formally dismiss him on Black Monday, amid exit interviews and extended farewells, the Dallas Cowboys opted for a second meeting with head coach Jason Garrett.
Tuesday’s pow-wow between the 53-year-old and his bosses, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and team vice president Stephen Jones, proved just as fruitless.
The trio spoke for about an hour-and-a-half before Dallas coaches and staff members, per NFL Network’s Jane Slater, were sent home for the day — a sign that no announcement on Garrett’s is forthcoming.
What’s more, the Dallas Morning News’ David Moore reports a third meeting is scheduled for an undisclosed date as the Joneses drag out what should have been an open-and-shut decision.
“Jason Garrett will have yet another discussion with Jerry & Stephen Jones before his status is resolved, a source said. It’s unclear at this time when that discussion will take place,” Moore tweeted.
What could they possibly need to discuss after the Cowboys logged their sixth playoff-less season under Garrett? What else is left to consider following a disappointing 8-8 finish underscored by brutal losses to the Jets, Bears, and Eagles? It’s baffling that, while other teams get a jump on their coaching searches, the Cowboys are slow-playing the process, taking a simple matter and making it mind-numbingly difficult.
One tinfoil-head theory suggests the brain trust is working out an arrangement to reassign Garrett in a new, front-office role. Local media members, including The Athletic’s Bob Sturm, aren’t so sure, however.
I know this is growing in popularity, but I say it is roughly a 0% chance Garrett stays in a front office capacity. Coaches want to coach and he is a coach.
Jerry Jones claimed after Sunday’s season-ending victory over the Redskins that he envisions making wholesale changes, but there’s “no door shut here” and no “sharable timeline” in mind regarding Garrett’s fate.
“What I wouldn’t do, in anything I’m saying here tonight, is shut any door,” Jones said, via Pro Football Talk. “I really want to make sure I’m clear about that and communicate that: There’s no door shut here tonight. None, anywhere, is shut. This is not what that is about shutting a door of an individual. I’m not doing that here.”
For what it’s worth, Moore reported Monday it’s “still a matter of when, not if” Garrett is axed and his successor procured.
Which posits the million-dollar question: When is “when?”
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Cowboys Add Alluring Candidate to Coaching Search: Report
According to Yahoo Sports’ Charles Robinson, “there is some support” within the Cowboys organization to sniff around “run-dominant” Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator Greg Roman, who’s drawing league-wide interest in this year’s coaching cycle.
“A name to keep an eye on with the #Cowboys: #Ravens OC Greg Roman. With the Garrett situation still unresolved, Dallas hasn’t requested an interview, but I’m told there is some support for a look at Roman,” Robinson tweeted Tuesday. “Dak isn’t Lamar Jackson, but Roman’s run-dominant concepts are appealing.”
Robinson’s report came on the heels of a Monday tweet in which he termed the Cowboys’ potential search for Garrett’s replacement “a bit of a mystery,” as they’ve yet to schedule interviews with prospective candidates or even officially oust Garrett.
“Thus far, the candidate group has a strong college theme w/ Rhule, Riley & Meyer,” Robinson wrote. “I’m not sold on Meyer being realistic, but Jason Garrett, Lincoln Riley and Urban all having the same agency repping them might explain some of this ambiguity.”
A career assistant, Roman, 47, has experienced success in each NFL stop — from San Francisco (2011-14) to Buffalo (2015-16) to Baltimore (2017-present). He coaxed production out of quarterbacks ranging from Colin Kaepernick to Joe Flacco to, now, MVP favorite Lamar Jackson, the engine behind the AFC’s No. 1 seed.
Under Roman’s tutelage, in his first year as a full-time starter, Jackson completed 265-of-401 balls (66.1 percent) for 3,127 yards, 36 touchdowns and only six interceptions. He added 1,206 yards and seven TDs on 176 carries, breaking Michael Vick’s single-season QB rushing record.
READ NEXT: Cowboys Take Surprising Course of Action with Jason Garrett: Report
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Latest Update Brings Head-Scratching Confusion to Jason Garrett, Cowboys Saga