Getty Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones surveys the field before an NFL game.
The Dallas Cowboys aren’t finished with the 2022 season, but the Denver Broncos are already looking into hiring a key staff member as their head coach.
Dallas is currently reeling from a disastrous finish to the regular season as the team suffered a 26-6 defeat to the Washington Commanders. But while the team figures out how to rebound, the Broncos are zeroing in on defensive coordinator Dan Quinn.
NFL media insider Ian Rapoport broke the news on January 9, stating that the AFC West franchise has officially inquired about interviewing Quinn.
“The #Broncos have requested permission to speak with #Cowboys DC Dan Quinn, source said. One of their top candidates last year, one of their top candidates this year,” Rapoport wrote on Twitter.
Quinn has been considered one of the best coordinators on the defensive side of the ball since joining the Cowboys, and it always felt like he would get another opportunity to become a head coach. Now, those chances are starting to materialize.
While Dallas fans may expect Quinn to move on, he and the Cowboys’ defense still have an important job to do in this year’s playoffs.
Quinn May Earn Second HC Shot with Broncos
Just two years into his first NFL head coaching job with the Atlanta Falcons, Quinn was playing for a Super Bowl. Everyone knows of the Falcons’ storied collapse to the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LI, but the context around it matters just as much.
After success with the Seattle Seahawks as the defensive coordinator for the 2013 and 2014 seasons, the Falcons hired Quinn and nearly found immediate success. Atlanta barely missed the playoffs at 8-8, setting the table for the 2016 season.
The Falcons earned a first-week bye by going 11-5, then defeating the Seahawks and the Green Bay Packers to face the Patriots. Despite the heartbreaking Super Bowl loss, Atlanta followed up with another playoff campaign in 2017 but lost to the Super Bowl-winning Philadelphia Eagles.
From there, the wheels began to fall off. Quinn went a mediocre 15-17 over the next two seasons, before an 0-5 start to the 2020 campaign led to his firing. The Cowboys’ defensive coordinator finished with a 44-43 record in Atlanta.
Quinn Revitalizes Cowboys’ Defense
There’s no question that Dallas has a talented defense, but a big reason for its success is the mentality and approach Quinn has established: get the football.
Every team wants to force turnovers and takeaways, but Quinn seemingly hangs a lot of his team’s success on the ability to do so. Dallas has allowed 20.1 points per game in 2022, good enough for fifth-best according to TeamRankings.com, but it’s their turnover rate that leads the league.
In the 2021 and 2022 regular seasons, the Cowboys led the NFL in turnovers, forcing 34 and 33 respectively. Creating big plays with that kind of consistency is not easy to do, but Quinn has utilized the talents of players like corner Trevon Diggs and defensive end Micah Parsons to great effect.
When you consider that the Broncos have talents like 2022 Pro Bowler CB Patrick Surtain, bringing Quinn in to maximize their play-making ability makes plenty of sense.