Getty Cowboys OC Kellen Moore
Dallas Cowboys offensive coordinator Kellen Moore will interview for the Jacksonville Jaguars‘ head-coaching position on Friday, January 7, NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reports.
Pelissero’s coworker, Ian Rapoport, added that Moore will get “multiple interviews” as the Jaguars cast a wide net to replace Urban Meyer. The team has also been linked to former Houston Texans head coach Bill O’Brien, former Philadelphia Eagles HC Doug Pederson, former Indianapolis Colts HC Jim Caldwell, Green Bay Packers OC Nathaniel Hackett, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers OC Byron Leftwich and defensive coordinator Todd Bowles, per reports.
According to Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News, Moore’s meeting will take place via Zoom from the team hotel in Philadelphia with the Cowboys preparing to face the Eagles in Saturday’s regular-season finale.
“Cowboys OC Kellen Moore to interview with Jaguars tonight via Zoom for their head coach position, source said. Moore can do so from his hotel room in Philadelphia with preparation for Saturday evening’s game vs. Eagles complete,” Gehlken tweeted.
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Moore Discussed HC Job Prospects
The big-brained play-caller held his weekly press conference on Thursday, January 6 and addressed the Jaguars’ interest in potentially hiring him to succeed Meyer, who was relieved of his duties in December. Moore reaffirmed that his priority remains with the Cowboys, its Week 18 matchup and impending playoff run.
“Oh, I think obviously that’s why you have agents,” he told reporters, via DallasCowboys.com. “They’re allowed to go through that process and I’m really just on Philadelphia and we’ll get to that when we get to it.”
He added: “I think those things will just pop up when they need to be addressed and I’m not too concerned with it right now.”
Moore, 33, is completing his third season as Dallas’ OC, having previously declined to pursue college HC openings at Boise State and TCU. Under his tutelage, the 11-5 Cowboys’ offense currently leads the NFL in scoring while ranking second in total yards per game and third in passing.
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Quinn Explains Reason for Turning Down JAX
Another candidate connected to the Jaguars was Dallas defensive boss Dan Quinn. “Was,” because the 51-year-old rejected the organization’s interview request, removing his name from the running.
Reading between the lines, Quinn does not seem all that intrigued by the thought of relocating to northern Florida and leading a full-scale rebuild of arguably the league’s most hapless franchise.
“Honestly, I’m just enjoying what I’m doing and really having the time of my life with this group of guys,” Quinn said on Thursday, January 6, via DallasCowboys.com. “And so I just wanted to kind of be right where I’m at. It was nothing more than that or past that, so that’s where it went.”
After coaxing a Pro Bowl season from cornerback Trevon Diggs and developing the soon-to-be Defensive Rookie of the Year in Micah Parsons, the former Falcons head man has repeatedly expressed an intention to stay put — a bigger fish in a smaller pond.
“I wasn’t coming here to look what my next job would be. I wanted to come in here, have a blast and hopefully kick a**,” Quinn said on December 27, per The Athletic’s Jon Machota. “If (head coaching opportunities) come, I’ll be ready for them…But I’m having a blast being right here with this crew and going for it.”